In the latter part of January, 1862, it became evident that General
Johnson, with the inferior force at his disposal, could not hold his
line in Kentucky. Crittenden, upon the right flank, had sustained a
serious disaster at Mill Springs, near Somerset, and had been forced
back across the Cumberland, which he had crossed to attack Thomas. In
this battle General Zollicoffer was killed--his death was in itself an
irreparable loss. Crittenden retreated first upon Monticello and
subsequently to Gainesville in Tennessee. He lost his artillery and
trains, and his troops could be relied on to oppose no effective
resistance--for the time--to the farther advance of the enemy. The
superiority of the latter in numbers had been not more marked than their
superiority in arms and equipment. The fatigue and privation endured by
Crittenden's men upon their retreat had contributed greatly to impair
their efficiency. The expeditions against Forts Henry and Donelson were
vigorously pressed, and scarcely had full confirmation arrived of the
defeat of Crittenden, when we got the first rumors of the fall of Fort
Henry. General Johnson had never been able to collect at all the points
of defense in Kentucky, exclusive of Columbus, more than twenty-four
thousand men. In this force were included sixty-days' men and all the
minor garrisons. He had at Bowlinggreen in January and the first of
February about ten thousand.
Buell had organized, during the period that the two armies lay inactive
and confronting each other, fifty or sixty thousand men, and they were,
at the time when General Johnson commenced his retreat, concentrated,
mobilized, and ready to fall upon him. Therefore, even before it became
evident that Donelson must fall, before the capture of Nashville was
imminent, by an enemy moving from either flank, and before his line of
retreat was endangered, but just so soon as Buell put his army in motion
General Johnson evacuated Bowlinggreen. Then began the campaign, in
which more than in any other of the war, was displayed the profoundest
strategy, the most heroic decision, the highest order of generalship.
General Johnson had long foreseen the storm of difficulties which now
assailed him. His resources were scanty and the emergency was terrible,
but he did not despair of fighting through it to victory. Upon one flank
of his line, he had sustained a crushing defeat, the forces protecting
it had been driven off. Nashville might be taken by the victors. One of
the forts protecting the great water lines which led right into the
heart of his department, and away to the rear of his army, had been
taken. If the other fell the fate of Nashville was sealed, but far
worse, he would be inclosed at Bowlinggreen, should he remain there,
between three armies each much stronger than his own. If he lingered
around Nashville, he could not protect the city, but gave his enemy the
opportunity of cutting him off completely from the only territory whence
he could hope to obtain recruits, and of preventing his junction with
the reinforcements which he had ordered to his assistance. He did not
hesitate a moment.
Price and Van Dorn were ordered from Arkansas, Bragg was ordered from
Pensacola, all the available troops at New Orleans, and every point in
the department where troops were stationed, were called into the field,
and the concentration of all at Corinth, in Northern Mississippi, was
arranged. Here he would have every thing massed and in hand, and in his
rear would be no danger, nor indefensible line by which danger could
menace him. His adversaries on the contrary would be separated from each
other; rivers and all the perils of a hostile population would be
between them and safety, if they were defeated or forced to turn and
retreat; energy and promptness would enable him to strike them heavy
blows before they could unite; if every detail of his plan worked right,
he might hope to outnumber them at every collision.
This plan would require the evacuation of Columbus, even if the
occupation of New Madrid did not; but there was no longer any use of
holding Columbus, after a retreat to Mississippi had been decided upon.
Its garrison would help to swell the ranks of the army for the decisive
battle--and if that battle were won, territory far North of Columbus
would be gained. Therefore, braving censure and remonstrance more
general, energetic, and daring, than was ever encountered by any
Confederate officer, before or since, General Johnson turned his back
upon Kentucky and commenced the retreat which culminated in the battle
of Shiloh. When the dangers from which this retreat extricated him, the
favorable position in which it placed him for offensive operations, the
exact calculation of the proper time to turn retreat into attack, and
the electric rapidity and courage with which the latter was done--when
all the features are considered, is it claiming too much to say that no
conception of the war was more magnificent?
The evacuation of Bowlinggreen was commenced on the 14th of February,
and notwithstanding the discontent of the troops, was accomplished in
perfect order. On the day after it was all over, the enemy arrived upon
the opposite bank of Barren river--the bridges had all, of course, been
burned--and shelled the town which he could not immediately enter.
The weather for the week following the evacuation, was intensely cold,
and the troops accustomed, for the most part, to comfortable quarters
during the winter, and exposed for the first time to real hardships,
suffered severely. Still, after the first murmuring was over, they were
kept in high spirits by the impression, assiduously cultivated by their
officers, that they were marching to surprise and attack Thomas, who was
supposed to have compromised himself by an imprudent pursuit of
Crittenden.
The news from Donelson, where the fight was then raging, was very
favorable, and the successful defense of the fort for several days
encouraged even General Johnson to hope that it would be held and the
assailants completely beaten off.
As the army neared Nashville, some doubts of the truth of the programme
which the men had arranged in their imaginations began to intrude, and
they began to believe that the retreat meant in good earnest the giving
up of Kentucky--perhaps something more which they were unwilling to
contemplate. While they were in this state of doubt and anxiety, like a
thunder-clap came the news of the fall of Donelson--the news that seven
thousand Confederate were prisoners in the hands of the enemy.
General Johnson, himself, was thoroughly surprised by the suddenness of
the disaster, for, six hours before he received information of the
surrender, he had been dispatched that the enemy had been signally
repulsed, and were drawing off, and until the intelligence came of the
fate of the garrison, he had learned of no new attack. The depression,
which this information produced, was deepened by the gloom which hung
over Nashville when the troops entered. It is impossible to describe the
scene. Disasters were then new to us, and our people had been taught to
believe them impossible. No subsequent reverse, although fraught with
far more real calamity, ever created the shame, sorrow, and wild
consternation which swept over the South with the news of the surrender
of Donelson. And in Nashville, itself sure to fall next and speedily, an
anguish and terror were felt and expressed, scarcely to be conceived by
those who have not witnessed a similar scene. All the worst evils which
follow in the train of war and subjugation seemed to be anticipated by
the terrified people, and the feeling was quickly communicated to the
troops, and grew with every hour until it assumed almost the proportions
of a panic. The Tennessee troops were naturally most influenced by the
considerations which affected the citizens, but all shared the feeling.
Some wept at the thought of abandoning the city to a fate which they
esteemed as dreadful as utter destruction, and many, infuriated, loudly
advocated burning it to the ground that the enemy might have nothing of
it but its ashes.
During the first night after the army reached Nashville, when the
excitement and fury were at the highest pitch, and officers and privates
were alike influenced by it, it seemed as if the bonds of discipline
would be cast off altogether. Crowds of soldiers were mingled with the
citizens who thronged the streets all night, and yells, curses, shots
rang on all sides. In some houses the women were pale and sobbing, and
in others there was even merriment, as if in defiance of the worst. Very
soon all those who had escaped from Donelson began to arrive.
Forrest had cut his way through the beleaguering lines and brought off
his entire regiment. He reached Nashville on the day after it was
entered by the army. It was impossible for the infantry men who escaped
to make their way from the scene of disaster, except in small
detachments. They were necessarily scattered all over the country, and
those who reached Nashville in time to accompany the army upon its
farther march, came in as stragglers and without any organization.
Neither men nor officers had an idea of how or when they were to do duty
again. The arrival of these disbanded soldiers, among whom it was
difficult to establish and enforce order, because no immediate
disposition could be made of them, increased the confusion already
prevailing. Rumors, too, of the near approach of the enemy were
circulated, and were believed even by officers of high rank.
Buell's army, which was really not far south of Bowlinggreen, was
reported to be within a few miles of the city, and the Federal gunboats,
which had not yet reached Clarksville, were confidently declared to be
within sight of Fort Zollicoffer, only seven miles below Nashville.
Upon the second day matters had arrived at such a state, and the
excitement and disorder were so extreme, that it became necessary to
take other precautions to repress the license that was prevailing,
besides the establishment of guards and sentinels about the camps where
the troops lay, and General Johnson ordered the establishment of a
strong military police in Nashville. The First Missouri infantry, one of
the finest and best disciplined regiments in the service, was detailed
for this duty, and Morgan's squadron was sent to assist it. Our duty was
to patrol the city and suburbs, and we were constantly engaged at it
until the city was evacuated. General John B. Floyd, of Virginia, was
appointed commandant of Nashville, and entrusted with the enforcement of
discipline and with all the details of the evacuation. His task was one
of no ordinary difficulty. It was hard, at such a time, to know how to
begin the work. In such a chaos, with such passions ruling, it seemed
folly to hope for the restoration of order. Those who remember the
event, will recall the feeling of despair which had seized upon the
soldiery--the entire army seemed, for the time, hopeless of any
retrieval of our fortunes, and every man was thoroughly reckless. Few
excesses were committed; but, with such a temper prevailing, the worst
consequences were to be apprehended, if the influence of the officers
should be entirely lost and the minds of the men should be directed to
mischief. General Floyd would have found the demoralization and license
which had grown apace among the troops, and the terrors of the citizens,
serious impediments to his efforts to remove the valuable stores which
had been collected in Nashville, even if he had possessed abundant
facilities for their removal. But of such facilities he was almost
entirely destitute. The trains with the army were needed for
transportation of supplies for immediate use. The scanty wheel
transportation which belonged to captured and disorganized commands, and
had been brought to the city, could scarcely be made available. When it
could be discovered and laid hold of, the wagons and teams were usually
found to be unserviceable. General Floyd's first care (after satisfying
himself by active scouting, that there was no truth in the reports of
the proximity of the enemy, and burning the bridge at Edgefield
junction), was to make arrangements for saving as many of the stores as
was possible, giving the preference to ordnance stores. For this purpose
he ordered an impressment of transportation in Nashville and the
vicinity, making a clean sweep of every thing that ran on wheels. In
this manner some eighty or ninety vehicles were gotten together, with
teams, and as many loads of ordnance stores were saved for the army. He
issued orders that the citizens should be permitted to help themselves
to the remaining stores, and a promiscuous scramble for clothing,
blankets, meat, meal, and all sorts of quartermaster and commissary
stores, commenced and lasted three days. Occasionally, a half-drunken,
straggling soldier, would walk into the midst of the snatchers, with gun
on shoulder and pistol at his belt, and the citizens would stand back,
jackall like, until he had helped himself. Crowds would stand upon the
pavements underneath the tall buildings, upon the Court House Square,
while out of their fourth and fifth-story windows large bales of goods
were pitched, which would have crushed any one upon whom they had
fallen. Yet numbers would rush and fasten upon them, while other bales
were already in the air descending. Excitement and avarice seemed to
stimulate the people to preternatural strength. I saw an old woman,
whose appearance indicated the extremest decrepitude, staggering under a
load of meat which I would have hardly thought a quartermaster's mule
could carry. Twice during the first day of these scenes, orders were
received by a portion of Forrest's regiment, drawn up on the Square, to
stop the appropriation of stores by the citizens, and they accordingly
charged the crowd (deaf to any less forcible reason) with drawn sabers;
several men were wounded and trampled upon, but fortunately none were
killed. Nothing could have been more admirable than the fortitude,
patience and good sense which General Floyd displayed in his arduous and
unenviable task. He had, already, for ten days, endured great and
uninterrupted excitement and fatigue; without respite or rest, he was
called to this responsibility and duty. Those who have never witnessed
nor been placed in such situations, can not understand how they harass
the mind and try the temper.
General Floyd soon found that he could (with no exertion) maintain
perfect order, or rescue more than a fragment from the wreck, and he
bent all his energies to the task of repressing serious disorders,
preventing the worst outrages, and preserving all that was most
absolutely required for the use of the army, and that it was practical
to remove.
It was easy for officers who respectively saw and considered but one
matter, to advise attention to that in particular, and to censure if
their advice was not taken. But the very multiplicity of such
counsellors, embarrassed rather than assisted, and showed the utter
impossibility, in the brief time allowed, of attending to every thing. I
saw a great deal of General Floyd, while he was commanding in Nashville,
and I was remarkably impressed by him. I was required to report to him
almost every hour in the twenty-four, and he was always surrounded by a
crowd of applicants for all sorts of favors, and couriers bringing all
sorts of news. It was impossible in the state of confusion which
prevailed to prohibit or regulate this pressing and noisy attendance, or
to judge, without examination, of what was important to be considered.
Many matters which ordinarily a general officer would not permit himself
to be troubled with, might need attention and action from him at such a
time. Irascible and impetuous as General Floyd seemed to be by
nature--his nerves unstrung, too, by the fatigues of so many busy days
and sleepless nights--and galled as he must have been by the constant
annoyances, he yet showed no sign of impatience. I saw him give way but
once to anger, which was, then, provoked by the most stupid and insolent
pertinacity. It was interesting to watch the struggle which would
sometimes occur between his naturally violent temper and the restraint
he imposed upon it. His eye would glow, his face and his lips turn pale,
and his frame shake with passion; he would be silent for minutes, as if
not daring to trust himself to speak, looking all the while upon the
ground, and he would then address the man, whose brusqueness or
obstinacy had provoked him, in the mildest tone and manner. He was
evidently endowed with no common nerve, will, and judgment.
At last the evacuation was completed, the army was gotten clear of
Nashville, the last straggler driven out, all the stores which could not
be carried off, nor distributed to the citizens, burned, and the capitol
of Tennessee (although we did not know it then) was abandoned finally to
the enemy. Morgan's squadron was the last to leave, as it was required
to remain in the extreme rear of the army and pick up all the stragglers
that evaded the rear guards of the infantry. Our scouts left behind,
when we, in our turn, departed, witnessed the arrival of the Federals
and their occupation of the city.
The army was halted at Murfreesboro', thirty miles from Nashville, where
it remained for nearly a week. Here it was joined by the remnant of
Crittenden's forces. After a few days given to repose, reorganization
and the re-establishment of discipline, General Johnson resumed his
retreat. He concluded it with a battle in which he himself was the
assailant, and which, but for his death, would have advanced our banners
to the Ohio. It was fruitless of apparent and immediate results, but it
checked for more than a year the career of Federal conquest, infused
fresh courage into the Southern people, and gave them breathing time to
rally for farther contest. His death upon the field prevented vast and
triumphant results from following it then--the incompetency of his
successors squandered glorious chances (months afterward) which this
battle directly gave to the Confederacy. When the line of march was
taken up, and the heads of the columns were still turned southward, the
dissatisfaction of the troops broke out into fresh and frequent murmurs.
Discipline, somewhat restored at Murfreesboro', had been too much
relaxed by the scenes witnessed at Nashville, to impose much restraint
upon them. Unjust as it was, officers and men concurred in laying the
whole burden of blame upon General Johnson. Many a voice was then raised
to denounce him, which has since been enthusiastic in his praise, and
many joined in the clamor, then almost universal against him, who, a few
weeks later, when he lay dead upon the field he had so gallantly fought,
would have given their own lives to recall him.
Crossing the Tennessee river at Decatur, Alabama, and destroying the
immense railroad bridge at that point, General Johnson pressed on down
through the valley, through Courtland, Tuscumbia, and Iuca, to Corinth.
This was for a short time, until he could concentrate for battle, the
goal of his march. Here all the reinforcements at his command could
reach him, coming from every direction. He only awaited their arrival to
attack the enemy, which, flushed with the successes at Henry and
Donelson, lay exposed to his blows, ignorant of his vicinity.
The force with which he crossed the Tennessee river was a little over
twenty thousand men. It was composed of the troops which had held the
lines in Kentucky--those which had been stationed at Bowlinggreen, all
that was left of Crittenden's command, all that were left of the
garrisons of Donelson and Henry. The garrisons of minor importance
in Tennessee contributed, as the State was evacuated, to strengthen the
army. He was very soon joined by the forces from Pensacola, about ten
thousand strong, and a splendid body of men. They were superior in arms,
equipment, instruction and dress, to all of the Western troops, and
presented an imposing appearance and striking contrast to their
weather-stained, dusty and travel-worn comrades. Nothing had ever
occurred to them to impair their morale; they seemed animated by the
stern spirit and discipline which characterized their commander, and a
fit reserve with which to turn the tide of fortune. Beauregard brought
with him some troops from New Orleans and other parts of Louisiana.
General Polk came with the troops which had held Columbus. Several
hurriedly raised and organized regiments came from the various States of
the department. Price and Van Dorn, having between them fifteen
thousand veterans, did not arrive in season to participate in the
immediate movements which General Johnson had determined upon. A
knowledge that the retreat had been brought to a close and that a battle
was about to be fought in which we would attack, did more to inspirit
the troops and restore to them soldierly feeling and bearing, than any
efforts in behalf of discipline. The spirit of the men who had come from
Florida and other points not surrendered to the enemy had a favorable
influence upon the remainder, whose pride was aroused by the comparison
and example. The sudden and seemingly magical change from despondency to
highest hope, from a sullen indifference to duty to the most cheerful
alacrity and perfect subordination, showed how wonderfully susceptible
was the material which composed our army to the hopes inspired by a
daring policy. The same men who had dragged themselves reluctantly
along, as if careless of reputation and forgetful of the cause they had
to fight for, were now full of zeal, energy and confidence. Those who
had almost broken out into open mutiny, now rendered the promptest
obedience to every order. The denunciations they had uttered against
General Johnson, were silenced just so soon as they learned that he was
about to lead them to instant battle, and his name was never mentioned
except with becoming respect, and often with praise. In short, every
trace of demoralization disappeared--courage, pride and efficiency,
returned; and, from a condition not much better than that of an armed
mob, the army became again disciplined, valiant and reliable. While the
masterly ability and soldierly vigor and decision of General Johnson
must excite the profoundest admiration, those who remember him may be
pardoned for dwelling quite as much upon the grandeur, the loftiness,
the heroism of his character. In this we may look in vain for his peer,
except to the great Virginian, his immortal comrade, the man whom every
former Southern soldier must feel it is his religious duty to venerate.
Through all that period of sickening doubt, amidst all the reverses, in
the wide spread demoralization which attacked all ranks, General
Johnson towered like a being superior to the fears and fate of other
men. The bitter censure which was cast at him from all sides, could move
him to nothing weak or unworthy of his high nature. He gave way to no
anger or scorn--he deigned no argument or apology. When the President,
his devoted friend and warm admirer, urged him to supersede the officers
who had suffered defeat, he answered that they were brave, although
inexperienced men, and that he preferred to trust them until he could
find better.
He defended unsuccessful generals with his generous warmth, and reposed
in them a confidence, which saved them, but directed all the clamor
against himself. He entertained with courtesy and listened with
patience, to importunate, censorious civilians, while he had in his
pocket copies of dispatches which they had sent to Richmond furiously
denouncing him. Not one word was he ever heard to say in comment or
rebuke, while censure and detraction were most frequent against him, and
his zealous, paternal care for his army was never relaxed. His majestic
presence, calm and noble face and superb dignity, might themselves--it
would seem--have overawed and hushed the cavilers. Surely, there never
suffered a nobler, purer, braver martyr to senseless prejudice and
unjust, inconsiderate reproach.
While the enemy was retreating through Tennessee, Morgan's squadron
remained in the neighborhood of Nashville until all the detachments
which had been left in the rear to protect and ship off by rail the
stores and supplies (which could be hastily collected) at Murfreesboro',
Shelbyville, and other points, had gotten through with their work and
departed after the army. Morgan encamped his command at La Vergne, a
station upon the railroad, about half way between Nashville and
Murfreesboro'. This little place became quite famous in the subsequent
annals of the war. Morgan first brought its name into men's mouths,
Forrest and Wheeler kept it notorious.
Here, for the first time, we met the Fourth Ohio Cavalry--our
acquaintance afterward became more intimate, and lasted as long as that
gallant regiment was in the field. The Fourth was encamped at the
"Lunatic Asylum"--I asked one of the officers of the regiment
(subsequently) why they were sent _there_, but he did not seem to
know--eight miles from Nashville, on the Murfreesboro' pike, and seven
miles from La Vergne. Our respective "bases" were consequently pretty
close to each other. Our pickets used to stand in sight of theirs during
the day, and in hearing distance at night. The videttes treated each
other with respect and consideration, but the scouts were continually
slipping around through the woods and shooting some one. On one occasion
an officer of the Fourth placed some men in ambush in a thicket upon the
side of the road, and then with a small party rode down near to our
pickets, fired, turned and galloped away again, hoping that some of us
would be induced to follow and receive the fire of his ambuscade. The
night was dark, and by an unaccountable mistake the men in ambush fired
into their own friends as they passed--no damage was done, I believe,
except to horses.
One morning our pickets came rushing in with a party of the enemy in
pursuit (no unusual occurrence), and as we stood to arms, we
noticed--they were three or four hundred yards off--one of the pickets
some distance in the rear of the others, and almost in the clutches of
the enemy, who were peppering away at him. It was private Sam Murrill,
of Co. C., (afterward chief of my couriers, and a first rate soldier to
the end of the war), his horse was slow and blown, and the foremost
pursuer had gotten along side of him and presented his pistol at his
head. Murrill, too quick for him, fired first, and as his enemy dropped
dead from the saddle, seized pistol and horse, and, although closely
pushed, until the guns of his comrades drove back his daring pursuers,
brought both in triumph into camp. These small affairs were of daily
occurrence, but at last our opponents became more wary and circumspect,
and to obtain decided advantages, we had to go far into their lines. We
noticed finally that they adopted a practice of withdrawing their
pickets at night, from the points where they stood during the day, some
miles to the rear. Captain Morgan after making this discovery, resolved
to anticipate them at the place where they made their picket base at
night. He remained with a few men demonstrating all day in sight of the
outpost pickets, and just before nightfall made a circuit which carried
him far to their rear, previously to their withdrawal. He reached the
place (where he learned that a party of twenty-five or thirty stood
nightly), about the time that it was fairly dark.
It was a small house, in a yard some eighty or ninety feet square,
surrounded by a picket fence of cedar. He had with him nine men, of
these he detailed five to hold horses, and with the other four; all
armed with shot guns loaded with buck-shot, he lay down behind the low
fence. The horses were sent back some distance into the bushes. Captain
Morgan instructed his party to hold their fire until he gave the signal.
It was his intention to permit the party, which was expected, to pass
and then fire upon the rear--hoping thus to drive it down the road
toward his own camp and, following rapidly, capture it. When it arrived,
however, about twenty-five strong, the officer in command halted it
before it reached the point where we lay, but at a distance of not more
than thirty feet from us, so that we could distinctly hear every word
which was uttered. The officer in command talked with his guide for some
minutes, sending men to reconnoiter upon each side of the road in the
meantime. At length the officer ordered his men to enter the little
yard, and they came right up to the fence, and just upon the opposite
side from our position. Captain Morgan shouted the word "Now," and each
man arose and fired one barrel of his gun. The roar and the flash so
near, must have been terrible to men taken completely by surprise. The
officer fell immediately, and his party, panic stricken, filed toward
their camp. Another volley was delivered upon them as they ran. A chain
picket was established between the point where this happened and the
camp at the asylum; and we could hear shots fired at rapid intervals,
for minutes, as the fleeing party passed the men on post. Several
wounded men fell in the road, after they had fled a short distance.
A short time before he left La Vergne, Captain Morgan selected fifteen
men for an expedition to Nashville. Avoiding the high roads, he made his
way through the woods to the Lebanon pike, which he struck only a mile
from the city.
The vicinity of the city favored rather than endangered him, and he rode
down into the streets without attracting hostile observation. A patrol
of twenty or thirty cavalry, were making the round of the streets, and
he rode in the rear of this party. After reconnoitering for a short
time, he determined on his plan of operations. He sent all but five or
six of his men out into the thickets, a short distance from the city,
and, with those whom he kept, he made his way, dismounted and leading
the horses along the river bank, until he came near the reservoir, about
opposite to which, and a little out in the river, a steamboat was
anchored. This boat was one which was in the employ of the Federal
Government. It was Captain Morgan's desire to set her on fire, and let
her drift down into the midst of a number of other transports, which lay
a few hundred yards below, and were crowded with troops, hoping she
might fire them also. Three gallant young fellows volunteered to do the
work, and boarded the boat in an old canoe, which was found, bottom
upward, on the shore. They fired her, but could not cut her adrift, as
she was made fast at stem and stern, with chain cables, and thus the
best part of the plan was frustrated. The work was done in full view and
notice of the troops on the other transports, and the engineer and
workmen, on board of the boat, were brought to the shore. The names of
the young men, or rather boys, who did this, were Warfield, Garrett and
Buckner--the latter was soon afterward killed at Shiloh. The canoe was
so unmanageable that its crew came near falling into the hands of the
enemy--but accident favored them at the most perilous moment. A long
line of panel fence had drifted out into the river, one end still being
attached to the bank. When their paddles failed them in the swift
current, they fortunately came in reach of this, and they were enabled
to pull in by it to the shore. As soon as the land was gained, all
remounted their horses, watched for a while the rising flames and the
consternation of the fleet, and then, with three cheers for Morgan, rode
rapidly to rejoin their comrades.
Cavalry was sent in pursuit, but was left far behind. Captain Morgan
went straight across the country to the Murfreesboro' pike. As he gained
it he encountered a small body of Federal cavalry, attacked and drove it
into town. He lost only one man, but he was a capital soldier, Peter
Atherton by name.
He got back to La Vergne about twelve at night. After the thorough and
final evacuation of Murfreesboro', Captain Morgan withdrew to that place
with his command. He almost directly afterward sent the bulk of it to
the Shelbyville and Nashville road, with instructions to encamp about
twenty miles from Nashville, and picket and scout the adjacent country,
and all the neighboring roads. He retained with him at Murfreesboro',
about forty of his own men, and some fifty of Colonel Wirt Adams'
regiment of cavalry, under command of Lieutenant Colonel Wood, of that
regiment. This officer was exceedingly fond of the sort of service which
Morgan was performing, and had been with him constantly for ten or
twelve days. He preferred to remain with and report to him, although his
superior in rank, rather than accompany his own regiment on the retreat
of the army, and see no active work.
A day or two after he had made this disposition of this command, Captain
Morgan taking with him thirty-two of the men he had kept at
Murfreesboro', penetrated by bridle paths and traces through the woods,
to the immediate vicinity of the enemy's encampments at the Lunatic
Asylum.
At this time, Mitchell's entire brigade was encamped there. Stationing
his men in the thickets along the road, at various points, Captain
Morgan went systematically to work to catch every thing that should come
into sight. There was, of course, a great deal of passing to and from
the headquarters of the commanding officers and between the various
camps. No one anticipated danger there, and stragglers, couriers,
escorts, and guards, went carelessly and unsuspectingly along, into the
same bag. In the course of an hour or two eighty odd prisoners were
taken. Colonel Wood went off with twenty-eight of them, and, by some
oversight, sixty were started to Murfreesboro', later, guarded by only
ten men. A number of wagons had been also captured and burned. The teams
were used to mount the prisoners. One staff officer was captured and
sent off with the large hatch of prisoners. Captain Morgan remained
behind with one man, after he had sent off all the others. This sort of
service always gave him great pleasure, and he was loth to give it up.
As the number of passengers fell off, he rode down the road with his
companion, dressed like himself in a blue overcoat, to a point where a
guard of ten men were stationed under a Sergeant for some purpose. He
placed himself between them and their guns, made his follower put his
pistol to the head of the Sergeant and began to rate them for neglect of
duty. He represented himself as a Federal officer of high rank and
reminded them sternly and reproachfully that such careless guard as they
were then keeping had enabled Morgan to play all of his tricks. They had
been careless and were overwhelmed with just shame and mortification at
his rebuke. He at length ordered them all under arrest, and taking the
Sergeant's weapons from him and leaving the guns stacked--he could not
have carried them off without entrusting them to the prisoners--he
marched the whole party away. They were under the impression that
they were going to Mitchell's headquarters, but he got them mounted and
carried them to Murfreesboro'. In the meantime the smoke from the wagons
which were burned within half a mile of Mitchell's headquarters,
attracted attention and led to inquiry, and it was not long before what
was going on was discovered. Troops were at once dispatched to put a
stop to the mischief and beat off or follow the perpetrators. The Fourth
Ohio got on the track of the party guarding the sixty prisoners, and, as
its progress was necessarily slow, it was soon overtaken. Nothing could
be done but release the prisoners and run for it, and the whole escort
went off in rapid flight. One prisoner had, by a strange mistake, been
allowed to retain a loaded gun. As one of the guard who had been in the
extreme rear of the column dashed past this man, the latter fired and
grazed his face. The other turned in his saddle, fired and shot his
unexpected assailant dead. The pursuers had gotten close before they had
been perceived, and they pressed the chase vigorously. Over fences and
gulches, through fields and thickets, as hard as their horses could go,
fled the one party and followed the other for ten miles. One of our men
was killed, two or three wounded, and as many captured. Thirty-eight
prisoners were secured by Morgan--twenty-eight brought off by Wood, and
ten captured and escorted by himself. On the evening of the same day a
party of eighteen men were dispatched from the camp on the Shelbyville
road to push as close to Nashville as possible, and learn the position
of the Federal troops in that quarter. I was myself in command of the
party, and had an accurate knowledge of the points at which guards and
pickets had been previously stationed. On arriving in the vicinity of
these points--around which, without creating an alarm, it was desirable
to pass, in order to get near to the encampments and observe them
closely--they were found unoccupied. The party moved some three miles
further down the road without coming upon an enemy, although a day or
two before the picket posts had been thick in this quarter.
It was apparent that some plan for our benefit had caused this change,
and unusual caution became necessary. I had hoped to find some officers
quartered at the houses well in the rear of the reserve pickets, where
they would believe themselves secure, and to capture them, but I now
approached the houses, not with the expectation of making prisoners, but
of getting information. None of the citizens in that neighborhood had
ever seen any man in my party, and they would tell nothing, but their
alarm at seeing us, and evident anxiety to get rid of us, showed plainly
that they knew of the proximity of danger. At length, when in about six
hundred yards of the Cross-roads near "Flat Rock," I think it is called,
four miles from Nashville, and where it was confidently reported by our
informants that McCook's division was encamped, I halted and secreted
men and horses in the thick brush on the right hand side of the road,
and, with the guide, went forward on foot about a quarter of a mile,
until I suddenly heard the challenge of a picket. I judged from the
words I caught that it was the officer of the day making his rounds.
Soon a negro came down the road toward us, whom we caught and
questioned. He answered very glibly, and evinced too little fear, not to
excite suspicion that he came out to be captured with a made-up tale. He
said that there were ten men on picket at the Cross-roads. As a large
encampment was only a few hundred yards on the other side of this point,
his story did not seem credible. However, we had at last found an enemy.
Leaving five men to take care of the horses, in the thicket where they
were already concealed I carried the others through a wide meadow on the
right of the road which we had traveled (the Shelbyville and Nashville
pike) to the road which crossed it at "Flat Rock," striking the latter
about two hundred yards from the point of intersection. I was convinced
that the withdrawal of the pickets was part of a plan to entrap just
such scouting parties as ours, and that a strong force was in ambush at
the Cross-roads. There was little hope of accomplishing the objects of
the expedition, but the trap could, at least, be sprung, and there was a
chance of surprising the ambuscade. My men were armed with shot-guns and
pistols, the proper weapons for such an affair. I ordered them to follow
me in single-file in the direction of the enemy, instructing them to
hold their fire until we were challenged, and to then discharge their
weapons, and, without stopping to reload, make their way back to the
horses. The moon had just gone down as we began to move slowly down the
road. We made little noise, and were soon convinced by a chorus of
coughing, which broke on our ears as we neared them, that a pretty good
crowd was before us. When we had almost reached the point where the
roads cross, a Sergeant, with five or six men at his back, sprang up, so
near to us that I could have touched him by making another step, and
ordered "halt," in a low voice, evidently taking us for friends. Our
answer was a shot, and he fell dead. His comrades returned our fire, and
at once a line of men rose from the fence corners on the opposite side
of the road which we had just descended--we had passed them unseen in
the darkness. Many of them must have been asleep until alarmed by the
firing. The bulk of the force, however, was stationed upon the other
road, and, as they sprang up at the sudden uproar, and aimed at the
blaze of the guns, they endangered their own friends more than us. My
men sank at once upon their knees, and the enemy firing wildly and high,
did not touch one of them. They pointed their shot-guns low, and every
flash was followed by a groan, and, by the quick vivid light, we could
see the men we hit writhing on the ground. The curses and commands of
the officers, shouts of the combatants, and yells of the wounded were
mingled together. The breadth of the road, only, separated us, and the
blaze from the guns met. When our weapons were emptied, we sprang over
the fence and ran at top speed for our horses. A chain picket which had
been posted on the left of the Shelbyville road, a short distance from
it, rushed forward and opened upon us, and the enemy we had just bidden
farewell redoubled his fire. When we regained the horses, we were nearly
surrounded. Parties had come out from the woods behind us, as we passed
down the road, and our retreat by the way we had come was blocked. Our
signals to call in the laggards, as we prepared to leave, were answered
from every direction by the enemy. But the woods befriended us, as they
had often done before, and we escaped under its shelter. On that same
night a similar adventure befell some Confederates (I think of Starne's
command) on the Franklin pike, and some pickets were killed on the side
of Nashville entirely opposite to that into which all of these roads
(which have been mentioned) run. Of course every thing was attributed to
Morgan, and the Federals were puzzled and uncertain, whether to believe
him really _ubiquitous_, or the commander of two or three thousand men.
A day or two after these occurrences, Morgan went with a flag of truce
to Mitchell's encampment to endeavor to exchange some of his prisoners
for his own men who had been captured. Colonel Wood, who was with him,
was asked confidentially how many men Morgan had, and was told that the
mischief he was doing could only be accounted for upon the supposition
that he had control of a large force. Wood answered, also _in
confidence_, that although he had co-operated with Morgan for two or
three weeks, he was entirely ignorant of the strength of his command.
That he knew, only, that Morgan was controlling the motions of men whom
he (Morgan) rarely saw; and that, although he himself was intimately
cognizant of all that occurred under Morgan's immediate supervision, he
was frequently astonished by hearing from the latter, accounts of
enterprises which had been accomplished by his orders in quarters very
remote from where he was in person operating. Wood saw the impression
which prevailed, and shaped his answers to confirm it. In reality, there
were not in the vicinity of Nashville, at that time, on all sides, more
than three hundred Confederate soldiers. Of this number, Morgan could
control only his own three companies and the fifty men with Wood,
although the others, who were stragglers, and furloughed men from the
Texas Rangers, Starne's, McNairy's and other cavalry regiments, often
joined him upon his expeditions.
Many of the Federal soldiers killed around Nashville, and whose deaths
were, charged to Morgan's men, were killed by the _independent_
partisans, most of them men who lived in the neighboring country, and
had obtained leave to linger, for a while, about their homes. Great zeal
and activity, however, was displayed by all parties.
When the flag of truce party mentioned above got to the picket line, it
was met by an expedition consisting of cavalry, artillery and infantry,
riding in wagons, _en route_ for Murfreesboro', with the expectation of
capturing Morgan's entire band. General Mitchell was very angry when the
arrival of the flag was announced, and complained that Morgan had taken
that method of defeating his plans, that otherwise would have been
assuredly successful. This charge created a good deal of amusement, when
Morgan told the story later to his brother officers of Johnson's array.
Even if Morgan (as Mitchell thought), had known that an expedition was
on foot for his capture, he still would have had a perfect right to
transact at that time--if listened to--any matter of business which
required to be done under flag of truce. It is legitimate to send them
even while battles are going on.
During the entire war, both sides used to send flags of truce for quite
other purposes than the ostensible ones. Morgan was the commanding
Confederate officer in all that region, and had a right to send flags of
truce for any purpose whatever, so long as he observed the usages which
govern them. The flag of truce need not have stopped the expedition.
It was Mitchell's own fault if it was allowed to go far enough to see
what he wished to conceal. It is the right and positive duty of an
officer in charge of a flag, to go as far as he is permitted. General
Mitchell could have refused to receive it, and have ordered it back.
Morgan's friends somewhat doubted whether this expedition (even if it
had not been met and checked by the flag of truce), would have resulted
in Morgan's capture. General Mitchell was a profound strategist, but he
was going to travel by daylight through a country full of Morgan's
friends, and upon a road constantly watched by his scouts, to surprise
Morgan. At any rate, it may be safely asserted that the fond hope which
General Mitchell cherished, could never have been realized, after Morgan
had gotten such timely information of an expedition intended for his
capture, that he was able to meet it with a flag of truce as it was just
setting out.
The country around Nashville, in which Morgan did the service, which I
have attempted to describe, is one admirably adapted to it. It is one of
the most fertile and wealthy portions of Middle Tennessee, a region
unsurpassed in productiveness. Yet teeming as it is with every crop
which the farmer wishes, one would think, in riding along the fine
turnpikes which enter Nashville upon all sides, that a comparatively
small proportion of the land is cultivated. A dense growth of timber,
principally cedar, stretches, sometimes for miles, along the roads, and
runs back from them, occasionally, to considerable distances. The cedar
glades, are, some of them, of great extent, and are penetrated in all
directions by roads. Springs, and small watercourses, are frequent. It
is indeed a beautiful country, and the paradise of partisan cavalry, who
can find in it, every where, supplies for men and horses, shelter to
hide them, going against and escaping from an enemy, and, stop where
they will, all that makes a camp happy.
The people who live in this country are worthy to possess it. They are
brave, frank, generous and hospitable--true to their friends, kind to
the distressed. They are just and honorable, and uphold through all
trials and evils, the right, as they understand it, and their plighted
word. Come what will upon this country, may God bless the people of
Middle Tennessee.
Two or three days after the flag of truce affair, Morgan determined upon
an expedition to a different quarter from that in which he had been
hitherto employed. It was high time that, in accordance with the
instructions he had received, he followed and rejoined the army, and he
desired to leave an impression upon the enemy of his "ubiquity," which
would be useful, after he himself was gone.
Upon the north side of the Cumberland, and about eight miles from it in
a direct line, is the little town of Gallatin, in Sumner County,
Tennessee. It is situated on the Louisville and Nashville road, about
thirty miles from Nashville. This place was one of no military
importance at that time, but it was right upon the line of communication
between Louisville and Nashville--the roads running from Kentucky, as
well as the railroad, all passing through it--and the line of telegraph.
This place is about fifty miles from Murfreesboro', by the most direct
route. Morgan resolved to hold this place for a day or two, and get the
benefit of the "communication" himself. He left Murfreesboro' about
midday, passed through Lebanon that evening, and encamped for the night
near that place. Crossing the Cumberland next morning at Canoe-branch
ferry, he reached Gallatin about ten o'clock. He found the town
ungarrisoned, two or three clerks to take care of unimportant stores,
and a telegraph operator, constituting all the force there was to oppose
him. The citizens of this place were always strongly attached to the
Confederate cause, and devoted friends of Morgan and his command--for
which they subsequently suffered no little--and they received him
enthusiastically. This neighborhood was always noted for good cheer,
and, on this occasion, dainties of all kinds appeared as if by magic,
and bouquets were showered by the score. Desiring the latest information
from Nashville, Morgan, accompanied by Colonel Wood, went straight to
the telegraph office, where they were kindly received by the operator,
to whom they introduced themselves as Federal officers just from the
interior of Kentucky. The operator immediately placed himself in
communication with Nashville and got the last news for their benefit.
The conversation then turned on Morgan. "The clerk of the lightning"
said that he had not yet disturbed them at Gallatin, but that he might
be expected any day: "However," he continued, "let him come, I, for one,
am ready for him." He told the story of Morgan's coming to Mitchell's
lines with the flag of truce (which, it seems, had raised great
excitement), and declared that he ought to have been shot then and
there. "Had I been there," said he, fiercely, and brandishing his
revolver, "the scoundrel would have never left alive."
"Give me that pistol," Morgan said quietly; and, taking it, much to the
fellow's surprise, "I am Morgan."
The consternation of the operator was extreme, and his apology, when he
found his tongue, polite. It was accepted, and so was he and placed
under guard. He was badly scared, at first, but he was treated kindly,
and in a few days became domesticated and even playful. An engine and a
few cars, found standing at the depot, were taken possession of--the
cars were immediately burned. Morgan got on the engine with two or three
companions, and run some miles up the railroad to visit two or three
points of interest. He desired especially to ascertain if the tunnel
could readily be destroyed, but found that it would be a work of more
time than he had to spare. While he was absent, several Federal officers
and soldiers came into the town and were made prisoners. When he
returned, the engine was run off the track, over a steep bank, and
destroyed. On the next morning he sent the bulk of his command across
the river again, with instructions to remain near and guard the ferry.
He, himself, with ten or fifteen men, remained at Gallatin two days
longer with the hope of catching some of the trains. He was
disappointed, the news got around and none came. Twenty or thirty wagons
which were coming from Scottsville, under a small guard, were also
turned back--the escort getting the alarm after he had made all his
preparations to capture them--so that his expedition was more barren of
the spoils of war than he had hoped. But his main object--to persuade
the enemy that they could never safely count upon his being "gone"--was
perfectly accomplished. While his men on the south side of the river
were waiting for him, six transports, loaded with troops from
Monticello, passed down toward Nashville. The men on the boats did not
know who the cavalry were, and our men were afraid to fire upon them,
lest they might endanger Captain Morgan and their comrades with him, on
the other side. Immediately after his return to Murfreesboro', he set
out to rejoin the army, and met at Shelbyville that portion of his
command which had been encamped on the Shelbyville and Nashville road,
and which, in obedience to his orders, had also repaired to the former
place.
Here we remained for two or three days and then marched on in the track
of the army. While at Shelbyville, the first and only causeless stampede
of our pickets and false alarm to the camps which occurred during our
squadron organization, took place. Ten or fifteen men were posted on
picket some eight miles from the town toward Nashville, near a small
bridge, at the southern end of which the extreme outpost vidette stood.
From tales told by the citizens, these pickets had conceived the idea
that the enemy contemplated an attack to surprise and capture them, and
(perhaps for the very reason that they had so often played the same game
themselves) they became very nervous about it. Late in the night, two
men came down the road from toward Nashville in a buggy, and drove
rapidly upon the bridge without heeding the vidette's challenge--he,
taking them to be the enemy, shot both barrels of his gun at them and
fled to alarm the other videttes and his comrades at the base. The whole
party became so alarmed by his representation of the immense number and
headlong advance of the enemy, that, without stopping to fight or
reconnoiter, they all came in a hand-gallop to camp. The officer in
charge sent the vidette who had given the alarm, in advance, to report
to me. I immediately got the command under arms and then questioned him.
He stated that the enemy's cavalry came on, at the charge, in column of
fours, that they paid no attention to his challenge, and that when he
fired, they dashed at him, making the air ring with their yells and
curses. He said that "the road seemed perfectly blue for more than half
a mile," so great was their number.
It was a moonless night, and a slight rain was falling, making the
darkness intense. I asked him if he might not have been deceived and if
he was not scared. "No, sir," said he, "not a bit, but I was somewhat
_arrytated_."
Leaving Shelbyville, we marched through Fayetteville to Huntsville;
every where along the route the people flocked to see Morgan, and his
progress was one continual ovation. When we reached Huntsville, the most
beautiful town in Alabama (and now that Columbia is in ashes) perhaps in
the entire South, we were received with the kindness and hospitality
which characterize that generous, warm-hearted population. Huntsville,
the birth-place of Morgan, greeted him like a mother indeed. For ten
days we remained there; every man in the command the recipient of
unwearying attention. It was very injurious to good soldierly habits,
but served, as many other such instances did, to show the men that they
were fighting for a people who loved to be grateful, and to prove
it--and unavailing as the struggle was, it is still a thought of pride
and satisfaction, that the labors and sacrifices were made for a people
worthy of them all.
Crossing the Tennessee river at Decatur and marching just in the track
of the army, we reached Byrnesville, a few miles from Corinth, on the
third of April, and found there the division of General Breckinridge, to
which we were attached. The whole army was then astir, and forming to
march to attack the enemy who lay at Pittsburg Landing on the southern
bank of the Tennessee some twenty miles from Corinth.
Morgan's services were much talked of, and he was complimented by
General Johnson in terms that were very grateful to him. He was given
the commission of Colonel, to take effect from the fourth of April, and
he received (what he valued much more highly) an assurance, or what he
construed to be such, that he would be permitted to act independently
again, and follow his favorite service with a stronger force and upon a
larger scale.
None among the many ardent and high-strung men who went with so much
zeal into that fight, felt more hope and enthusiasm than Morgan, for he
saw beyond it, a career of excitement, success, and glory, that might
satisfy the most energetic and most daring nature.