Sent to Somerville--Finds himself a prisoner--Taken to Cold
Water--Meets with old acquaintances--Is paroled--Runs with
the 2d Arkansas Cavalry--Goes to Lumpkins' Mills--Interview
with General Price--Stays all night with his brother, the
rebel General--Return to Bolivar--Reports to General
Ross--"Steals the Colonel's horse," and returns to the
enemy--Runs away from the enemy.
About the middle of September, the enemy having disappeared from our
immediate front, General Ross sent me to Somerville, with instructions
to reconnoiter the country all about, and find out, if possible, where
the enemy had gone to, and such other information as I could obtain.
I started out quite early in the morning, mounted on a mule, dressed
like a citizen in easy circumstances. Whenever I met a planter, I would
stop and converse with him about the "news from our army," and the
prospects of the war, and the "d--d thieving Yankees that were robbing
us of our cotton and niggers." In the course of such conversation, I
learned there were no rebel forces in that immediate vicinity. About
noon, I reached Somerville. There I found every thing quiet as a Sabbath
morning. Passing through the town, I took the road to Moscow. Coming to
a large, fine brick house that stands near the railroad depot, I drew up
and alighted from my mule, and went in, in pursuit of some dinner.
"Stranger," said I, addressing an elderly gentleman that I found on
entering, "can I get some dinner here?"
"I reckon so," he said, handing me a chair; "dinner will be ready in a
few minutes. Sit down."
I complied.
"Where do you belong?" he inquired.
"My home is in Memphis, Tennessee, but"--
Just then I was interrupted by the entrance of two men, who came in from
an adjoining room, one of whom asked me where I belonged.
"I was just saying to this gentleman," I replied, "that my home is in
Memphis, Tennessee, but I came from Bolivar here."
"Do you belong to the Federal army?"
"No, sir; I am a citizen of this State, and my home, as I said before,
is in Memphis."
"How came you to be in Bolivar?"
"I went out there to see General Neely and Doctor Coleman, and the
Adamses, and several others that I am acquainted with, and when I got in
there the Yankees would not let me out when I wanted them to, and I had
to remain there several days."
"Did you get a pass from the Yank's to get out with?"
"Yes, sir; but it only passed me out, and was retained by the pickets."
"Have you got any fire-arms or papers with you?"
"No, sir; I had a nice navy revolver that I carried to Bolivar, but I
was obliged to leave it with an acquaintance when I left, to keep the
Yankees from taking it away from me."
"Well, sir, you may consider yourself my prisoner, and after dinner
we'll go down to Cold Water and see what they can do for you there."
"Gentlemen," said I, "I am no Yankee soldier. I am a citizen, and I
can't see what object you can have in taking me there."
"It don't matter whether you do or not. I think that they will have some
use for you."
Dinner was then announced as ready, and we all sat up. "_I think that
they will have some use for you!_" reverberated through my brain, and
set me into a train of thought any thing but agreeable, _I'm to be a
conscript then!_ thought I. I tried to suppress my feelings, and feigned
to be cheerful, as if nothing had occurred to disturb my equanimity. In
fact, my only hope was in appearing cheerful.
When dinner was over, the two men had their horses brought out, and we
all three mounted and started for Cold Water, forty miles distant. On
the way I kept up a cheerful conversation, and on several occasions I
had my butternut friends convulsed with laughter. I found out that the
man who had made me a prisoner was Captain Daniels, a noted guerrilla,
and the other person was a Quartermaster.
At 2 o'clock, A. M., we reached the outpost near Cold Water, where we
halted until daylight, and then went in. As we were going in, we met a
soldier, who, when he saw me, called out, "Hallo, Ruggles, is that you?
Where in the h--l have you been? I hav'n't seen you since we made
shingles together on White River!"
"I'm a prisoner," said I.
"A prisoner? the h--l you are!"
"Yes, Captain Daniels, here, captured me at Somerville, yesterday."
"Ha, ha! captured _you_? Why, Captain, I have known that man for years,
and made shingles for him on White River, in Arkansas, and he is as
loyal to the Confederate cause as you are! There are five or six other
boys here that know him as well as I do!"
Captain Daniels then took me to the head-quarters of the regiment, and
there I found, in the Colonel, another man that I was well acquainted
with. His name was Slemmens; he used to be prosecuting attorney at
Napoleon, Arkansas. When I entered his quarters--
"Lord bless me!" he said, "if here a'n't Ruggles! How are you?"
"Pretty well, I thank you. I am glad to meet you. I didn't know that you
was in the service. The last time we met was at Napoleon, I believe."
"Yes; but pray what fetched you here?"
"Captain Daniels captured me and fetched me here."
"_Captured_ you?"
"Yes; I told him I was a citizen of the South, but he did not believe
me."
"I have known Ruggles these six years, Captain; he's all right. But,
then, never mind--I see! we'll make him count one in exchange. I'll
parole him. Where did you capture him?"
Daniels told him the particulars of my capture, and that I had been in
Bolivar several weeks.
"Well," said the Colonel, "I'll parole him."
"Do you know the name of any Colonel in Bolivar, and the regiment that
he commands?"
"Yes, I know one; his name is Force, and he commands the 20th Ohio
Infantry."
"Well, that will do as well as any."
He then paroled me as belonging to the 20th Ohio Infantry, commanded by
Colonel Force.
Captain Daniels and the Quartermaster then left me with Colonel
Slemmens, and returned toward Somerville. My old acquaintances all got
together at the Colonel's quarters, and we had a right lively visit.
They were all urgent to have me join the regiment, and I finally
consented to run with them awhile, and promised to join if I liked the
regiment. I had found out, by this time, that the regiment was the 2d
Arkansas Cavalry, and was there on outpost duty. It had been raised in a
part of Arkansas where I was well acquainted. There was no other
regiment there at that time. The principal part of the rebel forces in
Northern Mississippi were then camped at Lumpkins' Mills, seven miles
south of Holly Springs.
Among the acquaintances that I made during my stay in the regiment, was
the Lieutenant-Colonel and the regimental sutler. The former was a
Methodist clergymen, by the name of Rosebrook. He was very urgent in his
endeavors to have me join the regiment.
Two days after my arrival, the regiment received orders from General
Villipigue to move to Gun Town, on the Ohio and Mobile Railroad, seventy
miles distant. I went with it. There it received orders from General
Van Dorn to go to Ripley. We remained at Ripley a few days, during which
time we made two or three cotton-burning trips. We then received orders
to go back to Cold Water.
From Cold Water I accompanied Colonel Slemmens on a visit to Lumpkins'
Mills. While there we called on General Price, and I was introduced as a
brother of General _Ruggles_. In the conversation that was had with
Colonel Slemmens and myself, General Price learned that I did not belong
to any organized regiment, but that I had temporarily attached myself to
the 2d Arkansas Cavalry. He told me that I would have to be assigned to
some regiment as a conscript. I objected to that. He said that it would
have to be done, and unless it was done I could not draw any pay or
subsistence from the Confederate Government.
"General," said I, "the Southern Confederacy is of _more consequence_ to
me than _pay_. I did not come into the army for _pay_. I have got six
hundred dollars in my pocket, and I intend to fight on that until it is
gone. I have got a rich sister in Memphis, and when that is gone, I will
go to her and get more. Besides, I can do more good as I am, because
when there is a fight coming off any where, I can go into it, but if I
am fast, I can only go where the regiment goes to which I belong."
"Well," said the General, "perhaps you can do the most good as you are;
you may remain so."
In the afternoon of the day before we were to return, General Price sent
me word that my brother, General _Ruggles_, had arrived. I immediately
went to head-quarters to see him. He expressed great delight at meeting
me, and called me "Bub," as he used to do when at home, though I was
forty years old. The Adjutant-General assigned us a tent by ourselves,
and I remained with my brother all night. He had not been to Ohio for a
great many years, and he was very much interested in learning the
changes that had taken place in the neighborhood where he was raised.
All I learned of him about the army was, that his command was near Baton
Rouge, La., and that he had come there on business pertaining to his
command. He did not ask me where I lived, nor allude to the subject of
the rebellion. He knew that I had spent a great portion of my life in
the South, and, naturally enough, supposed that I was identified with
her interests.
In the morning I returned with Colonel Slemmens to Cold Water. I had
learned, by this time, a great deal of information, and had been absent
a much greater length of time than I had calculated on when I left
Bolivar, and I began to feel anxious to get back and report. I had
become quite a favorite with Colonel Slemmens, and I could generally get
from him any favor that I asked for.
"Colonel," said I to him, the next morning after we returned, "all the
rest of the boys have got horses of their own, and I have got nothing
but that little mule of mine to ride, and I want something else. Can't
you make a cotton-burning trip up into the vicinity of Bolivar? While I
was there I found one regiment of Yankees camped out a little distance
from the other regiments, and the Colonel of it has got a splendid
horse; if you will go, I can get in there and capture it."
"Pshaw! You could not get into the lines if you were there!"
"Yes I can; I know right where to get in, and if I don't get _that_
horse I'll get some other. I'm bound to have a horse."
"Well, I can't go now, but I'll see about it."
I waited two days, and then tried him again.
"Colonel," said I, "what do you think about that cotton trip to Bolivar
now? I'm getting _very_ anxious for that horse."
"If I thought you would succeed, I'd go."
"I _know_ I'll succeed."
"How close can we get without getting into the Yankee pickets?"
"We can get as far as Jonathan Herse's place, and there you can halt
until I go in and return."
"Well, then, I'll take five companies and we'll go up there to-day, and
we'll have every thing ready to start at 10 o'clock A. M."
At the appointed time we started, and moved along rapidly until we
reached Herse's plantation. It was in the night when we reached there.
The Colonel retained three companies, and sent two, under command of a
Captain, with me, with instructions to stop at such a place as I should
designate, and wait three hours for me to return, unless I returned
sooner, and if I did not come back at the end of that time, to return
without me.
We went on until we came within about four hundred yards of the pickets,
where I had the Captain halt his men, and, leaving my mule, I went on.
I found the advanced picket right where I expected to. He was on the
alert, and challenged me as I came up. There I cautioned the officer in
command of the pickets to be on the alert, for two companies of rebel
cavalry were within rifle-shot of him. The pickets were all called up,
and I was sent, under guard, to General Ross. I had him called up, and
reported to him what I had learned, and told him that, in order to carry
out my plans, I wanted an order on the Quartermaster for a number one
horse. I also told him that I would leave my mule on Mr. Herse's
plantation, and requested him to send a forage party out the next day
and bring the mule in. He gave me the order, and I went immediately to
C. C. Williams, Assistant Quartermaster, and woke him up, and told him I
was in a great hurry and wanted the horse then.
However strangely he may have thought of my movements then, I am sure
that when he reads these pages he will know why I disturbed him at that
unusual hour of the night. He furnished me with a beautiful nag. With an
old gun-sling and canteen strap I rigged up a sort of bridle, mounted
the horse, and returned to my rebel escort.
On my return, I was in ecstasies of delight over "my captured" nag. I
told the Captain that I had stolen it from a Colonel, and that I found
it not twenty yards from his quarters, and that I tried to steal his
saddle, bridle, and holsters, but his d--d nigger was sleeping with his
head on the saddle and I could not get them without waking him up.
The men were all highly interested with the narration of my exploit, and
not only conceded that I "was a h--l of a fellow," but "that I had got a
d--d good horse." We then returned to Herse's plantation, and I awoke
the Colonel to show him my prize. He was as much delighted as the rest
had been.
It was by this time daylight, and we started for Cold Water; I left the
mule, as I had agreed to do, on Mr. Herse's plantation. On our way back
we burned considerable cotton. I remained a few days longer at Cold
Water, and then accompanied a detachment to Saulsbury to burn cotton;
from there I ran away and returned to Bolivar. My mule had been brought
in as I requested, and so I exchanged my horse for it. I had been gone
in all twenty days.