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- Feb 5, 2017
All know that when "Old Bedford" (Forrest) issued orders he intended them to be obeyed, and promptly, too. So worn out as the men were it was not long before the party, under command of Lieut. Garner, started on what might prove a wild goose chase, and was just as likely to prove a tiger hunt, with lots of tiger in it. Of one thing the men were sure, they would go until they found the enemy if he was on that road.
Every old soldier knows that on such expeditions he always picked a mate. One of the men, Burns, a youngster in point of years, but an old soldier, and one of the best that Forrest had, picked out Dick Townsend for his chum. Townsend was riding a gray, almost white, horse. This part of it Burns did not like at all, but decided he would rather risk Townsend with a white horse than any other man there with a less objectionable colored horse. But I'll let Burns tell the rest.
We had ridden ten or twelve miles when, just after dark, we came up to an old fellow's house and asked him if there were any yanks about, and he told us that they were camped just across the creek about half a mile ahead. We went on quietly, keeping a good lookout, and sure enough, when we got near the creek we could hear dogs barking. They always had dogs about their camps; why, we never could tell, unless it was because the negroes followed them and the dogs followed the negroes. At any rate, the dogs were always there. We halted, and could distinctly hear them talking; and after listening long enough to be sure that we had accomplished our mission, we fell back down the road about a quarter and put out a picket. It came Townsend's and my turn to go on late, and we went to the top of the hill with a lot of orders, mostly "nots" - namely, not to talk, not to smoke, not to make the least noise, and not to shoot if possible to avoid it, and not, under any circumstances, to dismount, but to sit quietly on our horses and watch. I do not know how long I had been there when I got so sleepy it seemed to me I should fall off of my horse. I leaned over, and in a whisper asked Townsend if he was sleepy too. He said he was nearly dead. Finally, we could stand it no longer, and got down off our horses and began walking back and forth in front of them as far as the halters would let us, but this didn't do any good. Looking around I saw that the road was raised-that is, it was higher than the ground on either side of it. I told Townsend that I was going to sit down on the ground and rest. We both sat down, putting our feet in the ditch. There were plenty of weeds growing close up to the side of the road. I leaned over and put my head down on my hands as they rested on my gun. I did not expect nor intend to go to sleep, but I was completely fagged out. I don't know how long I had been in the position described when something passed by through the weeks with a whisk, whisk that waked me instantly! It was right under my nose when I saw it, and I tell you the truth when I say it nearly scared the life out of me. It scared me so bad I yelled out, "H-LL FIRE, WHAT'S THAT?" as loud as I could, and then I saw it was nothing but a coon. Almost instantly we were on our horses listening, but the yanks never heard a word, or if they did they made no sign. As soon as we found we hadn't alarmed them we got to laughing, and really after the scare was over it was about as funny an adventure as any that happened to during the war. It shows how little it takes to scare a fellow almost to death when he is tired out and expecting to be scared anyhow. Just before day we withdrew, but Townsend and I laughed all day over that terrible fright.
Every old soldier knows that on such expeditions he always picked a mate. One of the men, Burns, a youngster in point of years, but an old soldier, and one of the best that Forrest had, picked out Dick Townsend for his chum. Townsend was riding a gray, almost white, horse. This part of it Burns did not like at all, but decided he would rather risk Townsend with a white horse than any other man there with a less objectionable colored horse. But I'll let Burns tell the rest.
We had ridden ten or twelve miles when, just after dark, we came up to an old fellow's house and asked him if there were any yanks about, and he told us that they were camped just across the creek about half a mile ahead. We went on quietly, keeping a good lookout, and sure enough, when we got near the creek we could hear dogs barking. They always had dogs about their camps; why, we never could tell, unless it was because the negroes followed them and the dogs followed the negroes. At any rate, the dogs were always there. We halted, and could distinctly hear them talking; and after listening long enough to be sure that we had accomplished our mission, we fell back down the road about a quarter and put out a picket. It came Townsend's and my turn to go on late, and we went to the top of the hill with a lot of orders, mostly "nots" - namely, not to talk, not to smoke, not to make the least noise, and not to shoot if possible to avoid it, and not, under any circumstances, to dismount, but to sit quietly on our horses and watch. I do not know how long I had been there when I got so sleepy it seemed to me I should fall off of my horse. I leaned over, and in a whisper asked Townsend if he was sleepy too. He said he was nearly dead. Finally, we could stand it no longer, and got down off our horses and began walking back and forth in front of them as far as the halters would let us, but this didn't do any good. Looking around I saw that the road was raised-that is, it was higher than the ground on either side of it. I told Townsend that I was going to sit down on the ground and rest. We both sat down, putting our feet in the ditch. There were plenty of weeds growing close up to the side of the road. I leaned over and put my head down on my hands as they rested on my gun. I did not expect nor intend to go to sleep, but I was completely fagged out. I don't know how long I had been in the position described when something passed by through the weeks with a whisk, whisk that waked me instantly! It was right under my nose when I saw it, and I tell you the truth when I say it nearly scared the life out of me. It scared me so bad I yelled out, "H-LL FIRE, WHAT'S THAT?" as loud as I could, and then I saw it was nothing but a coon. Almost instantly we were on our horses listening, but the yanks never heard a word, or if they did they made no sign. As soon as we found we hadn't alarmed them we got to laughing, and really after the scare was over it was about as funny an adventure as any that happened to during the war. It shows how little it takes to scare a fellow almost to death when he is tired out and expecting to be scared anyhow. Just before day we withdrew, but Townsend and I laughed all day over that terrible fright.
Bringing the