Page:Four Years in the Stonewall Brigade (1906).djvu/85

Rh he had five times the men he had. The enemy's loss was much greater than ours in killed and wounded, as they stood so thick that a bullet could hardly miss them if aimed low enough.

The day after the battle, while we were cooking rations on a hill south of Cedar creek, the enemy came in sight on an opposite hill, placed a battery in position and commenced throwing shells at us, in order to knock over our camp kettles, I suppose, and we were ordered to load up the wagons, "fall in" and depart hence. Now, four regiments of our brigade marched to the left around the brow of the hill, and were soon out of view and out of danger; but Colonel A. J. Grigsby, commanding the 27th, who was always rather headstrong, marched his regiment to the right, in the main road and in full view, when a shell came tearing along through the ranks, killing and wounding twelve men.

We continued to fall back slowly until we reached Rude's Hill, Colonel Ashby, with his cavalry, covering our retreat and harrassingharassing [sic] the enemy. We remained there several days, skirmishing nearly every day.

While at this camp the militia force was disbanded and put into the volunteer companies, by which each company was considerably recruited. Our company was larger than ever before, numbering about eighty. But the militia did not like that way of doing business, for they considered it certain death to be put into the Stonewall Brigade, and wanted to choose their own companies. The consequence was the greater number of them ran off and went home to their respective counties, and there formed cavalry companies, organized new regiments, and did good service during the balance of the war. About twenty remained in my company, and some of them made as good soldiers as ever shouldered a musket.

The enemy kept advancing on us in considerable force, and as Colonel Ashby was disputing the passage of the Shenandoah at Meem's bottom he had his white horse shot under him, but he rode him back to the rear, where he died in a short time. ("I saw this myself."–J. H.") My uncle, R. S. D. Heironimus, who belonged to Ashby's cavalry, was wounded in this skirmish.