Page:History of the Fenian raid on Fort Erie with an account of the Battle of Ridgeway.djvu/58

Rh halted, and signalled back, that men were in sight. I galloped on to the front, and, enquiring from my men, heard that a force was in front, and continually dropping into the woods on the right, and, on looking myself, saw that it was so. Col. Peacock, soon after, also galloped up, and, on learning the cause of the halt, requested me to send two men on to reconnoitre more closely. By this time, nearly all had gone into the woods on the right. I rode on with Cornet Denison and three men, and, detaching him with two to go down a side road, to the right, rode on myself, with the other, to where we saw, in the dusk, a vidette standing, where the others had been. He, also, moved into the woods, while we were yet some distance from him. We rode on about 150 yards through the woods, but, by this time, it had got so late that I could see nothing under the trees, it being much darker there than in the open road. They did not fire on us, consequently I could form no opinion of their position or probable numbers. I thereupon returned to Col. Peacock, and reported that I could see nothing, suggesting to him, that, as their outposts should properly have fired upon us to alarm their camp, their not having done so, was a sign their force were on the alert, and, the place being so suitable, it seemed to point to an ambuscade, and that I thought the wood should be searched.

Col. Peacock seemed to have had a somewhat similar opinion, as, in my absence, he had sent for two companies of the 16th to come up to search the bush, the main force being some distance to the rear. While we were speaking, the two companies came up, and I went on with Col. Peacock, who moved with them to direct their movements. They opened out to the right of the road, to skirmishing distance, and moved on to the front. It was so dark, by this time, that the men could not, its the woods, see from one to the other, and, there being a great deal of tangled brush and logs, and being very marshy and wet, the men could make no headway whatever. At this time, while I was sitting close beside Col.