Page:History of the Ninth Virginia Cavalry in the War Between the States.djvu/140

134 the church-building in our rear, but ranging too high to hurt us. Their line then advanced. Reserving our fire until they came up quite near and then opening a volley, they broke under it and retreated. This was repeated with the same result. Holcombe's Legion of three hundred men now joined us, and the Ninth and Tenth regiments, by giving way to the left, yielded to them our place in the centre. During the night, at intervals varying from fifteen minutes to an hour, there were heavy volleys of rifles exchanged; and about four o'clock artillery in our rear began with a welcome roar to respond to the Federal guns.

We had known for some time that Hampton was approaching with reinforcements. At dawn Holcombe's Legion advanced, and suffered severely from the fire from the wooded cover to which our squadron had charged on the previous evening. This injury was received from the enemy's rearguard, however. Wilson was leaving; had left, indeed. We now advancing, passed over the field of the fighting, and our surprise was great to find so few dead upon it, and these close up to our lines. Furious as the fight had seemed, and terrible in sound as it truly was, our four squadrons having used, as reported by the ordnance sergeant, thirty-one thousand rounds of ammunition, it was barren of casualties among our men.

The pursuit of the enemy was rapid, but in a mistaken direction. A few prisoners were captured by us. A non-commissioned officer among them, hearing the author's surprise expressed at the few killed, pointed to the extreme left of their line and said that if he would ride thither his surprise would cease.

We returned by noon to Stony Creek, and after halting only long enough to feed, moved out on the Halifax road. Butler's brigade was in front, followed by the Ninth and Tenth regiments, with the artillery, and the Thirteenth a little behind as rear-guard. The whole command had crossed the bridge over the Rowanty, near Perkins' house, save