Page:Southern Historical Society Papers volume 20.djvu/64

 58 Southern Historical Society Papers.

A furious picket- firing and sharp-shooting began on both sides, while wounded and dead Federals lay between the two lines.

Mahone's division was now in the rear guard at this point of Gene- ral Lee's army. General Lee's forces were reduced now to their minimum strength, but a fiercer, more determined body of men never lived. They simply waited for General Lee's orders.

About 5 o'clock P. M. a flag of truce appeared in front of General Sorrell's brigade (General Wright's old brigade), of which the writer of this account was the adjutant-general. A courier was sent to division headquarters to announce it. Colonel Tayloe, a splendid young Virginian, had been assigned temporarily to the command of General Sorrell's brigade, General Sorrell having been almost mor- tally wounded near Petersburg. In a short while Colonel Tayloe was ordered to send a staff officer to answer to the flag of truce.

THE FLAG OF TRUCE.

The writer was assigned to this duty, at the Confederate front lines. As the top of the earthworks was reached a number of Fede- ral sharp-shooters fired at me, and two balls passed through the uniform coat I wore and one ball wounded a Confederate soldier in the hand, who had risen up with others from behind the works, out of curiosity to see what was going to take place. That ended the truce business for that afternoon. After nightfall and after every- thing on both sides had lapsed into silence, pickets were put in front of our lines about one hundred yards. Captain James W. English, one of the bravest, coolest, most faithful and vigilant offi- cers in the Confederate army, was in charge of the line in front of our brigade. I had selected him for the reason that I knew that he would not fail me if I depended on his courage and faith. Colonel Tayloe knew nothing of our command or its officers, and the respon- sibility rested on me to select the right men in the crisis there was now on us. We apprehended a night attack.

At 9 o'clock at night, as the moon was about to rise, Captain English reported that a flag of truce \vas again offered on the Fede- ral line on our tront. It was reported again at our division head- quarters, and I was again sent out to answer it as before. I put on an army revolver, put aside my sword, and advanced about fifty yards from our pickets, halted and called for the flag. Where I stood there were scattered around several Federal dead and wounded.