Page:Southern Historical Society Papers volume 23.djvu/46

 40 Southern Historical Society Papers.

"Lead's Light Horse," New Orleans. My servant, Andrew Walker, received a slight flesh wound, but from his wild expression, showing so much of the white of his eyes, it was evident he "thought that his time had came." Mr. W. C. Camp, proprietor of the hotel, who left the bridge for the fort to report, had both eyes shot out. So sad! Lieutenant Lee, of Tennessee, was anxious to help out, but his horse was killed, and he could not reach the fort.

Young McKnight, one of our brave boys, who fell by the hand of a sharpshooter, was carried to the residence of Mrs. Ann Winston, and there, unattended by a physician, died. Mrs. Winston, one of the true-hearted women of that day, had his remains interred in her lovely flower-garden. Although far from home (New Orleans) he rested beneath the sweet shadows of rose bowers, and the feathered songsters kept watch over his grave. Old man Baker, Mrs. Ann Winston, Miss Tinsley Winston, and my wife buried McKnight, as- sisted by some of the old servants.

After the battle had ended, the victorious Federals cheered and climbed upon the parapets of the fort, and were dumbfounded to find so few inside, and praised their valor in no uncertain words. "You fought like demons," they said. "We thought you had at least two companies."

Fourteen of the Point Coupee Battery of Louisiana, who fought a week before at Selma, were in the fort and did valiant service. One of their number named Delmas was killed. Three of the quarter- master's department Lieutenant John W. Bryant, George Williams Blackwell, of New Orleans, and Julius O. Metcalf, of Natchez were in the fort.

All the prisoners were marched to the outskirts of the town and bivouacked for the night on the east side of the river. The next morning the Federals burned the two commodious depots filled with government supplies and hundreds of freight cars loaded with machinery, merchandise, etc., together with about sixteen locomo- tives. The magazine in Fort Tyler was blown up, and the two magnificent bridges were burned; after which the enemy, with the prisoners, were again on their march, carrying destruction on their way.

A Federal captain, whose leg was amputated, was taken to the residence of the mayor for treatment. He was robbed of his sword, pistols, watch and cash by the Federal stragglers "The Devil's Own Vagabonds." They found one of the wagons of my wife's