Page:Southern Historical Society Papers volume 24.djvu/346

 338 Southern Historical Society Papers.

Weldon Railroad. On that march it not only rained, but it snowed, and there was a high, bitter cold wind, and the men suffered in- tensely. The troops reached Jarratt's Station to find that the enemy had retired.

This regiment lay all night in the streets of Petersburg, as a part of the intended support for General Gordon, in his attack on Fort Stedman. After Gordon had retired, the enemy swept the whole Confederate picket line from Hatcher's Run, to Lieutenant Run, and it performed its part in helping to keep him out of the main line of works in front of its winter quarters. He got possession, however, of a commanding hill to the left of the Jones House from which he could fire into the huts. Next day, General Lee ordered General Lane to dislodge him. General Lane, who was in command of the division at the time, did so at daylight the following morning, with all of the sharpshooters of the division under Major Wooten, of the Eighteenth North Carolina Regiment, supported by his own brigade, and the Twenty-eighth again had its part to perform.

On the night of the ist of April, when Grant made his final at- tack at Petersburg, Lane's Brigade was cut in two by an over- whelming force. The 28th was forced to fall back fighting to the plank road and then to the Cox road; and it finally succeeded in rejoining the rest of the brigade in the inner line of works, where it fought until night, when Petersburg was evacuated. On the after- noon of the 3d it crossed the Appomattox at Goode's Bridge, bivouacked at Amelia Courthouse on the 4th, and formed line of battle between the Courthouse and Jetersville on the 5th, and skirmished with the enemy. Next day while resting in Farmville, it, with the rest of the brigade, was ordered back to a hill to support the hard-pressed cavalry; but before reaching the hill the order was countermanded. It moved back through Farmville and sustained some loss from the enemy's artillery while crossing the river near that place. That afternoon it formed line of battle, faced to the rear, between one and two miles from Farmville, where there was more fighting, and the remnant of General Lee's army seemed to be surrounded. During the night it resumed its march, and on the morning of the Qth of April, while moving to its position on the left of the road near Appomattox Courthouse, it was ordered back into a woods and directed to stack arms, as the army of Northern Virginia had surrendered.

The tattered and starving remnants of this glorious North Caro- lina Regiment surrendered at Appomattox, consisted of seventeen