Page:Southern Historical Society Papers volume 27.djvu/11

 Diary of Ct"> / M. Gannti. 5

are making demonstration, and our ordnance trains have just moved back about a mile. Will ride down to the division to see what's up.

CAMP ON TOM'S BROOK, BETWEEN STRASBURG AND WOODSTOCK,

Wednesday, September 2ist, 1864.

Little did I think, when writing the lines on the preceding page, what a sad, sad day it would prove to be for us. I have never ex- perienced such a day in my military life, and God grant that I may never experience such another. After leaving camp day before yesterday, I found General Rodes, whose division was then on the march following General Gordon's, and received some orders about the brigade ordnance wagons. The troops moved on up to the sup- port of General Ramseur, who was being heavily pressed by the enemy near Winchester, on the Berryville pike. Gordon's division formed and went in to the left of Ramseur's, and ours (three bri- gades) between the two ; but before ours got fairly engaged, Gor- don's left, being outflanked, gave way, and we were only saved from great disaster by Battle's brigade of our division (which the General had directed me to order to be held in reserve) being ordered straight forward at a charge, which was handsomely executed, carrying every- thing before it. As soon as I had delivered the order to General Battle, hearing the rest of our division become engaged, in obedience to previous orders from General Rodes, I immediately went after the brigade ordnance wagons and ordered up one from each brigade with Lieutenant Partridge. On reaching the field again, I was in- formed by Major Peyton that General Rodes had been killed soon after the division became engaged. He was struck on the head by a piece of shell, it is thought, and lived but a short while, totally unconscious. This is an irreparable loss to our division, and indeed to our army, for he was General Early's right arm. We succeeded in handsomely repulsing this attack, and several succeeding ones, our artillery being very effective, doing good execution. Ramseur was pressed back on the right, but succeeded finally in re-establish- ing his line, which was very long and thin ; and, fearing the enemy might attack there again and, if it gave way, get into Winchester in our rear, General Early ordered up Wharton's (Breckenridge's old) division, which was engaged with the Yankee cavalry near Bruce- town. To the withdrawal of this division, though necessary perhaps, may be attributed the loss of the day, for now our disasters com- menced. Wharton's division had barely reached Ramseur's line