Page:Southern Historical Society Papers volume 32.djvu/215

 Battle of Spotsylvania Courthouse. 203

him." A number of my men called out: " Come back, General Lee; we wont fight as long as you are before us; come back." The decided call of the men seemed to produce a greater impression on General Lee than the eloquence of Gordon, and my curt sugges- tions. As Traveler could not be easily turned around with a mounted officer on either side of him, facing in opposite directions, the adjutant let go Traveler's bridle, Gordon turned him around to the right, and proudly started to lead him back, and as he was doing so, I called out: "Three cheers for General Lee and 'Old' Vir- ginia," but forgot to add Gordon's name to the list, which were given with a will. Before the two generals reached the intervening space between the brigades, Gordon let go his hold of Lee's bridle and dropped behind a short space, Lee as soon as he reached the line of the brigades, turned his horse to the right, close up to mine, and Gordon and his adjutant rode up to the line of the Georgia Brigade.

When General Gordon, amid repeated shouts of "Lee, Lee to the rear! " had approached within eight or ten paces of our line, he found the interval between our two brigades blocked up. A mounted officer had stationed himself on the left of Gordon's brigade, Gen- eral George Evans commanding. I had remained on the extreme right flank of Early' s brigade, where I had placed myself when Lee rode to the front, and the intervening space had been crowded by men of Evans' brigade. Gordon let go his hold of Traveler's bridle, and reined up his horse to fall in behind Lee, and as he did so a member of the Warren Rifles ran forward, seized Lee's horse by the bridle reins, and amid redoubled shouts of " Lee, Lee, Lee to the rear! Lee to the rear! " led him up to the crowd and guided him through the crowders, and I backed my horse to the left to give a freer passage to the riders, and they passed through in single file, and the field of coming carnage resounded with wild shouts of "Lee, Lee, Lee!"

[This man is identified by " R. D. Funkhouser" in communica- tion of the Times- Dispatch of Jan. 29, 1905, as Sergeant Wm. A. Compton, of Company D, 49th Virginia Regiment, " who is still living and an active business man in Front Royal, Va., to-day."]

When the Warren Riflemen ran forward, thinks I, that is Sergeant Compton, of Captain Updyke's company; he has disobeyed my order of "steady, front!" but he is a brave soldier and a good file officer, and I would not like to wound his pride. He has rendered