But there is a road from Winchester town,

A good broad highway leading down;

And there, through the flash of the morning light,

A steed as black as the steeds of night

Was seen to pass as with eagle flight-
As if he knew the terrible need,

He stretched away with his utmost speed:
Hills rose and fell; but his heart was gay,
With Sheridan fifteen miles away.

Still sprung from those swift hoofs, thundering South,
The dust, like smoke from the cannon's mouth,
Or the trail of a comet, sweeping faster and faster,
Foreboding to traitors the doom of disaster.

The heart of the steed and the heart of the master
Were beating, like prisoners assaulting their walls,
Impatient to be where the battlefield calls;

Every nerve of the charger was strained to full play,
With Sheridan only ten miles away.

Under his spurning feet the road
Like an arrowy Alpine river flowed;
And the landscape sped away behind,

Like an ocean flying before the wind:

And the steed, like a bark fed with furnace ire,
Swept on, with his wild eye full of fire.

But lo! he is nearing his heart's desire;

He is snuffing the smoke of the roaring fray,

With Sheridan only five miles away.

The first that the General saw were the groups

Of stragglers, and then the retreating troops.

What was done? What to do? a glance told him both; Then striking his spurs, with a terrible oath,

He dashed down the line, 'mid a storm of huzzas,
And the wave of retreat checked its course there, because
The sight of the master compelled it to pause.

With foam and with dust the black charger was grey;

By the flash of his eye, and the red nostrils' play,

He seemed to the whole great army to say :'I have brought you Sheridan, all the way From Winchester, down to save the day!'

Hurrah! hurrah for Sheridan !

Hurrah! hurrah for horse and man!
And when their statues are placed on high,
Under the dome of the Union sky-
The American soldiers' Temple of Fame-
There, with the glorious General's name,
Be it said, in letters both bold and bright,
'Here is the steed that saved the day
By carrying Sheridan into the fight,
From Winchester-twenty miles away!'"

CHAPTER XVII.

THE FORTUNES OF WAR.

"It is expedient to have an acquaintance with those who have looked into the world."-HORNE.

AM quite safe in asserting that less than half the infantry of McClellan's army reached Harrison's Landing with their respective organisations at the end of the Seven Days' Fighting before Richmond. This is true of the regiment to which I belonged. Sickness and exhaustion had decimated our ranks. Rolls were called when we reached the position selected for defence; and I think some honorable mention was made of the men who, through superior heart and prowess, kept their places in the ranks from first to last. In groundless fear of desertion the commander of our army had ordered "roll-call" at frequent intervals-every two hours I think. The men were in a filthy condition. Our camp was at a considerable distance from the river in

M

our rear—so distant that we could not possibly get to it, cleanse ourselves and mud-besmeared clothing, and return without missing one of these roll-calls. However, three of us-Carver, Murray, and myself—after making a secret treaty with the first sergeant, determined to risk the possible punishment for the sake of a bath and clean clothes. But our absence was noticed by the company commander, and when we returned to camp we were ordered before him. Now, this officer, through no fault of his own, had succumbed to the extraordinary exertion and fatigue of the "Seven Days: " had not been with the company, as we had been, through every fight and bivouac, and every midnight march: therefore, we became impatient at the lecture upon discipline which he ostentatiously vouchsafed us. Private Carver, a superior educated man, made some caustic observations in reply. My friend Murray offered a similar contribution; and I added, "Never mind the essay; let us have the punishment!" We were sent to the guard-house, and made to do some police duty, while an armed soldier, with fixed bayonet, accompanied us to-and-fro. We felt in no way disgraced by our position; on the contrary, we were rather proud of it. Moreover, we wore the only clean shirts in the regiment. Captain Ross was a kind, amiable, generous man. When, soon after the date of this incident, he left the army, and returned to his large business interests in Chicago, he invited all "the boys" to call upon him when passing homeward

through the city. And they did call, to enjoy his hospitality, and occasionally to borrow his money!

It was a custom in our regiment, and throughout the army I believe, for the officer and sergeant of the camp-guard to divide the duties of the night between them the commissioned officer remaining in charge until after midnight, and then calling the sergeant, who attended to the guard until early morning, when the officer was awakened, and returned to the station. This was the order of things followed by myself and Sergeant Hall upon one occasion, while our army lay in front of Petersburg. At this time it was suspected that Lee contemplated piercing our line and escaping with his army to form a junction with General Johnston, in North Carolina. For this reason the troops had to be under arms and in line of battle at daybreak. It was the duty of officers of the guard to see that company commanders were awakened in time to get their respective companies into line at the appointed hour. The sergeant should execute, though the officer was responsible for this order. The company officers were slow in turning their companies out on the occasion of which I write. General Allen, commanding our brigade at the time, rode down the line, and found only a few companies of his own regiment at the breastworks. Through some accident I was not awakened. I had risen, however, and was dressing hurriedly, when the door of my hut was thrown open