USA > Tennessee > Sketch of Harvey's scouts, formerly of Jackson's cavalry division, Army of Tennessee; a part of the second volume of Claiborne's History of Mississippi > Part 2
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him. He had no use for a mean fellow, or a timid and lukewarm soldier. He was not satisfied with the mere mechanical performance of duty; he required vim, enthu- siasm, resolution, activity and a conscientious devotion to the cause. And this was the feeling that inspired his corps, during the war, whether acting in force under his command, in detachments under a lieutenant, or solitary and alone. He was the kindest of friends, with the ten- derest heart, but a rigid disciplinarian, exacting in the performance of duty, never forgiving negligence or timid- ity. If he found a man playing out as a soildier, discour- aged, inefficient or sulky, he got rid of him without cere- mony. When the sergeant informed any soldier that he might rejoin his regiment, he comprehended that the Cap- tain did not consider him adapted for the scouting service, and quietly withdrew. This, of itself, had a wonderful moral effect. Most of men would have preferred death to such a discipline. In a few instances charges were pre- ferred and court-martial followed. In emergencies, some- times, more summary measures were adopted. A single case will be noted. In northern Georgia, a long way in the rear of Sherman's army, Capt. Harvey the previous evening had moved the command off the road, and am- bushed it for the night, as well as he could, in the forest. The men were on their blankets, apparently asleep. A picket had been posted on the road where we had left it, to give notice of any party approaching, and this picket, as usual, was relieved at intervals. At midnight the cor- poral went to relieve the picket on the road, and found him fast asleep at his post. The corporal disarmed him and marched him to the camp, and reported the fact. He was arraigned before the command. The Captain charg- ed him with his crime, and told him what would have been his doom if sent before a regular court-martial. "I will not," said the Captain, "subject you to this trial, but from this moment I expel you from association with my brave and honorable comrades. You are no longer a member of the scouts. Take what belongs to you, and leave us in ten minutes." The culprit disappeared, and was never again seen by the command.
No account was kept of the enemy killed and captured by the scouts while fighting in Georgia, following Hood in Tennessee, or when pursuing Wilson's command which
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left Eastport on its famous raid just before the surrender. The following is very near the mark:
Harvey's charges into Jackson, Miss., killing Col. Crom- well and capturing 28 of his men . 29
Killed in the fight at Natchez. 40
Killed and captured in Sherman's campaign to Meridian . 138
Killed and captured in Sherman's Georgia cam- paign 1300
Total 1507
For most of these details I am indebted to my friend and kinsman, Wiley N. Nash, Esq., of Starkville, who was the intimate friend of Capt. Harvey, and a gallant officer of his command. C.
ARTICLE V. Harvey's Scouts.
From Vol. II, Claiborne's History of Mississippi-Advance Sheets.
ADDISON HARVEY,
Captain of the Scouts, was born in Holmes county, Miss., 1837. Graduated at Chapel Hill, N. C .; afterwards in the law depatment of the University, Lebanon, Tenn., 1859, and settled in Canton, Miss., to practice his profession. In 1861, when the trouble between North and South be- came imminent, he volunteered in a company commanded by Joseph R. Davis, then a member of the Canton bar .* The company was ordered to Pensacola; was on duty there twelve months, and was there mustered ont. On his re- turn home, Capt. Luckett and himself raised a company of cavalry, of which the former was elected Captain and himself 1st Lieut. They joined Col. Wirt Adams' regi- ment, then in the northern part of the State, in 1862. Lieut. Harvey soon attracted the attention of the com- manding officer, and was frequently detached on secret expeditions demanding intelligence, activity and nerve.
* Afterwards Gen. Davis, one of the most brilliant officers of the army, nephew of President Davis ; now n distinguished lawyer at Mississippi City.
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His reports were so useful and reliable, that he was soon retired from other duty and permanently detailed with twenty-five picked men from Adams' Brigade, for special service.
Adams' Brigade was soon ordered to the southern sec- tion of the State, camped near Port Gibson. Harvey and his men kept close to the enemy, making frequent capt- ures of foraging parties. On one occasion Lieut. Harvey was informed that the enemy, camped on the northern side of Big Black, were in the habit of watering their horses in the river. He dismounted his men, concealed them un- der the cliff's and captured several squads. These were, of course, missed at their camp, and soon a company of cavalry was sent to reconnoiter; and fell into the same trap. They, however, refused to surrender, and Harvey opened fire, killing a number at the first discharge. He pursued the others into camp, creating quite a panic by the audacity of the charge. Finding he had charged into a brigade, he promptly retreated without pausing to apol- ogize or say good bye!
One day Lieut. Harvey was riding liesurely along the public road near Big Black, with three or four of his men, going to make a call on Mrs. Montgomery, whose son be- longed to the Scouts, when he found himself in front of ten mounted Yankee troopers, who had just crossed the river to "spy out the land." Giving the word to his men he charged right into these Feds, who, doubtlers, suppos- ing a regiment was at hand, turned tail and fled. Our men pursued, and only one of the ten escaped. Harvey charged in front, and mounted on a superior horse, over- took and passed several of the fugitives, but he left them for his men and pressed on after those who were ahead. The only one who escaped, as soon as he crossed the riv- er, wheeled and fired a parting shot at the Lieutenant, who had just shot his third man, and seized his horse.
Soon after this the Northern government began to en- list colored troops. The Scouts fell in with a long wagon train from Natchez, guarded by a colored regiment. desperate fight ensued. The negroes had been taught that we would show them no quarter, and fought like devils. After they were shot down, they would thrust their bayonets into our horses as we passed. We met them in a narrow lane, and their teams becoming fright- ened, turned round and broke the tongues of the wagons,
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blocking up the road. Of course there was a terrible slanghter. They finally broke, leaping over fences and hiding in the woods, leaving over forty dead on the field. We had three men wounded; one of them, Alfred Land, a gallant fellow, was shot through the right breast, and bay- oneted by a negro. He placed the muzzle against Land's breast and fired, and then thrust his bayonet into him when he fell. He lingered a long time, but never was able to rejoin the command.
Lieut. Harvey was also wounded. A negro, only five paces off, fired at him. The ball took off the point of his nose. Harvey (whose pistols were all empty) seized a musket from a man who had just surrendered, charged on the negro, and hurled the musket, like a javelin, at him. It struck the ground, quivering, and the negro fell on his knees and begged for quarter. And got it.
The invaders patrolled the Mississippi river with a brigade of cavalry and artillery under General Elliott. This brigade was transported from point to point by steamers; frequently landed and sent out marauding par- ties, who plundered indiscriminately and insulted help- less women. On a certain occasion they landed at Grand Gulf, and sent out a regiment of cavalry to capture or an- nihilate Harvey and his command who had been constant- ly annoying their foraging parties. Harvey ambushed his men, but left four of them on horseback to decoy the Feds into the trap. Our men kept at a prudent distance, in full view, and were pursued pell mell by the cavalry firing and yelling. The moment they came within easy range of our guns the Scouts poured a' volley into the mass, and the road was literally covered with the fallen. Those behind, however, bravely pressed forward and compelled Harvey to mount under fire and retreat. They pursued, however, several miles, and we returned the ille intil'our guns and pistols were emptied, and our horses much fatigued.
Our leader seeing that the situation was unpromising. and that further retreat would be impracticable from the nature of the ground, ordered a halt on the brow of a hill, and told his men they must put on a bold front, and charge as though we had fallen back on our reserve, and had been strongly reinforced. The RUSE succeeded; and the enemy precipitately retreated to their steamer.
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James Renfroe, a trooper, distinguished himself in this affair. He was in charge of the decoy party previously referred to. When Lt. Harvey ordered his men to halt and face about, Renfroe led the charge, struck the head of the astounded column, and came back with two priso- ners trotting before him! The enemy apparently were so astonished by the audacity of the scout that they forgot to fire on him, and his two prisoners did not seem to know that each of them had a loaded gun in his hand !
This brave fellow afterwards fell in a charge, and Har- vey said he felt as though his right arm had been shot away.
During Sherman's raid on Meridian, the Scouts annoy- ed the flanks of his army, falling in daily with plundering parties. They killed and captured about one hundred and fifty, and came near grabbing the General himself, who only escaped by falling back, at full speed, on a col- umn of infantry.
Lt. Harvey gave the first information at Headquarters of the landing of Grant and his army at Bruinsburg. Gen. Bowen marched out to encounter him, and fought desperately, but fruitlessly, near Port Gibson, in which the gallant Gen. Tracy was killed.
The Scouts retreated with our army, but remained in the vicinity of Jackson to watch the movements of the enemy. While they were in the act of evacuating Jack- son, and commands and trains very much mixed up, Lt. H:, at the head of his party, dashed into Jackson and charged the rear guard commanded by Col. Cromwell, who seeing his men slaughtered, refused point blank to surrender, and soon fell covered with wounds. His re- mains were escorted to the Bowman House, and soon thereafter buried by Lt. Harvey, the only homage the exi- gency allowed him to pay to the gallant soldier.
Lt. Harvey then ascended to the summit of the Capi- tol, tore down the Federal flag, and hoisted the Confed- erate banner.
After the fall of Vicksburg, Gen. Jackson's cavalry, (to whom Harvey had been ordered to report) was sent to Georgia, to operate against Sherman on his memorable march to Atlanta. A wider field here opened for the military instincts of Harvey. He was commissioned to organize a command, to act as scouts for the Army of Tennessee, his old company to serve as a nucleus. In a
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few days he had the required number-consisting of his well-tried troopers and ardent, enthusiastic young men, most of whom thus far had been restrained from enter- ing the army by parental authority. A few veterans got transferred from other companies.
Many of our best men were, of necessity, on detached service scouting for information, and reporting to the nearest officer. Capt. Harvey usually kept under his im- mediate orders some forty or fifty men. He appointed Robert E. Lee, of Texas, 1st Lieutenant ; Thos. Land, 2d Lieutenant ;+ Geo. Harvey, Junior 2d Lieutenant.
The special duty iu Georgia was to cut off Sherman's supply trains, and impede, in every practicable mode, his transportation. How effectually this was done may be inferred from the fact that the circumspect General found it necessary to detail ten thousand men to guard his depots and railroad bridges. Nevertheless, the inde- fatigable partisan continued to throw off the track and destroy fine trains eramed with supplies, killing and capturing over twelve hundred men during the march from Chattanooga to Atlanta. The hardships they en- dured, the hair-breath escapes they made, in these des- perate enterprises, may be imagined better than described.
Northern Georgia is a mountainous region, sparsely populated, and during the war nurtured a strong Union element. Deserters from the Southern army, and malcon- tents found there a refuge, and keeping up a constant communication with the invaders, it rendered the mission of the Scouts doubly difficult and precarious. They were repeatedly, in consequence of information thus conveyed, surprised in camp when they had taken every precaution for security. In that section they could have no regular commissaries. Men and horses were often without food for several days, their only dependence being on the trains they could throw off the track.
Capt. Harvey having learned that Gen. McCook, with his division of cavalry, was on the war-path, in the rear of our army, ordered Lieut. Harvey, with six men, to spy out the whereabouts of the Federal general. Lieut. H. followed his trail to Lovejoy Station, where he ascer- tained that McCook had been worsted the day before in a
+He was soon afterwards killed near Rome, Ga., in a charge on Kilpatrick's cavalry, one of the noblest and bravest men that died for the South.
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fight with our cavalry, and was then making for Macon, and that in the interval a detachment of blue-coats had been lurking about Lovejoy. He ordered his men singly to beat up the woods, keeping in pistol-shot of each other, and if either of them saw an enemy to yell and charge. Very soon a terific war-whoop was sounded, re- sponded to from six different quarters, when the Lieuten- ant galloping up, eried out to the terrified Captain- "stack your arms immediately-I can't restrain my men- you will be massacred."
Arms were stacked-and the prisoners marched back, and turned over to Gen. Lewis, the nearest officer.
This company had been cut off from the main com- mand in the action the day before, and finding they were within our lines, had picketed their horses, and were en- deavoring to rejoin their command through the woods. These horses, fifty-two in number, were seized and carried into camp.
A singular feature of this affair remains to be dis- closed. MeCook instead of marching for Macon as he at first proposed, suddenly changed his course, and turned towards Newnan, circling around the Confederate army, and passed right through Capt. Harvey's camp, burning his wagons and capturing several of his men and most of his horses. While deploring this serious and most unex- pected disaster that left them afoot, Lient. Harvey rode up with a capital remount and a full supply of the most improved arms. It seemed like a special Providence in behalf of our brave fellows, and the cause they were fighting for, and many a thanksgiving went up from grateful hearts that night
The Scouts followed the army in the disastrious march to Nashville, and after its retreat took the trail of Wilson on his famous raid through Alabama, to Colum- bus, Ga., where the brave Capt. Harvey was murdered by a Codfederate deserter. The captain came up with him as he was in the act of stealing one of his horses, and promptly ordered his arrest. He broke out into the most abusive language, and the Captain knocked him down with his pistol. Not long afterwards, finding Capt. Har- vey alone, he slipped up behind him and shot him through the head. He died instantaneously. Thus per- ished, by the hand of an assassin, one who had passed unscathed through a hundred combats-a hero and pa-
.
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triot-a man whose military genius seemed like inspira- tion, and yet never neglected any precaution to ensure success. He was buried at Columbus, Ga., and his alific- ted comrades, though yearning for home, and about to set out, felt reluctant to leave the ashes of their beloved leader.
"He had often," says Sergeant Nash, "around our camp-fire, declared that he had no wish to outlive the Confederacy. Strange to say, he was murdered on the very day that Lee surrendered !"
CORRECTION .- In the Roll of the Company, the name of L. Simmons shouhl read "L. Sims," and the name of Willie January should appear on the Roll of Privates, after the name of W. Jackson.
THE WEEKLY CLARION, Wednesday, October 4th, 1882.]
NOTE FROM COL. CLAIBORNE,
NATCHEZ, MISS., Sept. 6th, 1882 MY DEAR FRIEND :
On the 4th, I mailed you the first instalment of Har- vey's Scouts. I now send the sequel, with the roll of the Company, transcribed for me by a lady relative, who knew Capt. Harvey before the war in Canton-a lady whose husband, adjutant of Gen. Lopez, was shot with him and other captured officers on the ramparts of Havana -- whose brother perished during the war in a Northern prison, and whose only son, a Captain of Artillery, (my nephew) was killed at Vicksburg while standing at his gun reconnoitering the enemy. Fit amanuensis for such a record as Harvey's!
Many of the names on your list of gallant fellows are familiar to me. I lived in Madison county when I was nominated for Congress, and for three years thereafter, and previously I had lived two years in Holmes county, and knew intimately the parents and relatives of many of the Scouts.
Yours truly,
J. F'. H. CLAIBORNE.
To WILEY N. NASH, EsQ., Starkville, Miss.
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