USA > West Virginia > History of the Fifth West Virginia Cavalry > Part 35
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Reader told him what he was after, that we were escaping union pris- oners and desired food. He promised to bring it to us in a few min- utes, and showed a place where he would meet the party. Reader then returned to his comrades and related to them his second adventure. The black came to us in a short time with some fried apples, swimming in grease, a dose that would have sickened an ordinary stomach. This was the best that he could do, as he said they had not a pound of meal for their family. It was a grievous disappointment to us, but there was no remedying it now. He gave us directions how to reach the road that led to the Weldon railroad, and cautioned us as to the presence of confederate soldiers almost everywhere. We pursued our journey, and got along very well for a while, when the rain began to pour down in torrents, and we became again lost in another of those Virginia forests. The rain ceased in a short time, but we were deep in the woods, not having the remotest idea of what course we should take, not being able to see the stars, or anything else that would indicate the points of the compass. We at last reached a fence, beyond which we saw a house, which we approached and found to be empty. Being apparently some distance from any other house, we concluded to put up in it for the day. It was a new house, the best place we found on our trip in which to rest, and being free from the little pests that annoyed us in the woods, we were able to rest and sleep.
At dusk we went to the edge of the woods near a house, in which lived a family of poor whites. We rested within a few rods of this house un- til it was quite dark, when Anderson went to it, called the man of the house to one side, and learned from him all about the location of the confederate forces in that vicinity. Anderson led the man to believe that he was a confederate, and thus received from him a good deal of valuable information. We learned that in order to get to our destina- tion, we had to pass three camps of cavalry, one stationed at Reams' station, one at Stony Creek, and the other camp between the two places, the extreme right wing of Lee's army, and from that time on, we were not at any time half a mile from armed men. Almost from the hour we jumped from the train we were really so situated, but not in so great a degree as now, when we were never out of sound of the call of their bugles. \ moment's exposure in daylight and we were as sure of recap- ture as that we lived. Having received this valuable information, · Anderson returned to us, and we pursued our tramp on the Boydton plank road. We had not gone far when we got into difficulty with the enemy's pickets and barely escaped capture. We avoided them by striking off into the woods and keeping as quiet as possible.
Of all our experiences in the woods this was the worst. It was a swamp of the most treacherous kind, in which we sank as we stepped along, making the walking exceedingly tiresome and slow. We walked along in this as we supposed about two miles, when we were brought to
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a stand still, by a little stream that impeded our progress. We followed its course for some distance, when we stopped at some logs, which we hoped would afford a crossing place. Penniman got off by himself, hunting an open place in the woods, where he could see the stars, so as to shape our course, and called to the rest of the party to come to him. The words had scarcely left his lips, when the stillness of the air was broken by-"Who goes there?" coming from the opposite side of the little stream. We found ourselves face to face, almost, with the con- federate pickets, and the question was how to escape from them. We at once hurried back further into the woods from the stream, thorough- ly arousing the pickets, the click of whose guns sounded ominous. We sat down at the foot of a large tree, and became as quiet as we could, awaiting developments from the other side. We lay thus for perhaps an hour, during which time the guards were relieved, and our case was evidently overlooked. There was no further attempt made to find us, and they doubtless thought we were wandering negroes.
As soon as the relief took their place we were ready to procced. Just then the artillery opened up north of us, at Petersburg, indicating the direction we were to go. We were not long in getting out of that place. We picked our way carefully and cautiously, until we had got out of reach of the guards, and soon were out of the woods, on the road on which the pickets were stationed. We kept our eyes and cars open for them, and were fortunate to avoid them at this time. Taking our course from the North star, we struck directly cast, aiming to get across the Weldon railroad before morning. We soon reached Stony Creek, when, looking behind us, we saw a light, which we supposed came from a house. It was at once proposed to return to the house, and see if we couldn't get something to eat. We had about concluded to do so, when the call from a bugle was sounded, and we saw at once that the light came from a camp of soldiers. We were but a short distance from one of the camps we so greatly feared. We did not stay long here, but waded the creek and hurried into the woods. When we had gone a short distance, we could see plainly the camp fires and the troops in motion, and soon were in the midst of camps and guards, and it re- quired all our ingenuity and care to avoid them. The forces were nearly all in motion, and though we were often almost in their grasp, we succeeded in dodging them. It was not a pleasant thing to stumble within a few yards of a squad of armed men, standing in some cases- around a camp fire, but this became so common to us in our experience that night, that we almost expected it.
Soon we heard a train coming up the railroad, and we went into a more open space to watch it, when we saw to our left a camp fire, prob- ably not over fifty yards distant, behind a little knoll, and a number of soldiers stretched about the fire. We crawled on our hands and knees near to an empty log house a few rods in front of us, to ascertain our
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whereabouts. What a sight met our view! All around us were the enemy in camp, the guards stationed everywhere, and we were in their hands once again, if they but closed in on our hiding place. They seemed to be getting ready in some of the camps to go on a march. At a distance we saw the lights of one camp of cavalry, where the bugles were sounding and the troops in motion, but we did not care to investi- gate the surroundings, and cudgeled our brains how to get out of the bad scrape we were in. Before us was the Weldon railroad, which we had to cross to reach our lines, and we tremblingly moved toward it. Now crawling along, again on our hands and knees, and again for a few yards on our feet, we moved to the important place. When we had gone a short distance we heard a train coming, and we lay down in the corn into which we had now found our way, which was sufficiently high to screen us from view. We were but a few yards from the track, and as the train came thundering along, we were close enough to see the soldiers on it. The train was going in the direction of Petersburg, and was full inside and on the top, with armed soldiers. When the train got past we drew a long breath, relieved that this danger was over. We then went close to the railroad track and took a view of the surround- ings. The road was strongly guarded, but a few minutes' absence of the guards would enable us to cross the track in safety. Watching our opportunity, when none of them seemed to have an eye on where we were, we passed hastily over the road and hurried into the woods be- yond. The critical point was behind us, and we sat down in the forest and rejoiced in our safety.
This day, the 29th, was an exciting one. Our high spirits of the night before were considerably dampened. It was the most dangerous day that we had experienced, and it seemed scarcely possible that we could get out of it as well as we did. We lay all day within less than one mile of one of the camps of cavalry. Their bugle calls could be heard distinctly, and hundreds of the men were in sight all the time. A party of them came within less than twenty feet of us, and could have nearly stirred us out with their guns, but fortunately did not learn of our whereabouts. We put in an uneasy day and could get no more sleep, and even our hunger was forgotten in the great danger that beset us. We struck out through the woods when darkness fell upon us, and when we reached a clearing, we saw a house a short distance off, to which Penniman went for something to eat. When he reached it he found the place surrounded by gnards, and would have been captured had it not been for a black, who pulled him back to a secure place, as the guard approached. Inside the house several officers were enjoying the hospitalities, and there was no chance to get anything to eat. He returned to us in a few minutes and related his adventure, with unstinted praise for his rescuer.
We crossed through another wood stopping near a house. Here
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Sweet made up his mind to have a drink of water and something to eat, at the risk of his life. He went to the house and entered it, and as he entered at one door a confederate soldier went out of another one, and started to the woods on a run. Sweet got a drink, but did not deem it prudent to stay long enough to get anything to eat. The confederate pickets were too near for comfort, and we got out of that place just as soon as our weary limbs could carry us. We got on to the Prince George Court House road, and found an old tobacco case, with an engraving of General Meade on it. This satisfied us that the Yankees had been there. A little further along, on a high point of land, we saw a body of horse- men, but of which army we could not tell. We debated the question for some minutes whether we should make ourselves known to them, but finally concluded not to do so, satisfied to endure still greater fatigue rather than run the risk of recapture. We then left the road, crossed down through a field to our left, and came out on the Petersburg pike, which we followed, and soon came to a house, where we waked up the inmates, requesting them to tell us how far it was to our pickets. We represented ourselves as confederates, and of course they thought we meant the pickets of that army, and they told us that it was two and one-half miles, at the crossing of Mill creek by the pike we were on. We received from them all the information we wished, as to the number of the confederate forces near, the distance we were from them, and our best and shortest course to all the principal points. We bade them good night, thanking them for their information, and went into the orchard, where we filled our pockets with green apples for use in camp next day. We then went into the woods near to the picket lines and camped, hidden securely among the bushes, almost within gunshot of our lines.
We had a good sleep, but were awakened early by one of the most tremendous noises we had ever heard. As we learned afterwards, it was caused by blowing up the fort in front of Petersburg. Soon a terrific cannonading was begun, and we became deeply interested in it. There we lay and listened, eating the green apples we had secured, and spent some time in trying to clean ourselves of the vermin, and in resisting the attacks of the gnats and musquitos. We had eaten no food for several days, and our hunger was intense. We had a quantity of salt which we used on our green apples, thus avoiding any ill effects from such food, but there was no sustenance in it. We had become very weak, and our nerves were almost shattered by the intense strain to which we had been subjected for some weeks, so much so that the firing of the guns about us kept us in constant dread. But strange to say, in all this suffering and weakness, we did not lose our hope and cheerfulness of spirit, nor did we ever for a single moment think of giving up our struggle for freedom. While listening to the cannonading at Petersburg, we were startled by the report of a field piece not far in our front, then another and still others, until we made ready'to vacate our hiding place, feeling sure
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that mischief was in store for us. Presently we could hear the rapid firing of carbines, all the time moving to where we were secreted, and we hurried from the place. We went to the edge of the woods, and fol- lowed it, keeping to the right and under cover of the trees. The wood was circling to our left, and we had not followed it far when we could see that the firing was now near the spot we had left. We walked thus perhaps two or three miles, the firing on our left. until we came to a point where we could see the contending forces, perhaps a mile distant in a direct line, and had a full view of the scene of action. A fight was in progress and it was a brisk one, but we could not make out then which of the lines was our own army. but we could see that one of the armies had been driven into the wood where we were hidden in the morning, and from which we were driven. We learned after our arrival in our lines that the forces occupying our hiding place were confederate cavalry, which had been forced there by a force of union cavalry. The former were those that we had seen in motion during our secret night marches, and the bugle calls found an explanation.
As we could go no further without discovery, we lay down in a piece of woods to our right, and watched the progress of the battle as best we could. While thus engaged, a company of cavalry galloped past us in the direction of the confederate forces. We were within a hundred yards of the road, but as the troops were covered with dust, we could not distinguish their uniforms. to tell to which army they belonged. One of us went into the field to see if we could make them out. but was not able to do so. In the hope that they would return. Penniman went down to the road and hid in some bushes, where he could have a full view of them and not be seen himself. It was an anxious waiting for us. If they were union cavalry we were saved, but if they were of the enemy, then our chances of escape were very few. Soon we heard the clatter of the horses' feet on the return. Near and nearer they came. and all eyes were strained to get a view of them. Oh what intensity of emotion was crowded into that minute of waiting ! Penniman, at his outlook, was eagerly scanning the road, and his eyes never left the troopers from the moment they came in sight until they filed past him. He waited patiently to see something about them that would show to what army they belonged.
The company came up to where he lay and went rapidly by him, when out of the grime and dust, the blue of some of the uniforms showed itself, and the truth flashed on him that they were union soldiers. Jump- ing to his feet he waved his hat and called out at the top of his voice: "Come on, boys; thank God we're safe." Instantly scores of carbines were raised and covered us, when we called to the troops, "Don't fire; we are union soldiers," and every carbine fell and we rushed to them, safe beneath the authority of the stars and stripes.
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