Chapter 15

THE AIDE-DE-CAMP OF THE GENERAL

When Life Knox left his bed at an early hour on the morning of the 18th, Deck was still sleeping, for no bugle had sounded to wake him. The rain was still pouring in torrents when the sergeant looked out of the window; and it was not probable that any military movements would be made that day. Breakfast was served as usual, the cooks having taken possession of an old tobacco dry-house the night before.

About nine o'clock, after Deck had gone to the hotel where the officers were quartered, Butters, Lieutenant Ripley, and about twenty more, marched into the jail. The keeper had been riding nearly all night, and had secured this number of riflemen, though he had been obliged to seek them, in part, miles distant from the town. They came with rifles and belts, with powder and ball in horns and pouches, as those from Millersville had appeared. They were ready for duty, and Butters declared that every one of them could shoot very well with the rifles they had used in their practice.

They were introduced by Lieutenant Ripley to the members of his command lodged in the building, and they fraternized like brothers; for the ability to use the rifle with skill and precision seemed to be the bond which united them. The lieutenant of the sharpshooters now had fifty-six men in his company. When Captain Gordon called at the prison, he promoted Ripley to the rank of captain, and made Butters, who was the second-best shot in the corps, lieutenant, though he could not give them commissions. They were then marched to the tobacco dry-house, only a small portion of which the cooks used, and drilled by the new captain.

At the hotel, Major Lyon and Captain Woodbine, an aide-de-camp of the commanding general, who had been sent to Harrison on account of his intimate knowledge of this locality, and was a man of influence in a neighboring county, were discussing the situation. Deck had found him, after no little difficulty, at the house of one of his friends, and reported to him the arrival of the Riverlawn Cavalry, re-enforced by a company of volunteer sharpshooters from Adair County, under the command of Captain Ripley.

"Ripley is an old man, isn't he?" asked Captain Woodbine.

"Sixty, I heard some one say, Captain; but I can assure you he is a very able officer," replied Deck.

"I dare say he is, for I know him well. Now will you introduce yourself, Lieutenant?" said the aide-de-camp with a smile, as he looked over the wet form of the visitor.

"My name is Dexter Lyon, Captain."

"Any relation to the commander of your squadron?"

"His son; but I was promoted from the ranks on the petition of every member of the first company, and all the officers of the squadron except my father," replied Deck; and there was a blush on his wet cheeks, for he feared that the military official would conclude that he had been raised to his present rank by the influence of his father.

"A very commendable delicacy on the part of Major Lyon, but not always manifested in such cases," added the captain. "I heard that one company of Major Lyon's squadron had arrived at Harrison, and that the other was coming by the way of Jamestown. Your company was late, and the major went in search of it."

"We had several skirmishes with guerillas and foraging parties of the enemy, which delayed us."

"Tell me about them," added Captain Woodbine, whose curiosity was aroused; and he kept his eyes very steadily on the young lieutenant.

As modestly as he could, he related the events on the march of the first company, taking care to call his command the "second platoon." The affair at the house of Mr. Halliburn was mentioned; and the manner in which the guerillas had been bagged excited the attention of the officer, and he asked then who commanded the second platoon.

"I did, Captain," replied Deck, looking on the floor of the parlor.

"It was very adroitly done, and you exhibited very good strategy." Deck bowed, and went on with his narrative. The fight in the road was then mentioned, with its result only.

"This was the same force that captured the brigands, and brought them as prisoners down to the road, was it?"

"The same, Captain."

"And you commanded it in the action that followed?"

"I did, Captain," replied Deck, looking at the ceiling of the room.

The battle of that day on the hill was then described; but in this narration he contrived to keep himself in the shade. He gave the most of the credit for the victory to the riflemen in the woods, though he did not omit to credit Captain Gordon for his plan of battle.

"Where are these sharpshooters now? They appear to have been a very useful body of men," inquired the aide-de-camp.

"Part of them returned to Millersville, where they belong, though thirty-six of them have volunteered to go with us for the present campaign, under the command of Captain Ripley."

"I must see Ripley," mused the official.

"He is at the jail with his men, or he went there with them," added Deck.

"Our carriage is ready," said Captain Woodbine; "and there is room enough in it for you."

It was a covered road-wagon, and Deck judged that the captain had talked with him to pass away the time while he was waiting for the conveyance. They were driven first to the hotel.

"I have heard a great deal about the Riverlawn Cavalry, as you call them, though its two companies belong to the first cavalry regiment," said the captain when they were seated in the vehicle.

"Our men like the name," added the young lieutenant.

"They have rendered most excellent service under that name; and there is nothing to prevent them from retaining it, especially while they are on detached service."

Captain Woodbine was conducted by Major Lyon to the parlor occupied by the officers, where he was presented to them, after which the major, who was disposed to keep his affairs to himself, invited the aide-de-camp to go with him to his room, where he had ordered a fire.

"Lieutenant Lyon, you must excuse me for questioning you so much this evening; but I wanted to know more about you, for I think we shall have use for you," said the captain, as he took the hand of Deck, and drew him aside.

"I was very glad to give you the information you desired," replied Deck, as the visitor followed his father.

"I have to report the arrival of my command, and it is my purpose to move on to Harrison to-morrow," said the major as they entered the room.

"You need not do that, for your command is nearer now where you will be wanted than you would be at Harrison," added the captain as he and the major seated themselves at a table before the fire. "I waited for you till the time you were expected to arrive."

"I was ordered to look out for foragers and guerillas on my way; and I was detained some time near Liberty, in driving off a party of marauders, and I was a few hours late. My first company, which had the shorter route, had not arrived, and I marched in search of it," Major Lyon explained. "I found it about five miles from this town, delayed by several skirmishes with the enemy."

"Your son told me all about them while we were waiting for the vehicle; and he certainly distinguished himself, both by his management of the affair with the guerillas, and by his bravery in the action with the enemy's cavalry," said Captain Woodbine.

"He did very well," replied the major, proud of the good conduct of Deck, though he was not inclined to praise him, preferring to leave that to others. "I suppose the army which is to operate under General Thomas is somewhere in this vicinity."

"A portion of it is at Logan's Cross Roads, as it is called;" and he pointed out the locality on the major's map, which was spread out on the table.

He indicated several other places where bodies of Union troops were, or were supposed to be, located. They had been detained by the almost impassable condition of the roads.

"But the general will attack the enemy in his intrenchments as soon as he can concentrate a sufficient force for the purpose. This heavy rain, I fear, will delay the advance of the troops in the rear; for it will render the streams, especially Fishing Creek, impassable for the baggage-trains."

"It does not usually rain as it does now for any great length of time?" suggested Major Lyon.

"I have known such a rain to continue for several days; for I live over in Whitley County, in the mountains, about thirty-five miles east of Mill Springs."

"The mountains catch the clouds, and empty them, as they move from the east or the west," added the major.

"We have plenty of rain at this season of the year. I have heard all about the Riverlawn Cavalry, as your son says you prefer to call it. I met Colonel Cosgrove at Louisville, and he gave me a full account of what he called the Battle of Riverlawn. Of your fights with the Texan Rangers at the railroad bridge, Munfordsville, and at Greeltop and Plain Hill, I have read your reports. Without mentioning the nature of the service that will be required of you, I will say that, at my suggestion, the general has important duty for you, Major."

"Of course I am ready to obey the orders that come to me," replied the commander.

For several hours longer Captain Woodbine described the topography of the region in three counties, which he thought it very necessary for him to understand.

"In our engagement with a full company of Tennessee cavalry, our first company was aided by the Home Guard of Millersville; and the riflemen of this body rendered very essential service as sharpshooters stationed in the woods. These men volunteered to serve in this campaign, and we have them with us. I hope I shall be permitted to make use of them. They are well mounted, and every one of them is a dead shot. Captain Gordon, commanding our first company, suggested the idea of organizing a force of mounted riflemen, and a considerable number of them volunteered, and came to Jamestown with us."

"They are simply volunteers under your command; and no application need be made at headquarters to use them, and you can do so, Major," replied the captain, who was understood as speaking for the commanding general; and it was evident that he had influence with him.

At the stroke of midnight both of the gentlemen retired. When they looked out of the window in the morning it was still raining; and it was plain to them that no great progress could be made in military movements while the country was inundated, as it appeared to be from the hotel.

In the forenoon Captain Woodbine visited the companies, and looked over the men; for he plainly depended upon the squadron for particular service. He went to the jail and to the dry-house to see the riflemen who were drilling there under the eye of Captain Ripley and several sergeants from the companies.

Military movements on the eve of battle are not ordinarily impeded by rain, for the soldiers march and fight in spite of the weather; but when the flow of water is sufficient to inundate the country, the situation sometimes compels a suspension of activity, owing to the difficulty or impossibility of moving wagons and artillery. But at this time General Thomas was awaiting the arrival of the regiments from points farther north of his camp at Logan's Cross Roads, and nothing could be done for this reason. But on the 18th the rain ceased; and on the next day, which was Saturday, General Schoepf's brigade, a portion of which had been sent forward before, arrived towards night, and was placed in position.

That evening Captain Woodbine, who had been with the general in command all day, called upon Major Lyon, and directed him to have his squadron, with its volunteer riflemen, in column on the Millersville Road at daylight in the morning of Sunday, for a reconnaissance in the direction of the enemy's intrenched camp at Beech Grove. The major reported that the rifle volunteers had been re-enforced to fifty-six men by the efforts of Butters the jailer.

The commander of the squadron promptly issued his orders to his officers to have his men ready to move at four o'clock Sunday morning.