300 NortH Carorina Troops, 1861-’65.

The Twenty-fifth was moved forward to the left of Fort
Steadman and nearly in front of the position it had occupied
in the ditches through the winter; drove in the enemy’s pick-
ets, took their first works and held them. The fort of the
enemy in the field on the left was not taken, and the enemy
from that point poured a fearful enfilading fire into the
regiment. Several unsuccessful efforts were made from the
front to dislodge the regiment. After the enemy retook Fort
Steadman and was advancing in front and while the regiment
was suffering the effects of an enfilading fire from the left, the
Colonel walked along the line of his regiment with his cap on
sword, shouting to his men, “Don’t let them take our front,
Twenty-fifth, the Twenty-fifth has never had her front
taken.” At this time orders were received from General Gor-
don to fall back to our line of works. The loss of the regi-
ment was heavy. A number of commissioned officers were
severely wounded, including Lieutenant Garland S. Fergu-
son, whose left thigh was broken ; many non-commissioned of-
ficers and privates were killed and wounded.

After Steadman the regiment moved to the right, marching
and fighting; the principal battles in which it was engaged
were at Amelia Court House, and Five Forks. I can do no
better in giving the description of the battle of Five Forks
than to do so in the language of the gallant and beloved Colo-
nel of the regiment. He says: “At Five Forks I was more
proud of the regiment than I had ever been before, and that
is saying a great deal. I have thought of them and com-
pared them to,the ‘Stonewall’ of Manassas. They were sur-
rounded on three sides by many times their own numbers,
but there they stood, a solid mass of mountain men,
broad sides from the enemy being poured into them, and there
they stood like the rock of Gibraltar. When I remember
that heroic scene, I cannot fail to compare that gallant com-
pany, desperate band, to the line the Great Napoleon saw at
Waterloo. Speaking afterwards of the English line of bat-
tle, he says: ‘I covered them with artillery, I flooded them
with infantry, I deluged them with cavalry, but when the
smoke of battle roge, there stood the red line yet.’ Yes, there
stood the gray line, the only line that stood that day, that I

Twenty-Firta REGIMENT. 301

saw, and finally, after combating five different and separate
times over the same field, pine thickets, broom grass, old
fields, all sorts of a place, I was going to win. I was attempt-
ing to whip the enemy with the Twenty-fifth North Caro-
lina, and I knew I could doit. I thought I was getting along
finely, until I happened to look to front, left and right, and
saw we were surrounded with but a small loop hole to get
through. We backed through that, emptying into their faces
the last cartridge we had.”

The regiment’s loss from its enlistment to the surrender
was: Killed in battle, 220; died from disease, 280, and 470
were wounded, of which last number 140 were wounded
more than once.

When General Lee’s order to surrender was received, the
Twenty-fifth regiment still had its flag. It was furled, and
taken down in obedience to the order, but the color-sergeant
concealed it on his person, returned with it home and gave it
to his captain, and it was destroyed by a fire when Captain
Freeman’s house was burned.

I omitted to state that Dr. F. N. Luckey was made surgeon
of the regiment in 1862, in place of Dr. Satchwell, who was
assigned to hospital duty, and Sergeant-Major J. C. L.
Gudger was promoted Adjutant in 1864, to fill the vacancy
caused by the resignation of Adjutant Edmondston.

Captain H. A. Boone succeeded Captain T. D. Bryson in
command of Company B. Captain Boone was murdered on
the streets of Murphy by the celebrated outlaw, Morrow, af-

.ter the close of the war.

GarLANp S. Frerauson,

Waynesvit1e, N. C.,
9 April, 1901.