532 Norta Carorina Troops, 1861-’65.

brought up a battery and shelled our rear as we went off doing
no damage however. When we came on the main field of
Brandy Station, cannon were booming, dust and smoke ob-
secured vision, and no one could tell what would happen nest.
One man was seen to throw up his arms and fall from his
horse and all supposed him badly wounded; after develop-
ments proved that his distress was purely menta]. The bri-
gade drew up in line just in rear of Fleetwood house and in
support of a battery. The smoke and dust having lifted, we
had a full view of the entire field. Blue and gray horsemen
were moving rapidly in many parts of the field and frequently
coming in sharp collision. Just on the opposite side of the
field, a battery was posted, which was firing on our battery.
We could see the discharge of each piece, and a few seconds
after could see when the shell struck. The apparent com-
mander of the Federal battery and support was riding a mag-
nificent white horse. One of our shells struck this horse and
rider and made fragments of them. About 2 p. m. we heard

very rapid carbine firing on our left, a few minutes after we
were moved to that direction and found that the brigade to
which the Nineteenth North Carolina (Second Cavalry) be-
longed had been severely engaged and the Nineteenth had lost
heavily—Colonel Sol. Williams was killed here. We moved
after the retiring Yanks, but did not overtake them. No one
of our regiment or brigade was physically hurt that day.

MIDDLEBURG.

Our luck was different in the next collision. This collision
occurred at Middleburg 17 June, 1863. The fifth squadron
of the Sixty-third was in front and about dusk was ordered
to charge on some Yanks in the road. ‘These men were
simply a decoy. A whole regiment was dismounted and be-
hind a stone fence. As the squadron pursuing the decoys
came abreast of the dismounted regiment it opened fire, kill-
ing one man, wounding and disabling about twenty men and
horses. Only seventeen men of the squadron followed the
Captain through the fire. Of the remainder some tried to
turn back, some dismounted and took shelter behind the stone
fence. Fortunately the rear of the regiment was close at

 

Stxty-THirp REGIMENT. 533

hand, dismounted, got over the fence and attacked the enemy
in flank. Still more fortunately a Virginia regiment was
passing on a road perpendicular to the road charged upon.
This regiment heard the firing, halted and was ready to re-
ceive the enemy as they gave way before the flank. Nearly
the entire regiment of Federals was captured, about 800 men.
The Sixty-third lost two men killed, about twenty wounded,
among whom were three Lieutenants. Our greatest loss was
Major McNeill, severely wounded in the hip. He was
handling his portion of the flank attack very skilfully. He
was disabled for many months.

During 18, 19 and 20 June we fought over the ground be-
tween Middleburg and Upperville, alternately advancing and
retreating. On the morning of the 21st the fighting assumed
a fiercer form than heretofore and it was soon evident that
the enemy were much stronger than usual. Swinton tells us
that “Hooker reinforced his cavalry with a division of in-
fantry, being determined to find out if any of Lee’s infantry
was east of the mountains.” Stuart gradually retired, stub-
bornly contesting every available position. The fiercest fight
was in the streets of Upperville where it became a hand-to-
hand conflict. A flank attack by fresh Federal troops de
cided the conflict and the Confederates retired in more or less
disorder. The Captain of the fifth squadron succeeded in
getting his men out in fairly good order and was marching
leisurely towards Paris when Colonel Evans rode up and
said that as this was the only organized body of his regiment
he could find, he wished us to get on the turnpike and stop a
charge the Yanks were about to make. We were then about
two hundred yards off the main turnpike. We moved over
on the pike and took position on a gentle acclivity. Very
soon General Stuart rode up. He examined the movements
of the enemy with his field glass. There was a stone fence
about two hundred yards in front of our position and per-
pendicular to the battle. The enemy had started some skir-
mishers out to get possession of this fence. General Stuart
requested the Captain of the squadron to take about twenty
men and get to the fence before them, which was done. The
Federal cavalry beginning to advance, Colonel Evans wished