Captain Don P. Halsey, C. S. A.
A gallant officer, accomplished scholar and able lawyer.Among those who won honorable distinction in the great war between the States of the American Union, and proved themselves worthy of commemoration among the heroes of that mighty conflict, was the subject of this sketch. Not only was he as high-souled and brave and chivalrous a soldier as any knight of old, but also as cultivated and intellectual a scholar as many who have attained the highest prominence in the world of learning and letters, and a man of as gentle nature, noble aspirations and high ambitions as the most honored and eminent.
Don Peters Halsey was born in Lynchburg, Virginia, on the 15th day of September, 1836. His parents were Seth Halsey, a substantial citizen of that town, and Julia D. B. Halsey, nee Peters, a woman of strong character and great worth. He was sprung from excellent English stock, being one of the numerous descendants of Thomas Halsey, who came to America in 1633, in connection with one of the colonization enterprises of which John Winthrop was the leader, settled first in Lynn, Massachusetts, and afterwards became a prominent citizen of Southampton, Long Island, where he died in 1679, at the ripe old age of ninety. He was a Puritan, but as has been quaintly said ‘of a milder type than those who settled at Plymouth Rock.’ The ancestral line in England has been traced back without break to 1512, and apparently to 1458, while English bearers of the name have been found as early as 1189, though these cannot be directly connected. The family residence is still standing at Great Gaddesden, in Hertfordshire, England, and is known now as it has been for centuries, as the ‘Golden Parsonage,’ being one of those old church properties which were taken possession of by the crown in the 15th and 16th centuries. John Halsey is known to have lived there in 1512, and the King (Henry Viii) granted this rectory to William Halsey, by a deed dated March 12, 1548, and it has remained in unbroken possession of the Halsey family ever since. The present owner and occupant, Thomas Frederick Halsey, Esq., M. P., is described as a most amiable and cultivated gentleman.
Young Halsey's boyhood was spent in and around Lynchburg, where he went to school to the famous Peter Nelson, who taught in a [194] little house still standing on Clay street. He also went to other schools in Lynchburg, and then to a boarding-school kept by Mr. William Claytor, at Liberty, now Bedford City. From there he went to Emory and Henry College where he graduated with distinction in 1855. In the fall of that year he assumed the duties of the Chair of Ancient Languages in Roanoke College, to which he had been unanimously elected, but being then only 19 years of age, concluded that he was too young for such a position and determined to further cultivate his own mind. With this end in view he entered the University of Virginia in February, 1856, and remained there until the close of that session. His course there cannot be otherwise described than as brilliant. Colonel William E. Peters, his uncle, Emeritus Professor of Latin, University of Virginia, says that no student within his knowledge ever accomplished more than he did within the same space of time. To use Colonel Peters' exact language, he writes: ‘It was my good fortune to take part in his education from his earliest boyhood in Lynchburg, afterward at Bedford City and again at Emory and Henry, where he graduated. After his graduation he was elected Professor of Latin and Greek (I believe) in Roanoke College, Virginia. The position there did not suit him. He gave it up late in the fall and on my earnest insistence his father sent him to the University of Virginia. I was confident that he would be able to graduate (here) in Latin, Greek, French and Spanish which he studied with me at Emory and Henry. He did graduate in these subjects, a most unusual achievement, considering the fact that he entered the University late in the session. I doubt whether any student had accomplished so much here in so short a time. Your father was a brilliant student and an exceptionally fine scholar. * * * I have never known a truer and braver spirit, nor a finer intellect.’
This testimony is corroborated by others who were at the University at the same time, among whom may be named Professor E. S. Joynes, of South Carolina College, and Dr. J. A. Quarles, of Washington and Lee University, the latter of whom was his roommate. Dr. Quarles says that he was the most indefatigable student he ever saw, and that he does not recollect ever having seen him asleep, but that when he would retire at night he would leave Halsey awake with book in hand, and when he awoke in the morning he would find him in the same position, although, of course he supposed he went to sleep some time during the night.
After his distinguished career at the University of Virginia, he [195] went in the fall of 1856 to Europe, where he remained several years, pursuing his studies at the various German universities. He studied at Bonn, Berlin and Heidelberg, all three, and at each won the highest encomiums from the learned teachers under whom he sat, and received several diplomas showing the courses he had successfully taken. His studies in Europe were not confined to the languages, in which he was specially adept, but embraced the study of science and philosophy as well. More particularly he gave attention to the law, at the University of Heidelberg, and studied chiefly the civil law, based upon the Roman law or Code of Justinian, and became profoundly versed in that system of jurisprudence, so that at one time he contemplated going to Louisiana to practice, where the civil law prevails instead of the common law. He was thoroughly learned in the common law, however, and it is doubtful if any lawyer in the State during the time of his practice, surpassed him in knowledge of the history and principles of that great juridical system which most of the American States have received as a common heritage from the mother country.
His talent for acquiring languages was remarkable, and it was as a linguist that he most excelled, his accomplishments as such being of such a high order that it may be questioned whether his equal could have been found in the South. His grasp of the ancient languages of Greece and Rome was that of the profound and erudite student, while the modern languages of France and Germany, Spain and Italy, were to him as his native tongue. Indeed it was often remarked by educated natives of those countries, who had conversed with him, that he spoke their language without a trace of foreign accent, yet with the grammatical precision and fluent correctness that at once betokened the trained scholar and intellectual gentleman that he was. In speaking English he always observed the same elegance of diction, yet never in such a manner as to appear pompous or pedantic, but even in private conversation recognizing the desirability of preserving ‘the well of English pure and undefiled,’ and showing by his example that it is always in good taste to speak correctly. Slang and colloquialisms jarred on his ear, like as the discordant blare of an unskilled trumpeter, or the squeak of a wheezy hand-organ, must grate on the nerves of the trained musician. He wrote with the same ease and fluency with which he spoke, his letters always being models of correct expression, and even legal documents drawn by him evinced the scholarly use of English which was his invariable habit. [196]
It is as a soldier, however, that his career deserves especial notice. At the end of the year 1860, it had already become evident that the differences between the two sections of the Union were irreconcilable, and that the ‘irrepressible conflict’ could not be repressed much longer, but must soon be fought out to a final determination. When this condition of affairs became apparent, the young student at the German universities saw where his duty lay, and with that same unflinching steadiness of purpose and devotion to duty which afterwards characterized his conduct on many a bloody field of battle, he at once made ready to return to his native land and devote his talents and energies to the service of his beloved State. To him the quiet and sequestered cloisters of learning, the classic shades of university life, were at once charming and engrossing, but now he saw from afar that the red lightning of war was beginning to flash over his home, and heard its deep thunders as they were beginning to growl in the distance before the storm burst in wrath over the devoted heads of his people; and so, casting aside the student's gown for the uniform of the soldier, and laying aside his books to take up the sword, he embarked for America, and arrived before the hostilities were actually begun, or his State had taken the final step of secession which was to be to her the crossing of the Rubicon, and to make her soil the stamping-ground of armies and the battlefield of the greatest war of modern times. In the debate which was then in progress he took sides with those who believed that the differences should be settled inside the Union, and like General Lee and many others who afterwards became the mainstay and support of the Southern cause, endeavored to delay the tide which was then setting in towards the disseverance of the Union, and the bloody war which would inevitably follow. To this end he spoke and worked for the election of Union delegates to the State convention; a speech of his at Holcombe Hall, when the matter was up for discussion being still remembered by many residents of Lynchburg for its earnestness and ability. The die was cast against his views, however, and when this was the case he did as General Lee and General Early and so many ardent supporters of the Union felt it their duty to do—he ‘went with his State,’ and thereafter there was on his part no repining and no holding back, and naught save the most steadfast devotion and heroic sacrifice for the sake of the cause to every Southern heart so dear.
In May, 1861, when the clans were gathering for the contest he, with two of his brothers, was mustered in at Forrest Depot, Virginia, [197] becoming second lieutenant in Company G, of what was known as the 2nd Virginia Cavalry, or 30th Virginia Regiment Mounted, but which was really the first regiment of Virginia cavalry to be organized, and would probably have been known as the 1st Regiment, but that this distinction was given to the regiment of Colonel (afterward General) J. E. B. Stuart. This regiment was commanded by Colonel R. Carleton W. Radford and the company of which he was an officer was under the command of Captain Winston Radford. Soon after the organization of the regiment it was ordered to the neighborhood of Manassas, and participated gallantly in the first battle of Manassas in July, 1861. Captain Winston Radford was killed at Manassas, in a most dashing charge, in which Lieutenant Halsey participated in such manner as to be mentioned in Colonel Radford's report among those who distinguished themselves on that occasion (War Records, Vol. II, pp. 458 and 533), and in the election of company officers which followed that sad event, Lieutenant Halsey was promoted from second lieutenant to first, and this rank he held until the following spring, when at the re-organization of his company he withdrew and went as a volunteer aide-de-camp upon the staff of General Longstreet, his company, with four others of his regiment under the command of Lieutenant-Colonel T. T. Munford, having belonged to Longstreet's Brigade. This position he held but a short time, being soon commissioned as aide on General Garland's staff. His efficiency as a staff officer was such as to elicit golden opinions from every general upon whose staff he was employed, and while doubtless his advancement in rank would have been greater if he had continued as a line officer and remained with Virginia troops, his usefulness to the cause he loved so devotedly was such as to deserve promotion to high rank even if he did not receive it. The rules of the service, however, were such that promotion for staff officers was hard to obtain, and especially was promotion slow to those who served with troops of other States than their own. It so happened that Captain Halsey for the greater part of the time was thrown with troops from North Carolina instead of Virginia and this may have been one of the causes why he was not advanced to higher rank. His record as a soldier, nevertheless, is one of which his descendants may ever be justly proud, as it is the unvarying testimony of his comrades and all with whom he served, that no man of his rank in the armies of the Confederacy made a better record for zeal, efficiency and bravery. That fine old Virginia gentleman, General T. T. Munford, who served with him [198] during a great part of the war, has repeatedly made the statement that there was no better, braver, truer soldier in the army than Don Halsey. Such is the testimony also of Captain B. M. Collins, of the 12th North Carolina Regiment, who was with him constantly, General G. C. Wharton, General R. D. Johnston, and many others still living who with one voice say that a more gallant officer, or one more ready and fitted to do his duty on all occasions could not be found in the service. To their testimony is added that of the official records, which so fortunately for the truth of history, have been preserved and published by the United States Government in the series of volumes entitled War of Rebellion, Records of the Union and Confederate Armies. From these records it appears that he served successively on the staffs of Generals Garland, Iverson, R. D. Johnston, Ramseur and Wharton, and perhaps others, and that he saw as much active service as any other officer of the Southern armies, having participated in many of the heaviest battles of the war, such as Manassas, Seven Pines-and other great battles of the Peninsula Campaign, South Mountain, Sharpsburg, Chancellorsville and Gettysburg, and also in many minor battles and skirmishes which do not figure so extensively in the reports, but which were no less a test of bravery and efficiency than the great historic battles whose names are household words throughout the world.
His conduct at the battle of Seven Pines is worthy of all praise. It was here that he received a severe wound from a minie ball, over the right eye, which deprived him of the sight of that organ, but which, strange to say did not materially disfigure him, so that few persons would have been able to detect from looking at him that he had lost an eye. In his official report of that great battle, General D. H. Hill, who was in command of a division that was prominently engaged says ( War of the Rebellion Records, Vol. XI, pp. 945-6): ‘General Garland, when his brigade was not actually engaged, reported to me with his aide and adjutant to serve in my staff. In that capacity he rendered the most valuable services and was much exposed. His adjutant, Meem, was killed, and his aide, Halsey, severely wounded near me. I had frequent occasion to notice the gallant bearing of these two officers.’ General Garland in his report (same volume, pp. 962-966), mentions the activity he displayed in carrying orders and attending to the usual duties of a staff officer, and uses these words: ‘My aide-de-camp, Lieutenant Don P. Halsey, having attracted universal applause throughout my entire command by his handsome behavior, was rallying a disordered regiment [199] and leading it forward with their colors in his hand when he received a dangerous wound in the head which will deprive me of his valuable services for a long time to come.’ Colonel William E. Peters, in a letter to the writer, refers to his behavior at Seven Pines as follows: ‘I did not serve with him during the war, but he had the reputation as a soldier second to none. I remember one thing, I was on the field of the battle of Seven Pines. The works of the enemy were assaulted by his brigade. The brigade recoiled from the assault, when he seized the brigade colors, rallied and led the brigade, and fell within a short distance of the enemy's works. It was reported that he had been killed. I went in search of his body, but he had been removed, desperately wounded, to a hospital in Richmond. I have always considered that your father was in a great measure responsible for carrying the enemy's works in this desperate battle.’ It would seem from a comparison of this statement with General Garland's report, that the brigade movement described by Colonel Peters was that of a regiment instead.
He returned to active service as soon as recovery from his wound would permit, and in the fall of that same year (1862), he took part in the Maryland campaign and participated in the hot fighting which took place at Boonsborough, South Mountain and Sharpsburg. On September 14, 1862, at the battle of South Mountain, General Garland was killed. It is said that when he fell, mortally wounded, his aide, Lieutenant Halsey, was the first to reach his side and to receive his dying message: ‘I am killed, send for the senior colonel.’ This turned out to be Colonel D. K. McRae, of the 5th North Carolina, who promptly took command of the brigade and directed its movements in the fighting that followed. He also mentions the activity of Lieutenant Halsey, of General Garland's staff. General D. H. Hill speaks feelingly of General Garland's death in his report, calling him ‘a pure, gallant and accomplished Christian soldier, who had no superior and few equals in the service,’ and saying that his brigade had behaved nobly. At the battle of Sharpsburg, a day or two later, Captain Halsey was again wounded, and this time was captured, but his wound was not serious, and he was soon exchanged and returned to active service.
At the battle of Chancellorsville (May 3-6, 1863), Captain Halsey was among those mentioned in General Rodes' report as having been ‘under fire,’ and Brigadier-General Alfred Iverson, upon whose staff he was now serving, says in his report of that battle: ‘My thanks are due Captain D. P. Halsey, Assistant Adjutanteral, [200] for his promptness and readiness in carrying my orders to any part of the field.’ （War Records, Vol. XXV, Part I, p. 987.)
Perhaps the most conspicuous services rendered by Captain Halsey during the war were those at the battle of Gettysburg, that great decisive conflict of the war, where so many won immortal fame. On the first day of the battle, when the 2d and 3d Army Corps, under Generals Ewell and A. P. Hill, so splendidly attacked and routed the enemy, Iverson's Brigade, with which he was still serving, while taking part in the attack of Rodes' Division, had become demoralized and was in danger of being driven back, when it was rallied and led forward by Captain Halsey, in what must have been a most effective and brilliant charge. The accounts in the official reports, slightly differing as to the details, clearly show that Rodes' Division bore the brunt of the fighting and was mainly responsible for the victory of that occasion, and unanimously agree that the conduct of Captain Halsey was chivalrous to the highest degree, and that the services rendered by him in rallying the disordered brigade of Iverson were most opportune and valuable. Lieutenant-General R. S. Ewell, who commanded the second Army Corps at Gettysburg, explains this movement by saying that on the 1st of July, General Rodes had drawn up his division for the attack, with Iverson's Brigade on the right, Rodes' old Brigade under Colonel O'Neal in the center, and General Doles on the left, with Generals Daniel and Ramseur in reserve, about two hundred yards in the rear of Iverson. In the forward movement O'Neal, who was advancing in a direction different from that indicated in General Rodes order, was soon forced to fall back, and thus the left of Iverson's Brigade became exposed to the fire of the enemy, but gallantly stood its ground until the greater part of three regiments had fallen. At this critical juncture General Iverson made the unfortunate mistake of sending word to General Rodes that one of his regiments had raised the white flag, and of changing his own advance so as to uncover the whole of Daniel's front, with the result that Daniel was compelled to order the advance of his whole brigade, which, supported by General Ramseur, he did with great success, sweeping the field and taking several hundred prisoners. ‘About the time of the final charge,’ says General Ewell, ‘Ramseur with his own and Rodes' Brigades, and remnants of Iverson's, under Captain D. P. Halsey, assistant adjutant-general of the brigade (who rallied the brigade and assumed command), had restored the line in the center.’
In mentioning those who distinguished themselves at Gettysburg, [201] the first name mentioned by General Ewell is that of ‘Captain D. P. Halsey, assistant adjutant-general of Iverson's Brigade,’ who, he says, ‘displayed conspicuous gallantry and rendered important service in rallying the brigade, which he led in its final attack.’
General Rodes, the division commander, describes the disposition of the brigades employed in this movement just as described by General Ewell, and seems to think, too, that the movement through which the line in the center became broken was made by Colonel O'Neal, who commanded the center brigade. He agrees, also, that when Iverson's left became exposed, heavy loss was inflicted upon his brigade, and adds: ‘His men fought and died like heroes. His dead lay in a distinctly marked line of battle.’
When General Daniel became engaged, and made the charge which General Ewell says ‘swept the field,’ and which General Rodes describes as ‘most gallant, desperate and entirely successfull,’ he was splendidly supported by General Ramseur, who hurled his brigade, General Rodes says, ‘with the skill and gallantry, for which he is always conspicuous, and with irresistible force, upon the enemy just where he had repulsed O'Neal and checked Iverson's advance.’
In the meantime General Early's Division had been brought into action on General Rodes' left, and General Doles, who commanded the left Brigade of Rodes' Division, being thus relieved, attacked the enemy in front ‘with unsurpassed gallantry,’ and drove them before him, achieving on the left of the division the same brilliant success which attended Ramseur in the centre and Daniel on the right. O'Neal's troops, shattered, but brave, still rushed forward in the charge, and then. General Rodes says:
“The 12th North Carolina, which had been held well in hand by Lieutenant-Colonel Davis, and the shattered remnants of Iverson's Brigade, which had been rallied and organized by Captain D. P. Halsey, assistant adjutant-general of the brigade, made under his guidance a dashing and effective charge just in time to be of considerable service to Ramseur and Daniel, and with them pressed closely after the enemy.” （Records, Vol. XXVII, Pt. 2, p. 554).
Here, then, we see war at its finest. Where upon history's page do we find the record of a deed more inspiring? In the midst of deadly conflict, when the issue of a great battle hangs in the balance, a young officer sees that the troops are wavering and falling [202] back. At the very crisis, when a moment more of faltering may turn the tide in the wrong direction, he leaps into ‘the imminent deadly breach,’ seizes the colors, gives the command, ‘Forward!’ himself leading the way, rallies and reforms the broken line and wrenches victory from the very grasp of defeat! If such a deed had been performed in olden times by a mailed Knight in glittering armor, it would have been embalmed among the treasures of chivalrous romance and furnished inspiration for the pen of the poet and the harp of the minstrel. Be it remembered, also, that it was in just such manner that he received his wound at Seven Pines.
Further on in his report General Rodes uses this language (p. 559):
‘I cannot close this portion of my report without expressing my pride and admiration of the conduct of the men and officers of this division from the time it left Grace Church until our return to Virginia. Better marching, less straggling, hardships most cheerfully borne, conduct in an enemy's country more commendable, and more generally marked by gentlemanly and soldierly characteristics, and finally, better behavior in battle, than was exhibited by this division during that period has not been, and I believe will never be, exhibited by any other troops in the service. By their conduct at Gettysburg I claim to have won the expression from the General commanding the army, who saw their attack on July 1st, “ I am proud of your division.” While I cannot mention all who won distinction during this campaign, it is my duty to record here the names of those officers whose conduct, either from my own observation or from the voluntary testimony of many competent witnesses, I know to have been such as to entitle them to the admiration of brave men and to the gratitude of a good people. First among them are Brigadier-Generals Junius Daniel, George Doles and S. D. Ramseur, Lieutenant-Colonel T. H. Carter, Captain D. P. Halsey, assistant adjutant-general of Iverson's Brigade, Colonel D. H. Christie, 23rd North Carolina (who has since died from the wounds he received), and Lieutenant Harvey, Company F, 14th North Carolina, of my division, and Brigadier-General A. C. Jenkins and Major Sweeny, of the cavalry brigade.’
To be thus mentioned in this brief, but bright, roll of honor, by that gallant and chivalrous leader who later on was to yield up his life in the cause, is an honor of which any soldier might be proud, and is like receiving the accolade on the field of battle from the stainless Excalibur of Arthur himself. [203]
It is only just to General Iverson to say that his version of what General Ewell called his ‘unfortunate mistake’ in sending word to General Rodes that some of his men had displayed the white flag, is that when the center brigade under Colonel O'Neal was driven back by the Federals, the enemy then charged in overwhelming force upon his brigade and completely shattered three regiments, capturing many prisoners. He then says: ‘When I saw white handkerchiefs raised and my line still lying down in position, I characterized the surrender as disgraceful; but when I found afterwards that 500 of my men were left lying dead and wounded on a line as straight as a dress parade I exonerated, with one or two disgraceful individual exceptions, the survivors, and claim for the brigade that they nobly fought and died without a man running to the rear. No greater gallantry and heroism have been displayed during the war.’ General Iverson also gives high praise to Captain Halsey for his services in rallying his brigade, and says: ‘I advanced the 12th North Carolina and fragments of the other regiments which Captain D. P. Halsey had already prepared for a forward movement into the woods overlooking the town and took possession of them,’ and again in the concluding part of his report he says: ‘Captain D. P. Halsey, assistant adjutant-general, was very conspicuous throughout the day for his distinguished gallantry and energy.’ （Records, Vol. XXVII, p. 580.)
Colonel Thomas M. Garrett, commanding the 5th North Carolina Regiment, in a report to Major-General Fitzhugh Lee, dated December 14th, 1863 (Records, Vol. XXIX, p. 415), concerning fighting which took place at Morton's Ford and Raccoon Ford, says: ‘The adjutant-general, Captain D. P. Halsey, displayed his usual spirit and self-possession in the field.’ And so we find repeatedly the highest testimony to the bravery, skill and devotion of this knightly warrior on every occasion where the opportunity was afforded him to serve his country. Even when that country's cause was wavering and the victorious legions of the conquering North were advancing to the consummation which their ‘overwhelming numbers and resources’ made assured, he was always found at the post of duty, ready to do and dare to the uttermost, and if need be to die, in the defence of what he conceived to be the vital principles of liberty, and with the same high faith that characterized his great leaders, Lee and Jackson, in a letter home he wrote, speaking of the enemy, ‘He boasts of his numbers. We rely upon our just cause and the kindness of an overruling Providence.’ [204]
During the most of the year 1864, he served on the staff of General R. D. Johnston, participating in the famous Valley Campaign of General Jubal A. Early, and towards the last of that year, after the battle of Winchester, he was transferred to the staff of Major-General G. C. Wharton, who had succeeded to the command of General J. C. Breckinridge's Division when that officer entered the cabinet of the Confederacy.
On March 2nd, 1865, at the battle of Waynesborough, he had his horse killed under him, and was captured by the enemy's troops under Sheridan. This time he was not exchanged, but remained in prison at Fort Delaware until after the war had closed, not receiving release until about June, 1865.
Major James P. Smith, that gallant Christian soldier, who is now the editor of the Central Presbyterian, and who served with Captain Halsey on General Wharton's staff, writes of his capture as follows:
‘At the retreat from Waynesboro he and I were among the few officers that escaped the town. I overtook him on the east side of the Shenandoah and we rode together half-way up the mountain toward the mountain top, when a squadron of Federal cavalry came charging up behind us shouting and firing. His horse was wounded and he was captured. The head of the Federal column stopped to make him a prisoner, and that delay enabled me to get over the mountain into Albemarle.’
Major Smith also says he is sure that he was entitled to the rank of major, and it is certain that he was usually addressed as such by his comrades after the war, but as the writer is unable to secure definite information as to whether his commission as major was actually made out, he is referred to here by the designation of captain, as found in the official reports. General G. C. Wharton, in reply to a letter of inquiry about this, writes:
‘Your letter making some inquiries in regard to your gallant and honored father, and my personal friend, is received. Major Don P. Halsey was assigned to the division which I commanded when and after General J. C. Breckinridge assumed the duties of Secretary of War. This was the latter part of September, 1864. About the same time Major J. P. Smith was assigned as inspector-general. Major Halsey as adjutant-general served in this capacity until the unfortunate affair at Waynesboro, when General Early, thinking that Sheridan would take the same route to Lynchburg that Hunter had taken, viz: through Lexington, placed our troops on the west side of Waynesboro, with the river in our rear, effectually preventing [205] any retreat. As we had only about 800 men to oppose 7,500 splendidly equipped cavalry, of course we had no show and fell an easy victim. Your gallant father had charge of my left wing and held his position as long as possible. When forced back he reported to me his old horse, that he so loved, was fatally shot, and when he rode up was about to fall. I told him to put “old John ” (I think he called his horse) out of the way, and try to get to a place of safety, as the Yankee cavalry was getting all around us, and all would be killed or captured. This was the last I saw of him, as in a few minutes the Federal cavalry was riding over or around our men and ordering them to halt and surrender. This was the end of our Division, as all, except a few who were with the baggage or on picket or by accident escaped, were captured. I am quite sure your gallant father held a commission as major, as I remember the order assigning named him major and adjutant-general as did the order of Major Smith as inspector-general. I esteemed your father most highly as a brave and cool officer and valued his advice. Our relations were most cordial and intimate.’
In a similar letter General R. D. Johnston wrote:
