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61 I make no question but that it was a wise decision. For ere they would have broken our lines we could easily have annihilated the entire cavalry force of the rebel army. And our skirmish line could have beaten all the force they there displayed. There is much terror in the appearance of cavalry but experienced infantry can never be broken by double their number of cavalry if they charge mounted. When we had made the necessary preparations we the skirmishers again advanced and the rebels retires firing only a few shots and wounding one of the 53d. Just at night fall we entered a woods. Here we picked up a stray rebel. It began to rain just after we posted in the woods. Dark and stormy indeed was that night. I believe I never was in deeper darkness. About 10 P.M. the order came to withdraw our pickets from the woods. In attempting this we were lost and wandered from one part of the woods to another for over two hours our officers drumming on their swords to keep us together. At last we succeeded in getting out of the forest. Then the clouds cleared off and the stars shed their light upon us as if taunting us with out helpless condition without their aid. We bivouacked on a hill near the town the cavalry doing picket duty while we rested. We remained all day the 15th and until afternoon on the 16th. An aid rode up to Col. Morgan and greeted him with these words, "Colonel, you had the advance coming out so the General has concluded to let you have the rear going back." And so we covered the rear but the enemy did not attack us. The result of the expedition may be summed up as follows. We captured 90,000 bushels of wheat which the rebels had gathered into Charlestown and 200 sick men in the hospital were paroled. Our loss did not exceed twenty men all told. Capt. Pell of Co. of our regt. and division provost marshall was desized(?) by a rebel woman and made prisoner in our own lines. Oh! noble soldier! Yet this is but one instance of thousands which occurred in the army of officers disgracing themselves by associating with the rebel.