The Southwestern Historical Quarterly, Volume 22, July 1918 - April, 1919 Page: 65

Reminiscences of the Terry Rangers

or whether they wore insignia of office or not, they always felt
that they must obey the men they had elected over them. Hardly
a star or bar was to be seen in the command, except in dress parade
when the Colonel might show his rank on a dress coat that he kept
for the purpose.
Our next encounter with the enemy was in Warren County, Ten-
nessee, near Morrison's depot where the enemy had constructed a
stockade and left about three companies of infantry to protect a
railroad bridge across the river from destruction by the Confeder-
ates. The stockade was built of logs twelve or fifteen inches in
diameter and twelve feet long, set on end in trenches two feet deep,
close touching each other with portholes cut between the logs about
as high as a man's head, to shoot through. These logs were thor-
oughly tamped in place and a small door left in one side for passing
in and out with a screen of like make just on the inside so one
going in would pass in the door and turn to left or right to get
inside of the stockade. I have been thus particular in describing
this fort or stockade so the reader may more easily understand
why we were so easily and completely defeated by this small con-
tingent of defenders when we attacked that fort. When within
one-quarter or one-half mile of the place Colonel Forrest formed
the brigade into single line, ordered us to dismount and then rode
in front of each regiment giving instructions about the charge
he intended to make. When in front of our regiment he said, "I
don't want but one-half of this command for this engagement"-
that his scouts reported that only three or four companies were up
there and that they had their dinner already cooked, and he
wanted us to kill them and then eat their dinner. Company F
had thirty men in line, so the first fifteen were ordered to step
two paces to the front, and the captain told me to take charge of
them, so we maneuvered for some time to get a suitable place to
charge from, but could not get nearer than two hundred or two
hundred and fifty yards without being exposed to full view of the
enemy from the start to the finish, so we were ordered to charge at
least two hundred yards through an open field upon that fort.
Of course the enemy were inside and had nothing to do, but shoot
us down from the start. After approaching near enough for some
of our men to make telling shots at those portholes we were driven
back in much disorder to the timber, back of the field from whence