out like water from a spigot. He dismounted and
stood by his horse until, weakened by the loss of blood, he fell to the
ground. He realized, as everyone else did, that he was beyond human aid.
As Solomon put it in Ecclesiastes, "The golden bowl had been broken."

But to go back. Early in the day, when we were driving the enemy from
our front, the cavalry dismounted and fought on foot. This was often
done, as the men can do better execution when on the ground, and,
besides, they are better protected from the fire of the enemy. On foot,
you have to protect you the trees and the rocks and the fences, every
little hillock; in fact, anything else that would stop a bullet, but on
horseback you are a splendid target for the sharpshooter. Hence, the
cavalry on some occasions preferred to be on foot. But when there was
any retreating to do, like Richard III, they wanted a horse.

On this particular occasion I was among those chosen to lead the horses.
In fact, it always fell to the fourth man. He sat on his horse, while
the other three men dismounted and went to the front. These were called
the led horses, and, of course, they followed in the rear, keeping as
much out of danger as possible.

As we moved along through the fields we passed a small dwelling; I
halted in front of the door and asked the good lady of the house for
something to eat. She came out, trembling from head to foot, with two
other ladies, who I presume were her daughters, and gave me some bread.

Seeing the long string of led horses, she asked in the most distressed
tone if all the men belonging to those horses had been killed. I
explained the meaning of the horses being led, and assured her they were
in no danger, as the enemy was retreating rapidly in our front, and all
danger had passed.

Just an hour before this the conditions were reversed. I was on foot,
and on the firing line, and another was leading my horse.

We had taken shelter behind a low-railed fence, against which the
Yankees, who had just left it, had thrown the earth as a protection. We
were all lying down close to the ground and firing over the top of this
obstruction, when a shell came hissing across the field, striking the
breastwork a short distance from where I lay, scattering the rails and
dirt in every direction. I remarked that as lightning never struck twice
in the same place, that was the safest spot to get, and I began to crawl
toward it. I had hardly moved a yard when another