scouting in north carolina—sergeant c—— in a well—the accident prevents a fight with our own troops—a fight with north carolina troops—mrs. modlin turns a back somersault—our irish lieutenant.
While at Plymouth on detached service, with “I” and “F” troops, we were in the habit of scouting ten to fifteen miles once or twice a week, sometimes in one direction and sometimes in another. We were seldom ordered out on a scout by General Wessels, but all that was necessary for us to do when going out on one of these scouts, was to notify the General of the fact that we were going out on a certain road, ten or fifteen miles, at a certain time, and would be back about such a time.
I have frequently taken twenty-five or thirty men for a scout into the country, to capture parties with loads of provisions for the Confederates, or to bring in some prisoners.
I have mentioned two guides, Modlin and Wynn, who were in the habit of going with me on these raids, and who were both taken prisoners at Plymouth, and escaped into the woods while on the march, after being spotted by some of the North Carolina troops as “Buffaloes.”
These two guides, who were natives of North Carolina, and who knew every turpentine path through those immense pine forests, and who had friends outside our lines who kept them well posted on what was going on outside, while they in turn kept me posted as to the movements of the rebs.
One day Wynn came to me and said that he had positive information that five or six loads of bacon, for the Confederate army, would stop over night at a certain house about fifteen miles south of Plymouth, on the Washington road, and that the guard would consist of ten men besides the teamsters. I immediately rode up to General Wessel’s headquarters and told him that I was going to take thirty men and go out on the Washington road at five o’clock that afternoon, and would return the next morning. I, as usual, procured the countersign for that night, so as to be able to get inside the picket post if I should come back in the night, and selecting thirty men, started at five p. m., guided by Wynn for the South.
After getting out about five miles, we left the road and followed one of the turpentine paths through the woods in a parallel direction.
It had become quite dark by this time and we proceeded in single file, Wynn and myself riding at the head of the column.
Among the men under my command that night was Sergeant C——, a tall, powerful man, and an excellent soldier, whose pluck could always be relied upon, but who had a great weakness for following up any noise on the march, especially if it sounded anything like the crowing of a cock, and was therefore not always in the line while on the march.
We had proceeded about five miles through the woods when our path crossed a road at right angles, just at a school house.