While at Haxhall's I got out my fishing-lines with the intention of having a catfish supper, for catfish were plenty in the river. During the excitement of catching the fish I noticed one of my lines drawn taut. I began pulling it up, and said to Captain Parry, who was with me, "I guess I have a whale this time," when behold! a water-logged torpedo came to the surface with a large catfish twisted around one of the blocks. No one could have dropped anything quicker than I did that combination of catfish and torpedo, and pulled for shore. In the mean time Parry was having a good laugh at my expense. Out in front of me was a picket boat, and the officer hailed me to know what was the matter. When I told him, he passed word to the rear, and said, "Hold on to your line; the captain will come in his gig." I was curious to know how the captain could run a gig on water, and the crew of the boat laughed very heartily at my ignorance. I gave the whole business to the captain, and shortly after received from him in return a nice case of the "ardent."
We rejoined the Army of the Potomac near Spottsylvania Court-House on May 25, and then took the advance again until we arrived at Hawes' Shops. Here, on the 28th, we were attacked by cavalry and infantry, and fought dismounted for five hours, driving the enemy from the field. In this engagement I think we piled up more dead rebels than in any other of our fights during the whole war. A few days afterwards General Grant made his head-quarters on our battle-ground, but was forced to move them on account of the stench arising from the dead bodies which were still unburied.
The next day after the fight at Hawes' Shops we moved to the left around Bethesda Church, witnessing the Pennsylvania Reserve Corps' hard contest with the enemy at that place. On the following day we arrived at Cold Harbor just in the nick of time to prevent the enemy's infantry from taking an old line of breastworks. We repulsed several of their charges, and held our ground until relieved by General "Baldy" Smith's command, which was very slow in coming to our relief from West Point, on the York River.
After being relieved by General Smith's command we mounted, moved by the left, and were constantly engaged with the enemy until we reached Bottoms' Bridge, where we took our stand to await all comers. After resting a couple of days, Sheridan took two of his divisions and commenced another long march for the relief of General Hunter, who was supposed to be at Lynchburg, or in its vicinity. At Trevellian Station, on the Lynchburg and Richmond Railroad, on June 11, we butted against the rebel cavalry corps and a division of infantry. These people gave us a good shaking up, but we captured several hundred prisoners, and learning from them that Hunter had retreated over the mountains and that they had been sent by rail to overtake us, Sheridan concluded that he had better get back home. So we gathered up our slightly wounded, and came back by the way of the Spottsylvania battle-ground, the column marching past the famous tree that was cut down by musket-balls in the Bloody Angle. We made a rapid and circuitous march, and arrived at the White House Landing, on the Pamunkey River. Here we found an immense wagon-train waiting for us to guard it over the country to the James River. In performing this duty General Sheridan displayed great generalship, preserving the trains and delivering them safely inside of our lines. During the movement Gregg's cavalry division covered the rear and flank next to the enemy. About the time Sheridan was parking the train on the banks of the James we were attacked at Saint Mary's Church, on June 24, by a superior force of the enemy, composed of mounted and dismounted cavalry and one division of infantry. We came together like two battering-rams, then backed off for vantage-ground, and went at each other again and again. This unequal engagement continued all day and until night spread its protecting mantle over us. We then retired within our lines near Wilcox's Landing. This retreat would never have happened had it not been that Sheridan and the other division were in entire ignorance of what was going on in their rear, for the enemy had captured all dispatches sent to him by Gregg, several officers and men being taken prisoners while performing this messenger duty. Our losses in killed, wounded, and captured upon the field were very heavy. But we did well, considering that the numbers opposed to us were three or four to one, and did not lose a single wheel, though we were pretty severely knocked about.
The cavalry corps were, on June 28, ferried across the James River to the south side, and we moved up towards Petersburg, taking position on the left and rear of our army at that point. During the months of July and August, Sheridan was kept very busy marching his cavalry from the left of the Army of the Potomac over to the right of the Army of the James and back again. In every one of these movements we were hotly engaged dismounted, and struck some severe blows, invariably killing some general officer belonging to the enemy. On one of these occasions, after moving over to the right, Sheridan was ordered to embark two of his divisions upon transports, and instead of going up the James he went down, crossed the bay and went up the Potomac to Washington, and thence to the Shenandoah Valley. The history of his succeeding campaign is familiar to all.
Gregg's division remained with the Army of the Potomac, covering its left and rear, taking the advance in all reconnoissances in force made by the army. During one of the engagements at Ream's Station, Colonel Chamberlain, of the First Massachusetts Cavalry, was wounded in the arm by a "tree-frog," or sharp-shooter. I asked him why he was limping around in such a funny manner. His reply was, "Damn it, Tommy, if you were wounded in the arm you would limp too." We saw the fellow who fired the shot and ran some men to the bottom of the tree. Chamberlain gave the order to fire, when down came Mr. Tree-Frog looking like a bundle of rags. In this same engagement Mahone's division was repulsed three times by the First District of Columbia Cavalry, dismounted. This regiment was composed of Maine men and was shortly afterwards consolidated with the First Maine Cavalry. It was armed with the Henry rifle (sixteen-shooter), and was composed of veterans who could not be excelled for coolness and bravery. Its position at Ream's Station, on August 25, was on the left of a new division of the Second Corps. A German brigade in this division deliberately abandoned a new line of intrenchments with seven guns, leaving their loaded muskets standing up against the earthworks. Some of our dismounted cavalrymen used these muskets as long as they could find ammunition for them. General Hancock and General Gregg were present in person, for they were anxious to save the guns, and the slaughter in Mahone's division must have been terrible, as the repeating rifles wiped out line after line. No supports coming, the cavalry was compelled to give way when Mahone made his fourth charge, capturing the guns of the Second Corps. In the last charge my horse was killed and I was severely injured, and was sent home for thirty days in consequence.
Returning to the front on October 1, I was relieved from staff duty and ordered to take command of my regiment, now composed of reenlisted veterans who had passed through the furnace of war from 1861 to 1864.
In the latter part of October our brigade did some very effective work in the engagement at the Davis farm, on the left and rear of our lines at Petersburg. General Fitz-Hugh Lee threw his whole command upon us, compelling our brigade to change front three times, but we repulsed him at every point, driving him from the field. We did not know what force we were engaged with until we captured the adjutant-general of Young's brigade. That handsome officer remarked to General Davies that it was fearfully bad weather for moving about and for cavalry fighting. Davies replied, "Yes, you people were not contented in your camps, but must come out here for a fight, and I guess you got one." The adjutant-general, noticing the troops his people were fighting, asked General Davies how many brigades he had under him. Upon being informed that there was but one brigade of five regiments, he exclaimed, "Impossible! Why, we had three brigades against you." He was then started for the rear, apparently much chagrined.
A few days after this Gregg's division was ordered out to join the Second Corps in a reconnoissance in force to the left of our army, beyond Hatcher's Run. These reconnoissances were generally accompanied by Generals Grant and Meade in person, and our engagements with the enemy sometimes resulted in a heavy battle. During this particular movement the First Pennsylvania Veteran Cavalry covered the rear of our division, while the First Maine Cavalry was in the advance, forcing a crossing at some creek. General Gregg was anxious to connect with Hancock's left flank, but as he could only move his division in columns of twos through the dense woods, the movement was very slow. During its execution we were attacked by a brigade of rebel cavalry, commanded by General (now Senator) Butler, of South Carolina. For a full half-hour the enemy had a soft thing of it, throwing shot and shell into us without our being able to reply. But Gregg could not bother with side issues at that critical moment, so he ordered the First Pennsylvania Cavalry "to take care of those people," as he expressed it. The attack of this small regiment on the flank of the rebels was so sudden that the latter were glad to escape with their guns. The officers and men of the First Pennsylvania were highly elated over their success, and felt proud of themselves, for they were but a handful in comparison with the number they had attacked and driven away. The First Maine Cavalry were just as successful in their attack in front as we were in the rear.
During the month of November we made another movement to our left. My regiment was on picket duty when the order came to move to the front, but it was soon relieved and ordered to report to the brigade. Upon our arrival at the front, and as we were passing the head of General Crawford's division, General Gregg gave orders for his division to dismount and advance on foot. From what I could glean from a conversation with one of his staff, Crawford evidently had orders to close the interval between Gregg's right and the rest of the Fifth Corps. Those who have witnessed a division of cavalry dismounting and going into action on foot know what a demoralizing effect it has on those in the rear, for the led horses are generally sent back at a gallop to re-form and advance quietly, following up their various commands. While this retrograde movement of dismounted horses was being made, General Crawford yelled to one of his staff, and sent him off with his compliments to General Warren, to say that the cavalry were repulsed, and they would trample his men to death if he attempted to make the movement ordered. I began to expostulate with the general, but it was of no use, so I ordered my regiment forward at a gallop, dismounted, and went into action. My dismounted horses no doubt increased the demoralization of the "dough-boys."