The sound of battle had in the meanwhile ceased up the road, and in a short time a long line of prisoners, numbering over two thousand, made their appearance, who had only surrendered after a desperate fight.
During the whole day prisoners continued to come in, until the number was much augmented, and we had the satisfaction of knowing that the miserable hordes under the brutal Milroy were pretty much all in our hands, but to our chagrin we found that the wretch we had so long wished to lay our hands upon had escaped.
Such was the battle of Winchester, or rather one of the battles of Winchester, and a complete surprise it was, for not until the day after our first attack at Kearnstown was Milroy induced to believe it was a force of any magnitude that was in his front.
We found the town full of stores of every description, and our captures amounted to considerable, for besides twenty pieces of artillery we captured several hundred horses, an immense train of wagons, ambulances, several thousand stand of small arms, &c.
The loss of the Second Maryland in this affair was as follows:
Company A, Captain William H. Murray.—Killed, none; wounded, Sergeant E. S. Dorsey, severely; privates, Sommerville, Sollers, slightly; John Wilson, slightly.
Company B, Captain J. P. Crane.—Killed, none; wounded, privates J. E. Joy, mortally; H. Corry, slightly; William Herbert, slightly.
Company C, Captain Ferdinand Duvall.—Killed, none; wounded, Captain F. Duvall, severely.
Company D, Captain Joseph L. McAleer.—Killed, none; wounded, private John Devres, mortally.
Company E, Captain John W. Torsch.—Killed, none; wounded, Lieutenant W. K. Byus, slightly; captured, Lieutenant Joseph P. Quinn.