Salem Church and Brandy Station

We spent the night in the camp of this Co. "G", 9th Ala. infantry further down the road near Fredericksburg and heard their account of the Salem Church fight. One young fellow from the piney woods who probably never owned a negro and never expected or cared to own one, like many others in the Southern army, but was none the less a venomous states' rights "Reb", was being joked by his companions around the supper fire that evening about his noticeable rapid and deadly aim out of one of the Salem church windows, and the number of men seen to fall when he fired. He blushed like a girl and walked off teased and remorseful about it. Less than sixty days afterwards this same boy, with his fighting blood up again, fell dead in helping to capture a battery at Gettysburg, just as he reached a cannon he had pointed out and claimed as his individual prize.

In the advance to Gettysburg the 10th Va. Cavalry became pitted against Buford's brigade of U. S. regulars in a hand-to-hand melee with sabers in the famous cavalry battle of June 9, 1863 at Brandy Station. Gen. R. E. Lee, who had been reviewing his cavalry, was present, witnessed the fight and complimented the 10th highly for their conduct. My brother Jim was called by Col. Davis to act as right guide for the regiment in the charge and to "put them in straight now, there's General Lee back on the hill, looking at us." When the lines met, Jim mixed it with two of the enemy and brought back his saber with a big gap in the blade and covered with blood and gore that he would not allow to be washed off. He charged me to keep this sword for him safe from raiders, etc., while he got another for further use. His son still has this rusty sword and the regimental battle flag that his father carried to Appomattox and brought home (what was left of it) after the surrender.