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Updated: April 30, 2025
The gentlemen of New England had not inherited the love of their Ironside ancestors for the saddle and the chase. Even in the forests of the West men travelled by waggon and hunted on foot. "As cavalry," says one of Banks' brigadiers, "Ashby's men were greatly superior to ours. It was easy enough to fill the ranks of the Northern squadrons.
Brigadier-General S. Williams: GENERAL: I moved with my command this morning to Middleburg, and attacked the cavalry force of the Rebels under Stuart, and steadily drove him all day, inflicting a heavy loss at every step. I drove him through Upperville into Ashby's Gap.
"Ten of the Black Horse! where are the rest of them, I wonder? Oh, ain't they lucky dogs?" "Stuart's men have the sweetest time! just galloping over the country, and making love, and listening to Sweeney's banjo If you want to have a good time If you want to have a good time, Jine the cavalry! What's that road over there the cool-looking one? The road to Ashby's Gap?
The lesser number, making for Sir John's Run and the Big Cacapon and followed by some companies of Ashby's, did not so quickly escape. The Confederate advance came, artillery, horse, and skirmishers, upon the river bank at sunset. All around were great rolling hills, quite bare of trees and covered with snow, over which the setting sun threw a crimson tinge.
The weather had at last cleared; although the mountain pines stood deep in snow the roads were in good order; the rivers were once more fordable; the Manassas Gap Railway had been restored as far as Strasburg, and Banks took heart of grace. April 17. On the 17th his forces were put in motion. One of Ashby's companies was surprised and captured.
Indeed the firing had not ceased, in the first onset upon the Federal cavalry at Middletown, before some of Ashby's men might have been seen, with a quickness more suitable to horse-thieves than to soldiers, breaking from their ranks, seizing each two or three of the captured horses and making off across the fields.
"Seven years have dragged their weary length along since I lost my dear young wife and the light of my life was extinguished forever! Now, all is darkness! darkness! "Subsequent investigation, supported by the testimony of well-known and thoroughly reliable residents of the country, confirmed in every particular the truth of Uncle Ashby's story.
All mounted the ridge, halted and deployed. The guns were posted advantageously, the 6th, the 7th, and the 2d Virginia Cavalry in two ranks along the ridge. Wide-spreading beech boughs, growing low, small oak scrub and branchy dogwood made a screen of the best; they looked down, hidden, upon a gentle slope and the Port Republic road. Ashby's post was in front of the silver bole of a great beech.
I thought I would come down and see what was going on in Culpeper. Accordingly I crossed the Blue Ridge at Ashby's Gap, reached Culpeper and last night crossed the Rapidan opposite Chancellorsville, where I saw Colonel Mohun, before whom I was carried as a spy." "You bring news, then?" said Stuart, with sudden earnestness and attention. "Important news, general. The Federal army is about to move."
Moreover, Ashby's quick intuition told him that the other's failure to catch the outlaw was not troubling him nearly as much as was the blow which his conceit had probably received at the hands of the Girl. It was, therefore, in an indulgent tone that he said: "No, Rance, not this one nor this time. You mark my words, the woman is through with Ramerrez.
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