Sixty-nine Federals in Sight of their Army Captured by Seven Confederates.
[The following incident is sent us by Captain J. H. Carter, of Lexington, Kentucky, who got it at the time from the participants and other eye-witnesses, and vouches for its accuracy. We should be glad to receive and publish many well authenticated incidents of the prowess of our gallant "boys in gray."]
During the retreat of the Confederate army from Kentucky (Bragg's invasion), in the fall of 1862, Colonel Basil W. Duke's regiment of Morgan's cavalry was left, by order of General Kirby Smith, at Falmouth to guard the roads and watch the approach of the Federals, then advancing in large numbers from Cincinnati, Ohio, into the State—the Covington and Georgetown turnpike being their centre line of march. When they had reached a point about one mile from Walton, Boone county, and camped for the night, Duke left Falmouth about midnight, and by a hard ride reached the turnpike, about equi-distant from Walton and the Federal encampment just as day broke. The advance vidette here reported a Federal picket post of ten men in sight. These were captured by a small force under Lieutenant Messic, going round and in their rear. Duke then ordered Sergeant Will Hays, of Covington, Kentucky, to select six men from the famous "Advance guard" and proceed down the pike, find the enemy, and ascertain his position and strength. Hays chose Ash Welsh, of Cynthiana, Kentucky; Joseph M. Jones, of Paris, Kentucky; Thomas Franks, of Holly Springs, Mississippi; Frank Riggs, Hughes Conradt and Chapin Bartlett, of Covington, Kentucky, and at once commenced the dangerous mission. Each man felt the responsibility resting upon him and nerved himself for the worst. The turnpike here was remarkably crooked, and on one side was sheltered by a thick growth of small trees, vines and weeds. Reaching a point about a quarter of a mile from the starting place, and in rounding an abrupt turn in the road, our little squad found themselves plump into a picket-stand of sixty-nine infantrymen. In a moment every man of both parties had his gun cocked and leveled. The seven Confederates were all young and hot-blooded, and had, under the lead of Morgan and Duke, faced many forms of danger, but never before were the odds so great against them as now, and their mettle was to be put to the highest test. With the eye of a soldier, each
