Ironton Register 6 Oct. 1887 – Rev. Howell G. Hopkins was one of the fighting boys of the fighting 2nd Virginia Cavalry and though he has joined the ministry and is preaching the gospel of peace with power and effect, he likes to talk about the old days when war covered the land and of the boys who passed through the terrible scenes, which are now gilded by the golden light of glory.
By the way, one of the best speeches at the Deering Reunion was Howell’s, which was split in two in the middle by a big gun from Columbus. Rev. Howell must be made to finish that speech at some other reunion.
Well, we met Rev. Howell on the street last week and remarked that he has narrowly escaped us long enough; that we would put up with it no longer, and now he must tell us his closest call during the war.
He thought but a moment and said, “I will tell you a little incident that happened in the Summer of 1864 in the Shenandoah Valley a few miles down from Winchester. It was not a thrilling adventure, surrounded by exciting and bloody details, but still, it was a ‘Narrow Escape,’ and a very narrow one, I thought at the time, and besides it is a very short story.
“Our cavalry was out on a scout and I was with the advanced guard under the command of Lieut. Kissinger. We were just approaching the main pike at Brownsburg on a road that struck the pike at right angles. I was ahead of the advance, probably 100 yards, as no danger whatever was apprehended and when we near the pike, I saw three rebel cavalrymen coming down.
In my excitement over the discovery, I yelled out like a whole regiment and demanded their surrender and sure enough, they did, all three of them and I took them in charge. Probably the sight of the advance nearby prompted ready compliance with my demand.
Anyhow, I took them in and was marshaling my captives as the advance guard approached, when as bad luck would have it, I dropped my carbine. I immediately jumped from my horse to recover the carbine when one of my prisoners whipped out his revolver and blazed away at me, just as I stopped to seize the gun. The aim was a bad one for the ball whizzed past my head without doing any harm.
I wasn’t hurt but you better believe I was mad so I rushed at the fellow with my carbine but he begged so hard and so piteously that I concluded to forebear, especially as the other boys came up and interceded for him. That’s the close call then, but I had several in a battle that I will tell you about some other time. But it ain’t every fellow that gets fired at from a three-foot range and gets away unhurt.”
When Rev. Howell had concluded his narrative, we asked him to tell us of another event in which General W.H. Powell had a “Narrow Escape” from a reb prisoner.
“That,” said he “occurred on the second day at Lynchburg. We had gone around to burn the town and concluded to give it up because there were too many rebs around. But in the attempt, we captured some bushwhackers and rebs and prisoners.
Among the former was a Southern Methodist preacher who had enough treason in him to do the whole Confederacy. The fellow talked incessantly and declared that in fighting the Union he was doing God’s service. He was very rabid, and he tantalized the boys with his mean rebel talk.
“Finally, after riding some miles he asked one of the boys where the general who commanded that expedition and they pointed to Gen. W.H. Powell who was riding at the head of the column, about fifty feet forward.
Immediately that reb bushwhacker took a revolver out of his trousers pocket and before anyone could interfere aimed it at Gen. Powell and fired the ball taking off the rim of the general’s old slouch hat.
The general looked around with consternation and alarm but there was nothing left for him to do for before he realized the situation fully the bushwhacker fell to the road filled rather full of cold lead. And there he was left, while the yanks trotted on.”
Ironton Register 18 July 1901 – Rev. Hopkins son – Pilgrim’s only son drowned; Pilgrim is the pen name for Howell G. Hopkins, who wrote for the Register.
0 Comments