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According to Samuel Burney, a soldier in Cobb’s Legion, “I will tell you of a most melancholy occurrence which took place last Wednesday, November 13. Tuesday night at 12 o’clock we were ordered out on a secret expedition. . . . We marched about six miles to a dark swamp and remained deathly still ’till about daybreak. We then went on further ’till we had gone three or four miles and then halted. This distance we marched in mud and water over ankle deep. We halted, as I said, and were told to load our guns quickly and quietly as we were in two miles of Newport’s News and were two miles lower down than we intended to come. The guide led us in the wrong road. We had loaded but a few moments when two pickets of ours rode up and inquired of us who we were. We told them we were Cobb’s Legion and asked them who they were. They said they were Cumberland Cavalry , and, thinking all was right, they wheeled on their horses to leave. Just then someone said, ‘They are Yankees! Mark, ¤re on them!’ And the infantry companies ¤red, those on the right ¤rst. We were on the left and thought we were in an ambush when we heard the right-hand companies ¤re. The boys got behind trees. I squatted in a tree top. Lieutenant Colonel Garnett and Major Bagley and Captain Morris of Burke County were out in front of the battalion. Major Bagley was killed and fell from his horse. Colonel Garnett’s horse was crippled, and Captain Morris’s hand was shot and his horse killed. Captain Morris had one of his men shot in the leg, which was amputated. There were no Yankees there, but our men thought so and ¤red on the above men.” Appendix A Eyewitness Accounts of Bagley Shooting Incident Another, more vitriolic, version of the same incident was recorded by Georgian, J. W. Rheney: “While we were down on this voyage, we aroused one night and our legion of infantry was sent one way and the cavalry another. The infantry were to march to a certain place near a bridge and lie in ambush until morning to catch some Yankee scouts. But our guide, who undertook to carry us a near route, got lost and carried us about two miles too low down and through a very bad swamp in which we were liable to be cut off. Well, after so long a route, we were drawn up in a line of battle, the guide telling us to hurry in cooking, that they were not far off. Our of¤cers were in the road and the guide also. We were scarcely drawn up in line of battle when guide says, ‘Here they come!’ which a little excited the men. Two men came riding up the road, who, having our badge around their hats, they were supposed to be our pickets and which they were. Lieutenant [Colonel] Garnett beckoned them to come up, which they did very brie®y. They were Virginia pickets. Our guide was then asked by Major Bagley if he knew these two pickets. He said he did not, which was a lie. The picket said ‘We’re Virginia pickets.’ The guide says, ‘It’s a damned lie!’ And he—the guide— being frightened, hollowing out ‘Fire!,’and a goodly part of the battalion¤red, our of¤cers still being in front. One of our noted of¤cers, Major Bagley, was shot dead. Captain Morris shot in the hand, but not a bad wound. The guide hollowing out to shoot and telling a lie, denying to know the pickets, the whole blame is laid on him. These two pickets were badly wounded but not killed. They say that they are personally acquainted with our guide who caused the mischief. There are many sad hearts for the loss of the Major, but I believe it is a general wish that it had been the guide who got shot instead of the Major! I would not write a thing about this scrape, but I know it has been written by a good many others and by some who I know would try to give a description of it who could not, for I cannot do it myself. The amount of it is that we ¤red at our own pickets, through misunderstanding .”1 232 / Appendix A ...

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