I left him with a glad heart, but I did not know what I was up against. A lone web-foot to keep up with Forrest’s Cavalry! I was certainly used to hardships, but that was more than I could do, to save my life. I went over the muddy road until my wind was almost gone, and I had to rest. One of our boys belonging to Hardee’s Guards, came along and spying me, rode up to where I was saying, “Bill, is that you? You have too much baggage. Give me some of it, and I will deliver it to your regiment wagons when I get back to the army.”
I unloaded, rested for an hour and struck out again. The cavalry was ahead of me. I moved faster, for a Yankee rear does sometimes hurry a fellow.
I went all night; slept in the road and at daylight started again, making a good day’s march. Late in the evening I found I was near the cavalry again, so I made great strides to catch up. Ahead I saw a bridge across a stream and Forrest and his staff walking on the gravel bar. I hoped I could slip over before they saw me and handed the guard my pass. He said, “You will have to show it to General Forrest.” I was frightened sure enough. General Forrest did not care for passes or anything else when out of humor. I had faced a thousand Yankee guns, but I couldn’t face Forrest!
I waited some distance off, hoping he would go to an other part of the line, but he seemed to attend to that bridge himself. Finally he did walk away a few paces. Then I ran up to the adjutant, showed him my pass, and he waved the guard to let me go over.
I tried to beat Forrest to the next bridge, but when I got there he was on the bank higher above it. By their firelight I could see the infantry across the river and I thought, “I am safe now.” When I reached the pontoon bridge over the Tennessee, the cavalry was crossing. I started across in the dark, but the guard stopped me. “You can’t cross here—pass or no pass—you will have to see General Forrest.” I argued with that guard, but it did no good. Then I thought to myself, “He will not shoot into his own men,” and I said, “I am going across and you may shoot me if you like.” I ran past him. He could not see me in the dark, or he might have shot.
After I got across the bridge I found that my command had gone two days before, so I camped all night by the straggler’s fire. It was one of the worst nights of the campaign. A biting cold wind was blowing and we fairly froze to the ground. For two days I followed my regiment. My rations gave out and I was trudging along the road, forlorn and very hungry, when I heard some one call me. It was a boy of Company G, detailed with the engineers’ corps. I stayed with him that night. He had plenty of grub and filled me up.