A Wily Weasel, No
Doubt Considered By Those Cliff-Dwellers, The Kingfishers, As
One Of The "Ladies From Hell," Was Being Hustled Out Of Their
Dugout At The Point Of The Bayonet.
No matter about the "kilts";
if he ever had them they were lost by his hurried flight.
The North, South and Middle rivers join in sisterly union near
Port Republic to form the Shenandoah. From Lexington to Harper's
Ferry at the foot of the valley the distance is one hundred
fifty-five miles. The "Valley's Turnpike" runs northward through
Harrisonburg, New Market, Woodstock, Strassburg, and Winchester
to Martinsburg. And what a pike it is! And through what superb
scenes it leads you! "At Staunton the Virginia Central railroad
crosses the valley on the way to Charlottesville. Fifty-five
miles north of Staunton an isolated chain of mountains known as
the Massanutten range, which is high and abrupt, divides the
valley for more than forty miles until at Strassburg it falls
again suddenly to the plain. Like the Appalachians it breaks
into two ridges - Massanutten and Kells mountain." Between these
mountains you will see a narrow and very picturesque valley
known as Powell's Fort Valley. Passage creek, a most delightful
little stream, winds through it and joins the Shenandoah below.
West of Kells may be seen a parallel sub-range containing Peaked
Ridge, Three Top and Little Massanutten, which is crossed by a
road that connects New Market and Luray.
New Market is a quaint old town on the valley pike eight miles
from above Mount Jackson and is joined by the turn-pike which
comes from Front Royal. It traverses the Massanutten mountain by
the Massanutten Gap. It was of vast military importance, for
here Breckenridge and Siegel met. Moore occupied an elevation
north of New Market. Now in place of the thundering cannon and
rattling musketry we were listening to a medley of bird notes
that fell thick as shrapnel around us. The vast hills covered
with their leafy verdure of summer; the rich valley spread below
us made radiant by the beauty of the descending sun and a light
rain; voices rising on the misty air from the valley below - all
seemed to unite in weaving a magic spell for the coming scene.
As we gazed out over the peaceful valley a rainbow seemed to
spring from a wooded hillside and arch the lovely meadow below
us, coloring the fields in the most singular beauty; while its
second reflection with softer colors arched like a corona above
a high wooded hill. Then followed sunset and twilight with the
hymn of the thrush. A single star like a great silver lamp
trembled above the summit of a hill, where the gathering mist
like a thin gossamer film was settling on its sides.
How different that night of inky blackness, in which a pouring
rain continued to fall daring the stormy night drenching the
Union men under Moore! Just as the gray of the eastern sky
announced the approach of dawn, skirmishers were leaving the
camp.
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