Show STONEWALL IN TIGHT PLACE when general jacksons pre presence sence of mind saved him from capture at port republic perhaps the most moat important order that stonewall jackson ever issued certainly the most vital to himself Is not in the official war records the order was given in person by jackson to a northern artillery officer as he stood in full uniform ready for battle beside his gun and strangest of all was at once executed by him with the result that the battle was lost by the union arms it was on a spring morning in 1862 just before the battle of port republic jackson jacksonia Jack sonIn in advance of hla his troops with only a single escort galloped across the bridge over the shenandoah river into the town which stood on the east bank learning that the army of general shields was still good many miles away and confident that his own troops would be in possession long before the enemy he rode to a residence at the farther end of the village where he spent pearly nearly an hour but meantime the energetic shields whom jackson later declared to be his most formidable opponent had thrust forward a small swift column to occupy port republic seize the bridge and halt jacksons advance so rapidly did it move that it gained both objects without firing a shot more than that jackson was a prisoner it if anyone knew it jackson in utter ignorance of the disastrous change mounted his horse and ambled down the main street to the bridge what was his astonishment to see groups of soldiers in blue busily moving ta and fro about the bridgehead and throwing up ments and fortifications planted on a little knoll that commanded the bridge and its approaches was a formidable held field gun fortunately for jackson the recent campaigns up and down the valley had faded both blue and gray uniforms nto into a nond nondescript pt drab As jackson sat on his horse and watched the busy scene he formed hla his plan swiftly he could not go back he must cross croas that bridge and that was his only chance it was the frowning field gun that he feared he must put it out of 0 commission long enough to get beyond its range throwing up his hand to attract attention he be shouted to the officer in command of the gun what are you doing with that gun up there I 1 order it there and I 1 dont want it there there was authority and petulance in his voice as he added limber up and run it over on that knob over there the officer at the gun thinking that he had to deal with some superior officer recently arrived hastened to obey without question explaining in self defense that he had understood his orders otherwise sitting on little sorrel while the federal troops worked busily about him jackson calmly waited until the gun was limbered off to the new position then ho he rode quietly across the bridge and up the other bank until he was well out of musket range then he turned waved his hand to the astonished toni shed feder federals alB and putting spurs to his horse galloped away from the rain of bullets that pattered harmlessly in the rear had he been captured tho the confederate erate victory at port republic which hi bo won a few hours later would not have happened the able and energetic shields would have defeated his troops stunned by his loss youths companion |