Fought Under Two Flags, AND A RECORD SECOND TO NONE FOR VALOUR.

No British soldier that I ever read about did more distinguished proved valour. I received a letter from Major Jervis, late 13th Light Dragoons, dated December 5th, 1876. He says amongst other things “that he well remembers a young corporal of the 17th Lancers helping him to take the gun,” and from the fact named in my letter, it could be none other than myself.

I received a letter from Lord Tredegar, dated December 9th, 1876. In which he says, “that he well remembers, after the regiment had retired a short distance, I asked permission to go back and bring in Cornet Cleveland who lay in the thickest of the fire, mortally wounded.” See his other letter, in my sworn claim for the Victoria Cross, General Sir Drury Lowe, K.C.B., in answering a letter to me said “if he could do me any service he would be happy to do it,” several officers wrote me at the same time to the same effect. I was holding the position of Regimental Sergeant-Major in the Yeomanry, and in charge of head quarters and stores. I explained this to them and thanked them, telling them I was well off. I am Sir Drury Lowe’s oldest Non-Commissioned Officer, I served under him all the time he was in the Crimea and in Ireland, and when he commanded a detachment in Clonmel. In the Baida Valley he came to my assistance several times, once at Prince Challertoff’s residence, when I charged the Russians and took back the waggons of the Land Transport. I was on picquet duty with Lieutenant Barbour, some Greeks came into the picquets on little ponies, and explained to us the Russians were stealing. Lieutenant Barbour took all the picquet and left me in charge of the Videtts; being absent longer than I liked, I sent a man who was very sick into camp, explaining the matter to now Sir Drury Lowe, who commanded the 17th, telling him I had no men to patrole with, he did not send any reinforcements, but came himself with the regiment. He lost no time in getting to me and remained in command till Lieutenant Barbour returned with two Russian Greek spies, who tried to decoy his command into a village in which the Russian Cavalry were hiding. Sir Drury Lowe was loved by all men and I never heard or knew an enlisted man to say any thing but kindness respecting him. I was in Aldershot when he commanded the regiment, and I was in the Sergeants Mess. I heard Sergeant-Major Davis repeat that he would sooner soldier under Colonel Lowe without pay than any other officer with pay and the rest shouted “hear hear.”

There is an old proverb that “Comparisons are odious” and it cannot be better proved than by Colonel Drury Lowe and Colonel Benson, both commanded the 17th Lancers. The latter was never under fire in the Crimea. He was the only officer that flogged the soldiers. I saw him flog three at once at Ismid, who rode in the charge of the “600,” one of them had 17 wounds upon his back, all bleeding, through the lashes of the Cat o’ Nine Tails. I saw tears running down the officers cheeks. This Colonel Benson is the only officer that drummed out any men of the 17th Lancers, some of whom had ridden in the charge of the “600.”

Sir Drury Lowe, when Colonel, had a Regimental Sergeant-Major in the name of Brown, every soldier in the 17th Lancers had the greatest respect for him and officers too.

Colonel Benson had a Regimental Sergeant-Major Wooden, a foreigner, that could not speak the English language when he joined the regiment, went by the name of Tish-me. Colonel Benson went by the name of Dosey, he always looked as if he was asleep. But when he played at cards with young officers they found he was not dreaming. Colonel Benson and this Wooden, their teeth fit in their jaws like Hyenas. Every officer and soldier feared them.

Sergeant-Major Wooden was allowed to insult officers, one leaving the regiment through the bad language he used to him. I can name three sergeants out of one troop that left the 17th Lancers through him, and they all rode in the “Charge of the 600.” Colonel Benson procured him quarter-master of the 5th Lancers, and the commanding officer soon had him retired on the smallest allowance, 3/6 per day. It was Colonel Benson who secured his promotion as quarter-master of some infantry, but he soon got into debt and shot himself. It was the same officer who procured him the Victoria Cross and the French Order, although he never crossed swords with a Russian, and all those who knew anything concerning him, and who were in the “Charge of the 600,” say he threw himself off his horse. It is a well-known fact that he never went to the Battle of Inkerman, but drew our grog and got dead drunk with it.

Sir Drury Lowe, purchased Regimental Sergeant-Major J. Brown a commission, and appointed him adjutant of the regiment. I will undertake to prove all I have said, and more, by officers and soldiers now living.

Colonel Benson was the means of me losing promotion by writing lies to the Duke of Cambridge. The Duke of Newcastle, my commanding officer, read Benson’s letter and told me he should believe Colonel Benson’s statement before mine. He promised afterwards that if I would not write any more letters something would be done for me. That promise was never fulfilled, for he promoted a sergeant over my head in the name of Smith.

Through General Charles Frederick Havelock, who became Inspector of Cavalry at Washington, D.C., I left the regiment and went to America. I went with him to inspect the 12th Pennsylvanian Cavalry at the time the regiment had just been mustered into the United States Service, and was appointed Drill Instructor to the regiment.

At the battle of Bull Run I saved the regiment from being captured, my horse being killed and myself taken prisoner. When I returned to the regiment I received a commission and all back pay and allowances which amounted to some hundreds of pounds. They also paid me for horse and equipments. I was in all the stirring engagements. I was second in command in Dismounted Camp in Pleasant Valley, Maryland, to equip all cavalry without horses, and was afterwards Assistant Commissariat in Pleasant Valley. I was then appointed Assistant Inspector of Cavalry, with Major Gordon, for the department of Western Virginia. I was in Libby prison for twelve months, and while I was there 109 made their escape by making a tunnel. I was in when powder was laid down to blow us all up.

During the time I was prisoner of war, General Cesnola saw me compelled to be vaccinated. The matter turned out bad, my left side and arm swelled to such a degree that I was compelled to lay on the floor for months, my brother officers believing I should die.

During the war I received a bullet in my head, and it remained in for eight years.

One of the worst running fights I ever was in was when General Max Weber sent me from Harper’s Ferry, Va., to Charlestown to capture fifteen of the enemys cavalry. I was allowed to pick thirty horses and men. After we had advanced about five miles we saw them and pursued, we found two thousand with two guns. Two squadrons charged us and we had a fight with revolvers for four miles, till close to the forts. I lost twenty-one out of the thirty men. This was on the 29th June, 1864. The United States paid me for two horses killed in battle.

I am the only officer that knew the plans which General Grant used to capture Richmond in nine days. I also assisted General L. P. Di Cesnola to make out these plans and forward them to President Lincoln. I saved General Cesnola’s life. My horse was killed in a charge in the night, and it lay on me till the sun rose. Through being a freemason I was bandaged up. I heard that General Cesnola was wounded and I went to his assistance. He had a sword cut in the head, was shot in the thick part of the arm, the point of a sword through the palm of the hand, and horse killed whilst leading his brigade in a charge. I attended to him and dressed his wounds. I stayed with him, and managed to hire horses and conveyances to travel a distance of 150 miles to Stanton Va. He is now, and has been for years, Managing Director of the Metropolitan Museum of Art and Central Park, New York. He often writes thanking me for saving his life. I was introduced to him when he was Colonel of the 4th New York Cavalry, by Major-General C. F. Havelock, at Washington, who knew him when he was on Field Marshal Marmouer’s Commander-in-Chief’s Staff of the Italian Army, in the Crimea. I received second and first lieutenant’s and captain’s commissions on the field of battle, and have them now.

I resigned after the war and returned home and joined the Ayrshire Yeomanry as drill troop sergeant-major, 1st of January, 1868. In June 1871 I was promoted regimental sergeant-major in charge of headquarters and stores. I remained with them till June, 1877. I was so well liked in Ayr that they gave me, an Englishman, the birth place of Robert Burns on lease, in preference to hundreds of Scotchmen. In a few years the place was sold to the gentleman of the county for thousands of pounds more than they asked me for it. I was the last lessee of the place. Only three persons were born in this house, these being the poet himself and two of my children, one of whom is still living in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. I took another business, but it did not do well, the rent being too high—£600 a year.

I then went to America, and in a few years I thought I should be better off under the government. In April 1884 I called upon Senator Morrell, the father of the house of the Senate, and went with him to interview the Hon. Robert Lincoln, the Secretary for War, who informed me that he could not give me the first place as he had promised it. In a few days I got an appointment and received pay on it till the end of 1893. Mr. Lincoln afterwards became Ambassador to England. On the 9th of May, 1863, I was employed in the government building, in which President Lincoln was assassinated, when part of the building fell, killing 25 and injuring nearly 200. I was one of the latter, and being unable to perform my duties was discharged. I applied to the Patriotic Fund in London for aid out of the money the people of England subscribed—five children depending upon me at the time. I received a reply telling me I was not entitled to anything. This is the first and only time in my life I ever asked for assistance.

Some time after I ceased to receive pay. I then took the official letter of the Patriotic Fund, dated October 18th, 1894, to Senator J. Hawley. He said, “Why did you not come to me before, I would have put you back.” I told him I was not able to do anything. “Then what can I do for you?” he said. I replied that I wanted a place for my wife in the Treasury. He said, “I am sorry for your sake, I do not belong to that administration, but I will get her a place.” Three days after she was employed in the Treasury till we came to England. I have never been able since the Ford Theatre disaster to do any employment. I lived in Leek, Staffordshire, for sixteen months, and the chief of police and several of the magistrates, doctors and chemists of the town, know that I was sick in bed nearly all the time, and have been sick in Nottingham this last five months, but the climate seems to agree with me better, being my own native place.

I shall ever be grateful to America. It is a Heaven for a soldier. They never want, if a good record. If they cannot work they have Soldiers Homes to retire in; better looking than any Hotel in Nottingham. If they die their relatives receive ten pound to carry them to the finest Cemetery in the world; with marble head-stone, and their graves strewn with flowers every 30th of May. Any soldier with a record can get relief and forwarded to his destination. The Americans are the finest comrades in the world, and they are the only nation that can fight side by side with the British, they would understand one another and be proper chums, while other nations do not understand one another. You would require an interpreter to understand their names; much more work together in battle.

I have attended many fires and assisted to put them out, about 1860 I went to a fire at Mr. Hollins’ mills, near Pleasley, Derbyshire, no finer mills in England. After the fire engines were on some time, I told Mr. Hollins they were on the wrong side, and he had them removed to the other side. I told him the fire was on the top story and they put up ladders to reach it. No one man seemed to be able to carry the hose and leather pipes up. I told him it would be dangerous for many to be up so high when the water was put on, it would make it too heavy for the ladder. After several tried I took it up myself, broke in the window with a hammer, put in the hose and in half an hour or less I got inside, put out the fire and went down the stairs. I then walked to Mr. Hollins’ House, their dinner was on the table, and the room full of ladies and gentlemen; no one seemed to be dining. After I told Mr. Hollins I had put out the fire, I sat down and dined. He wanted to reward me, but I would not receive anything, and he placed me on his game list. I should not speak of this, only there are plenty of ladies and gentlemen living who can bear out this statement.

About 1874, I was walking up High Street, in Ayr, N.B., I saw a great blaze in the second story of Mr. Semple’s the largest Ironmonger in the town, and in the centre of the market space. I procured a bag of salt and went up stairs with it, the oil had caught fire in a large tank; in less than ten minutes I had it out, only Robert Reed was in the room. Mr. Semple sent me a handsome present.

If I was to give my life in full it would make a book. If my health gets better I will write fuller.