were on the ground as soon as the Confederates reached the forest. They
came on foot, and left the horses where they had been abandoned.

An orderly sergeant, as he appeared to be from the chevrons on his arm,
advanced and asked for the commanding officer; and Deck was pointed out
by the riflemen, as his men ascended the bank to the solid ground. He
presented himself to the lieutenant, and saluted.

"I am Sergeant Pfeffer, and we desire to surrender, for we can do
nothing more," said he.

"Where are all your commissioned officers?" asked Deck.

"They are all killed or badly wounded," answered the sergeant.

"How many men have you now?"

"Fifty-eight; and we started out early this morning with a full
company," returned Pfeffer, with no little bitterness in his tones.

"You will march your men in single file along this bank, and deposit
your arms of all kinds on the ground," said Lieutenant Lyon.

He directed Life to supervise the ceremony, sending the weapons by his
own men and the riflemen to the wagons; and the quartermaster-sergeant
was directed to load them in the vehicles. Deck hurried the business,
for the aide-de-camp was impatient at the delay. As soon as this duty
had been accomplished, and Lieutenant Sterling was thus in condition to
handle the prisoners, Deck ordered the cavalrymen and the riflemen to
return to the road, mount their horses, and form in the usual order, in
column, under the command of Sergeant Knox.

Captain Woodbine instructed Lieutenant Sterling to have the prisoners,
under a guard of his own men, bring in the wounded, bury the dead, and
lead their horses to the forest. He was told to be very cautious, and
to shoot any prisoner who attempted to escape or make any serious
trouble. With forty men, armed with muskets of the best quality, the
captain declared that he could control the greater number of prisoners.

The aide-de-camp, who may take command of any body of troops in the
field if he finds it advisable to so, and Lieutenant Lyon hastened to
their horses, and mounted, and the column moved up the road. Lieutenant
Sterling proved himself to be a man of energy and determination. He
drew up his command around the prisoners, and then addressed them. He
told them what they were to do, and warned them that any man who
attempted to escape, or offered any opposition to his orders, would be
summarily shot.

Forming the remains of the company by fours, with his own men on the
flanks, he