The Turnbo Manuscripts
by Silas Claiborne Turnbo
1844-1925
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THE SOLITARY HORSEMAN
By S. C. Turnbo
There were many small incidents that occurred during our Civil War that was worthy of mention that will never have a place in history because they were never written., On the 6th day of October, 1905, or 40 years after the close of the war, Captain J. H. Sallee, commander of Co. B 16th Regiment of Cavalry on the union side, informed me that one day during the hottest of the war that he and his company while marching along a dim road at the lower part of the old Flemmon Clark farm just below the mouth of Big Creek in Marion County, Arkansas, we discovered a lone horseman on the summit of the bluff on the opposite side of White River from us. I had 35 men with me and we knew that he was an enemy and a daring one but we had no way to get at him for the river was swollen from the recent rains and was several feet past fording and it was near 600 yards to where he was sitting on his horse near where the old trailway lead from the Asa Yocum farm to the mouth of Sugar Camp hollow. The fellow had shot at us and hearing the report of his gun was the cause that lead to his discovery, but he was too far away to do us injury. I knew that there was not a gun in my command that would shoot a ball to him but I spoke to my bugle man who carried a revolving rifle to take a shot at him and it would more than likely make him "fall back" even if it did not touch him. I halted the men while the bugle man took aim with his gun and fired twice at him. He began to retreat at the first shot and disappeared over the bluff at the second shot. I always conjectured that he was a brave man and had some news to tell his friends when he got to them." said the old veteran soldier.
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