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that he was cut off, and seriously in danger in his rear. Hastily mounting his
troops, he moved at a trot down the Peninsula toward the Pamunkey, and crossed
the Chickahominy at Meadow Bridge before dark, and went into camp. Colonel
Johnson encamped on the other side.

At daylight next morning Colonel Johnson crossed his small force over the
river, and came up with Kilpatrick's rear guard near Old Church, which was
immediately attacked, and several prisoners taken. Still taking every precaution
not to expose to the enemy the smallness of his force, Johnson continued to harrass
him, and drove his rear guard through Old Church in confusion. Here, thinking
himself seriously menaced, Kilpatrick formed line of battle. It was too
ridiculous — three thousand men in battle array to fight sixty men ! Moving a
regiment in his rear, he compelled Johnson to fall back half a mile, but as soon as
this returned to the main body he again renewed his attacks upon the unhappy
rear guard.

In this way they moved down the Peninsula some miles, when a scout
informed Colonel Johnson that a column of the enemy was moving down the road
immediately in his rear. He was thus between two forces. Dismounting his
men, and deploying them in the woods on each side of the road, he awaited their
approach. Upon perceiving him, they made a charge and went through his thin
line, not, however, without losing forty-five men and horses.

This proved to be a remnant of Dahlgren's marauders, four hundred strong,
laden with plunder, much of which was abandoned in their flight, and fell into
Johnson's hands, and many articles of value ivere by him afterward returned to
the rightful owners.

From their statement, it appeared that Dahlgren, not receiving an answer
to the dispatch sent to Kilpatrick, and which was fortunately intercepted by
Johnson, as already seen, started with a hundred men to find him, but failed to
get across the Pamunkey at Dabney's Ferry, owing to the destruction of the
boats, as has been stated, and in his endeavors to escape through King and Queen
County had been intercepted by Lieutenant James Pollard, of Company H, Ninth
Virginia Cavalry, who had gotten together eight or ten of his men, and a company
of boys under Captain R. H. Bagby. In the fight that ensued Dahlgren was
killed and most of his command captured.

Kilpatrick. finding the expedition a failure and believing himself pressed by a
superior force, although but sixty sabres were at his heels, made for the lower
ferries of the Pamunkey, but failed to cross for the same reason that Dahlgren
had, and finally reached Tunstall's Station and joined the forces under Butler,
having been followed the whole way by the Maryland cavalry.

Colonel J. Thomas Scharf, in his " History of Maryland," gives the following