Under Fire: A Tale of the Shenandoah Valley — page 207: what you’re looking at

Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.

200 A STRANGE OCCURRENCE. Middletown, had been fought and won by the TJnion forces. In some respects this is the most remarkable battle in history. Other lost fields have been won; but rarely by the presence of a single man. Marengo was lost to Napoleon, but won again by the arrival of the gallant Desoix with his fresh col- umn. Blucher’s opportune arrival with sixty thous-- and fresh troops saved the day for the beaten English at Waterloo. Shiloh was lost to Grant, but won again by the op- © portune arrival of Buell, with his trained battalions; but here a lost battle was won by the arrival of ‘Sheridan alone. By the power of his single presence as he dashed along the shattered lines, and the magic of his voice, as, now gay and confident, now stern and terrible, he strengthened the discouraged or awed the timid, and recalled the fugitives, he was able to reorganize the broken ranks almost under the guns of the enemy. He not only dissipated despair, and restored con- fidence, but breathed into the army enthusiasm and daring, and positive strength, so that after hours of defeat and terrible losses in men and artillery, it not only made a successful stand, but broke into a furious offensive, and charging the victorious enemy behind his intrenchments, drove him in utter rout from the field. This single battle, if he had fought no other, would stamp Sheridan as a great commander. _ ‘The Union loss in this battle amounted to over six thousand men, while that of the Confederates was not much over a third as great, thus showing under what immense disadvantage Sheridan snatched a vic- tory from the very jaws of defeat. The North was soon ringing with the news ‘ot Sheridan’s great victory. * comicbooks Col