Colonel Lyon’s Letters.
Huntsville, Ala., Sun., Sept. 18, 1864.—I wrote to you from Stevenson last Wednesday, returned here the same night, and on Friday I received four letters from you. What a feast I had!
Everything is quiet here except that there is a gang of guerillas between the railroad and Tennessee river, variously estimated at from 75 to 250 strong, under one Johnson, a Methodist preacher. They do not disturb the railroad thus far, but rob and murder Union men wherever they find them defenceless. General Granger has promised me some troops to make an expedition after them in a few days.
The 13th has been sent out on the railroad to take the place of another regiment, the 12th Indiana Cavalry, sent to Tullahoma. The regiment garrisons the defense of the railroad to Woodville, twenty-four miles towards Stevenson. Company C is still at Claysville Landing, and Captain Kingman, with 75 or 80 men, is at Whitesburg. While I have my present command I shall remain here.
I think I have met with a loss here in the way of horses. Now ‘horses’ is rather a delicate subject for me to write to you upon, but I will venture. The one I bought in Stevenson got lame, and I took a captured horse to ride in his place. Mine got well, but I liked the other and kept him. Both turned out to be capital, good animals, and last Wednesday both of them were stolen out of a little yard where they were feeding, right in the middle of this town. No one is to blame but the thief. We can get no track of them. When I go for Johnson I will try to capture another.
