Hewes, M. Warner, “Turner Ashby’s Courage”, Confederate Veteran, Dec 1897, pg

M. Warner Hewes, who served in the First Maryland Cavalry, C. S. A., Ewell's Division, under "Old Jack," wrote from Baltimore in May, 1895:

In the VETERAN for April you note the death of Gen. Turner Ashby. I cut the saddle off his horse after both were killed, borrowing a knife from one of Gen. Ewell's aids. I had gone with Gen. George H. Steuart to see Gen. Ashby "bag a lot of Yanks." He wished to add to his big work that morning, when he cut up the New Jersey regiment and captured its colonel, Sir Percy Wyndham. He got an order from Gen. Ewell for Gen. George H. Steuart, who then commanded the rear guard of Gen. Jackson's army, to furnish the men. Gen. Steuart detailed the Fifty Eighth Virginia and the Maryland regiment, and placed them under Ashby's orders. Placing one gun (I think from Chew's Battery ) in the main road, covered by a company of Ashby's cavalry, we proceeded by a back way through a dense woods to come out in the rear of the Federals. They appear to have been aware of our movement, for they threw the "Bucktails," a crack Pennsylvania regiment, behind a rail fence in a clover field, and, as we emerged from the wood, let into us with telling effect. Gen. Ashby was reckless. as usual, and Gen. Steuart warned him against needlessly exposing himself, but soon Ashby turned to me and said, "Let's go see the Maryland boys charge," which we did. We were both horseback. When I returned I called Gen. Steuart's attention to Gen. Ashby's dead horse, with the saddle and pistol holsters on. This horse was between a cream and a dun. The saddle was a high back and front wooden affair. I had hardly gotten the saddle off, when one of Gen. Ashby's aids he was a mere boy, and Ashby had lots of such rode up and said: ''I will give those to Gen. Ashby, sir." I handed them over, returned the knife, and mounted my horse. Then Gen. Steuart ordered me to go and get an ambulance, as a lot of the Maryland boys were wounded. When I got to the wagons I was told that Gen. Ashby had been wounded, and had just been carried past. I stayed with the wagons, and did not know of his death for some hours. This all occurred Friday, June 6.