1850 American Gold Tycoon.

Chapter 677 They can actually fight back!

Kekudi grabbed the binoculars engraved with the Liangzhou Optics inscription and looked around, searching for prey among the endless waves of hills and grass.

"Lieutenant Colonel, let me take a look at your treasure." A sergeant major in a blue-green cavalry smock came up and begged shyly, "This telescope is a rare thing. I heard that in the Qing Dynasty, only high-ranking officials above the rank of town association had it, and it was a single-tube one!"

In the organization of the Western Army, the battalion commander is usually a major, but as a reinforced cavalry battalion, the Solon Battalion's highest military officer is a lieutenant colonel.

"This is not a treasure at all. The telescope in Big Bison's hand is rare. Nas boasted to me that his telescope is made in France. It can not only see farther, but also see more clearly." Thinking of the imported binoculars equipped by Big Bison, Kekudi couldn't help swallowing.

In the mid-19th century, the leaders in the field of optics were France and Prussia. The representative optical companies in France during this period were Louis Vincent, the Paris Optical Society, and Schöne, while those in Prussia were Zeiss and Emile Busch.

As for the level of America's optical industry, it can make telescopes, but only a small number, and the cost-effectiveness is very low.

Therefore, during the Civil War, most of the optical equipment purchased by the Confederate and Union armies, such as telescopes, rangefinders, artillery observation mirrors, etc., came from France, and a small part came from Prussia and Switzerland.

The most advanced optical company in America is Liangzhou Optics, which has survived by relying on military orders and is able to produce mid- and low-end telescopes. The quality of the telescopes it produces is average, and can only be said to be sufficient, but not good.

However, the National Defense Forces of the American Republic will issue domestically produced telescopes to military commanders above the rank of deputy company commander and gunners of artillery groups, and imported French telescopes to senior officers at the rank of colonel and above.

Since officers of the National Defense Forces of the American Republic generally have relatively high salaries, a pair of imported binoculars costing fifty or sixty US dollars is not too much of a burden for them. Therefore, many majors, lieutenant colonels, and even captains are willing to buy imported binoculars at their own expense.

But Kekudi, who had just joined the National Defense Forces of the American Republic, was obviously not among them and could only use the domestically produced binoculars issued by the troops.

"Is the big bison just bragging? Or does he really see more clearly?"

"Really." Kekudi said impatiently, "When I make a contribution, I will buy an imported French telescope to play with."

Suddenly, a few unnatural metallic reflections flashed in the lens, and these clusters of metallic reflections immediately made Kekudi alert.

Kekudi took a deep breath and looked carefully, then he found dozens of blue-gray figures and horse heads in the grass waves rolling in the wind.

"Northern Army! Northern Army!"

Kekudi, who had not been to the battlefield for two years, felt that his blood was boiling. He had always been brooding over the defeat of the capital city to the foreign cavalry.

Deputy Battalion Commander Wang Mancang looked in the direction pointed by Kekudi, and indeed found a group of people in blue uniforms crouching and moving along the grass beside the railway embankment, and a covered wagon appeared and disappeared in the rolling grass waves.

Wang Mancang is not from Solon, but an old cavalryman from the California Infantry Regiment. He later served as an instructor and translator for the Solon Battalion. After the Solon Battalion was reorganized, Wang Mancang stayed in the Solon Battalion as deputy battalion commander.

Wang Mancang spat out the chewed tobacco leaves, revealing his gums blackened by nicotine. "The damn Yankees are digging up our railroad again! The Yankees wrapped the wheels of the covered wagon with felt, trying to imitate the Indians in launching a sneak attack."

"Fuck them!"

Kekudi imitated Wang Mancang and spat out a mouthful of chewing tobacco. The juice that oozed from the gaps between his yellow teeth stuck his not-so-thick beard into clumps. The chestnut gelding under his crotch pawed its hooves impatiently, and its iron paws almost flew sparks when they hit the exposed limestone on the surface.

Kekudi clamped his knees around the horse's belly and stroked the copper trigger guard on the volcanic stone repeating rifle with his rough fingers, as if he was about to rush out in the next second to have a good fight with the Northern Army, which outnumbered him several times.

"The Yankee cavalry has at least dozens of people, and we have only twenty-eight." After roughly assessing the situation between the enemy and us, Wang Mancang decided to wait for an opportunity and attack cautiously to minimize casualties and losses.

More than one cavalry regiment was responsible for patrolling a section of railway that was 240 kilometers long, so the manpower was naturally stretched to the limit.

Therefore, the Western Army's cavalry responsible for patrolling the railways often patrolled in units of one or two squads in order to cover more patrol areas. The Union Army's cavalry was more proactive, and they often chose to act in units of half a company or even a whole company. Therefore, when the two armies met, the Union Army often had a numerical advantage. Before the rotation, he had learned from his old comrades in the former First Cavalry Regiment that these Union Army cavalry wandering along the railway waiting for an opportunity were not a mob, and their combat effectiveness and fighting will were not weak.

However, Kekudi, who was so angry and eager to fight, was not willing to listen to Wang Mancang's advice. Before Wang Mancang could react, Kekudi shouted at the top of his voice: "Warriors of Sauron! Let these white guys in blue smocks see what real cavalry is!"

Immediately, he used the silver spurs to strike the horse's belly hard, took the lead, and pounced on the Northern cavalry.

These Sauron cavalrymen in the Sauron camp usually followed Kekudi's lead and followed Kekudi without hesitation to launch a surprise attack on the Northern Army cavalry, leaving Wang Mancang and three old cavalrymen stunned and disheveled in the wild wind.

"Damn it! What are you still standing there for? Follow him!" At this point, Wang Mancang had no choice but to ride his horse and follow him with his gun in hand.

Immediately, 28 war horses lowered their heads in unison and rushed towards the Northern Army a mile away.

For a moment, the sound of iron hooves in the mountains of Nebraska startled the prairie ravens that were pecking at cow and horse manure.

"Enemy attack!"

"Get on the horse! Get on the horse!"

"Load! Load!"

The noise made by 28 horses galloping across the field naturally could not escape the ears of the Union cavalry. Jonathan and the Union non-commissioned officers reacted quickly and hurriedly ordered everyone to mount their horses to meet the enemy.

The wagon filled with explosives tilted due to the sudden brakes, and the wheels made a teeth-grinding squeaking sound as they rolled over the cactus bushes. Finally, the wheels turned and overturned into the Mandragora, which was only a dozen yards away from the railway track.

By the time all the Union cavalry mounted their horses and prepared to engage the enemy, the sound of enemy horse hooves was already very close. Captain Jonathan looked in the direction of the sound and saw more than 20 Confederate cavalrymen rushing into the bushes only 70 yards away from them.

"Go to hell, Yankees!"

Captain Jonathan pulled out his Adams revolver and fired five shots at the Western Cavalry, emptying the magazine in one breath.

The Northern cavalrymen, who had recovered their senses, picked up their long and short guns and fought back on horseback.

Unfortunately, the Western cavalrymen who rushed towards them were very scattered, and they were all excellent riders, lying on their horses, so the bullets had a small area to hit. After a round of shooting, they only injured two horses of the Western cavalrymen.

Two Solon camp cavalrymen whose mounts were hit by bullets rolled to the ground. After they stood firm, they used the volcanic rock rifles in their hands to fire at the Northern Army cavalry.

At this moment, the Solon Camp cavalry led by Kekudi had rushed to a place only more than 30 yards away from the Northern Cavalry, and skillfully poured a torrential rain of metal bullets on the Northern Cavalry.

The unique lever-loading sound of the volcanic rock repeating rifle clattered like the god of death fiddling with beads, reaping the lives of the Union cavalry.

The 37 new Union cavalry recruits who had just joined the third company had never seen such a scene before, and more than half of them subconsciously rode their horses and fled in all directions.

The remaining old cavalrymen were the cream of the American cavalry. They were able to fight back under the hail of bullets under the leadership of Captain Jonathan!

(End of this chapter)