Page images
PDF
EPUB

generally lying, either anchored off the town or cruising up or down the Neuse or Trent, to the great terror of the inhabitants living near their banks.

General Pickett's demonstration upon Newbern, which surprised the Yankees, on the 1st of February, appears to have followed just in the retiring footsteps of a Yankee raiding party which had been sent out from the town. He had with him two brigades only-Clingman's and Hoke's-while General Barton had been sent up the Trent to fall upon the town simultaneously with those in front. An expedition of boats, under command of Commander Wood, of the Confederate Navy, was to make a demonstration upon the enemy's gunboats, and to essay, if possible, their capture or destruction.

Early on the morning of 1st February, the Yankee outposts at Bachelor's creek were attacked by the Confederates. The force of the enemy here occupied a strong line of fortifications along the edge of the creek, on both flanks of a powerful blockhouse, which commanded the approach to the bridge.

While a furious shower of shot and shell was kept up near the bridge, the right of our line succeeded in pushing through the marsh and effected a crossing, flanking the enemy. A vigorous attack was made by the Confederates, and the Yankees were driven out, and began falling back. Those of our men on the other side of the creek rushed upon the bridge, laid the pontoon planks, crossed, and joined the fight. Charging with a yell, they broke the line of the enemy, and pursued them to the cover of the fortifications of Newbern.

The night passed without a general attack; but not without a bold achievement by the Confederates.

The Yankee gunboat, Underwriter, had passed up the Neuso river near Fort Stephenson, throwing out her anchors and placing all her guns, to be in readiness for any service in case of an attack on the town. About one o'clock at night, the sentinel saw some boats approaching, and, hailing them, received no reply. They were Wood's boats. As they came up the Yankees greeted them with a volley of musketry, which flashed in the very faces of the daring Confederates, the balls! whistling unpleasantly into the boats or into the water beyond. But the boats were soon at the side of the steamer, the grapnels thrown on, and a hand-to-hand combat joined between

But the Yankees soon cried
The Confederate engi-

the boarding-party and the crew. for quarter, and the steamer was ours. neer Gill was lying in the gangway, shot in four places and mortally wounded, and midshipman Saunders, cut down in a hand-to-hand fight, was breathing his last upon the decks.

The Underwriter was moored, head and stern, to the shore, under three of the largest batteries, and hardly a stone's throw from the wharf. The flash of the guns and the report of musketry had aroused the soldiers on shore, and they were now witnesses of the scene, but determined not to be inactive ones; for, regardless of their own prisoners on board, they fired a shell into the steamer, which, striking the upper machinery and exploding on the deck, produced a terrible shock. To spare the prisoners and wounded, Captain Wood ordered them to be put into the boats and the ship made ready for firing. As the steam was down, it was found it would be impossible to take time to get it up under the heavy fire of batteries not one hundred yards away; and so, the wounded and prisoners being put into the boats, the vessel was fired. In a few minutes the Underwriter was one mass of flame, burning up the dead bodies of the Yankees killed in action.

General Pickett having ascertained the strength of the fortifications of Newbern, concluded that it would be useless to risk an assault upon them, and appears to have been satisfied with the results his expedition had already accomplished. Indeed, he represented to the War Department that he had attempted nothing more than a "reconnoissance in force." But the results of the reconnoissance was not a mean victory. Pickett had met the enemy in force at Bachelor's creek, killed and wounded about one hundred in all, captured thirteen officers and two hundred and eighty prisoners, fourteen negroes, two rifled pieces and caissons, three hundred stand of small arms, four ambulances, three wagons, fifty-five animals, a quantity of clothing, camp and garrison equipage, and two flags. The destruction of the Underwriter was an important part of the success. She was the largest and best of the Yankee gunboats in the sounds; had engines of eight hundred horse power, the largest the Yankees had taken across Hatteras swash; mounted four guns-two large eight-inch shell guns, one twelve-pound rifle, and one twelve-pound howitzer.

THE AFFAIR OF JOHN'S ISLAND.

An incident "worthy of note" was at last to occur in what for months had been the dull vicinity of famous Charleston.

On the 9th of February the enemy came over in force from Folly to Kiawah Island, and thence crossed over at a place called the Haulover, to John's Island, killing, wounding, and capturing some nine men of Major Jenkins's command. With about one hundred and fifty men only, he fought them until night, when Colonel Tabb reinforced him, and the Colonel immediately attacked the enemy at night, with but a battalion, and staggered them so that they paused and did not advance again until Colonel Page reinforced them with another battalion of the 26th Virginia, the next morning.

General Wise sent forward more troops, and went in person on the 10th, and got there just as five hundred and fifty infantry, with one battery and two hundred cavalry were drawn up in line under the fire of two thousand, at least, of the enemy. Seeing they were about to turn our left flank, General Wise ordered our forces to fall back to a point called the "Cocked Hat." There we took a position and awaited reinforcements. They came up in time to increase our numbers to about one thousand infantry, and two batteries of artillery.

The enemy did not advance until the 11th. By 3 P. M. they came up to our front. Just at this moment General Colquitt reinforced us with nine hundred men. At 3.25 P. M. we opened upon the enemy with six pieces, the Marion battery, and one section of Charles's, at about three-quarters of a mile distance. The enemy replied with three pieces-Parrott's and Blakely's. They ceased firing at forty minutes past 5 P. M., and retreated rapidly, leaving some of their dead. Four bodies were found on the ground. General Wise's men were too much broken and fatigued to follow them. The enemy retired in confusion to Haulover, burnt the Seabrook houses there, and before day crossed back to Kiawah, burning the bridge behind them.

THE BATTLE OF OCEAN POND.

But the month of February was to be distinguished by an important battle, and that in a part of the Confederacy which had yet attracted but little notice in the war.

The Yankees had invaded Florida in the spring of 1862, when they occupied Jacksonville. They then said they came to protect the city against the reprehensible incendiarism of some of our own people; and, after this profession of protection, and making great promises of an intention to hold the place forever, thus duping a good many disaffected citizens to take sides with them in some sort of a State government which they proposed, and finding much less of Union sentiment than they expected, but more of a military demonstration in their front than they looked for, they departed, after a three weeks' stay in the "water-oak city."

They came again in October, 1862. But this expedition turned out to be a very heavy negro trade; and General Brannon, who commanded it, after collecting a large number of "contrabands," took his departure.

Again, in March, 1863, the Yankees invaded Florida, to try the experiment there of recruiting blacks. They were only partially successful; and the third experiment of invasion ended, leaving its malignant track in the burning of two churches, and laying waste a number of squares of private residences in the beautiful little city of Jacksonville.

The fourth invasion was designed at Washington, and contemplated nothing less than the taking and holding of the whole State of Florida, reincorporating it into the Union, and erecting a State government there under the auspices of Mr. Lincoln's private secretary, who was sent to Florida to engineer the political part of the movement. The times were thought to be ripe for so extensive a design upon Florida. The operations against Charleston were virtually abandoned; surplus troops were on hand; and deserters and fugitives had persuaded the Yankees that the pathway was open, and that all there was to resist them was a local force of not more than a dozen companies scattered broadcast over the State. It was soon known that a force of six or seven thousand Yankee

troops, under command of Major-general Seymour, had left Charleston harbor in eighteen transports for what was supposed to be the easy conquest of Florida.

The State was in General Beauregard's military department, and that alert commander had hastened General Colquitt down to meet the movement of the enemy. General Finnegan was in command of a small force at Camp Finnegan, where the enemy had expected to surprise him. He eluded him by withdrawing his forces through the woods. The enemy advanced twenty miles on the railroad, and took the junction of the other railroad crossing it, the place or village known as Baldwin. Our rail lines in their hands, our case seemed desperate. The enemy advanced still westward towards Lake City, which had long been the head-quarters of the Eastern Department. His advance cavalry had come within three miles of Lake City. But troops were pouring in to Finnegan. General Colquitt and his brigade were en route. The celebrated Chatham artillery of Savannah, which stood the brunt of Fort Wagner for long weeks, arrived. They were hurried down. Body after body of troops arrived. Clinch's cavalry were expected to enter the State in the rear of the enemy, and thus cut off their retreat while the main body of the troops pushed them back. Our forces concentrated and fortified at Oulustre, a spot preserving its Indian name. It was the headwaters of a creek of that name, being a continuous swamp on the right of the railroad, inclining southward, Ocean Pond, or one of the inland lakes of Florida, lying not far north, thus forming a good defensible position. Our forces there concentrated about five thousand men. Our rifle-pits and redoubts connected with the swamp on the south, and Ocean Pond on the north.

On the morning of the 20th February, General Finnegan was notified that the enemy was approaching. About 12 M., they were reported as distant four miles. The command was then moved out to meet them.

When we had marched three miles from camp, our cavalry was discovered falling back rapidly. Our line of battle was formed at once, but so rapidly did the enemy advance that a furious fire commenced before the line was completed. The fire soon became general. The battle opened at 2 o'clock P. M. For two hours the enemy was steadily pushed back, though

« PreviousContinue »