prisoners, including wounded, one | River Railroad, to the right and 12-pound howitzer, many small arms, rather in advance of Couch's positwo railroad trains, and their camp at Hanover Court House captured and destroyed. We lost 53 killed and 344 wounded. The Rebel force thus defeated consisted of Gen. L. O'B. Branch's division of North Carolina and Georgia troops, supposed by Gen. McClellan to be 9,000 strong. 5 tion. Heintzelman's (3d) corps had crossed after Keyes's, and been stationed in his rear, but rather to the left, so as to observe the roads debouching on that side from White Oak Swamp, whereby we might be unexpectedly assailed in flank. Sumner's corps was still north of the Chickahominy, some miles higher up, ready to cross at command. Gen. McClellan was with Fitz-John Porter's and Franklin's corps, at and near New Bridge, nearly 10 miles above Bottom's Bridge. Heintzelman, as senior Major-General, was in command on the left until Sumner appeared. The Chickahominy, opposite Richmond, 20 to 30 miles from its mouth, is a sluggish, oozy mill-stream, three to four rods wide, often fordable, but traversing a swampy, miry bottom, generally wooded, half a mile to a mile wide, bordered by low, irregular bluffs. All the bridges by which it was previously crossed were of course destroyed in their retreat by the Rebels; but Brig.-Gen. H. M. Naglee, of Casey's division, Keyes's (4th) corps, leading our advance on the left, crossed it near Bottom's Bridge without difficulty, wholly unopposed; followed by the rest of the corps three days later, the bridge having meantime been rebuilt. During the three following days, Naglee made a spirited reconnoissance toward Richmond, and to within two miles of the James, on our left; Couch's division took up,' by order, a position some miles in advance, at a place known as the SEVEN PINES, on the direct road from Bottom's Bridge to Richmond; which he proceeded hastily to fortify with abatis, rifle-pits, etc., and by building and arming a small redoubt. Meantime, the remaining division (Casey's) of Keyes's corps was advanced to and encamped about the station known as FAIR Oaks, on the Richmond and York out by the Williamsburg road and 6 The enemy being seen in force barely a mile from our front, Casey's pickets were posted some half a mile in advance of his line. It rained heavily throughout the night of May 30, swelling the Chickahominy to an extraordinary height, flooding its miry bottom, and setting afloat several of our new-made bridges. Gen. Jo. Johnston, who commanded the Rebel army, saw his opportunity, and resolved to profit by it. The roads of all that region center on Richmond, radiating thence like the folds of a fan, and affording a considerable advantage in manœuvering to the combatant who holds the city. Informed by his scouts of the numbers and isolated position of Keyes's corps, Johnston resolved to assail and crush it before it could be adequately rëenforced. To this end, he directed Maj.-Gen. Longstreet, with his own and Gen. D. H. Hill's division, the latter in advance, to push BATTLE OF SEVEN PINES OR FAIR OAKS. 143 attack our position in front, while | so come in on our right. The entire Rebel army defending Richmond— some 40,000 to 50,000 strong-was either engaged in or supporting this movement, with Jefferson Davis, Gen. Lee, and other magnates, observing, directing, animating, and giving counsel. Gen. Huger's, on his right, was to move down the Charles City road and come in on our left flank; and Gen. Gustavus W. Smith was to move out on the New Bridge road to Old Tavern, taking thence the Ninemile road to Fair Oaks Station, and SEVEN PINES. The attacking columns were to | nated, when Hill, who had for some move at day-break; but the tremen-time waited impatiently in our imdous rains of the preceding afternoon mediate front, gave, at 1 P. M., the and night had so flooded the earth signal to his division to advance and as to render the moving of artillery attack. exceedingly difficult; the infantry Casey's division was surprised as often wading through mud and water well as largely outnumbered. Havtwo or three feet deep. Huger's ing been scarcely two days in this flank movement had not yet culmi- position, their defensive works were * May 31. not of much account; and even their | onets and drive them back; which commander did not consider the matter serious until a vedette reported the enemy advancing in force, about the same moment that two shells came hissing over their heads; when, dropping the axes and spades wherewith they were felling trees for abatis and digging rifle-pits, our soldiers at the front hurriedly stood to their arms as our pickets came running in. Gen. Casey promptly sent forward Spratt's battery of 4 3-inch rifled guns to a position in front of his rifle-pits, and ordered up Gen. Naglee's infantry brigade, consisting of the 56th and 100th New York, 11th Maine, and 104th Pennsylvania, to its support; while he disposed his 7 remaining regiments and 3 batteries on either side of a small redoubt, which he had hastily constructed, expecting to hold his ground until the arrival of rëenforcements; and ordered his artillery to open on the advancing enemy. But the odds were too great. The three brigades of Rhodes, Garland, and Anderson, were immediately in his front; while that of Rains, by a flank movement, was coming in on his left. The 104th Pennsylvania, which he had sent forward to the support of his pickets, came rushing back in confusion, and went to the rear in disorder, having lost heavily by the Rebel fire; and, though musketry and artillery were doing fearful execution on either side, it was plain that we must soon be overwhelmed. was done, but under a musketry fire that mowed down our men by hundreds. Here fell Col. James M. Brown, of the 100th New York, and Col. Davis, of the 104th Pennsylvania, whose Major also was mortally wounded; and, our flanks being again enveloped, Rains having gained the rear of our redoubt, and firing thence on the flank of our infantry, Casey's division was driven back in disorderly retreat upon Couch, with the loss of 6 guns. Col. G. D. Bailey, Major Van Valkenburg, and Adjt. Ramsey, of the 1st New York artillery, were killed, while endeavoring to save the guns in the redoubt; which were the next moment seized by Rhodes, and turned upon our flying columns. To the credit of this shattered division be it recorded, that, under a fearful enfilading fire from Rains, in addition to that thundered on their rear from Rhodes, they brought off three-fourths of our guns. The storm of battle now fell upon the 93d Pennsylvania, Col. McCarter, 55th New York, Lt.-Col. Thourot, 23d Pennsylvania, Col. Neill, and 61st, Col. Rippey, of Couch's division, who were sent forward by Keyes to the relief of Casey, on the right, where they fought gallantly and lost heavily. The 7th Massachusetts, Col. Russell, and 62d New York, Col. J. L. Riker, were afterward sent to rëenforce them; but were pressed back upon Fair Oaks by the enemy's overpowering advance, and there, uniting with the 1st U. S. Chasseurs, Col. John Cochrane, and 31st Pennsylvania, Col. Williams, held their ground until the advance of Gen. Sumner's corps, Seeing that the enemy were closing in on him on both wings, Gen. Casey ordered Gen. Naglee, with what remained of his brigade, to charge bay-which had with great difficulty made SUMNER'S CORPS SAVES THE DAY. its way across the swollen Chickahominy, checked the Rebel advance in that direction. Brig.-Gen. Peck, who held the left of Couch's position, had been divested of most of his regiments aforesaid, which were successively ordered up to the front by Couch or Keyes, until, at 4 P. M., he led the 102d Pennsylvania, Col. Rowley, and 93d, Col. McCarter, to the aid of our crumbling right, and was for half an hour sharply engaged with the triumphant enemy near Seven Pines, losing some ground, but encamping very near his field of conflict. Heintzelman was promptly summoned to the aid of Couch; but there was an unaccounted-for delay in the reception of the message, and some of his regiments did not rush to the front quite so impetuously as a good portion of Couch's, especially the 55th New York (De Trobriand's Frenchmen), made tracks for the It was a quarter past 3 o'clock before Heintzelman came fairly into the fight; Jamison's Maine and Berry's Michigan brigades eagerly pushing to the front. rear. On the Rebel left, Gen. Smith's attack was delayed by Johnston, who was there in person, until 4 P. M., listening for the sound of Longstreet's musketry, which, for some atmospheric reason, he failed to hear. It was now too late for complete success, though his men fought desperately. The Richmond and York River Railroad, near its crossing of the Nine-mile road, runs for a considerable distance on an embankment 4 or 5 feet high, forming an effective breast work, behind which our men held stubbornly and fought gallantly. VOL. II.-10 145 Gen. Abercrombie, with five regiments, was at Fair Oaks (the crossing aforesaid), instructed to hold the position at all hazards. Here fell Gen. C. Devens, severely wounded; while of the 61st Pennsylvania, Col. Rippey, Lt.-Col. Spear, and Maj. Smith fell dead, and 27 of the line officers were either killed or wounded; and near this point, at sunset, Gen. Jo. Johnston, the Rebel Commander-in-chief, was struck in the side by a shell and badly wounded, breaking two ribs in falling from his horse, so that he was disabled for service for several months. Gen. G. W. Smith succeeded him in command; but he was very soon disabled by a paralytic stroke, and removed from the field. One of the last Rebel charges on this part of the field was led by Jefferson Davis in person. Hearing vaguely of trouble on the left, McClellan, still at New Bridge, had ordered Sumner, who had Sedgwick's and Richardson's divisions, to cross to the relief of Couch; and Sedgwick, with the advance, reached the field on our right an hour and a half before sunset, just as the triumphant Rebels had turned Couch's left, interposing between him and Heintzelman (who, in coming up, had swayed to the right), with intent to sever and defeat our two corps on the south of the Chickahominy. But Sedgwick, advancing rapidly, interposed at the critical moment, and, forming in line of battle in the edge of a wood, with a large open field in his front, commenced a fire of canister from his 24 guns on the head of the enemy's advancing column, which staggered it; and then, moving forward his whole division in line of battle, he completely swept the field, recovering much of | seemed to waver; but Burns's calm, the ground that had been lost. At full-voiced order, "Steady, men, nightfall, Richardson's division, having also crossed over, came up on the left of Sedgwick, connecting with Birney's brigade of Heintzelman's corps on his left; thus making all secure in that quarter. At 6 P. M., Abercrombie, farther to our right, still desperately fighting, had been compelled to give ground, and seemed about to be enveloped by an overwhelming force; when the long-expected succor arrived. Gorman's brigade, leading Sedgwick's division, deployed into line of battle along the crest of a hill in the rear of Fair Oaks, and advanced down a gentle slope to the field where Col. Cochrane's U. S. Chasseurs and Neill's 23d Pennsylvania were fighting against heavy odds. At this moment, a furious enfilading fire of musketry was received on our right, indicating an effort to turn us on that flank, and repeat the sharp lesson of Casey's disaster. Gen. Sedgwick instantly directed Gen. Burns to deploy the 69th and 72d Pennsylvania to the right, himself holding the 71st and 106th in support of Gorman. The Rebels attacked with great fury, stampeding two or three battery teams, so that for a moment our lines Gen. McClellan, in his elaborate report on this campaign, after relating Gen. Sumner's arrival on the battle-field, with Sedgwick's division, says: "The leading regiment (1st Minnesota, Col. Sully) was immediately deployed to the right of Couch to protect the flank, and the rest of the division formed in line of battle; Kirby's battery near the center, in an angle of the woods. One of Gen. Couch's regiments was sent to open communication with Gen. Heintzelman. No sooner were these dispositions made, than the enemy came on in strong force, and opened a heavy fire along the line. He made several charges, but was repulsed with great loss, by steady!" evoked a thundering cheer, followed by volley after volley of musketry, under which the enemy advanced steadily, and were charging Kirby's battery, when he poured into their close ranks a murderous fire of canister, which sent them rapidly to the woods in their rear. Meanwhile, Dana's brigade had come into line on Gorman's left, and the Rebels renewed, as darkness fell, their attempt to outflank our right, extending their left farther and farther; but in vain. Gens. Sumner, Sedgwick, Dana, whose horse was killed under him, Burns, and Gorman, each exerted himself to the utmost to animate and encourage their men. Dana's wing was gradually advanced as the Rebels extended their left, and the battle swayed more and more to our right, until our line was nearly at right angles with that on which we had been fighting two hours before. And thus the fight raged on until after 8 o'clock; when the Rebels desisted and fell back, leaving us in undisputed possession of the ground whereon the final struggle was made.” Sumner's heavier artillery had been left stalled in the swamps of the Chickahominy, as his infantry hur the steady fire of the infantry and the splendid practice of the battery. After sustaining the enemy's fire for a considerable time, Gen. Sumner ordered five regiments (the 34th New York, Col. Smith, 82d New York, Lt.-Col. Hudson, 15th Massachusetts, Lt.-Col. Kimball, 20th Massachusetts, Col. Lee, 7th Michigan, Maj. Richardson, the three former of Gen. Gorman's brigade, the two latter of Gen. Dana's brigade) to advance and charge with bayonet. This charge was executed in the most brilliant manner. Our troops, springing over two fences which were between them and the enemy, rushed upon his lines, and drove him in confusion from that part of the field. Darkness now ended the battle for that day." |