PURSUIT OF THE ENEMY. 413 road to Williamsburg, the central avenue liamsburg at the cross road, and as they through the peninsula to the railway came within range were saluted from running westerly from West Point, at the Fort Magruder by a shower of shells. head of York river to Richmond. There The Prince de Joinville, who was with were two roads by which the Union ar- the party, has described the encounter my might approach Williamsburg; an which ensued. "Stoneman," says he, upper one leading directly from York- "seeing that the enemy covered the fork town a distance of twelve miles, and of the roads, and perceiving that it the road from Warwick court house, would be impossible for him to mainjoining the other in the vicinity of the tain his ground before them, undertook town. At the junction of these roads to dislodge them by a vigorous blow. the Confederates had erected a formida- He threw forward all his horse artillery, ble bastioned earthwork named Fort which took up its position brilliantly in Magruder, flanked by a line of redoubts, front of the abattis, and replied to the protected in front by abattis;-extend- fire of the redoubts; and he then ordering across the isthmus of dry land to the ed his cavalry to charge. The 6th Fedswamps on either side. Here the enemy eral cavalry dashed forward gallantly to was found in force when the troops or- meet the cavalry of the Confederates, dered forward by General McClellan passed directly under the cross fire of came up. General Stoneman, with the the redoubts, and rode into one of those entire cavalry and four batteries of horse fights with the cold steel which have beartillery, passing rapidly through York- come so rare in these days. Neverthetown took the lead, to be followed on the less, this was all so much valor thrown same road by the divisions of Hooker away. The enemy did not disturb himand Kearney, while the divisions of self; he had the advantages of number Smith, Couch, and Casey were ordered to and position. To carry these works cooperate with them by a road from War- with cavalry was impossible. Men, and wick court house. Other divisions of particularly horses, began to fall. 'I Richardson, Sedgewick and Porter, were have lost thirty-one men,' said Major moved to the vicinity of Yorktown, to be Williams, who had led the charge of in readiness, as occasion might require, the 6th, gracefully saluting General to support the troops marching forward, Stoneman with his sabre, with that air or to follow the division of Franklin, of determination which says, we will which was sent up the York river to cut go at it again, but it's of no use.' Stoneoff the rebel retreat. General Smith's man then ordered the retreat. We redivision crossed the Warwick river at passed the abattis, and falling back to a Lee's mills, the enemy retreating before clearing about half a mile distant, there them towards Williamsburg. This divi- awaited the arrival of the infantry to sion came out at a junction with the up- renew the engagement. Unluckily, in per road, on which Stoneman had pre- traversing the marsh, a gun of the horse ceded it, at the site of an old church artillery got buried in the mud, and could about six miles distant from Yorktown. not be extricated. In vain were the Hooker, who left the latter place by this teams doubled. The enemy concentrated road about noon, on coming up found his fire of shells on that point and that Stoneman had fallen upon the ene- killed all the horses. The gun had to my in their line of defence, and had met be left. It was the first which the with a vigorous resistance, and been com- army had lost, and the men were inpelled to fall back, and wait for the in- consolable. In the evening we renewfantry supports. The cavalry had rid- ed our efforts to recover it, but the den boldly up to the works before Wil-abattis were filled with hostile sharp shooters, who made it impossible to approach."* my. On hearing of this repulse, as he approached the ground, General Hooker would have pushed on his troops to the scene of action, had not the road been blocked by the division of General Smith which, as we have stated, had turned into it from a cross road. Finding that Stoneman was thus being supported in this direction, and impatient for action, Hooker applied to General Heintzelman, the superior officer charged with the advance on the Yorktown road, for authority to throw his command on the Hampton road, which, as has been mentioned, intersected that on which Stoneman had halted at the point occupied by the ene"Obtaining this permission," says General Hooker, in his official report, "the head of my division left the brick church about dark, and it pressed forward in order, if practicable, to come up with the enemy before morning. This, however, I soon found would be impossible, for the roads were frightful, the night intensely dark and rainy, and many of my men exhausted from loss of sleep, and from labor the night before in the trenches. The troops were halted in the middle of the road between ten and eleven o'clock, P. M,, resolved to stop until daylight, when we started again, and came in sight of the enemy's works before Williamsburg about half-past five o'clock in the morning. Before emerging from the forest the column was halted, while I rode to the front to find what could be learned of the position of the enemy. "The first work that presented itself was Fort Magruder, and this was standing at the junction of the Yorktown and Hampton roads, and on each side of it was a cordon of redoubts extending as far as could be seen. Subsequently I found their number to be thirteen, and extending entirely across the peninsula, *The Army of the Potomac, etc., by the Prince de Joinville. Hurlbert's translation, pp. 50, 51. the right and left of them resting on the waters of the York and James rivers. Approaching them from the south, they are concealed by heavy forest until the observer is within less than a mile of their locality. Where the forest had been standing nearer than this distance the trees had been felled, in order that the occupants of the redoubts might have timely notice of the approach of an encmy, and early strike him with artillery. The trees had been felled in this manner on both sides of the road on which we had advanced for a breadth of almost half a mile, and the same was the case on the Yorktown road. Between the edge of the felled timber and the fort was a belt of clear, arable land, six or seven hundred yards in width. This was dotted all over with rifle pits. In connection with the redoubts themselves, I may be permitted to state, that I found them standing near the eastern and southern verge of a slightly elevated plain, the slopes of which were furrowed with widening ravines, with an almost boundless, gently undulating plain, reaching across the peninsula, and extending to the north and west as far as the eye can reach. The landscape is highly picturesque, and not a little heightened by the large trees and venerable spires of Williamsburg, two miles distant. Fort Magruder appears to be the largest of the redoubts-its crest measuring nearly half a mile, with substantial parapets, ditches, magazines, etc. This was located to command the Yorktown and Hampton roads, and the redoubts in its vicinity to command the ravines, which the guns of Fort Magruder could not sweep. "Being in pursuit of a retreating army I deemed it my duty to lose no time in making the disposition of my forces to attack, regardless of their number and position, except to accomplish the result with the least possible sacrifice of life. By so doing, my division, if it did not least hold them in order that some others capture the army before me, would at GENERAL HOOKER'S REPORT. might. Besides, I knew of the presence of more than thirty thousand troops not two miles distant from me, and that within twelve miles (four hours' march), was the bulk of the army of the Potomac. My own position was tenable for double that length of time against three times my number. At half-past seven o'clock, Brigadier-General Grover was directed to commence the attack, by sending the 1st Massachusetts regiment as skirmishers into the felled timber on the left of the road on which they were standingthe 2d New Hampshire regiment to the right-both with directions to skirmish up to the edge of the felled timber, and there, under cover, to turn their attention to the occupants of the rifle-pits, and the enemy's sharpshooters and gunners in Fort Magruder. The 11th Massachusetts regiment, and the 26th Pennsylvania, were then directed to form on the right of the 2d New Hampshire, and to advance as skirmishers until they had reached the Yorktown road, and when that was gained to have word sent to me. Under my chief of artillery, Webber's battery was thrown forward in advance of the fallen timber, and brought into action in a cleared field on the right of the road, and distant from Fort Magruder about seven hundred yards. No sooner had it emerged from the forest, on the way to its position, than four guns from Fort Magruder opened on it, and after it was still further up the road, they received the fire from two additional guns from a redoubt on the left. However, it was pushed on, and before it was brought into motion, two officers and two privates had been shot down, and before a single piece of the battery had been discharged, its cannoncers had been driven from it despite the skill and activity of my sharpshooters in picking off the rebel gunners. Volunteers were now called for by my gallant chief of artillery, Major Wainwright, to man the battery now in position, when the officers and cannoneers of Osborne's battery sprang 415 forward, and, in the time I am writing, had those pieces well at work. Bramhall's battery was now brought into action, under that excellent officer, on the right of Webber's, and before nine o'clock every gun in Fort Magruder was silenced, and all the troops in sight on the plain dispersed. Between the sharpshooters and the two batteries the enemy's guns in this fort were not heard from again until late in the afternoon. "One of the regiments in BrigadierGeneral Patterson's brigade the 5th New Jersey-was charged with the especial care of these batteries, and was posted a little to the rear of them. The remaining regiments of Patterson's brigade, under their intrepid commander, were sent into the left of the road from where they were standing, in anticipation of an attack from that quarter. Heavy forest trees cover this ground and con ceal from the view the enemy's earthworks, about a mile distant. The forest itself has a depth of about three-fourths of that distance. It was through this that Patterson led the 6th, 7th, and 8th New Jersey regiments. Bodies of the enemy's infantry were seen drifting in that direction, and the increased musketry fire proved that many others were flocking thither, whom we could not see. Prior to this movement Brigadier-General Emory had reached my position with a light battery and a body of cavalry, which were promptly placed at my disposal by that experienced and gifted soldier; but, as I had no duty on which I could employ those arms of service, and as I was confined for room in the exercise of my own command, I requested that he would dispatch a party to reconnoitre and observe the movements of the rebels to the rear of my left. This was executed to my satisfaction. now reported to me that the skirmishers to the right had reached the Yorktown road, where word was sent to Colonel Blaisdell to proceed with the 11th Massachusetts and 26th Pennsylvania regi It was ments cautiously down that road, to destroy any rebel force he might find, and break down any barrier the enemy might have thrown up to check the advance of our forces in that direction, and when this was executed to report the fact to the senior officer with the troops there, and on his return to send me word of the result of his mission. This was done, and word was sent to me through Adjutant Currier, of the 11th regiment. Up to this moment there had been a brisk musketry fire kept up on every part of the field, but its swelling volumes in the direction of Patterson satisfied me from the beginning of the engagement that the enemy had accumulated a heavy force in his front. Grover had already anticipated it, and had moved the main portion of the 1st Massachusetts regiment to receive it, while first, the72 New York regiment, of Taylor's brigade, and soon after the 70th New York regiment, of the same brigade, were ordered to strengthen Patterson. Colonel Averill, of the 3d Pennsylvania cavalry, had, with great kindness and gallantry, tendered me his services, while Lieutenant McAlister, of the engineers, volunteered to make a reconnoissance of such of the enemy's works as were hidden from view, preparatory to carrying them by assault, should a suitable opportunity present itself for that object. For this service I am under many obligations to that accomplished officer. From the earliest moment of the attack, it was an object of deep solicitude to establish a connection with the troops in my immediate neighborhood on the Yorktown road, and as that had been accomplished, and as I saw no signs of their advance, at twenty minutes past eleven A. M. I addressed the subjoined note to the assistant adjutant-general, 3d corps, under the impression that his chief was still there. It was as follows: 'I have had a hard contest all the morning, but do not despair of success. My men are hard at work, but a good deal exhausted. It is reported to me that my communication with you by the Yorktown road is clear of the enemy. Batteries, cavalry, and infantry can take post by the side of mine to whip the enemy.' This found General Heintzelman absent, but it was returned opened, and on the envelope endorsed, Opened and read,' by the senior officer on that field. A cavalry man took over the note, and returned with it by the Yorktown road, after an absence of twenty minutes. "To return, it was now after one o'clock and the battle had swollen into one of gigantic proportions. The left had been reinforced with the 73d and 74th New York regiments-the only remaining ones of my reserve-under Colonel Taylor, and all were engaged; yet its fortunes would ebb and flow despite the most determined courage and valor of my devoted officers and men. Three times the enemy approached within eighty yards of the road which was the centre of my operations, and as often were they thrown back with violence and slaughter. Every time his advance was made with fresh troops, and each succeeding one seemed to be in greater force and determination. The 11th Massachusetts and the 26th Pennsylvania regiments were ordered to the left-the support of the batteries and the 2d New Hampshire regiment were withdrawn from their advanced position in front, to take post where they could look after the front and left at the same time. The orders to the 26th Pennsylvania regiment did not reach it, and it remained on the right. At this juncture word was received from Colonel Taylor that the regiments of his command longest engaged were falling short of ammunition, and when he was informed that the supply-train was not yet up, a portion of his command presented an obstinate front to the advance of the enemy, with no other cartridges than were gathered from the boxes of the fallen. Again the enemy were reinforced by the arrival of Longstreet's GENERAL KEARNEY'S DIVISION. 417 rated in that officer's official report, addressed to Assistant Adjutant-General McKeever, of Heintzelman's corps: "I have the honor to report that, on receiving orders on the 5th inst., at 9 A. M., the divison took up its line of march, and shortly after came upon the crowded columns before us. At half-past ten A. M., an order was received from General Sumner to pass all others and to division. His troops had passed through Williamsburg, on their retreat from Yorktown, and were recalled to strengthen the rebel forces before Williamsburg. No sooner had they joined, than it was known that they were again moving to drive in our left; after a violent and protracted struggle they were again repulsed with great loss. Simultaneous with the movement an attempt was made to drive in our front, and seize the bat-proceed to the support of General teries, by the troops from Fort Magruder, aided by reinforcements from the redoubts on the left. The withdrawal of the supports invited this attack, and it was at this time that four of our guns were captured. They could have been saved, but only at the risk of losing the day. Whatever of dishonor, if any, is attached to their loss, belongs to the brigadier-general commanding the division, and not to his chief of artillery, or to the officers and men serving with the batteries-for truer men never stepped upon the field of battle. While this was going on in front, Captain Smith, by a skillful disposition of his battery, held complete command of the road, which, subsequently, by a few well-directed shots, was turned to good account. The foregoing furnishes a faithful narrative of the disposition of my command throughout this eventful day. Between four and five o'clock, General Kearney. with all his characteristic gallantry, arrived on the ground at the head of his division, and after having secured their positions, my division was withdrawn from the contest, and held as a reserve until dark, when the battle ended, after a prolonged and severe conflict against three times my number, directed by the most accomplished general of the rebel army, MajorGeneral J. E. Johnston, assisted by Generals Longstreet, Pryor, Gohlson, and Pickett, with commands selected from the best troops in their army." Hooker, already engaged. With difficulty and much loss of time, my division at length made its way through the masses of troops and trains that encumbered the deep, single, muddy defile, until, at the brick church, my route was to the left, the direct road to Williamsburg. At half-past one P. M.within three and a half miles of the battle-field-I halted my column to rest for the first time, and to get the lengthened files in hand before committing them to action. Captain Moses, of the General's staff, with great energy assisted me in this effort. Almost immediately, however, on orders from General Heintzelman, our knapsacks were piled,' and the head of the column resumed its march, taking the double-quick wherever the mud-holes left a footing. Arrived at one mile from the engagement, you, in person, brought me an order for detaching three regiments, one from Berry's, the leading brigade, and two from Birney's, the second, to support Emory's horse to the left of the position. Approaching near the field, word was brought by an aid-de-camp that Hooker's cartridges were expended, and with increased rapidity we entered under fire. Having quickly consulted with General Hooker, and received General Heintzelman's orders as to the point of onset, I at once deployed Berry's brigade to the left of the Williamsburg road, and Birney's on the right of it, taking, to cover the The part so warmly acknowledged by movement, and to support the remaining General Hooker, borne in the action by battery that had ceased to fire, two comGeneral Kearney's division, is thus nar-panies of Poe's 2d Michigan regiment. |