Chapter XV: Part 15

At half-past six o’clock, A. M., this haze cleared away. Looking towards Sewall’s Point there appeared the Merrimac and the rebel steamers Yorktown and Patrick Henry. They were stationary—the Merrimac to the right of the others, blowing off steam. Their appearance was the cause for a second alarm. The rebel craft seemed deliberating what to do—whether to move on and attempt the destruction of the Minnesota, which was aground, or to attack the Union fleet anchored near the Rip Raps. The appearance of the Merrimac on this second visit caused great precipitation in the removal of the Federal transport fleet to a safe harbor a mile or two up the Chesapeake. At seven A. M., a plan seemed to have been adopted, and the Merrimac steamed in the direction of the Minnesota, which was still aground. The Yorktown and Jamestown were crowded with troops, and steamed slowly after the Merrimac. The plan of the latter seemed to be to destroy the Minnesota, and then proceed to shell out the Union camp at Newport News, land and take possession of the camp with their own troops.

The Merrimac steamed along with boldness until she was within three miles of the Minnesota, when the Monitor emerged from behind the latter, and proceeded towards the Merrimac. At first the rebel craft seemed nonplussed, and hesitated, no doubt, in astonishment at the strange-looking vessel approaching her. The Merrimac then closed the distance between her and the Monitor until they were within a mile of each other. Both batteries stopped. The Merrimac fired a shot at the Minnesota, to which no reply was made. The rebel craft then fired at the Monitor; the latter replied, hitting the Merrimac near the water line. The Merrimac then commenced firing very rapidly, first from her stern gun at the Monitor, and then her broadside guns, occasionally firing a shot at the Minnesota. The fight went on in this way for an hour or two, both vessels exchanging shots pretty freely. Sometimes the Merrimac would retire, followed by the Monitor, and _vice versa_.

While the fight between the batteries was going on, one hundred solid nine-inch shot were sent up from Fortress Monroe on the steamer Rancocas to the Minnesota. At a quarter-past ten o’clock the Merrimac and Monitor had come into pretty close quarters, the former giving the latter two broadsides in succession. They were promptly replied to by the Monitor. The firing was so rapid that both craft were obscured in columns of white smoke. The ramparts of the fort, the rigging of the vessels in port, the houses and the bend were all crowded with sailors, soldiers and civilians. When the rapid firing alluded to took place, these spectators were singularly silent, anxious and doubtful of the result. Their impatience was soon removed by the full figure of the Monitor, with the stars and stripes flying at her stern, steaming around the Merrimac, moving with the ease of a duck on the water. The distance between the vessels was forty feet. In this circuit the Monitor’s guns were not idle, as she fired shot after shot at her formidable antagonist.

At eleven A. M., the Minnesota opened fire, and assisted the Monitor in engaging the Merrimac. She fired nine-inch solid shot with good accuracy, but with apparently little effect. The Merrimac returned the fire with shell, one of which struck and exploded the boiler of the gunboat Dragon, which was alongside the Minnesota, endeavoring to get her off. For the next hour the battle raged fiercely between the Merrimac on the rebel side and the Union vessels, the Monitor, Minnesota and Whitehall, but with no particular result. The Minnesota presenting the best mark, the Merrimac fired at her frequently, alternately giving the Monitor a powerful shot. The Merrimac made several attempts to run at full speed past the Monitor to attack and run down the Minnesota. All these attempts were parried, as it were, by the Monitor. In one of these desperate efforts the Merrimac ran her plow or ram with terrible force against the side of the Monitor; but it only had the effect of careening the latter vessel in the slightest degree.

The rebel boats Yorktown and Patrick Henry kept at a safe distance from the Monitor. The former vessel, at the beginning of the fight, had the temerity to come within range of the Monitor. The latter fired one shot at her which entered her pilot-house, carrying it away, when she retired out of range.

The fire raged hotly on both sides, the opposing batteries moving around each other with the skill, ease and dexterity of knights in a tournament. The Merrimac, though the strongest, did not move with the freedom of her antagonist; hence the Monitor had the advantage, taking choice of position. At a quarter before twelve o’clock, the Merrimac was in full retreat, heading for Sewall’s Point, and chased for a few minutes by the Monitor. The Merrimac had evidently suffered to some extent, and it was thought at one time that she was sinking. After she got safely under the guns of the rebel battery at Sewall’s Point, she stopped and signalled for help from her consorts, who were beating a retreat. Subsequently two tug-boats or gunboats went alongside, took her in tow, and proceeded to Norfolk. This ended the combat.

Toward the close of the engagement, Lieutenant Worden was standing in the pilot-house, when a percussion shell struck the turret, and exploded. The openings for sighting outside objects, through one of which Lieutenant Worden was looking, allowed the fine dust and splinters to enter, injuring his eyes. Almost immediately afterward the same thing occurred, and this second injury rendered him completely blind, and he was compelled to retire below. It was feared that he was permanently injured in this gallant encounter, but after careful treatment his sight was restored, and he was again ready for duty.

This remarkable encounter between two iron-clad vessels was regarded with the greatest interest throughout Europe, where its importance to the questions of naval architecture and warfare was fully appreciated and understood. It had not only a direct bearing upon the construction and working of floating batteries, but it demonstrated that a new engine of war had been introduced that might render valueless for effective defence all the land batteries against which these iron antagonists might be brought to bear.

The destruction of the Cumberland and Congress on the first day of the engagement, and the triumphant condition in which the Merrimac had retired from the heavy broadsides of the Federal frigates, which would almost have destroyed an ordinary vessel, created intense excitement in all the seaport cities of the North. The loud boasts of the rebels over the strength, sailing qualities, and impregnable character of their vessel, apparently justified by the events of March 8th, led to an apprehension that she might be successful in running out to sea, and visiting Philadelphia, New York, Boston, and other cities, which were entirely unprepared for a sudden attack.

The appearance of the Monitor alongside of the Minnesota, on the morning of the 9th, was altogether unexpected, and the rebel commander evidently knew that he had no common foe with which to deal.

CAPTURE OF JACKSONVILLE, FLA.

MARCH 12, 1862.

Jacksonville, the principal town in East Florida, is situated on the St. John’s river, twenty miles from the sea. Vessels drawing twelve feet of water can cross the bar. An important commercial city of Florida, it was desirable to restore it to the protection of the government, and after the capture of Fernandina, the commanders of the expedition turned their attention to the accomplishment of this object. The United States gunboat Ottawa, in company with the Pembina and Seneca, succeeded in crossing the bar off Jacksonville, on the 11th of March. Commodore Rogers found to his great satisfaction, as already at Fernandina and St. Mary’s, no attempt to dispute his progress or resist the restoration of the city to its allegiance to the government.

Contrary to expectation on both sides, the approaches to this place by the river were not defended, and no resistance was offered to the Union forces by land or water. As at Fernandina, the batteries were evacuated, and the guns for the most part left behind. This was by order of General Trapier, who is said to have acted upon orders from General Lee, commanding the Confederate troops on the South Carolina, Georgia and Florida coast. There were some five thousand rebel troops in this part of Florida—at Fernandina, and on the line of the railroads to Tallahassee and Cedar Keys.

When it was ascertained by the Mayor of the city that the troops were to be withdrawn, he held a consultation with General Pyles, in company with a portion of the city council, in which the question of resistance was freely discussed. The retirement of the troops, and the entirely defenceless condition in which the people had been left, allowed them no choice had they been ever so much determined to dispute the entry of the Federal forces. The Mayor, H. H. Hoeg, issued a proclamation, informing the citizens that no opposition would be made, and calling upon all the inhabitants to treat their expected visitors with proper decorum, and to do nothing that would provoke any ill-feeling between citizens and soldiers.

On the arrival of the vessels Lieutenant Stevens was politely received by the authorities, who came on board his vessel, the Ottawa, and through S. L. Burritt, Esq., gave up the town. Many of the inhabitants had abandoned their homes, fearing to trust the Federal troops. Others, however, remained, and testified their gratification at the arrival of the fleet.

Unfortunately, however, they did not reach Jacksonville in time to save that beautiful town from the flames, as a part of it was laid in ruins. On the afternoon of the 11th, some five or six hundred armed men, claiming to be a part of the force which had been stationed at Fernandina, arrived by railroad, and announced that they had come, by order of General Trapier, to burn the steam saw-mills, lumber, etc., which might be of value to the Federal authorities. No time was given to save property of any description. At dusk the torch was applied, and in a brief space eight of these immense establishments, forming nearly a circle on both sides of the river, were in a blaze. Immediately afterwards, the spacious and elegant hotel, well known to Northern invalids as the Judson House, was fired by unknown persons, together with warehouses, the railroad freight depot, etc., etc. All this property was a total loss to the owners, as no attempt was made to save or rescue any portion of it. The loss was estimated at half a million of dollars.

The population of Jacksonville, before the war broke out, was about four thousand. It had a large trade, as the St. John’s river is settled with plantations, and is navigable for two hundred miles above the town for large vessels, and there were a dozen steamers running on it. The lumber trade was very extensive and prosperous. About fifty million feet of Florida pitch pine were sawed there annually. This business was ruined by the incendiaries. The exports of rosin, turpentine, etc., amounted to $100,000 annually; cotton, $250,000; cedar, $100,000, etc. The arrivals of vessels were about 400 yearly. The town was built mainly of brick, lighted with gas, and was a great resort for invalids, for its mild and balmy climate. The Florida, Atlantic and Gulf rail road, starting here, intersects with the road from Fernandina to Cedar Keys, twelve miles from Jacksonville, and then goes on to Tallahassee, the capital, one hundred and sixty miles, and thence eighteen miles to St. Mark’s, on the Gulf.

General Sherman and staff arrived on the 20th, in the steamer Cosmopolitan. He immediately issued a proclamation to the people, assuring them of protection and peace, and calling upon them to continue their accustomed business. On the same day a meeting of the citizens was held, at which the most loyal sentiments were avowed, and a series of very strong resolutions adopted in favor of the Union, and denouncing the acts of the secession convention and the State authorities in a most emphatic manner. The resolutions also called for the holding of a Convention of the State to organize a State government for Florida, and called upon the chief of the military department of the United States to retain at Jacksonville a sufficient force to maintain order and protect the citizens and their property and persons.

The loyal men of the town, after being thus assured of the continued protection of the government, gave evidence of their patriotism and devotion to the constitution; and for a time they enjoyed the peace and protection they so much desired. But it was of short duration, and the result was more disastrous to them than the uninterrupted occupancy of the place by the rebel force would have been. Not only had the most important business establishments been sacrificed to the flames, but the principal hotels and other buildings had also been destroyed by the retiring enemy. In a short time General Hunter, the new commander in that department, ordered the evacuation of the city by the Federal troops, and they accordingly withdrew. Immediately the rebel forces returned, the secession authorities renewed their administration, and the active Unionists were arrested, imprisoned, their property confiscated, and in many cases their lives were sacrificed. Some of them were fortunate enough to escape with their families and some personal effects, and obtain passage on vessels bound to New York, where they arrived, and narrated a painful history of their sufferings. Jacksonville occupied and speedily evacuated by Federal troops, makes a gloomy chapter in the history of loyal adversities during the rebellion.

OCCUPATION OF COLUMBUS, KY.

MARCH 3, 1862.

The city of Columbus stands on the Kentucky shore of the Mississippi, twenty-five miles below Cairo, which is at the junction of the Ohio and Mississippi rivers. It is a place of great natural strength, from the high and precipitous bluffs upon which the city is built. This important position had been early seized as a stronghold by the enemy, and herculean labors had been performed in the erection of batteries and fortifications, and the mounting of immense guns of the heaviest calibre. The necessity of holding Columbus against the Federal approach, in order to protect Nashville, Memphis, Vicksburg and New Orleans, was one of the great incentives to the rebel commanders in expending so much labor and time in its defence. But all their calculations had been shaken by the capture of Forts Henry and Donelson, and the evacuation of Bowling Green. Their line of defence was broken by these brilliant movements, their flank was exposed, and they were in danger of having their retreat cut off by a vigorous movement of the Federal army flushed by brilliant successes. There was no alternative but to risk a similar defeat and capture, or to evacuate their works. The latter course was adopted, and on February 27th, the army commenced its retreat from the apprehended foe. They carried away with them large quantities of commissary stores, ammunition, guns, and war material of every description, and by March 2d, had abandoned their works and the city.

On the same night, Lieutenant-Colonel Hogg, of the Second Illinois Cavalry, left Paducah to reconnoitre in the direction of Columbus. At the same time, the flotilla at Cairo was being put in a state of complete readiness for a movement, which was kept a profound secret from all but the commander and his advisory officers. Commodore Foote, himself, was not acquainted with the movement of Lieutenant-Colonel Hogg.

On the morning of the 4th, at daylight, the flotilla left Cairo, and dropped down the river. Commodore Foote and General Collum were on board the flag-ship Cincinnati, accompanied by the gunboats St. Louis, Louisville, Carondelet, Pittsburgh, Lexington, and four mortar boats. General Sherman commanded the transports Aleck Scott, I. L. McGill and Illinois, with the following troops aboard: Twenty-seventh Illinois, Colonel Buford, Forty-second Illinois, and two batteries.

On reaching that part of the river which makes a curving sweep toward Columbus, the vessels took up various positions, the mortar-boats being placed at a favorable point on the Missouri shore, where they could shell the rebel works, and be out of sight and range of their guns. While the gunboats were gradually nearing the fortifications, a flag was discovered flying from the summit of the bluffs. It was at too great a distance to be distinctly discerned, but the possibility of the Federal flag flying on that spot was not to be entertained. General Sherman, on a tug-boat, advanced and turned the bend in the river, out of sight of the fleet. No shot was fired, and the gunboats followed in time to discover the General and some of his men scaling the summit of the bluff. The stars and stripes were floating magnificently where only a few hours before the flag of the enemy asserted dominion. The General soon ascertained that Lieutenant-Colonel Hogg had arrived on the afternoon of the 3d, and quietly occupied the abandoned fortifications, and raised the national colors on their walls.

The works were extensive, of massive strength, capable of resisting a protracted siege, and supplied with guns, of which 128-pounders formed a part. The natural position, as well as the immense defensive preparations which had been made, seemed to render them impregnable to an attacking force. Yet with all these advantages the enemy had spiked many of their guns, rolled them down the bluff into the river, destroyed large amounts of stores, burnt their buildings and retired.

The Federal forces, jubilant with their easy conquest, and spared the horrors of bloodshed, took possession of the place in a spirit of cheerful triumph. There was no drawback to the rejoicing—no dead to bury, no wounded to send their groans through the cheering shouts that rang far and wide from under the stars and stripes when they were once more flung to the wind. Columbus was drawn back to the Union almost without an effort.

BATTLE OF PEA RIDGE, ARK.

MARCH 6–8, 1862.

One of the most brilliant events of the war west of the Mississippi, was the battle of Pea Ridge, which lasted from the 6th to the 8th of March, and crowned the national army with a splendid victory, after a long and toilsome pursuit of the rebels.

After the removal of General Fremont from the command in Missouri, the army which he had led from Jefferson City to Springfield, made a retrograde movement, falling back on Rolla, St. Louis and the towns on the line of the Missouri river. As was to be anticipated, the consequence of this retreat was the return of General Price, with his forces, and the reoccupation of the whole of Southern Missouri by the insurgents. They remained in possession of the field until February, when a new national force, under Generals Curtis, Sigel and Ashboth entered the field and advanced rapidly in pursuit of the retreating enemy. The rebels fell back, to avoid a general engagement, and evacuated Springfield, on the 12th of February, near which, in a brief skirmish, General Curtis’ army encountered and defeated them. On the morning of the 13th General Curtis entered the town, and restored the national flag to its place. Price left about six hundred sick men behind him, and large quantities of forage and wagons. He expected that the Federal army would remain several days at least in Springfield, to give the troops rest, satisfied with the reoccupation of this valuable position.

But General Curtis was not a man to sleep upon his arms. On the morning of the 14th, he resumed his pursuit, and continued his march to Crane’s Creek, about twenty-two miles from Springfield. He pressed closely upon the enemy, and on the 17th had another encounter with them at Sugar Creek. This protracted pursuit of three weeks, at an average rate of twenty miles a day, is remarkable in the history of warfare. But like most western men, General Curtis had learned the art of war, and the expediency of energetic action to some purpose. He had given up his seat in Congress when the war broke out, and took the field, forgetting politics and every thing else in a burning love of his country. With such men long marches and hard fighting is the business of war. They shrink from nothing but inaction.

Both armies had now reached the soil of Arkansas. The rebels being rapidly reinforced by regiments which had been stationed in that State and the Indian Territory, General Price was in a better position to give battle. Upon mature deliberation, General Curtis selected Sugar Creek as the best position he could take to withstand any attack which might be made upon him. The enemy had, in the mean time, taken up his position in the locality of Cross Hollow, which was peculiarly adapted to his mode of warfare. But this was not long permitted, for on learning that the Union troops were turning their flank by way of Osage Spring, Price’s followers again decamped in hot haste, leaving behind a considerable quantity of supplies and munitions of war. By this time the lines of the Union army extended nearly ten miles. The right was under General Sigel, resting at the Osage Springs, and the left under Colonel Carr, extending to Cape Benjamin. Colonel Carr’s headquarters were at Cross Hollows.

Having abandoned Cross Hollows, General Price took up a fresh position in the Boston Mountains, a high range that divides the waters of the White Mountains and Arkansas, where every effort was made to rally the dispirited rebels and augment the ranks of his command. Here it was that he was reinforced by Generals McCullough, Pike and Van Dorn. These combined armies were estimated at thirty-five thousand men.

Matters remained comparatively quiet until the 5th of March, when General Curtis received information that the rebels were advancing to give battle. The information proved correct, and the 6th, 7th and 8th will long be held in remembrance as the anniversary of one of the bloodiest conflicts of the war.

Pea Ridge is in the extreme north-west part of Arkansas, situated in Benton, the corner county of the State. A range of hills—a spur of the Ozark Mountains—sweeps from Missouri into this corner of the State, and from thence branches into the Indian Territory, where the section known as the Boston Mountains is found. Sugar Creek, where the battle commenced, is situated close to Bentonville, the capital of the county on the north. Pea Ridge is also adjacent to the same town, and forms a part of the mountain range just described.

At this time it became evident to the several commanders that a general contest was inevitable. A decisive combat was, in fact, desired by both of the opposing forces. General McIntosh, confident of success with his large army, under the leadership of Price, McCulloch, Pike and Van Dorn, believed that he could strike a fatal blow at the Union cause west of the Mississippi, by the annihilation of the Federal army. General Curtis, on the other hand, was not less anxious for a contest, even at the fearful disadvantage offered him. With his keen discrimination, he saw the glorious results of a defeat of the four rebel chieftains united against him. Should he prove successful in the almost desperate encounter, it would prove the destruction of the rebel forces in the two States, and leave a clear field for future operation. Should he fail—but no true general even thinks of that after he has made up his mind to fight.

At this time his force was divided into three divisions, as follows:

GENERAL SIGEL’S DIVISION.—_First Brigade, Colonel Gruesel._—36th Illinois, Col. Gruesel; 25th Illinois, Col. Coler; 44th Illinois, Col. Knoblesdorf. _Second Brigade, Col. Osterhaus._—12th Missouri, Col. Osterhaus; 17th Missouri, Col. Hassendeufel; 2d Missouri, Col. Schaeffer. _Third Brigade, Col. Asboth._—3d Missouri, Col. Friala; Illinois Cavalry, (one battalion,) Capt’s. Jenks and Smith; 3d Iowa Cavalry.

GENERAL DAVIS’S DIVISION.—_First Brigade, Col. Benton._—8th Indiana, Col. Benton; 18th Indiana, Col. Patterson; 22d Indiana, Col. Hendricks. _Second Brigade, Col. Julius White._—59th Illinois, Col. Fredericks; 37th Illinois, Col. Burnes; Missouri Cavalry, (battalion,) Maj. Broen; 2d Ohio, battery, Col. Catin; 1st Missouri Light Artillery, one battery.

GENERAL CARR’S DIVISION.—_First Brigade, Col. Dodge._—4th Iowa, Lieut.-Col. Galighan; 35th Illinois, Col. G. A. Smith; 24th Missouri, (battalion,) Maj. Weston. _Second Brigade, Col. Vandenier._—9th Iowa, Lieut.-Col. Herron; 25th Missouri, Col. Phelps; 9th Iowa, battery, Capt. Hayden; 1st Iowa, battery, Lieut. David. _Third Brigade, Col. Ellis._—1st Missouri Cavalry, Col. Ellis; 3d Illinois, ——; 6th Missouri, battalion, Maj. Wright.

Opposed to the forces of General Curtis, just enumerated, the rebel army had fully ten thousand Missouri State troops under Major-General Price; six to eight regiments of Arkansas troops under General McCulloch; six regiments of Texans under General Earl Van Dorn; three thousand Cherokee, Choctaw and Seminole Indians under Colonel Albert Pike, all under command of Major-General McIntosh. Besides those mentioned, there were two or three regiments of Louisiana troops and companies of Mississippi and Alabama regiments under the command of their respective colonels, majors and captains.

Upon this occasion the Union troops were well armed and equipped, while the weapons of the rebels varied in character and effectiveness. Many of them were excellent, embracing Minie rifles, Enfield muskets, and good United States muskets. The larger portion, however, were hunting rifles and shot-guns. The rebels had eighty-two field pieces, twenty of which were rifled, while General Curtis’ forces had but forty-nine; nearly all, however, were of superior manufacture and destructive power.

On the evening of the 5th of March, the scouts of General Sigel brought in word, that large forces of the rebel cavalry were on the Pineville road at Osage Spring. Sigel was evidently in a bad position, and on the following day he commenced moving back, his pickets being driven in before he could get his wagon train in motion. His route lay a few miles to the north, when he struck the bed of Sugar creek, along which he travelled six miles. It was there the battle first began. General Sigel with two battalions of Missouri infantry and a squadron of cavalry formed the rear guard of his division, and were delayed by the train which moved slowly along the rough roads. He determined not to desert a single wagon to the rebels, although by so doing, he could have easily reached the main body of the Union forces.

The enemy made his appearance with 4,000 cavalry, at about 10 o’clock in the morning, a few miles out of Bentonville, and immediately commenced the attack by a desperate charge. Sigel had with him nearly 1,000 men. He sent forward two hundred infantry to prevent the enemy cutting him off, and with the remainder he received the whole of the vast army. He ordered his men to stand firm and take good aim. The teams were put upon good pace, and the enemy came rushing on in several lines. The horsemen on the flanks and infantry in the rear awaited their approach until within about 200 yards, when they delivered a terrible volley of Minie balls into the rebel ranks, which had the effect of throwing them into temporary confusion. In a few minutes the leaders succeeded in getting them into something like order. This time they came up to close quarters. The same volley, succeeded by a second and a third, greeted them. The enemy came on in crowds, and their cavalry closed all around the little band, notwithstanding horses and riders were falling thick and fast before its steady fire. General Sigel rode undismayed along the whole line, inspiring his men. Some of the cavalry on the flank had succeeded in getting across the road so cutting the train in two. Here the enemy set up a shout of triumph.

It was short lived. In a minute more the bayonets of the Union men had done their work, leaving hundreds of dead and wounded in their tracks. The enemy was driven off, broken and dismayed. Galled and maddened at the repulse, his scattered ranks could be seen reforming to renew the attack.

The column was yet seven miles from the encampment. A dispatch had been sent forward to General Curtis, explaining the position and asking for assistance. It was hardly possible that the messenger could have been captured. The enemy was advancing on the road and along the ridges enclosing the stream. At about two o’clock a second attack was made and desperately carried forward. The rebel cavalry spurred their horses right on to the irresistible bayonets, delivering their load of buckshot from their miscellaneous guns, and then brandishing huge knives, which every one of them carried in place of sabres.

They surrounded the rear guard a second time, and for a few minutes friend could hardly be distinguished from foe. The dense smoke enveloped the whole of the combatants, and for some time it was doubtful whether any of the Union band survived. The faithful Germans never faltered for a moment. Their gallant leader struck down a dozen who clamored for his life, and hewed his way through a line of enemies to rejoin his command. The bayonets proved the invincibility of the Union infantry against horsemen. The foe retired a second time, and for an hour could not be induced to return. By this time the advance, which had been constantly skirmishing with the rebel cavalry, announced reinforcements in sight, and a faint cheer went up, which was re-echoed by the troops from the camp. A third and last attempt was made to capture the train. It failed, and the enemy withdrew about 3½ o’clock.

General Sigel reached camp at 4½ o’clock, to receive the congratulations of the whole army. His loss in the entire march was estimated at 60 killed and 200 wounded, many of whom fell into the hands of the rebels, it being impossible to bring them off.

The night of the 6th of March was passed in a state of suspense. The houses in the valley had been appropriated as hospitals, and a strong force posted on the hill on the south bank of the creek under Colonel Carr, with General Sigel occupying the ridge on the north side, while Colonel Davis occupied the centre, near the crossing. The enemy, it was supposed, would naturally make the attack from the Fayetteville road, and the baggage trains and hospitals had been placed to the rear of the lines. During the night the manifestations showed conclusively that he was approaching in great strength by the road leading from Bentonville to Keatsville, thus getting to the flank and rear. This road lies, after crossing Sugar creek, over a high table land, called Pea Ridge. It extends from the stage road westwardly some eight miles along the right bank of Sugar creek.

The ridge is covered with a growth of stunted oaks, and a sprinkling of larger growth, called post-oaks. Three or four farms were located upon the ridge two miles west of the road, to which the name of Leetown has been given. It was near these farms that the principal part of the fighting took place.

Thursday night, March 6th, was clear and cold; the reflection of the enemy’s camp-fires could be seen stretching along for miles to the right. On the Fayetteville road the Union pickets reported nothing unusual. Several Union field pieces had been placed in position, sweeping that road. The men slept on their arms, that is each man lay on the ground in fine of battle with his musket by him, ready for action at a moment’s notice. A strong picket guard was extended for a quarter of a mile beyond the lines, and the Federal soldiers awaited the break of day with premonitions that the morrow’s sun would be the last which would rise for many of them.

ATTACK OF COLONEL OSTERHAUS’ MISSOURI CAVALRY ON THE TEXAS RANGERS.
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The evidences were very clear on the morning, that a strong force had been posted on the Fayetteville road, thus standing directly between the Union forces and their next line at Cassville, completely cutting off communication with the outer world. The line of battle was changed. Colonel Carr was sent back along the Fayetteville road, two miles, with his right resting on Cross Timber Hollows at the head of Beaver Creek, a tributary of Big Sugar Creek, immediately facing the rebel batteries on the side of Elkhorn tavern. General Davis, with the central division, was posted on the top of Pea Ridge, leaving Sigel to cover the camp with his left wing resting on Sugar Creek. In this position things stood when the rebels opened the fight with artillery on the extreme right, from a very advantageous position at the distance of a mile. The Federal batteries soon replied. The fight raged in front of Colonel Carr’s division from 10 to 11 o’clock, when another battery was ordered up to his support, for he was hotly pressed. The left, as yet, had not been menaced. General Sigel felt confident that the enemy might be expected to make a descent from the south side, and it was deemed indispensable to keep the men ready for action in that direction. Colonel Osterhaus was sent with his brigade in the morning along the high land in the direction of Leestown, where he intercepted the reinforcements of the enemy. This was one of the most spirited and successful attacks of the battle, and resulted in a complete diversion of the enemy from the overpowered forces of Colonel Carr, on the Fayetteville road.

The Union cavalry penetrated along the main ridge beyond the road by which the enemy had advanced, and were on the point of seizing some of his wagons when a brigade of rebel cavalry and infantry attacked them. Then followed one of the most sanguinary contests that ever has been recorded between cavalry. Most of the fighting was done at close quarters. Pistols and carbines having been exhausted, sabres were brought into requisition. The rattle of steel against steel, sabres against muskets and cutlasses, was terrific. The rebels were Texas Rangers, and fought like demons. The slaughter was awful. The Missouri cavalry cleaving right and left, left winrows of dead and wounded in front of their horses. The enemy fell back in dismay, the valorous Federals pursued them along the road for a mile, when they opened a battery upon the mass of friends and foes, plowing through them with solid shot and shell. Colonel Osterhaus had succeeded in his attempt, and retired, bringing off his dead and wounded in safety.

Meantime the contest was raging furiously on the extreme right on both sides of the Fayetteville road. The First and Second Iowa batteries, planted at an eminence overlooking the declivity in the road, were plying shrapnel and canister into the ranks of the enemy, who appeared in immense numbers on all sides, as if to surround the right of the Union line, and thus completely environ them. In order to defeat this object, a severe struggle took place for the occupancy of a rising knoll on the east side of the road. The enemy gained upon the Federals, and it was not until the men were half stricken down that they yielded the point. Word had been passed back to General Curtis that the enemy was pressing severely on the right flank, and the Union forces were sent back. The section of a battery had been left on the hill, and the enemy was now turning it upon the Union lines. Colonel Carr, fearing that no reinforcements would arrive, collected his strength, and mustered his entire force for a last desperate charge, resolved to retake the position or perish in the attempt. A heavy firing on the centre, and a cheer from the advancing division of General Davis favored the effort. The troops marched up to the battery amid a storm of shot from their own guns, and, after a desperate hand-to-hand struggle, finally drove the enemy down the ravine, in hopeless confusion. Colonel Carr received a wound in the arm, but remained on the field.

During the night a sharp fire of artillery had been kept up upon the left, and from two Missouri batteries on the centre, under Colonels Patterson and Fiala. The enemy had made frequent attempts to gain a position nearer the Union lines, and succeeded in getting so near that the balls from their guns would strike near the tents and baggage wagons. Towards night the enemy made an attempt to break the Federal centre, but the timely support of a brigade of General Sigel and a section of artillery promptly repulsed them. The night closed with skirmishing and sharpshooting.

Occasionally the report of a musket could be heard during the night, then a second, and an interval of silence. But few of the soldiers slept. The communication with Springfield was cut off, and Union messengers were falling into the enemy’s hands. As yet the Federals had gained little advantage, and with desperate fighting had only succeeded in repelling equally desperate attacks. Nothing but hard fighting could avail them. Filled with these thoughts, the soldiers solemnly gave their wives and children into each others’ charge, no one being aware who the survivor would be. Young men talked in low voices of the loved ones at home, fathers, mothers, sisters, sweethearts—and messages full of tender pathos were left to be given after death. It was indeed, an anxious, mournful night.

The fight on the morning of the 8th, commenced by a salute from the Union batteries on the extreme right. General Asboth, with a regiment of infantry and a battalion of cavalry, had been sent to the support of Colonel Carr, while General Sigel was moving up to a fresh position on the ridge near Leestown. The enemy was unprepared for this sudden and vigorous assault, and fled after a short and spiritless resistance. They ran, leaving four pieces of artillery behind them, and a fifth was afterwards taken in the pursuit. The enemy was being turned by the left flank, General Sigel pushing boldly after him. An hour or more was spent in contesting the possession of a spot on Cox’s farm, when the rebels fell back to the hollow.

A pause ensued, when the right, under General Davis, moved along, and after a sharp contest of half an hour, in which the rebel General McIntosh, was killed, the enemy began to retreat to Cross Timber Hollow. The whole line was then ordered forward. The rebels attempted to make a stand on the next hill, but the Union artillery played upon them with disastrous effect. The enemy on the road near the tavern refused to be moved. General Asboth, with a large column of cavalry, was sent round to outflank them, when another desperate conflict ensued between the Union cavalry and the Texas and Louisiana troops. The Indians also took part in it, but beyond shrieks and yells their influence was not felt. The batteries of the enemy fired chains, spikes, pieces of bar-iron, and solid shot. It was evident that his canister and shell were exhausted. Now the Federal batteries on the right were ordered to the front. Taking a position within five hundred yards, they poured in an incessant shower of grape, canister and shell for twenty minutes. A general bayonet charge was then ordered, and the Union line rushed down the valley and ascended the opposite hill. A cheer went up from them as they delivered volley after volley into the enemy’s ranks. The rebels cheered also; and it was evident that they doubled the Union forces, from the overwhelming shout that rang up from their lines.

At this time General Sigel was carrying everything before him on the extreme left. The foe was running, and the Union men catching the inspiration of the moment rushed on in pursuit. Before one o’clock the rout was complete.

To the westward of Pea Ridge there was a wide strip of timber which had been blown down by a hurricane the previous summer. Across this swarth of uprooted trees, which were larger and denser in the low lands, the enemy’s cavalry and artillery attempted to retreat, and were mercilessly pelted with shell. The panic was overwhelming, and their defeat decided. Muskets, clothing, and shot-guns were strewn along the woods. Horses roamed about in wild droves. The cries of the cavalry men and the yells of the Indians, with the groans of the wounded, surpassed all description. Caissons overturned, wagons broken down, and horses dying and dead strewed the whole road. Thirteen cannon, 6 and 12-pounders, were taken in all, besides thousands of shot-guns and loads of provisions.

It was in this position of affairs that General Price with a detachment of his army had, in his attempt to make a stand on the Keatsville road, caught the contagion of his fleeing comrades, and betook himself to the northward, Colonel Carr and General Asboth keeping closely after him.

This was probably one of the most hotly contested battles of the war, when every thing is taken into consideration, and it is worthy of remark that few officers were wounded, although at all times exposed even to recklessness. For three days the fighting continued, the men only resting during the darkness, to renew the attack with the first light, and even then were but partially allowed to slumber. Pea Ridge will never be forgotten while we have a history.

The Federal loss in killed, wounded and missing, was 1,351. That of the rebels about 2,000. Generals McIntosh and McCulloch were killed.

BATTLE OF NEWBERN, N. C.

MARCH 14, 1862.

Newbern, in Craven county, N. C., is situated at the confluence of the Trent and Neuse rivers, which flow into Pamlico Sound, from whence, through Ocrakoke Inlet, communication is had with the Atlantic. It is eighty miles N. E. of Wilmington, and one hundred from Raleigh; has a population of six thousand, and considerable commerce.

BATTLE OF NEWBERN, N. C., MARCH 14, 1862.
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The importance of Newbern was early appreciated by the rebels, who adopted vigorous means for its defence. The approaches to the city on the south bank of the Neuse, the only available route of an assailant, were defended by formidable earthworks, and, as a protection against gunboats, a line of vessels, backed by a _chevaux-de-frise_, was placed in the channel, commanded by heavy batteries.

The expedition designed to operate against Newbern sailed from Hatteras Inlet on the 12th of March, the land forces under General Burnside, and the naval forces under Commander Rowan. The land forces consisted of the brigades of Generals Foster, Reno and Parke, much reduced, however, by regiments left behind at Roanoke Island and Hatteras Inlet, and not exceeding eight thousand men. They were supported by McCook’s battery of boat howitzers, three companies of marines, and a detachment of the Union Coast Guard. The distance from Hatteras Inlet to the entrance of Pamlico Sound is twenty-three miles; thence, through the sound and up the river to Newbern, about fifty miles.

Early on the morning of the 12th the entire force started for Newbern, and that night anchored off the mouth of Slocum’s Creek, some eighteen miles from Newbern, where General Burnside decided to make a landing. The landing commenced by seven o’clock the next morning, under cover of the naval fleet, and was effected with the greatest enthusiasm by the troops. Many, too impatient for the boats, leaped into the water, and waded waist deep to the shore; then, after a toilsome march through the mud, the head of the column moved within a mile and a half of the enemy’s stronghold, at eight P. M., a distance of twelve miles from the point of landing, where they bivouacked for the night, the rear of the column coming up with the boat howitzers about three o’clock next morning. This detention was caused by the shocking condition of the roads, consequent upon the heavy rain that had fallen during the day and the whole of the night. It required a whole regiment to drag the eight pieces which had been landed from the navy and the vessels of General Burnside.

By signals agreed upon, the naval vessels, with the armed vessels carrying the land forces, were informed of each others’ progress, and were thereby enabled to assist the march by shelling the road in advance.

At daylight on the morning of the 14th, an advance of the entire division was ordered. General Foster’s brigade marched up the main country road to attack the enemy’s left; General Reno up the railroad, to attack their right, and General Parke was to follow General Foster and attack the enemy in front, with instructions to support either or both brigades.

On the morning of the 14th, at seven o’clock, the column of General Reno, on the railroad, was the first to move, the Twenty-first Massachusetts, as the right flank regiment, leading the advance. The regiment had not proceeded far before it saw a train of cars standing on the track. In front of the locomotive, on a platform car, a large rifled gun was placed in position to rake the road. The men advanced at the double-quick and poured in a volley with such accuracy of aim that the enemy, who had already rolled the gun and caisson off the car, did not stop to unload the carriage, but ran into the intrenchments, and the train was backed towards Newbern, leaving the platform car standing on the track. The Twenty-first had got within short range of the enemy’s earthworks, but now fell back, and, forming line of battle in the woods, opened fire. The Fifty-first New York was moved to the left and ordered forward to engage a series of redans, the Ninth New Jersey occupying the left of the line, and the Fifty-first Pennsylvania held in reserve, in rear of the Ninth, a little to the left.

Meanwhile General Foster’s brigade had advanced up the main road to the clearing, when the Twenty-fourth Massachusetts was sent into the woods to the right of the road, and opening a heavy fire on the enemy commenced the action of the first brigade. The Twenty-seventh was sent to their left to support them, and, news being received that the enemy were trying to outflank the Federals on the right, the Twenty-fifth was sent to resist the movement. The Twenty-third being moved to the front next in line of battle, opened fire upon the enemy, which was replied to by very heavy volleys, and a cannonade from a park of field pieces behind the breastwork. The very first cannon-shot killed Lieutenant-Colonel Henry Merritt of the Twenty-third. General Foster’s line of battle was completed by moving the Tenth Connecticut to the extreme left, a position which they were compelled to maintain under the most discouraging disadvantages. The ground was very wet, swampy, and cut up into gulleys and ravines, which opened toward the enemy, offering no protection from his fire.

General Parke’s brigade, which had followed the first brigade up the main road, was placed in line between the Tenth Connecticut and Twenty-first Massachusetts, the Fourth Rhode Island holding the right of line, the Eighth Connecticut the next place, the Fifth Rhode Island, next, and the Eleventh Connecticut on the left. The line of battle was now complete, the Twenty-fourth Massachusetts on the extreme right, and the Fifty-first Pennsylvania at the extreme left, and extended more than a mile. The naval battery was in position at the centre, with Captain Bennett’s and Captain Dayton’s rifles alongside, and were all worked with the greatest gallantry throughout the day.

The fire of the enemy was now telling so severely upon the Twenty-first that Colonel Clark ordered the regiment forward on a double-quick, and at the head of four companies entered the breastworks from the railroad track in company with General Reno, and the colors were taken into a frame house which stood near, and waved from the roof. The men at the nearest guns seeing the movement, abandoned their pieces and fled, and the four companies being formed again in line of battle, charged down the line upon the battery. Colonel Clark mounted the first gun, waved the colors, and had nearly reached the second when two full regiments of the enemy emerged from a grove of young pines and advanced upon his men, who, seeing that they were likely to be captured or cut to pieces, leaped over the parapet and retired to their position in the woods.

On being driven from the battery, Colonel Clark informed Colonel Rodman of the Fourth Rhode Island of the state of affairs inside, and that officer decided upon a charge with the bayonet. His regiment had been firing, like the rest of the line, by companies and otherwise. When the command was given to charge, they advanced at the double-quick directly up to the battery, firing as they ran, and entered at the right flank, between a brick-yard and the end of the parapet. With a steady line of cold, sharp steel, the Rhode Islanders bore down upon the enemy, and, routing them, captured the whole battery, with its two flags, and planted the stars and stripes upon the parapet. The Eighth Connecticut, Fifth Rhode Island and Eleventh Connecticut, coming up to their support, the rebels fled with precipitation, and left the Union troops in undisputed possession.

General Reno’s brigade were still attacking the redans and small battery on the right of the railroad, and the firing was very heavy. The Twenty-first was engaging the battery of five small pieces, the Fifty-first New York the first of the redans, and the Ninth New Jersey the next two. The Fifty-first Pennsylvania was still in reserve, drawn up in a hollow or ravine, from which they would move up to the top of the eminence, discharge their volleys, and retire to such cover as the inequalities of ground might furnish. General Reno, becoming impatient at the loss of life which his regiments, particularly that of Colonel Ferrero, was suffering, urged that regiment to advance as soon as possible; so Lieutenant-Colonel Potter took a color over the brow of the hill into another hollow, and from thence charged up an acclivity and over brushwood and abattis into the redan. The Fifty-first Pennsylvania was ordered up to participate in the decisive charge of the whole brigade upon the line of redans, and passing through the Fifty-first New York, as it was lying on the ground after having exhausted all its ammunition, came under the heaviest fire, and without flinching or wavering moved to its place, and rushed, with the other regiments, upon the defences of the enemy. The movement of Colonel Hartranft’s regiment was executed splendidly, and proved a complete success.

The movement of the Third brigade was supported by a charge of the Fourth Rhode Island from the captured main battery upon the works which were being assailed, and the enemy, already demoralized by the breaking of their centre, fell back before the grand charge upon the left and front of their position, and fled in confusion. On the extreme right the brave Twenty-fourth and its supporting regiments had been advancing inch by inch, standing up against the enemy’s musketry and cannonade without faltering, and almost at the time when the Fourth Rhode Island charged in at the right flank, the colors of the Twenty-fourth were planted on the parapet at the left, and the whole of the First brigade poured into the fortification. The whole line of earthworks was now in Union hands, and the cheers of the Federal men, from one end of it to the other, broke out with fresh spirit as each new regimental color was unfurled on the parapet.