LITMIR.BIZ

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to march to the relief of his comrades. The bridge where Sedgwick’s division stood was passable, but Richardson’s was under water waist-deep, and the flooding river rising. Richardson waded one brigade through, but thought that he could save time by marching up to the Sedgwick bridge, which so delayed him that he did not reach the field until after night.

      As General Johnston rode with Hood’s brigade, he saw the detachment under General Couch marching north to find at the Adams House the road to Grapevine Bridge, his open way of retreat. Directly he heard firing where Couch was marching, but thought that Smith’s other brigades were equal to work that could open up there, and rode on, ordering Hood to find communication with my left. Smith’s other brigades were: Whiting’s, commanded by Colonel Law; Hampton’s, Pettigrew’s, and Hatton’s; Whiting commanding the division, Smith commanding the left wing. Smith quotes Colonel Frobel, who was with him at the time,—viz.:

      “Whiting’s brigade was gone; it had been ordered forward to charge the batteries which were firing upon us. The brigade was repulsed, and in a few minutes came streaming back through the little skirt of woods to the left of the Nine Miles road, near the crossing. There was only a part of a brigade in this charge. Pender soon rallied and reformed them on the edge of the woods. General Whiting sent an order to him to reconnoitre the batteries, and if he thought they could be taken, to try it again. Before he could do so, some one galloped up, shouting, ‘Charge that battery!’ The men hurried forward at double-quick, but were repulsed as before.”17

      It seems that at that moment General Sumner reached the field. He reported:

      “On arriving on the field, I found General Couch, with four regiments and two companies of infantry and Brady’s battery. These troops were drawn up in line near Adams’s House, and there was a pause in the battle.”

      He received his orders at 2.30 P.M. and marched with Sedgwick’s division—three brigades—and Kirby’s battery, and reached the ground of Couch’s work at 4.30. In less than an hour he had surveyed the ground and placed his troops to receive battle.

      General Smith attacked with Hampton’s, Pettigrew’s, and Hatton’s brigades. It seems he made no use of artillery, though on the field right and left the opportunity was fair. The troops fought bravely, as did all Confederate soldiers. We heard the steady, rolling fire of musketry and the boom of cannon that told of deadly work as far as the Williamsburg road, but it did not last. General Hatton was killed, General Pettigrew wounded and a prisoner, and General Hampton wounded. General Smith was beaten.

      General Sumner reported:

      “I ordered the following regiments, Eighty-second New York, Thirty-fourth New York, Fifteenth Massachusetts, Twentieth Massachusetts, and Seventh Michigan, to move to the front and charge bayonets. There were two fences between us and the enemy, but our men gallantly rushed over them, and the enemy broke and fled, and this closed the battle of Saturday.”18

      General Smith sent to call Hood’s brigade from his right, and posted it, about dark, near Fair Oaks Station. At parting, General Hood said, “Our people over yonder are whipped.”

      General Wilcox filed his three brigades into the Williamsburg road, followed by two of Huger’s division at five o’clock. He was reminded of his orders to be abreast of the battle, and that he was only four hours behind it; but reported that while marching by the first order by the Charles City road, he received orders to try the Williamsburg road; that, marching for that road, he was called by orders to follow a guide, who brought him back to the Charles City road. He confessed that his orders to march with the front of battle were plain and well understood, but his marches did not quite agree with the comprehensive view of his orders.

      Two of his regiments—the Eleventh Alabama, under Colonel Sydenham Moore, and the Nineteenth Mississippi, under Major Mullens—were ordered to join Kemper, turn the position of the enemy at that point, and capture or dislodge them. With the other regiments, General Wilcox was ordered by the Williamsburg road to report to General Hill, Pryor’s brigade to follow him, Colston’s brigade to support the move under Colonel Moore.

      Armistead’s and Mahone’s brigades, of Huger’s division, were sent to R. H. Anderson, who was ordered to put them in his position and move his other regiments to the front.

      Colonel Moore hurried his leading companies into the turning move against Berry’s brigade before his regiment was up, and before the Mississippi regiment was in supporting distance, and fell mortally wounded. General Kearny, seeing the move and other troops marching towards it, ordered his troops out and in retreat through the swamp. He reported of it:

      “Although so critically placed, and despite the masses that gathered on and had passed us, checked the enemy in his intent of cutting off against the White Oak Swamp. This enabled the advanced regiments, arrested by orders and this contest in the rear, to return from their hitherto victorious career and retire by a remaining wood-path known to our scouts (the saw-mill road), until they once more arrived at and remained in the impregnable position we had left at noon at our own fortified division camp.”19

      He states the hour as six P.M.

      Birney’s brigade of Kearny’s division was ordered along the north side of the railroad a little before night, and had several encounters with parts of R. H. Anderson’s brigade and some regiments of G. B. Anderson’s. Jenkins, nothing daunted, pushed his brave battle forward until the shades of night settled about the wood, and flashes of dark-lanterns began to creep through the pines in search of wounded, friend and foe.

      At seven o’clock, General Johnston ordered his troops on the field to sleep on their lines, and be ready to renew operations in the morning, and ordered General Smith to call up other troops of the left wing. At half after seven he was hit by a rifle-ball, then a fragment of shell unhorsed him, and he was borne from the field, so severely wounded that he was for a considerable time incapacitated for duty. The command devolved temporarily upon General G. W. Smith. General Johnston was skilled in the art and science of war, gifted in his quick, penetrating mind and soldierly bearing, genial and affectionate in nature, honorable and winning in person, and confiding in his love. He drew the hearts of those about him so close that his comrades felt that they could die for him. Until his recovery the Confederacy experienced a serious deprivation, and when that occurred he was no longer commander-in-chief, for General Lee was promptly called to the post of honor.

      The brigades were so mixed up through the pines when the battle closed that there was some delay in getting the regiments to their proper commands, getting up supplies, and arranging for the morning. D. H. Hill’s was put in good order and in bivouac near the Casey intrenchment; those of Longstreet between the Williamsburg road and railroad. Wilcox’s brigade took position on the right, in place of the detachment under Jenkins; Pryor’s brigade next on the left; Kemper, Anderson, and Colston near the stage road (Williamsburg). They made blazing fires of pine-knots to dry their clothing and blankets, and these lighted reinforcing Union troops to their lines behind the railroad.

      The brigades of Huger’s division (Armistead’s and Mahone’s) were near the left. Pickett was ordered to report to General Hill at daylight, also the batteries of Maurin, Stribling, and Watson. It was past eleven o’clock when all things were made ready and the killed and wounded cared for; then I rode to find the head-quarters of our new commander.

      SUMMARY OF FORCES AND LOSSES.

Union troops engaged on the Williamsburg road, reported by General Heintzelman, commanding Casey’s, Couch’s, and Kearny’s divisions		18,500
Hooker’s division was at hand, but no part of it engaged.
Confederates engaged on the Williamsburg road, of D. H. Hill’s division	890020
Two brigades and two regiments of Longstreet’s division	5700
		14,600

      Two lines of intrenchments were attacked and carried, six pieces of artillery

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