Wisconsin tribune. (Mineral Point, Wis.) 1847-1854, 1852-08-12
In Incident Of the Battle of New Orleans.
BY WILLIAM wALCUT.

! OF New Orleans, mentions an incident OF
/ thrilling straDgeness, and one very des.
/ crlptive of the Western hunter, many OF
whom marched to the defence of New Or
leans, as volunteers in the army under the
renowned Andrew Jackson.
we marched said the officer, 'in a sol
id column of twelve thousand men, in dir
ect line upon the American defences |
belonged to the staff; and, as we advanced,
we watched through our glasses the posi-
/ ton and arrangements of our enemy,
with that intensity an officer only feels
when marching into the jaws of death.
/ with the assurance that, while be thus of
/ fers himself sacrifice to the demands of
his country, every action, to be successful
or otherwise, will be judged with the most
heartless scrutiny.
1T was a strange sight, that long range
of cotton bales-a new material for breast
works, with the crowds of beings behind.
their heads only visible above the line of
defence. We could distinctly see their
long rifles laying over the bales, and the
battery of Gen. Coffee directly in front
with its great mouth gaping towards US,
as they waited to devour US, and the posi-
tion of Gen. Jackson, with his staff around
him. But what attracted our attention
most, was the figure of tall man, stand
ing on the work dressed in linsey-woollen
with bucksin leggings, and broad brim-
med felt hat. that fell around the face, al
most concealing his features. He was
standing in one of those picturesque and
graceful attitudes, peculiar to those natur
al men, dwellers in forests. The body
rested on the left leg, and swayed with
a carved line upwards; the right arm was
extended, the hand grasping the rife near
the muzzle, the butt of which rested near
the toe Of his right foot, while with his left
hand he raised the rim of the hat from his
eyes, and seemed gazing beneath intensely
upon our advancing column. The cannon
of Gen. Coffee had opened upon us, and
tore through our ranks with dreadful
slaughter; but we continued to advance.
unwaverlng and cool, as if nothing threat
ened our progress
The roar of cannon seemed to have no
effect upon the figure standing Oh the cot
ton bales, but he seemed fixed anG motion
less as a statue. At last he moved. threw
back the rim over the crown with his left
hand, raised the rifle to his shoulder and
tied upon him at whom had he leveled
his piece But the distance was so great,
that we looked at each other and smiled
We saw the rife flash. and my right hand
companion. as noble looking fellow as ever
rode at the head of regiment fell from
his saddle. The hunter paused few mo-
ments, withOu tmOving the gun from his
shoulder, then reloaded, aud assumed his
former attitude Throwing the hat rim
over his eyes, and again holding it up with
the left hand, he fixed his piercing gaze
upon US; as if hunting out another victim
Once more the hat rim was thrown back,
the gun raised to the shoulder This time
We did not smile, but cast short glances
at each other, to see which of us must die:
and when again the rife flashed, another
one of us dropped to the earth. There
was somethieg most awful in thus march
ing on to certain death.
Gen. Coffee's battery and thousands of
musket balls playing upon our ranks we
cared not fOr-there was a chance of es-
Gaping unscathed; most of US had walked
upon batteries hundred time more de-
structive without quailing; but to know
that every time that rife was levelled to-
wards US, and its bullet sprang from the
barrel. one of us must as surely fall; to see
the cleaning sun flash as the deadly iron
came down, and see it rest, motionless, as
if poised upon a rock and know when the
hammer struck, and the spark few to the
full primed pan, that the messenger of
death drove unerringly to its gOal-tO
know this, and still march on was awful
[ could see nothing but the tall figure
standing on the breastworks; he seemed
to grow, phanthom-like higher and higher,
assuming through the smoke, the super
natural appearance of some great spirit of
death; again did he reload and discharge
his rifle with the same unfailing result and
it was with indescribable pleasure that |
beheld, as we neared the American lines,
the sulphurous cloud gathered around US
and shut that spectral hunter from my
gaze We lost the battle, and to my mind,
the Kentucky rifeman contributed more
to our defeat than anything else for while
he remained to our sight our attention
was drawn from our duties, and when atl last
we were enshrouded in the smoke, the work
was complete; we were In utter confusion,
and unable in the extremity to restore or
der sufficient to make any successful at
tack
So long as thousands and thousands of
rifles remain in the hands of the people,
so long as men come up from their child
hood, able, ere the down appears on the
chin, to hit the centre of mark, or strike
the deer at $50 yards in the most vital
point, so long as there is great proper
tion of the republic who live free as the
wild Indian, knowing no leader but their
own choosing, knowing no law bue that of
right and the honorable observance of
friendly intercourse, America is uncon-
auerable; aud all the armies of the COM
bined world, though they might drive them
from the coast, and across the Allegheny
Mountains, would not be able to subdue
the free-souled hunter amongst the mount
aims and great prairies and mighty rivers
of the West.
Hungary. without the provinces annexed
contains a population of 7,864 ,562.
Bohemia has populntion Of 4,4O9, 900