Wheeling daily intelligencer. [volume] (Wheeling, Va. [W. Va.]) 1852-1859, 1853-08-27
NUMBER2 q.

a5@l ,.e 3jiN VI NltBElRjf2.
Scott was approachiQg, and from which, ,diverged
at right angles iRe} }lane. From their. rear
marching to join them, up this same river road re-
Inducements, While ours were to come along it
from above. Ape need hardly say that This was
Rail, and that instead ofhaying according to the
positive information Browniwas acting on) sent OF
one thousand of his men across the river, he had
not sent one; but on the contrary, was IN the act
olunltng with large force whichhad arrived by
the Lake at Fort George from Kingston and Pres
coll, the night before, by n conceIted movement,
under Lieutenant General Gordon DrIllnmonl.-- -:
Strange TO tell, Information had beensentt to Brown
OF movement OF the enemy, as soecurring only a
few hous before, winch had not happened at all;
while they had left him in complete ignorance Of
this most tSimpOrant event in the same quarter,
happening the night before! Such was the situa-
ton in which, at glance, Scott saw himself to be-
placed; ;if he fought, it must be atmuch dsadvan-s
tage; and it was toolate to draw off, except bya
retreat which could hardly help being presently
turned into a fight. Now fight, .wasa thing he
had never seen, and was not born to see; So he de-
cided instantly TO engage, as if Gen! Brow whole
force was present, and to ghtit out ,atewhateycrj
odds until the latter could come to his pSsistance;
to which end he sent him, byasecond aid-de camp
an account of the Whole state of things. ''''
.Itwas now nearly ySunSet. Scott had seen that
on the enemYs left flank, lay space of some two
hundred yards, covered with brushwoods under. a
concealment of which that flank might be turned.
He instantly took advantage of it, and sent upon
the service Jesup's battalion. They perfomedg g
the duty finely; for theynot only turned but brokeo
they way back through the enemY's left wing, and g
after thus cutting it off, returned TO their own
place in ourline, bringing with them Major Gen.
Rial, and some other British officers as prisoners.
While. we thus demolished their, left owings r.
they attempted to return us the compliment upon
ourS, which their right considerably out flanked.-
But Scott always aas quick to foil his adycrsarys
man@uyres as strike byhis own, met this move
ment with McNeiPs smaller but inyincible battal-
lion. a deadly contest followed; but the enemy
was at last driven back, though without severe
loss on both Sides. Meantime tile main battle of
the two centres had Joined, and was fought most
desperately. Brady's battalion, Leayenworth's
battalion, and Towson's artillery there sustained
with unshaken in1epidity the whole weight of the
enemy's SUPERIOR numbers; and now to add to- the
horrors of the fight the light ofday, which,, glist-
ening through the spray OF the great cataract be-
hind our columns when they engaged, had spread
hbovetheir heads to the Eenemy's view a bright
tainbow as if the promise of victory was gone; q
and darkness thckened by the smoke of battle, or
only lighted up for an instant by the aTtilleryis
glow or the rnuSketty's gea1n come TO add to all
that tug ofthe combata blind fury, the Terestrage
of war that can be breathed into the breasts ofmen
when they set their teeth like vice and their SIM
ews like Steele and swear that nothing shall make
them. yield. ItwaS thus our men fought through
the fierceneSsaof that bloody night-encounter.-
Scott letting loose all that personal daring which,
general must control, was everywhere, animating >,
and directing otleading, and watching every shock
or shift of the fight. His horse was killed under
him; he mounted another:. that hby and by fell =
dead; he was quickly in the saddle OF third: he -
was himself wounded in the body; but still fought
on, rs he had been bullet-p proof. The conflict
went thus until about 9 O'Clock, 'WhenG Ge en-: Brown
arrived on the ground. The enemy bad received,
several rcinforcementS from below, and another,
wings was beaten; their centre only maintained the
contest, aided by their advantage Opposition on a
ridge, and their yet greater inthe superb
or force and position of thelr artillery, winch was
more than twice asinumerous as ours. While That
wasuntaken it was evident that we could not de-
feat their centre y and nSiwead, almost too little
force to stand up against their centre, itlad been
impossible, until Brown's Succors came up, TO as 2
sail their fatal artillery That, of course, as soon
as he had made Scott repeattoi hin how matters
stood at all points, became the first nlaSnre which
lie took. The regiment Of Col Miller, the heroic
1hodesty Of whose reply on that occasion will long
preserve his name and his phrase as watchword
to Americans, was selected afor this perous SER
vice. He was summoned, I" Sir said Brown to a
him, /" can YOU take that battery 2'' 7" will try
SIR was his answer He Immediately set forward
with his corps. But, ignornnt OF the ground and .
with nothing to lead him over it but the occasional
light of those deadly explosions themselves that he
was going TO oinuzzle he might have missed the way,
fallen upon some intervening forces, and faied.--='s
Scott, therefore, who knew.i' how the whole land
lay' became his pilot in person, and led him thro'
the darkness up to the point from which the attack
was to be mnde. That adone, he returned to his
own division, in order to rlMillers movement,
by pressing the onset upon tile enemy 'front.'
Miller advanced steathly to within sinking as=,s
lance ofth5 batteries, and then rushed upon them
with the bayOnet. After d short but bloody COLI
test he captured theInal event, we may say, de-
cisiye of the battle for although the enemy made
repeated attempts to recover their guns and thelr
sitionG they were us often driven back by the un-
finohing steadiness of ourmeh.1 Itwas pastelev
O'Clock. however before they finally with novery