Gallipolis journal. [volume] (Gallipolis, Ohio) 1837-1919, 1855-09-27

raked the crest Of the hill with tenn
pest of grape. Strongly as ones sym
pathies mightbe engaged for the French
it was impossible to repress for the mo-
ment a sentiment of pity as one looked
upon the crowd of Russians looming
out through the smoke as it rolled across
them, feebly returning the fire, unable
to advance, afraid to retreat, ten thou
sand deaths in front-ten thousand
more behind-help and hope nowhere.
They paused for few seconds, and
seemed to hesitate, but were speedily
relieved from all embarrassment as to
the course they should pursue by the
advance of the French, whose cheer
rang merrily through the morning air
as they leveled their bayonets and rush
ed to the charge. The Russians gave
one "Hurrah," as if they intended to
come up to the scratch, but instead of
suiting the action to the word, they
wheeled about and flung themselves
down the hillside in complete disorder,
the Sardinian artillery again playing up
on them as before. Some hundreds
threw down their arms and surrendered
sooner than run the gauntlet once more
across the aqueduct and the river. The
remnant of the column got under cover
on the other side of the stream, and re
mainei there for some minutes, until
two battallioKs of the Piedmontese came
out upon the plain, and throwing out
skirmishers, advanced upon the river.
The Russians now retired in haste, and
not in very good order, skirmishing as
they went, until they reached the high
ground on which their cavalry and the
reserve of their artillery was stationed.
During the pursuit the Piedmontese
made some prisoners. The moment
was propitious for charge of cavalry,
who might have cut them up completely.
Major Grovac, the second on the Sar-
dinian etat-major, accordingly brought
down their four squadrons, but the Col.
objected to charge in face of the Russian
cavalry force, fully five thousand in
number, unless he were supported by
French or English. A message was
accordingly semitic Gen. Maurice, the
French general commanding the cavalry
requesting him to push forward a body
of his men in the rear of The Piedmon-
tese, but he declined, alleging that he
had positive orders not to pursue, hav-
ing returned similar answer to SINH
lar request on the part of Gen. Erbillon,
who commanded on the heights. This
is extraordinary, but true, and the only
thing one can say about it is to express
hope that there was some good rea-
son for it not visible at first sight. The
greater part of the Russian artillery
now retired, followed up for short dis
tance by the French Chasseurs de Vim
cennes. The cavalry then advanced in
an immense line, forming a crescent,
from out of which issued three guns,
which fred away to protect the retreat
till the last column had wound its wea-
ry way up the road to Makenzie's Farm
or disappeard among the hills toward
Chionlion.
Nothing now remained but to visit
the field of battle, on which the Zouaves
had already descended like vultures and
were removing everything portable
The scene which presented itself on the
banks of the river, below the canal, was
something fearful beyond description,
much more fearful than the ordinary
horrors of a battle field. The canal
itself was choked with dead--most of
whom had doubtless fallen into it living,
after rolling down the hillside, and
found repose in its muddy waters-bro-
ken muskets, bags of bread, cartridges;
one dark red stain on the white chalky
gravel, often alone marked the spot
where the men first fell, and in mo-
ment afterward tumbled back to perdi-
ton. Many had fallen after scrambling
up to the brink of the acqueduct, and
ere they had time to cross it, and if not
caught in the bushes, rolled into the
plain, breaking their bones in the de-
scent, and lay there as we passed,
shrieking in agony, and imploring us to
kill them and thus put an end to their
suferings. Never did the eye rest upon
humanity in forms so mutilated, de-
faced, and disfgured as these unhappy
wretches, who lay writhing there in
their bloody rags. their faces so plaster
ed over with gore and dust, that neither
wife nor mother would ever have recog-
nized son or husband in those hideous
masses of mortality. Some, but small
minority. sought to drag themselves to
the shade of the bushes that skirted the
river; some sought to hide their heads
from the fiery heat of. the midday sun
under their tattered garments, and 9th
ers lay with their faces upturned and
ghastly, their limbs still trembling in
the last quiver, and the flies already
burrowing in their wounds. Men shot
down by any missile, and laying where
they fell, CORY and mutilated, though
: they may be. is sight to which one
soon gets habituated, but wounded men
who have been rolled over rough
soil, and their bones broken in their pro.
gress, is one of these sights one rarely
witnesses, and which he who has once
seen it never wishes to see more. Or
; towards the bridge the dead lay thicker
, and thicker. On the banks of the rivel
, about it, and in the river itself, they
! L. u Al