Richmond enquirer. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1815-1867, 1861-08-27
To the Editors Of the Euguirer:

Gentlemen: In tie Fridays Issue OF the
Enquirer" appears the official statement Of
Col. Heintzlemsn Of the FEDERAL army as t, the
operations of his brig, de on the 2lst, which is
SO truthful ard OWNS 10 dsiea! so frankly.
tho. | cannot refrain from cu!Tact!ng { few
| Inaccuracies in il as to trooDs. This | d. tn:
/ more willingly as beirg in no way interested
in the statements / Sha!! mike, but because. s.
an eve witness and from other sources, | can
| vouch for their truth, mud thus give credit
where it is due.
Dol. Heinlzieman says "Rickc!t's battery
vas posted on g hill to the right OF Hunters
division, end 10 the right Of the road. After
! Gring some twenty minutes at battery Of the
enemy, placed just beyond the crest Of u hili,
on their entrance left, the distance being Con-
| sidered too great, it was moved forward 10
| within about ], 900 feet Of the enemy's bate.
re. Here the battery was exposed to 4 heavy
FIRE OF musketry, which 5000 disabled it Ii
| the meanwhile I sent orders for the z ,uavas 10
move forward to support Ricketts, battery on
its right. As soon az they zane up | led them
forward against the Atubtma regiment, partly
concealed in a clutnp OF small pines in an Oh
field. At the first fire they { he z u,aves)
broke, and the greater portion Of them I'D to
the rear, keeping up q desultory firing over the
heads of their comrades 10 front At the Same
moment they were charged By a company Of
secession cavalry on their rear, who came By
Q road through TWO strips of woods on our
extreme right Col. Farnhan With some Of
his officers and men behaved CALAMITY, but
the regiment, rs a regiment, did e | appear
again upon the field"
This is q true statement, with the exception
- -..-.- sJ,I,r, r,n;r,o,t ,I>;oh L.,
''pertly concealed in q clurnp Of small pines IN
an old field" This regiment ws5 the S3rd
Virginia under Col il. G. Cummings.
The battery did get into this 20 ;ition with
the Z,uaves supporting it, within 1000 feet
of Psndlston's battery, '5ehind the crest ri a
h;i!' and within fifty yards Of Col. Cummings
regiment when he gaze the order to charge,
Which bis men did gailsntl5, rushing ~foTTsrd,
firing as they went.
Col. Heintzlemcn says "the Z,usves under
this fire broke, and the greater pJltion o! them
fed to the rear" and, 'the heavy tire u ml4
kerry disabled thu battery, most Of the horses
being killed, Capt r cketts wounded. First
Lieut.. D.. Ra,nsey killed, and Lieut.. Ferby
wounded" The company of cavalry which
charged the Ziuaves just after Col. Cum
mings broke them in front was. Capt. CiTtr,'s
Loudoun cavalry and Capt. Taylor's Clarke
cavalry, led ny Col. Stuart
That this roat Of the 2 suavcs. ard disabling
of the battery, did much towards turning the
scllc Of battle in our fayor, is evident IRON the
official report Of N jor Blrnard. Of Engineers
OF tho Federal srTay, who says:
AS we iGen. Mcdowell and mys-lr) were
observing, the Z,ua7e regiment Of H=!r:zle
man was driven bach, leaving Ricketts, Ua!-
terry, upon which We observed the enemy
Charge, and | remained q few minute. longer
All ANXIOUS spectator, end, for the first tiuIr,
began to anticipate a possible defeat"
Col. Hein,zielnan further says:
During this tim "(shati is, while he brought
up successfully, only TO he driven backf the
Minnesota regiment, the Third United States
Infantry, the F.rss Michigan, and the Four,
tsenth Bro 'klyn,) Captain Ricketts, battery
had beer taken and retaken three times, but
vas finally LOST"
These regiments, which he says, "saoR after
the fr,Hg commenced, broke and ram" we're
routed; and RICKETTS, blttery, supported by
them, taken aud re,akrn three times" by
successive charges of the SD Virginia, under
Col. Cummings, the "a Virginia, under Lieut..
Col. Lqckland, the 9th and All Virginia,
under Lieut. Col. Eckcls and Dol. J. F.. Pres
ton, with part o: the ?lh Georgia the fnsl
charse and holding Of the pieces being against
the Michigan and Brooklyn, By the three last
named regiments.
These Virginia regiments are in Get. Jack.
sons brigade.