Daily intelligencer. [volume] (Wheeling, Va. [W. Va.]) 1859-1865, 1861-10-15
,Pun d. SeT YOrt Herald, o. yesssrasy,J
The Attaek onWuson,s zouavss.


By despatch received from New Or
leans, via. Norfolk and Baltimore, it ap-
pears that q body of Tebels-number an
knoEn-seleeted from several Mississippi,
/ Alabama and Louisiana regiments, made an
attack on Col. Wilson's ZouaTes stationed
on Santa Rosa Island.
The position Of the camp OF this regi-
ment, was peculiarly exposed 10 the enemy.
Il lay on leTel plateau, and every tent
was in plain sigh. Of the rebel forces across
the river. The commander Of Port Pick
ems, Col. Brown, ordered the regiment TO
pitch their tents there, but did not supply
them with artillery, or throw up batteries or
intrenshments to cover them. Col Wilson,
therefore, with the civil engineers attached
10 his regiment, proceeded 70 construct a
system of intreuehments and places of
shelter for his force. The difficulties in
the way of this undertaking were many,
and of the most serious kind. The road
10 the fort was almost impossible with
sEamps and heavy chapperaI, aIternated
with sand bills. This was Femedied first,
for the position was to the fort precisely
that of an outlying picket, and in case Of
the landing of an attacking party all the
course LETT open for them TO pursue was to
skirmish away to the fort. The road
where it crossed swamps was filed in with
brnshwood covered with sand, the sand
bills were dug through, the intervals were
filed in, and wherever entertainments were
thrown up they were disguised and masked
BIZ the bushes which they had to cut and
dig ont. They thus secured a covered way
to within twenty rods of the fort, and the
innumerable tTistings aud Windings of the
road afforded secure positions from which
their skirmishers could annoy and re-
tard the advance of the enemy in case
they should make an attack. AttentIon
was next turned 70 the securing of places
of shelter for the men in case lombard
ment of the camp should occur. This
work WAS done in the night, by the light
of the stars alone, so that the rebels could
have no idea of the location Of these
places of refuge. In building these, adj
vantage was taken of the clay Of the
land, which is ribbed and corrugated
with sand hills that sometimes rise abrupt
~ TO the height of twenty or thirty feet
from the level. Behind aud into these
they dug and threw mp shelter sufficient to
cover thousand men. The approach 70
these shelters was protected by an en-
bankment seven feet high and four feet
wide on the top, while advantage was
taken of every angle or elevated spot, TO
them. This was the place for sharpshoot-
ers to work. Il was stated that q force
marching down upon the regiment would
find that while roads leading nowhere
would lead them astray, the very sand
hills behind which they expected TO adj
vance in safety were but the hiding places
from which q murderous FIRE would deci-
mate their ranks.
This work was complete in two weeks.
and with the expectation that every min
ute the rebels would open their ERE upon
the EOrkmeu.
The rebels confess that the Zouaves
fought braSely, aud they acknowledge
loss Of forty killed aud about eighty woun-
ded. They also state that they committed
great slaughter among the ZOuaves; but,
as they give no approximate number of the
killed and wounded, some doubts of that
part Of the account may be allowed, after
consideration ofthe above description of
their position and defences. They state
that they spiked the gus belonging to the
regiment, but we have yet to learn that the
Zouaves had been supplied with artillery.
At the date of our last adTiceS they had
not been so supplied.
Tie rebels do not mention anything
about the troops in the fort supporting the
volunteers, either by firing their mounted
artillery or advancing their infantry. This
certainly appears very extraordinary bot
doubtless when we receive the Union state
ment of the engagement, We shall have a
different account Of the affair. The rebel
surprise must baYe been yerS sudden, and
they must also have as suddenly vacated
their newly acquired ground, else the fort
would have assisted In the engagement, If
only for self protection. The island Is
certainly forty miles long, but Wilson's
troops were, as before stated, located near
the regulars. The anchors In the map
denote the positions at which the feet usu-
ally were stationed, the guns of the yes-
sells also covering the camp.
Az old project for simplifying and
eheapeuing the means of communication