The daily dispatch. [volume] (Richmond [Va.]) 1850-1884, 1862-08-30

movea fecO0M t0fnd0n bat the uptfon u peA
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Ths Chslr ssnossssd Is, fp,,e wfns eomulstcc.
under The rssolution - It. HARxsoALk % e1am
" INTO the. condition cf the Navy Depastmsnt
dss, q MhAl puprs, Of La, and Boycs. ,f B. U.
On motion cf II. DAR0AN. the House adjourned
THE PENINSULA CAMPAIGN.
GENERAL MA0RuDER's OFFICIAL REPORT.
HADQ'Rs DEPARTMENT or rHE pRNrNsrIA.,
LEES FARM, May ?. 1892 )
Gen. g. Cooper Adtt End Inap'r GENT. c. & A..
01NERAL-Deeming It Of vital Importance, far
: same, Yorktown, on York river. and Mulberry
lslAnd, Oh James river and to keep tho enemy In
check hy an intervening line. until the authorities
might nake such steps "a sh0uld be deemed neces~
sary 10 meet serions sdvAnce Of the enemy In
the Peninsula felt compelled to dispose my forces
In such Q manner an 70 accomplish these objects
with the least risk posshla under the eircumsts an.
css Of great hazard which surrounded the little
army commanded
he'd prepared, .. my raal line of defence. posi.
A,ns In advance, At Har wcoi's aud Young's Mills.
Both TANKS OF this line were defended BY boggy
and difficult streams and swamas In addition, ths
left 6ank was defended BY elaborate forti6cations
doubts, crossing the heads OF the various ravines
emptying' into York river and Wormley's Creek
and terminating ct Fort Grafton nearly In front Of
YorktoW1
The right asnk vas defended BY the forti6ca.
tions q tho mouth Of Warwick river. and q Mul
6sefy IalAnd Psint end IN redsubts sxtending
from theFWarwick 20 J1ursu ffySf
Intervening between the two mills Was Z wooded
country about two miles In extent.
This wooded line, forming the centre. need>d the
defence of infantry In sufficient force to prevsnt
any attempt on the part of the enemy to break
In my opinion. this advanced line, With its aank
defences, might have been held by twenty thou.
sand troopa
With twenty-ave thousand, don't believe !.
could have been broken by any force the enemy
could have brought against It.
Iu two tanks were protected by the Virginia
and the works ON one side. and the fortfca ions at
Yorktown and Gloucester Point on the other.
Finding my forces too weak to attempt the de-
fence OF this line, was compelled to prepare
ceive the enemy on second Line, on Warwick
river.
. This line was Incomplete In It's preparations,
owing to the fact that thousand negro laborers
that had engaged in fortIfyinH were taken from
me and discharged by superior orders, in Decem-
Der last, and delay Of nine weeks consequently
the engineers.
Keeping, then. only small bodies OF troops a,
Hsrwoods and Youngs Mills, aud at Ship Point,
distributed my remaining forces along the Warwick
line, embracing Q front from Yorktown to Minors
farm of twelve miles, and froul the latter place
Mulberry Island Point Of one and half miles
l was compelled 10 place in Gloucester Point.
Yorktown. and Mulberry Iland, fixed gaTrisons
amounting to six thousand men, my whole force be.
Ing eleven thousand q 600, 10 that it will be seen
that the balance of the line, embracing length of
thirteen miles, was defended by about five Thousand
men
After two reconnoissances In great force from
Fortress Monroe and Newport News, ths euemy, on
the 81 Of April. advanced and took possession OF
Harwood's Mills.
He had advanced In two heavy columue--one
along the old York road, and the other slong the
Warwick road, and, on the 5th OF April appeared
simultaneously along the whole front Of our line,
from Minors farm to Yorktown.
have 40 accurate dsts upon which 10 base an
exact statement OF his force, but from various
sources Of Information, was satisfied that had
before the enemy's Arny OF Potomac under
ton OF the two corps d armies of Banks and Nc
Doweii respectively. forming an aggregate number
cf certainly not less than leo Ol3 lilea since aseer.
tanned to have been I'D 600.
Ga every portion If my lines, he attacked us
With furious cannonading and m1sketry, which
was responded to with effect uy our batteries and
troops Of the line.
His skirmishers also well thrown forward
or this and the succeeding day, and erseticsliy
felt our whole line, but we're everywhere repused
by the ste9diness of troops
l. Thus, with GOO men ,xcusive Of the Earrisons
We stopped snd held il check ever 100 600 of the
enemy
Every preparation VIZ made In anticipation Of
another attack by 'he enemy the men slept in
prise he permitted day after day to eapse.without
an assault
In af.w days the object OF his dslay was sppa
rent
In every direction In front of our Iiner through
the intervening woods and aloag the open fields
earthworks be gam to appear.
/ Through the energetic action OF the Government
reinforcsn-nfs began TO pour Ia. and each hous
fhs army of the Peninsula grew s,rcager and
stronger, until all anxiety passed from my mind as
! to the resui. OF An attack upon us.
The enemy . skirmiJ,er pressing us closely in
| front OF Yorktown, Brig ten Early ordered q
soft'e to be made from the redoubIs for the Lur
| pose Of Gi.iodging him from Pslmentary's peach
orchard.
This was effected In the most gallant msnner BY
the I'd Florida Col Ward snd ai Miss il ssippi Bat.
TALON. LIT. Col Taylor, all under the command of
Col Ward
The quick and reckless charge OF our meo, by
throwing the enemy into hasfy flight enabled rs
to effct with l!ts ioss enterprise Of great haz
ard against superior fcee, SUPPORTED by artillery,
when the least waverins or he;tation our par,
would hsve bees attended with great loss.
The Warwick line, upon which we rested, may
be briefly described, ss f,llows: Warwick river
rses very York river, aud about q mile ana
half to the right of Yorktown
Yorktown and Redoubts Nos and ), united by
long curtains ana hsnk-d by pits for the left
of the liSe, until, at the commencement of the
military road, II reaches Warwick river, here g
sluggsh and bosgy stream. twenty or thir yards
wide, and running through dense wood fringsd by
swamps.
Along this river are Ave dsms-cn, a. wynne's
Mil, aud one at Lees Null, aud three constructed
by me- The effect Of these dams is to back up the
water along the course of the river, so that for
nearly threefourths of its distance its passage Is
impracticsble for either artillery or infantry. Zach
OF these dams II protected by artillery and exten-
sive earthw0rks for infantry.
After eleven days of examination the enemy
seems, very properly. to have arrived at the con
clusion that Dam No. l. the centre Of our line,
the weakest point in II, and hence on the t6'h of
April, Re made what seems to haYs been q serious
effort TO break through at that point.
Early on that morning he ope ned at that dam q
most furious attack of artillery. filing the woods
with shells while his Khsrpshooters pressed for
ward clcse to our lines.
Prom 9 A. II. TO 10 n. six pieces were kept In
constant 6re sgainst as, and by 2 p. n. nearly
three batteries directing perfect storm VI
shot and shell on ouI exposed pO.ition. We had
only three pieces in position st that point but two
| of them could not be used with much effect, and
were rarely fired. 20 that We were constrained to
reply with six pounder Of the Troop Artillery,
I CobD's Georgia Legion, Capt Stanley, under the
particular charge of Lieut. Pope This piece was
served with the grestest accuracy and effect, and
by the coolncss and skill with which 1t was han
died the great odds against M was almost couu.
terbalsnced. BY 81 p. H., the intensity Of the can
| nonading increxsi &, heavy masses Of infantry
commenced to deploy In our front, and a.heavy
musketry FIRE Was opened upon az.
Under the cover Of this continuous stream OF IRE
m effort was made by the enemy to throw forces
over the stream and storm our six pounder battery,
which was inflicting such damage upon them. This
charge was very rapid and vigorous and before our
men we're prepared to receive II several companies