The weekly pioneer and Democrat. [volume] (Saint Paul, Minn. Territory) 1855-1865, 1862-10-03
INCIDENTS OF THE BATTLE ON THE LEFT.
Correspondence of the N. Y. Tribune.

Correspondence of the N. Y. Tribune.
KEEDYsvILLE, Sept IS, 1862.
Burnside's corps, composing our left, in
common with the rest of our army, rested
upon the ground they had won, inactive
all day to-day The silence of the rebels
to-day, so strikingly in contrast with the
almost unceasing booming Of the cannon,
shrieking of shell, and rafting of muketry,
naturally impressed one with the feeling
that the enemy had skedaddled in the
night; but cautious feeling and looking
about during the day has convinced our
generals pretty satisfactorily that he main
tains, in silence and as much secresy as
possible, the base Of his original line the
belt of woods, and the village of Sharps-
burg, mile or SO in advance of our main
line, and perhaps halt mile distant from
our advance position. 1t may be asked
why we didn't resume the attack this
morning, and fight him if here, or pursue
him if he had fled, and give him no time
to rest The candid answer in that doubt
less would be, that we want time to rest,
too and we want time to bury our dead,
collect and treat our wounded, replace the
officers disabled and fallen, &c. In truth,
the enemy gave us big days work. Work
cannot be continued very well two days
cOnsecutively at any rate. The rebels
fight with perfect self-devotion. As long
as their officers will lead them and COM
mand them, the rebel rank and file will
obey in anything possible to self-sacrafce,
while they have breath. 1t is not for love,
however, much as they profess it, of the
cause. 1t is for hate, in part, of the ID
Yankees. They have been educated to
hate us for generations by all the art and
assiduity of their subtle masters, the slave
holders. But mainly it is in slavish fear
of their officers. They are ruled with the
most rigid tyranny, and the least infrac-
ton is visited with the speedlest and cruel
est repression. A rebel soldiar was set
! upon and abused by his company officer in
the streets OF MiddletOwn, before we drove
the last of them out. The soldier presumed
to say that if his colonel were there he
would not treat him in that way and the
officer cut him in the neck with his sword,
gagged him, and had him bound upon his
back on carriage wagon and dragged
Oft! We may guess that it is much safer
to fight stubbornly under such discipline
than to shirk. Struggling is certain death.
Desperate fighting gives nine chances to
one for his life, though it may have to be
dragged out upon one leg.
The ground we took from the enemy
yesterday may be fairly estimated at about
half mile in width, on an average, the
whole length of the line; we have there
fore been buried with the care of numbers
of the enemy's wounded in addition to our
own. This is especially misfortune to us,
when as in many cases, the lives of our
wounded are endangered and in not few
cases fear are absolutely lost, waiting for
the care of the surgeons My heart has
been sorely panied this day, to hear our
poor fellows appealing to me and other by
ISLANDERS to try to get a surgeon to come
and look at their wounds twenty-four hours
after they were inflicted. was thinking
that some surgeons might exert themselves
a little more, when Dr. Owen, brigade
surgeon, by courtesy-for there is no such
officer, | believe, provided for in the regu-
lations-of Gen. Martindale's brigade,
couteousiy told me that he did not want
me there Gin the barn) taking the names of
wounded lying around on the floor; I was
in the way, &c. !; when the least spark of
humanity would have taught him that
nothing rejoices wounded soldiers heart
more than to see person who will tell his
distant friends of him; and that nothing
so relieves those distant friends from tor
turing suspense as the communication we
make through those lists of names.