The Buchanan County guardian. (Independence, Buchanan County, Iowa) 1858-1864, 1862-12-23
Crossing the Rappahannock.
Especial Dispatch of the N. Y Times. ]
E,rnrr,cy.,,n, ", H.. II sc

FREDERICKSBURG, Va, Dec. IL, loo2
localze this letter Fredericksburg,
but it is assuredly =" living Fredericks
burg, "no more" A city soulless, rent
by wreck of war, and shooting up in
flames athwart nights sky, is the pretty
little antique spot by the Rappahannock,
erewhile the peculiar scene OF dignitied
ease and retirement.
The advance Of the right grand divis
ion Of the army of the Potomac rests
here to night, after series of operations
which are certainly among The most ex
traordinary of the war. To those who
retired 10 rest, uniformed of what nigh
was destined to bring forth, the spectacle
this morning must have seemed strange
enough to be the improvisation of the
agician's art. One hundred and fifty
pieces of cannon covered the circular
sweep of the nights of Fredericksburg ::
10000 men in battle array had sprung
from the earth, and lay, ready for the
advance, behind those nights. But to
the initiated, who spent the night in
vigils, and knew what work crowded its
busy hours, it was all Ineligible enough
All night artillery came and came with
its ceaSeess, heavy rumble. and as each
battery arrived from the rear, it was post
ed in the pace selected for it by the
Chief of Artillery. All night the per
petual tramp OF men moving 10 the from
filled the air. Pontoon trains unwound
their long, snake like forms, and were
drawn, each boat by its team, down to
the rivers brink.
1t had been determined, in council OF
war, held on Wednesday, that. instead
of extending our lines OF operations along
the river from Falmouth to Port Con
way, the entire army should be crossed
al or near Frederick ksburgh.
Five ponloon bridges were 10 be
thrown across the riyer-the first at the
Lacey House, which lies directly oppo.
site the end of the main street of Freder-
icksburg, half mile below Falmouth
the second and third within few hun
dred yards from the first. The remain
and half or two miles further down the
stream. and on these the grand division
of Gen. Frank lin-the left would cross,
while Summers and IIooker's grand di-
visions right and centre-would use
the three upper ones.
| 1t was about three O'Clock this morn
ing when the boats were unshipped from
/ the teams at the rivers brink. Swiftly
and silently the engineer corps proceed
ed to the work. a dense fog filled the
valleys and water margin. through which
the bridge builders appeared as spectral
forms. The recital of the Times special
correspondent with the left will inform
you OF the details OF the construction o.
the two lower-Franklin's bridg
Work there was performed with perfect
success-lhe engineers being allowed tc
complete the first without any Interrupt
ton whatever, while the construction o.
the other was but slightly interrupted
by the fire of the rebel sharpshooters.
We were not SO fortunate with the up
per bridges. The artitcers had but 90
fairly to work, when at o'clock The
firing of two guns from one of the enc
my's batteries announced that we wer,
discovered. They were signal guns
Rapid volleys of musketry. discharged
at our bridge builders, Immediately fol
lowed. This was promptly responded /,
on our side, by the opening of severa
batteries. The fog, however, still hung
densely over the river. Ii was still
quite dark. and the practice of the artil
lerists was necessarily very much n
random. The engineer corps suffered
severely from the fire OF The sharpshooI
ers concealed in the town. The liul,
band vas being murderously thinned
and presently the work on the bridges
slackened. and then ceased.
Meanwhile the firing from our batter
les, posted about mile from the river
was kept up vigorously. The effect wa
singular enough, and it was difficult t,
believe that the whole affair was not 1
phantasmagoria. IL was still quit
dark, the horizon around being lii VI
only by the fash OF projectiles, whicl