The Placer herald., 1862-08-23

was he close and strong in front? Wonld the
rear gaurd fight him back? We could hear tough
| old Heintzcman ut work. God give him victory!
was the spoken or unspoken prayer of ali hearts.
Were Hcintzelman beaten it WAS utter ruin; if
there were even one rebel division in front, the
march to the James would be disputed and delay
cd. 1t was an absolute necessity that the way be
unlmpeded. There were 25 miles OF trains coop
ed up between the advance and rear gaurtls.
Huddled among the wagons were 10000 strag-
glers-for the credit of the nation be it said that
fourfiiths Of them were wounded, sick or utterly
exhausted, and could not have stirred but for the
dread OF the tobacco ware houses of the South
The confusion Of the herd Of men and miles, wag-
ols and wounded, men on horses, men on foot,
men by the roadside, men perched on wagons.
men searching for water, men iamishng for food,
men lame and bleeding, men with CHASTITY ewes,
looking out between bloody bandages that hid
the face turn to some vivid account of the most
pitfHl part OF Napoleon S retreat from Russia and
I'LL out the picture-the grim. gaunt, bloody pic
ture of war in its most horrible feature.
1t was determined to move on during the
night. The distance to Turkey Island Bird re the
point on james River which was to be reached
by the direct rold, was six miles But those
vast numbers could not move over one narrow
| road III days; hence every by road no matter how
circutious, had been searched out by questioning
prisoners. and cavalry excursions. Every one
was filled with one of the advancing columns.
The whole front WAS in motion by p. M, Gen.
Kcyes in command of the advance.
rode with Gen. Howe's brigade of Couch's
division, taking a wagon track through dense
woods and preci itous ravines vending snuously
far around to the LETT and striking the river
SONS distance below Turkey Island. Commenc-
ing at daylight, the march continued until day
light. Heavy thunder rolled in turn along each
point of the horizon. and dark clouds spread the
entire canopy. We were forbidden TO speak
aloud, or the least light OF cigar should present
n target for an ambush rife we were cautioned
not to smoke. Ten miles of weary marching
with frequent halts, as some one OF the hundred
vehicles Of the artillery train in our center, by 8
slight deviation crashed against tree, wore away
the hours to dawn when We debauched into =;
a magnificent wheat field, end the smoke stack OF
tho Galenu was in sight. Xenophon's remnant of
ten thousand shouting 1.-THE sea, the sea!' were
not more glad than we,
A word us to the destruction Of stores during
the last two days. Porter's entire train was brot
over the Chickahomipy before the battle of Fri
day, hence nothing was lost there. At Savage s
when that place was Abandoned 100 cubic feet
Of ammunitiou and enormous heaps Of quarter
master stores and suffers stores, ulcers bag
gage AMI soldiers knapsacks were destroyed. and
at every halting place since, the lagot has been
busy with whatever could be transported no fur
ther | can form no estimate of the entire value
but ii is immense.
MONDAY.
From the banks Of the James river, some II or
more miles from Richmond, Mr.. Wilkerson writes
to the N. Y. Tribune:
The tents are pitched, the cradled wheat is
brought in in bundles, and after wrctched coffee
and the curse of hard bread have again been en-
dured, we fall upon the unthraShed straw and are
asleep. But not for long There is :. revce
that in war is heard from afar the roar of light
nr ron ard il on n
Savages Station, and Sumner and Kearney and
Hooker and Sickles, bar the pursuit OF the enemy.
What is this noise on the left? Porter is caught
while yet in the woods. Battles are to be forced
upon us then before we are in position on James
river. Thursday. Friday Saturday, Sunday. and
now Monday fighting and marching without ces'
sation What troops Gun endure il? The rebels
will certainly give us no rest We have got to
fight. They will make us fight. They can afford
TO make us fight, for they have three soldiers TO
our and their conscripion law will keep their
$50 regiments chock full. slaughter them rs we
may. And mind me- Northern friends, their reg
ments fight with desperate courage They go
with orderly JOY upon the muzzles Of our guns
Neither French or British infantry ever charged
field batteries with seadicr inry.
The fire from Porters column grow louder and
louder. Rebel artillery and infantry, discovered
about one O'Clock in the afternoon. secretcd near
us in the woods. into which they had marched
b
Galena, or her consort. Thrown high in the air,
the immense shells exploded about the ambush
OF course they must go. But have Sumner, and
Heintzelman, and Porter, and franklin. got to
fight their way to the r.vcr-fght in the woods.
out of 81 ight of the position on the right, which
was to be our arc oil safety? If they have. can
the change of base of the imperilled army be ac
complshed?
Oh, where are the reinforcements that should
equalze this unequal and bloody butchery in that
dark forest? FAREWELL! The order i given for
the regiments to form in line OF battle. Prisoners
sent in by Porter declare that ll6 regiments
marched out OF Richmond this morning. The
above was written on Monday. On Tuesday e.
A. P. writes to the Tribune:
Another tremendous battle, more terrible car
mage, yesterday. From Wednesday to Monday
has this army been fhhtng--a six days battle,
or. if you please, forty battles.
Early yesterday morning the enemy appeared
in force ut White Oak Swamp. the position we
had assumed the night previous. In this retreat
why hesitate to use the wOrd?--he has not in
single instance. long hesitated to attack--he dId
not now By noon the action hal commenced
the battle of White Oak Swamp. Mnsketry had
not ceased when left the field ut l0P. NJ 1t will
scarcely rank in magnitude with Gaines Hill, and
yet we did not suffer more, nor cause to suffer
more, ut Fair Oaks.
1t is impossible for me to give circumstantial
account of this battle, raging lis it did ten hours,
and raging along line of two and u hilf miles.
and fought on ground such that not one-,enth of
the field was in view from any one point OF vision.
At least three-ffths Of what remains of McClel-
ln's army was engaged or immediate reserve
Hentzelmans Summers and Franklin's corps
were thus, and portion OF each OF Kcyes' and
Porter's More could scarcely have been brought
into an action had the fate OF the country depen-
ded upon the one effort. Not so many can be
brought into line. And yet we only barely held
our ground perhaps not quite.
shall have to hurry on to the results. Our
loss OF yesterday may be estimated ut 6,OoO.--
Many of these are prisoners. The Pennsylvania
Reserve were again in the thckest. This morn
ing they do not muster 5000 men. Add to these
1000 who arc struggling and will yet come in,
and the number is less than half that they began