The weekly pioneer and Democrat. [volume] (Saint Paul, Minn. Territory) 1855-1865, 1862-03-28
The Occupation of Manassas
and Centreville.
Scenes at tho Bull Run Battle Ground.
DESCRIPTION OF THE DESERTED REBEL
BATTERIES ON THE LOWER POTOMAC.

|
An elaborate and highly interesting &C.
count of our occupation of Manassas is
given by the correspondent of the Philadel.
phia Inquirer. We copy the material por>
tions
QUAKER" GUNS IN TAE REBEL FoRTIFICA-
| TIONs.
The Notifications look, at distance, for
midable, extending from point half mile
North Of Centreville away off to the South
as far as the eye can reach. We rode up
to them, and found them merely dirt trench.
! es and sand forts. They have been evil
IDENTIFY laid out by an engineer who UNDER
stood his business, but have been construct
ed by men who merely wanted to put in
the time. There has aaeuer been single
heaUy gu'a mounted IN them. Emabrasures
have been made and logs of mood run out IN
all of them. All were so arranged, how
ever, that field artillery could be used in
them. The floors on which they could have
stood were hemIock boards, one inch thick,
and would not Eave stood through single
discharge, but wonld have let the guns down
into the sand.
Some of those on the left have wicker
work around the embrasures, which has ap-
parently been done by some old negro bask-
ct maker. On two of them were raw hides
staked down and sand bags around the em>
brasures, but these were intended to rake
storming party should we have marched
up in front. The bitches around them are
nicely arranged, so that CUR troops could
have marched down and up the sides readi.
ly to make bayonet charge. No timber
has ever been placed in front to Obstruct
passage, nor were the sides dug perpendicu-
lar, but at an angle.
Five OF these forts command the road to
Centreville by which Mcdowell came in
July. They extend over line of mile
and halt, aid are all connected by rifle
pits dug deep enough to allow artillery to
move behind them without being seen in
front, under the protection of sand banks
from four to twelve feet thick.
TIE FLANKs.
No precaution appears to have been
taken to prevent flank movement in the
rear of Centreville in any thing like such a
formidable manner as the front. The ground
to the North il covered with dense wood
and stunted pines. A few dirt banks near
Centreville, behind which artillery could
have been sheltered, were the only guards
on their left.
A piece of dense woods, about mile and
a half from Centreville, would have afford
ed US protection, from which, with siege
guns, we could have shelled them out in a
few hours. There were few places where
they bad masked batteries in this piece of
woods, and they have had regiment 10
winter quarters here but they were only
on picket, and could have been easily driv-
en- into the Centreville forts.
The only shelter for the horses were some
cedar trees. which had been planted so as to
protect them from the cold bleak winds that
come whistling down from the Bull Run
Mountains. How effective it was can be
judged from the fact that in the field, but
halt a mile to the rear, lie the carcasses of
over hundred horses, some of them very
fine ones, while further down were immune
rable horse grave~yards, but none of them
have been buried. Overhead an immense
drove of vultures was lowering, and the
buzzards were evidently anticipating rich
feast, and appeared to be angry at the de-
lay.
RAILROAD AND TELEGRAPH.
A line of railroad has been built 10 near
ly direct line from Manassas Junction to
Centreville, crossing Bull Run at Black
burns Ford. 1t has been built right along
the top of the ground, and contains some
pretty sharp curves and heavy grades, The
only bridge on it, which is the one at Black
burns Ford, and which was merely frame
trestIe work, was fred and burned. The
track remains, however, but is in diIapi-
dated condition. The cross ties are twice
the usual width apart and laid in the
swamp and sand without any ballast
Three Or tour cars of the "M. S. e. r "are
broken up and overturned by the side of the
track. No cars were left on it her e, aud
the last train passed over il 90 Sunday
noon.
The telegraph Office here was connected
by single wire with the South, and the
poles bear evidence OF its having at one
time been extended to Fairfax Court
House. The wire and Insulation is now all
but the bare poles.
THE ROAD TO MANASSAS.
About noon Generals Mcclellan and Nc
DowelI, with their stats, and two thousand
cavalry for an escort, came up and took The
road to Manassas. We fell in with them
and followed on down to Manassas. Ali
along to the lett of the road was one con
tinuous string of huts, tents, and forts, all
empty n0w-n0. human being or animal
showed themselves-n0t sound save the
chatter of the horses hoofs, the shrill tones
of the bugle, or the loud orders of the off.
GERS. ,
At Blackburns Ford we saw the old bat
tie field Of July 18th. The Butler House
which was between the two forces, and had
been riddled with shot and shell, has been
repaired. 1t was here Beauregard was
dining, and made such narrow escape at
the time. The tree tops bear the evidence
of the way the shot and shells flew around
Large limbs were cut of, and tree tops
twisted in hundred directions, as though
struck by lightning: The woods 10 which
the New York Twelfth, the First and Sec.
ond Michigan, and the Massachusetts First
| went down has all heen cut awav and We