The Kenosha telegraph. [volume] (Kenosha, Wis.) 1860-1888, 1862-09-11

Z r&Spara1 was certain the enemy intended u
,,rn ono mr. the other Of our TANKS, and sal'
We nust ascertain which or the result was d
the hest doubtful; for his scouts had just re
ported that Lee, with the entire remal nS e.
the rebel army, had come up and assteu
nand. The scouts were correct ""
we fought the whole rebel army. ,,;o,,,
Postino, myself in the center, wlthln we"
ho4b ro1tions of the fell where In1antry were
engaged. | could not determine WHICH Hau the
ns"sE!' TS,f5nntly but few trorps were en-.
psSS a o,,d I .urmised that we were lighting
o"{o,oI., - learn where lay the enemy's main
lli9IIiJ A. length our force at the right was
driven back, ana l tho"ght Gen. rope had
t-.a,, ont generated when he moved men at al
oarIer part of the day from right to left.
/ A quarter Of an hour later, wished he had
moved still greater portion to The left. ]
| have heard the musketry OF the best contested
battles fought in Virginia, and l say unhesitat-
| ingly that the fire which broke out at the left
| and up the center, was by far the heaviest OF
any. Talk of yoilies, and rolls, and crashes
1t was all these continually accommodating, pil>
ing upon each other in mighty swelling volume
| tho "restle of rushing Tomatoes such as
chaos may have known. From my position it
seemed that artillery played from each of the
cardinal points upSs the devoted center where
l knew men were struggling. | could not see
them struggling. The smoke OF gunpowder
prevented that but l knew they were there, and
| trembled for the result. A few minutes later
Schurz who was in the reserve, WAS ordered to
the left. Before lie could get iairly into posts
ton, Mcdowell and Porter were irretrievably
broken. Their soldiers fought like brave men
if moments be reckeEediby their intensity, they
fought long, as they surely did light well.
believe there cannot be a man who heard or
participated in that awfu tragedy, but counts
I,,S 4
est fighting he ever knew. IL was all at one
point. Along the right half OF the line the com
batants seemed to desist in amazement at the
struggle there. BY half after five it was appa-
rent that we were bealcn-outtanke by con
centration upon the left. Waggouers and stIag-
glers about the hospitals scented the retreat,
and soon trains OF the former and streams Of
the latter could be seen making tor the Bull
Run bridges and ford8 McDowelPs and Por-
ter's corps retired in comparative order. l use
this term not as a mild, but false paraphrase
for driven back, but because it covers the actu-
al fact in the case.
do not think there was a brigade that could
not, as it came from the field, show its distinct
regiments, or rather nCcleus Of each regiment
to whose standard ere it had marched mile
its scattered men gathered, Still there were
several thousands hurrying, pell nell, i'll ad-
vance of them toward Centeryile, crowdiug the
Stone Bridge and wadiHg the stream 4 dozen
long wagon trains centcred there, but there
was but little confusion among them, no deser-
ton of wagons, but simply jam, where each
desired and pushed to be first. They were thus
cool, notwithstanding L few shells burst among
them. All this time the right was firm, and on,
ly at the calm discretion of it's generals I'm
accountably to me at the time, so soon as we
fell back from the left the musketry almost en-.
tin ely ceased We We're pursued by shells only.
It is probable that the enemy dared not advance
lest Heintzelman and Sigel should fall upon his
flank as he should pass by them. Sigei had not
had his fight out, nor had Heintzelman, and the
enemy was hardly in condition for another bat
tie Immediately. Il is possible, also that Banks
corps was nearing the feld-he was known to
be at Manassas early in the day-and they may
have seen his advance and been afraid. 1t
was all done i'll two hours. Another corps up
on the field would have frustrated that rush of
oyerpowering numbers upon one point. Those
numbers were so overpOwerng that they sue
ceeded before men could be moved against them
from any other part of the field franklin lay
at Centerville, Sumner at Arlington Hghts-
Why had they not been sent to Pope five days
before, as they We're ordered, and he expect
ed