Memphis daily appeal. [volume] (Memphis, Tenn.) 1847-1886, 1862-08-13
THE FEGHT AT BATON ROUGE.
Further Particular from n SEecfaE Cor,
reEpOHdcstf.
ENCANPAEST OUTsIDE BATON ROUGE. Z
Auamst b. Isnl-

It is not easy for the people in general to uu-
deIstand why the particulars of battle reach
them so scsntly and so tardily after the FIRST
brief announcement of its result in official form
They wonder how it can be that friends in the
army who must certainly know of their eager
anxiety and painful suspense cannot find time
or thought to pen few hasty lines, by the pub
lication of which so many thousands would be
grsti6ed No one who has not been in battle,
and encumbered with all the incidental cares
and duties of the hours of trial, and, as well Of
the succeeding days, can realize how difficult il
is. even for one aecustomsd By profession to the
use Of the pen, to arrange the thoughts and OBJ
tain the quiet and time to prepare any account
Of a serious engagement which would be con-
nected and ineligible to the readers mind.
will not therefore, undertake to write anything
like description of the fight yesterday, but may
succeed in giving you a rambling account Of the
affair with certain movements and incidents
which happened to fell under my own o5serva-
ton.
The battle Of Baton Rouge will be remembered
in future history as a bold and dashing affair,
ably planned, galIantly fought and successfully
executed. It has taught the insOlent enemy a
most salutary lesson. 1t has shown them that
they never can rest in security on Southern
soil-no, not even under the very cover Of their
| gunboats. It will cause them to consider their
tenure of Memphis and New Orleans more slight,
and place the garrisOns Of those and other
captured points in apprehension Oftheir safety
Moreover, it has added one more to the list OF
Confederate triumphs and given fresh laursls to
Kentuckians, Mississippians, Alabamians and
Louisianisns.
THE YANKEES At BATON ROUGE.
For long time past the Yankee forces in
Baton Rouge, under General Williams, have
been vieing with their brother rascals, under
Butler, in deeds Of insolencs and barbarity. In
m&rauding bands they have ravaged the a3jom-
ing country, carrying desolstiOn everywhere.
Murder, incendisrism, pillsge and crimes still
worse, were common to them, and those of our
people who could not fly from their plantations
and abandon their homes, lived in constant
dread and continuous contributions. Oh, how
many q iervent prayer has assembled to heaven
from the lips of unsullied women or expaTiated
families As If in answer to the cries of the
down-trOdden thunderbolt fell upon the invs-
ders that crushed them in ignominious terror.
That vengeance was a gallant band of South
rons, led on by the lion-hearted, eagle eyed son
Of Kentucky-General Breckinridge. Slow,
perhaps, came that retribution, but wheni it came
it was sudden, resistless and terrible. The foe
quailed before the furious onset Of our men, but
with only the river behind them they found the
courage Of desperation, and fought for awhile
lranticslly. But again and again our determined
troops charged them. Their commander, Gene
raj Williams, was killed great many of their
officers followed his fate, their ranks were thin
ming fast, all of their columns were engaged,
and when we made our final onset, they gave
way precipitately and fed to the rivers edge,
under cover Of the levee, where they covered
in terror, many of them throwing away their
guns, and. some even taking to the water for es-
cape. Then their gunboats opened hot FIRE of
shell and rihed shot on every point where they
supposed our troops to be, which did Us no
harm however. We cody destroyed their
camps, with immense quantities Of their quar-
termaster and eommissary stores, and rested in
our position until evening, their demoralized
troops having been taken aboard the gunbOats
OUR EXPEDITION.
From the Comite river, ten miles distant from
Baton Rouge, eur main force moved at nine
',1o,I- -, ~, ,,;-b4 ,F tLo Al ,o,;r,- .1o,-l
in along the Greensburg road. The bright, full
moon made the roadway as easy to travel as in
day time until it set, shortly after midnight, but
even then the sky was clear and starry, the air
pleasant and all nature seemingly propitious to
our expedition. -Four different halt5 were made
to enable the columns to rest themselves and to
prevent coming up with the enemy before the
hour agreed upon o'clock in the morning.
A small force was sent forward at 4 o'clock in
the afternoon to make detour through the
woods gain the Clinton road and make diver
sion on the enemy's left, above the old arsenal
As this small column opened the fight, 1 will
speak of it first in detail. 1t consisted of some
LOuisianeans ander Capt. r. T. Boyle and Lieu
tenants commanding Amaker and H c. Wright,
Capt. TeuellS Mississippi cavalry, and section
of Semmes' Louisiana battery, under Lieut..
Fsuntleroy, the whole under command of Lieut..
Col. Thos Shields, Of the Both Louisiana volun-
teers, and a veteran of the Mexican war. Hay
ing made ten mile detour through the woods
in the dead of night, they came cautiously in on
the Clinton road, and creeping along on both
sides, at daylight they had reached within two
hundred yards of the Yankee pickets before they
were discovered. As soon as this occurred the
order was given aud onward they charged the
men at a double-quick and the artillery horses
at q fast trot. The enemys pickets fed panic
stricken, and the alarm was communicated
| Within quarter Of q mile was the arsenal, its
/ paTal ct mounted with hOWitzeTs, and in the
woods next to it the camps Of the l4.h Maine,
another Yankee regiment and an artillery COM
psny.
Still onward kept our gallant little band. The
enemy brought to bear piece Of artillery but
before they could FIRE Lieutenant Fauntleroy
opened and drove it rapidly back. Our boys,
under Captain Boyle, then boldly charged the
enemy's position, notwithstanding their immense
! superiority, but on the 14th Maine advancing
| through corn field Captain Boyle had to fall
| back under a tremendous fire to the support Of
FaunteToy's pieces, which Immediately drove
back the lumber men, with grape and cannis-
ter. By this time Generals Breekinridge aud
| Clark, with the Kentuckisns and Mssissppians,
came across the fields from the Greensburg road
in splendid array, moving in one long line be-
fore which fences and such other temporary OBJ
structions fell and were trsmpled over as if by
some satanic power. Colonel Shields force
now Joined these and participated in the haTd
fighting against the left of the enemy position
| rrur HATN ATTACK
Here. on our center and right, opposed to the
arsenal IA strong fortifcation in itselD and the
enemy's camps, the Kentuckians, Mississippi
ans and Alsbamians won for themselves i'm
perishable glory. Ia their first charge theJ
drove the Yankees through their outer camps