Pomeroy weekly telegraph. [volume] (Pomeroy, Meigs County, Ohio) 1860-1866, 1862-09-26
THE WAR IN MARYLAND.
The Great Rattle of sharpssurs {.
Desperate Fighting Of the Rebels.
Splendid Conduct Of the Union
Troops.
THE ADVANTAGE ALL ON OUR
SIDE.

Troops.
THE ADVANTAGE ALL ON OUR
SIDE.
/ The correspondent Of the New York
Tribune gives full and satisfactory ac-
count of the battle Of Wednesday, which
be calls ''the greatest fght since Water
loo, and contested all over the field with
an obstinacy equal even to Waterloo. .
He says Tuesday was spent chiefly in
deploying forces and gaining positions.
General Hooker said: "We are through
for to ;ght, but to-morrow we fight tn e
battle that will decide the fate of the
republic.
THE BATTLE.
The battle on Wednesday began with
tie dawn. Morning found both armies
just as they had slept, almost close
enough to look into each others eyes.
The left Of Meade's reserves and the
right of Ricketts, line became engaged
at nearly the same moment, one with
artillery the other with infantry. A
battery was immediately pushed for
ward beyond the central woods, over a
plouehed field, near the top Of the slope
where the cornield begun. On the
open field, in the corn beyond and in
the woods which stepT ed forward into
the. broad fields, like promontory into
the ocean, was the hardest aud deadliest
struggle of the day.
For half an hour after the battle had
grown to its full strength, the line Of
fire swayed neither way. Hooker's men
were fully up to their work. They saw
their General everywhere in front, never
away from the fire, and all the troops
believed in their commander, and foug ht
with will. Two-thirds of them were
the same men who under Mcdowell had
broken at Manassas.
The half hour passed, the rebels be-
gan to give way little, only little,
but at the FIRST indication of recedin g
fire, forward was the word, and on went
our line with cheer and a rush. Back
across the cornfeld, leaving dead and
wounded behind them, over the fence,
and across the road, and then back again
into the dark woods which closed around
them, went the retreating rebels.
Meade aud his Pennsylvania fol-
lowed hard and iast-followsd till they
came within easy range Of the woods,
among which they saw their beaten
enemy disappearing followed still, with
another cheer, and flung themselves
against the cover.
REBEL AMBUsCADE.
Bat out of those gloomy woods came,
suddenly and heavily, terrible voieys-
volleys which sinote, and bent, and
broke, in moment, that eager front,
and hurled them swiftly back for half
the distance they had won-not swiftly,
nor in panic, any further. Closing up
! their suffered lines, they came slowly
away--a regiment where brigade had
been; hardly a brigade where a whole
division had been victorious. They
had met from the woods the first voleys
OF muskctry FROM fresh troops-had
met them and returned them till their
line hal yielded and gone down before
the weight Of fire, and till their ammu
nition was exhausted.
In ten minutes the fortune of the day
seemed to have changed-it was the
rebels now who were advancing, pouFing z
out of the woods in end less lines, sweep
ing through the corn6elds from whic h
their comrades just fed. Hooker sent
in his nearest brigade, and ordered
| Doubleday to forward his '.best brigade. >
49,, 1aS
pushed on and held the hill from which
the cornield begins to descend. They
were severely attacked by the rebels,
and though they were severely cut up,
and General Hartsuf wounded, they
maintained their position.
The, crisis of the fight at this point
had arrived; Ricketts, division vainly
endeavoring to advance, and exhausted
by the effort, had fallen back, Part OF
Mansield's $ corps was ordered in to their
relief, but Mansfeld's troops came back
I again, and their General was mortally
wounded. The left, nevertheless, was
too extended to be turned, and too
strong to be broken. Ricketts, sent
word he could not advance, but could
hold his ground. Doubleday had kept
his guns at work on the right, and had
finally silenced a rebel battery that for
| half an hour had poured in calling
enflading fire along Hookers central
! line.
Orders were sent to Crawford and
Gordon-the two Mansfield brigadcs-
to move directly forward at once, the
batteries in the center were ordered on,
the whole line was called on, and the
I General himself went forward
HOOKER WOUNDED
To the right of the cornield and be-
| vond it was point of woods. Onc e
carried and firmly held it was the key
of the position. Hooker determined to
! take it. He rode out in front of his
| furthest troops on hill to examine the
ground for battery. At the top he
d;smounted and went forward on foot
completed his reconnaissance, returned
and remounted. The musketry fire
from the point of woods was all the
while extremely hot As he put his
foot in the stirrup fresh voIley Of rife
bullets came whizziDg by. The tall
soldierly form Of the General, the white
horse which he rode, the elevated place
where he was-all made him a most
dangerously conspicuous mark.
Three men were shot down by his
side at the same moment that Hooker
was struck in the foot by ball. The
air WAS alive with bullets. He kept on
his horse for a few moments, though
the wound was severe and excessively