The weekly pioneer and Democrat. [volume] (Saint Paul, Minn. Territory) 1855-1865, 1862-08-08
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Battle Of Malvern Hill..Rebel
Account.

= lFiE.kfiEuUW I'll III I'VE Il EfiFEf II I
Battle Of Malvern Hill-.Rebel
Account.
Special Correspondence Of the Grenada Appeal. 90
R1cH,foAD July :, 1862.
l have been upon the battlefield Of the
30tb Of June and the 1st Of July, but have
no power to describe to you the condition Of
the country, or the evidences presented to
the eye of the terrible conflict that ragged
there. For five miles along the road lpur.
sued by the two armies, the surface Of the
earth is strewn with tattered blue coats,
kpapsacks cut to pieces, broken canteens,
empty cartridge boxes, and dirty military
caps; the fences are down; the trees, riven
and blasted by the shells of the artillery, i'm.
pede the way with their fallen branches the
houses are riddled in weatherboards and
single roof; here broken caisson stands
in the middle of the road, there the fester-
ing carcass of dead horse poisons the at
mosphere with its exhalations, while on
every hand the blighted crops of clover,
corn, oats and wheat, tell of the ravage
which twenty-four hours of warfare accom-.
plished. Perhaps the most awful struggle
of the whole war was that of Tuesday, the
Let of July, of which wrote you 30 hurried
and inaccurate an account that desire to
recur to, the engagement at this time to
make even the imperfect and unsatisfactory
outline of events presented in this CORES
pondence somewhat more full and truthful
with regard to it.
The enemy, flying before our victorious
troops, had reached, on Tuesday afternoon,
an elevated plateau of land, some sixteen
miles from Richmond, and not more than
two miles from the james River, where they
availed themselves of strong natural posi-.
ton to make stand. Between them and
the pursuing Confederate column lay, imme.
diately in their front, an open space, nearly
level, about twelve hundred yards across.
planted in corn, which was scarcely more
than ankle high, and edged by deep, dense
wood, out of which the Confederates must
necessarily advance. -Four powerful bat
teries, of six guns each, were at once placed
so as to sweep the entire plain. About half.
past five O'Clock regiment of General Ma
gruder's Division, thrown out as skrmishers,
coming upon the open ground, met the
heavy fire of the enemy, and fell back to
their main body.
This force was drawn up in the woods,
ready at the proper moment to charge the
enemy's batteries. The Purcell battery
had already been ordered to take its posi-
ton in front of the wood, and had opened q
brisk cannonade, when column of not
more than FIVE hundred men rushed forward
from their place of concealment at double
quick across the corn-feld and reached
point probably about $50 yards distant
from the guns of the Yankees on our ex.
IRENE right. The fire had now become
terrific. A perfect tempest of iron broke
over the field, and to add to the horrors of
the scene, immense projectiles from the ene-
my's gunboats on the river began to fall
around the combatants.
1t is remarkable that not one of these ex.
plosives did our troops any injury, and not
more than half dozen of them burst at all.
Just behind the Yankee batteries was a
handsome mansion which will be known in
the official reports as "Crewis House."
Here one of the largest shells thrown by the
gunboats exploded, with the most fatal CON-
sequences to the Yankees, killing seven
men instantly and tearing gun carriage,
and even the brass piece itself to pieces. 1
saw shell, doubtless of the same size as
this disastrous missile, lying unexploded on
field, which measured twenty 1.-TWO inches in
length and ten inches in diameter.
Meanwhile the infantry column having
been thinned out to a mere handful by
the whitening fire of the enemy's field
pieces, were compelled to fall back in dis.
order, and the Purcell battery having lost
more than sixty men killed and wounded
and nearly all its horses, was withdrawn,
and the Letcher artillery ordered to replace
it. The cannonade was still continuous and
desolating. A second and larger body of
infantry now marched Toward on the outer
edge of the plateau to the left of our posi-.
ton and after gaining the very crest OF the
gentle summit occupied by the Yankees,
was driven back with heavy loss.
The Letcher artillery at this moment
bore the brunt of the destructive fire of
twenty>four pieces of the Y ankees,an every
moment suffered some loss. A gallant lieu
tenant was killed at his gun. Two of the
men we're so mutilated as to be scarcely
recognizable in death, and nineteen others
were wounded. When it became apparent
that this company could no longer MAIN
tain its position without immediate support,
the third attack was made 10 heavy column
from the centre, the men moving forward in
great steadiness, but only to be repulsed as
before. Night was now coming on and
flank movement having been made by jack
son on the enemy's right, with great havoc
to their ranks. they withdrew with their
batteries and retreated in the darkness.
Thus was brought to close the memorable
fight of Tuesday, the first Of July. 1t diff
fered from the sanguinary battle of Gaines
Mill in this, that it was fought principally
at long range, with artillery, whereas the
encounter at the mill was between the in-
fantry, hand to hand, and under the breast
works of the foe.
During the whole of this tremendous can.
nonade of Tuesday, Gen. Lees headquar-
ters were at a small honse on the ROAD eide