The daily dispatch. [volume] (Richmond [Va.]) 1850-1884, 1862-02-03


CaroHaa regiment, aad one company Of
Wheat's Louisiana battalion. depioyed q
skirmishers, to cover his email frons An
occasional scattsring 0rs resulted, and thus
An hour, while the main body Of the ensm J
was marching its dubious way through the
Big Forest" 10 take our forces In flaak aud
rear. - a
come aAtisflsd Of ths counterfeit character of
ths movement on his front, and persuaded
OF an attempt to turn his len fiank, decided
to chAnge his position TO meet tbs snamy,
and for this purpose Immediately pat In mo
ton to his left ana rear six companies Of
Sloan'0 4th South Carolina regiment,
W heats Louisiana batfalion's, five compa-
miss, apd two six- Founders of Latham's bat.
giment uader cover as the sole, immedi ate
defence OF the Stone Bridge, but giving tnfor.
nation to General Cooke of his change Of DO :
sttton and the reasons that i'm oelIedit.
Following road leading by the Old Pitt
syivania tjarter) mansion, Colonel Evans
Formed In lire OF battle some four hundred
yards In rear-as he advanoed-of that house,
MS guns to the front aud in position, prop
Finding, however. that the enemy did not
appear ON tina road, which was q branch Of
one lending by Sudley's Springs Ford to
bren tsviiie ana Dumfries, he turned abrupt
" 10 the left, and, marching across the fields
roc tnree. quarters OF . mite, about 80 A.
~. took position in line of battle; his left,
Sloen's companies, resting on the main
6ren eviiIe hoad IN shallow ravine, the
Louisiana battalion to the right, In advance
some two hundred yards, rectangular co pse
Of wood separating them-one piece of his
arti lery, planted on an eminence some seven
hundred yards to the rear of Wheat's bat
talon, ana the other on ridge near and in
rear OF Sloan'S position, com manding a reach
OF the road just in front OF the line Of battle
In this order he awaited the coming Of the
masses OF the enemy, now drawing near.
JaekSon's brigade, with Imboden's, and five
pieces OF Walton's battery, had been sent to
take up position along Bull Run to guard
tho interval between Cookies right ana Bon
ham 9 left, with orders to support either in
case of need-the character and topographi.
cal features Of the ground having been shown
TO General jackson by Captain D. n. Harris,
Of the Enginee 8, of this Army Corps.
So much Of Bees and Bartow's brigades
now united, as had errived-some 2, 500 mus.
kets-nad also been sent forward to the sup
port of the position Of the Stone Bridge.
The enemy beginning has detour from the
turnpike, at point nearI y half way between
Stone Bridge and UsntrevIlie, had pursued =
t0rtuous, narrow trace OF q rarely used 70 ID,
through a dense wood, the greater part OF his
way, until near the Sudley Road. A divi-
sion under Colonel Hunter, OF the Federal
regular army, OF two strong brigades, was in
the advance, followed Immediately by
another division under Colonel neln,zelman,
of three brigades and seven companies Of
regular cavalry and TWEEN y-four pieces of
nruilery-eighteen Of which were rifle guns.
This column, as it crossed Bull Run, nun.
bered over 5000 men OF all arms by their
own accounts.
BurnMde's brigade, which here, as at Fair.
fax q b.. led the advance, at about 8. AS A.
NJ d. bOuched from q wood in sight Of r.vans's s
position, some 500 yards DIS tant from Wheat's
battalion. -
He immediately threw for ward his skir.
mishers in force, aud they became engag ed
with Wheat command and the 6-pou ndsr
gun under Lieu Tenant LeftWich.
The FEEDER lists at once advanced, as they
report officially, the I'd Rhode Island regi-
ment volunteers, with It's Wanted bat terry
OF six l3- pouuder rifle guns. Sloan's COM
panies were then bro ght into action, hav.
ing been pushed forward through the woods.
he enemy, soon CALLED and staggered by The
fire, and pressed by the determined valor
with which Wheat handled his battery until
three other regimen Is of the brigade and two
Dahlgren howitzer>, making in all quite
$500 bayonets and eight pi.c ces Of arallery,
opposed 10 less than 500 men and two
6.pounder guns.
Despite this odds, this intrepid comm and
of but eleven weak panies maintained its
front to the enemy tor quite an hour, and
ntil Gen. Bee came to their ali with his
command The heroic Bee, with soldiers
eye aad recognition of the situation, had
previously disposed his command wiz,
skill-Imboden' 9 battery having been admi-
rably placed between the TWO brikades un-
der shelter behind the undulations Of u hill
about $50 yards north of the now ia uous
Henry House, and very near where he subse.
quently fell MORALLY wounded, to the great
misfortune OF his country, but after deeds OF
deliberate and ever-memOrable courage.
Meanwhile, the enemy had pushed forward
a battalion OF eight companies Of regular in
| fantry and one Of their best batteries of siz
pieces, four rifed,l supported by four com
panies OF marines, to increass 3 the desperate
odds against which Evans ard his men had
maintained their stand with an almost
matchless tenacity.
Gen. Bee, now finding Evans eorely pressed
under the crushing weight Of the masses OF
forward his whole force to his aid across a
small sire rm-Youugs Branch and Valley
and engs gel the Federalists with imperu
| osity; lmI oden's battery at the time pla YinR
from his well chosen position with brilliant
| effect with spherical case, the enemy having
| firss opened on him from q rifle battery, pro
babsy Gritfia's, with elongated cylindrical
| shells, which flew few feet over the head
| OF our men, and exploded in the crest OF the
/ hill Immediately in rear.
| As Bee advanced under q severe fire. he
/ placed the 7.h and Sth Georgia regiment Is
| under The chivalrous Barlow, at about Ii
A. NJ, in a wood Of second growth pines
| to the right and front of, and nearly per
pendicuiar to, Evans's line Of battle, the 4tt
Alabama to the left Of them, along fenc.
connecting the position OF the Georgia regi
| ments with the rectangular coIse In which
Sloan's South Carolina companies were en-
gagged, and into which he also threw the 2C
| Mississippi. A fierce and destructive coDflic'
! new ensned-the fire WAS withering on oOtt
/ sides, while the enemy swept our short. thiI
lines with their numerous artillery, which
according 70 their otica al reports, To is tim,
consisted Of at least ten rifle guns and foul
| howitzers. Fer an hour diu these stout
| hearted men Of the blended command of Bee
Evans, and Barrow, breast an unin,ermit
ting battle-etorm, animated, surely, by some
| thing more than the ordinary courage Of ever
| the bravest men under fire; 1t must hav
| been, indeed, the Inspiration of the cause
! and consciousne ess Of the great stake at Issue
which thus rerved and animated one and al
| to stand unnwed and unshrinking In suol
| extremity.
Two Federal brigades of Hesntzleman'
| division, were now brought into action, le,
by Rickette's sur rb light battery of Elk ten
pOuuder rifle guns, which, posted on an emil
| nence to the right Of the Sudley Road, crene'
fire ON In boden battery-about this tim
| ton Artillery, nader Lient. Richardson, an
| already the mark OF two batteries, which di
vided their fire with Imboden, and two guns
j under Lieuts. Davidson and Leftwich. O
Latham's battery, posted as before men
| toned
At this time, confronting the enemy, "
had still but Evane's eleven companies an
two guns-Bees and BartOws four regi
| ments, tho two Com paniss nth mississippi
| under Lieut. Ool. Liddell, and the six piece
| under imb mboden and Rtchardeon. Tne enem
had two divisions Of lour strong bFigadee
including seventeen companies Of regula
infantry, cavalry and artillery, four compa
niss Of marines. and twenty pieces Of artil
lery.& Against ~sh, - odds, scarcely credible
our advance position was stall for q Will
maintain ed. and the enemy's ranks coastan,
~ broIen and shattered Under tho scoEchin
dre Of our men; but fresh regi,nents Of th
Federalists came upon the field. Sherman
and Ksye's brigadrs " Tyler's division, a
10 stated in their reports, numbering oye
6,000 bayonets, which had fonnd q passas
across the Run about SEQ yaras above Ii
Stone Bridge, threatened our right.
Heavy Losses had now been cd q
our side, both In nnnbeGs and In the per<ons
worth Of the slAin.ss The StA 0sorxia rexI
meat had sa6ssd hsayily, being exposcd .