Prescott journal. [volume] (Prescott, Wis.) 1861-1871, 1862-07-16
Cor. of the Cincinnati Commercial.
An Affecting Review Of the
late Battles.
JAMES RIVER, VIRGINIA, Tuesday

IIfCtlOifs vi bHo liiieL uNO usaJ ., y w Sot'iNN
almost shed tears Of blood. Said anoble
and gallant soldier, whose visage was
wup. whose voice was tremulous with in
expressible emotion, whose beard was
matted with bis own precious blood
the crimson drops were trickling from
his wound even then" OH my friend,
il is horri-Iel horrible! TO see this proud
army 50 wretche,lly pressed upon every
side, destruction threatening wherever
we turn; scarce hope Of extrication
save that which is born OF despair 1t
is Horrible" the devoted soldier
who had faced the foe all day, and far
into the night which had passed turned
into the forest to hide his manly grief
Had you seen his worn and haggard
warriors plunging YEARLY on the soil
around him, begrimed with smoke, and
some Of them stained with blood, and
had you known that an hour later these
brave men already exhausted and stiffen-
with long fighting and weary marching,
would be summoned again to deadly
combat, YOU too, would have echoed my
noble friend. With all his WEAKNESS
and all his deep distress of mind, his
sword was flashing defiance again at the
breast of the foe, before the sun rode
highest in the enlpyroan. Oh, the gloomy
countenances and anxious hearts of those
dark days! Would to God such days
had passed away forever. Oh my coun-
trymon, you cannot comprehend the tolls
and trials of your devoted soldiers during
those days of murderoIsly unequal com
bat-contict hot simply with superior
masses of disciplined soiIiers-bnt con-
tention against insiduous thirst, craving
appetite, enfeebling heat, empowering
fatigue-and after fighting and marching
aud privations by day, ana suffering by
night, and fighting BY days succeeding
nights Of fighting and harrassing YigiIs,
against fresh forces hurled upon them in
cyerpowenng masses, I'LL exhausted ma
ture almost sunk beneath snch fearful
tisitations, TO be pressed 10 the imminent
verge Of despair, was almost zoo much
for human nature to endure. Oh, what
a glorious spirit Of devotion to country
that inspires men to conquer such distress.
I tell you, people, the soldiers of your
army have won title to Immortality
Whatever fate betide them, their chill
dren's children may proudly boast, "Our
fathers were Of the Army Of the Poto
mae
The soil Of Virginia is now sacred. 1t
is ba,hed with the reddest blood of lhis
broad land. Every foot Of it, from Up
per Chickahominy to the base Of Malvern
Hill, is crimsoned with the blood of your
brave brethren. The dark forests-fit-
ting canopy, for such woful sacrifice
echo with the walls of the wounded and
diving men. There is n bloody corpse in
every copse and mangied soldiois in every
thicket Of that consanguined field. Side
by side they lie and dio--friendlg with
the misguided foe whom they SO lately
fought. God only knows how many Of
the weary ones, plunged -hoadlong into
the shade of fF-se gloomy pines for q
brief respite from the pressure of wars
iron heel, who lie there now to sleep the
sleep that knows no waking. But while
[ write these lines the foe presses hard.
Our soldiers turn their breasts to the
STEEL Their backs are upon the river
Oh God shall they not stand where they
now fight so sternly and so well.
There is q record of sorrow-it is
softened too, by great pride,-to be made
how your brethren watched and pressed
the enemy for months and how their
leader begged-and was not relieved
for power to conquer; how day after
day they fought and bied-can you for
get Fair Oaks and the weeks Of watching
and fighting in view of the spires Of Rich
mond ?-how they fought and conquered
on Wednesday last; how they fought and
won ON Thursday; how they resisted and
beat back the great surging tides of the
foe on FRIDAY, but at last, after deeds Of
heroism they were compelled to yield to
overwhelming power; and how on Sat
u,dav, Sunday, Monday, and Tuesday
they marched and Suffered, and fought,
as if every soldier had the soul of hero
in his frame, unti. at last when natures
energies almost exhaust counseled with
their fears they still stood staggering
but uncouquerable, and met the summons
to fight as # it were privilege to be
enjoyed These were scenes to move
the strongest heart. But oh how cruel,
friends, that such brave souls should be
pressed almost to the very brink Of ruin.
They stood up still, with want pressing
them, with fatigne crushing them, and at
every summons to the field they followed
the old flag with cheers, like the songs of
God. There was o moral heroism dis
played by those worn men that will
make our historys pages shine with splcn-
did lustre.
The British iron-clad frigate Warrior
2 Il u f.