Lewistown gazette. [volume] (Lewistown, Pa.) 1843-1944, 1862-04-02
WAR n EW S .

capture Of several of our officers who as
usual exposed themselves needlessly- Gen
Banks is still al Strasburg, AT Fortress
Monroe no demonstrations have been made
on either side. Island No 10 and neigh
borhool are being strongly fortified by the
rebels, and unless troops are sent taere to
take the works by storm, Il long time may
elapse before it is captured.
The following description of the battle
near Winchester on Sunday week will be
read with interest
The Sunday Battle.
About ten o'clock, reinforcements Of five
regiments of infantry and two batteries OF ar
tiIlery were announced, arrived from Stras
burg, under Gen. GarEett. by the yociierous
and prolonged cheers which proceeded from
their lines The attack was not now long
delayed. The enemy advanced his army.
which now consisted of sixteen regiments OF
infantry, numbering ] 1 600 men, five batter
les of artillery, with total of twenty-eight
pieces, and three battalions Of horse under
Ashby and Stewart. His line of battle ex-
tended about mile on the right of the vii
ldZS VI hcEnEIgHn, anu q EilEt Ghu LliACV-
quarters on the left of it, and the village lay
on the road between the rebel right and cen.
tre There is a mud road branching from
the turnpike, mile or so from Winchester,
TO the right of the road as you 60 to Stras
burg. This road passed through the left Of
the enemy's centre, aud was one Of their
points of defence. Beyond that there is a
grove of trees, and farther n ridge of hills
with stone wall running along its summit
about breast high. This was the rebel line
of offence and defence on the right of our
line.
Onslaught Of the Rebels
Ourmost advanced regiment vas the Eighth
Ohio, of Gen. Taylor's brigade, and on it the
rebels made furious onslaught about half
past ten O'Clock A. NJ, with the intention of
turning our right flank. The Ohio Eighth
met them gallantiy, witkering them ike au-
tumn leaves before the breath of winter by
their deadly fire Of rifles. Five several times
did the enemy emerge from the woods, and
from behind the stone parapet, with vastly
superior numbers, and tried vanly 10 accom-
plish their object. Our left wing, consisting
of the Thirteenth Indiana, Seventh Ohio, and
battery Of the Fourth regular artillery, un-
der Capt jerks, had a feint made on it
while the real attack of the enemy was being
dire;ted against our right wing. Our battery
replied, silencing those of the enemy, though
the firing vas well maintained, for Il long
time on both sides.
Our Centre and Right Hing.
Our centre consisted of the Fourteenth In
diana. the Eighth and Sixty seventh Ohio,
and the Eighty fourth Pennsylvania, and two
artillery batteries belonging to the First Ohio
no drarp IN tho Tho VI hala pf
| cavalry amounted to no more than eight hun
dred men, and this arm played very unim-
p0rtant part in the action on either side
Our right Eiug was made up of the Fifth
and Eighth Ohio regiments and battery of
the First Virginia regiment. The reserve
consisted Of the Twelfth Indiana, the Thirty
ninth Illinois, and q squadron of the Michi-
gan cavalry Gen. Shields was unable TO ap-
pear on the field in person, and the command
in the field devolVed upon Acting Brigadier
kimble, who led our centre. and our right
was commanded by Acting Brigadier Gener
al TYLER, while Col. Sullivan directed the oper
atiOns on our left.
Our Right Wing CAarge tie Enemy.
The battle ragged along the whole line with
great fury from eleven a. n. till half past two
D. m, when Gen Shields, who received &C
/ counts of the progress of the fight on his
/ COUCH ordered the right, where the contest
/ ragged hottest, to charge upon the enemy
! That was an awful charge. The left Of the
enemy prepared desperately to repel our gal
! liant troops, but the rush as'as Irresistible
| as the tide in the Bay of Fundy. Previous
| to this time our line of battle had been some
what changed. The eighty fourth Penna
! reinforced our right, and also battery of
! artillery. Our whole force nov engaged was
about six Thousand men, while that of the
| enemy was at the lowest estimate eight thous
and The rebels had also changed their line
and extending both their wings, presented a
concaye front to our army. They had alsC
reinforced their left wing, and the charge tC
be made by our right was all important in its
| consequences. On it, at O'Clock, depended
| the fate Of the entire battle. The gallant Ty
Ter led the charge, sword in hand, at the head
of the line. The rebels fired from the wood:
] with artillery and small arms, while our mer
advanced against their murderous showers o.
! lead and iron, returning few shots, and re
serving their FIRE. Up to this time the armies
had not been much nearer to each other thar
three hundred yards, unless in some few in
stances. The wood was soon cleared at the
point of the bayonet, our men dischargin@
their pieces at twenty, and even five yards
distance from the rebels, and then dashing a
them with the bayonet. The rebels Tough
we'll however. They contested the grounc
foot by foot, and marked every yard of it will
blood. Retiring behind their stone wall, OF
the ridge, sur men jumped after them, ant
drove them along in the greatest CONFUSION
md with fearful slaughter upon their centre
The Rebels Retreat in Confusion.
The panic communicated. Kimble ordered
charge along the whole line. and for shor
time the fighting was most desperate. Tht
roar Of the cannon was no longer heard, un
less in occasional bursts of ftful explosions
and the rattle of musketry was more bolster
Gus than ever, and sounded like the noise mad
by very close thunder clap, except that i
was sharper and continuous. The rout Of tn
rebels had fairly commenced, however, are
t,rn nf thair guns and four caissnns wara NJ,