The Nashville daily union. [volume] (Nashville, Tenn.) 1862-1866, 1862-06-20
Sashrille Aluion.
FRIDAY MORNING, JUNE 20, 1862.
Al AruIleryman's Description or the
Fair Oaks Battle.

Al ArtIIIeryman's Description or the
Fair Oaks Hattie
One of the most interesting accounts
we have seen Of the desperate fight at
Fair Oaks, near Richmond, is given in
private letter from an artilleryman at
tached to what is known as the "Napo-
leon gun battery" in Casey's division,
and which was in the front line of the
first days battle before Richmond AT
ter describing the opening Of that eight
he says:
The pickels soon began to fire rapidly
and came running in, while the infantry,
posted behind a fence TO support them,
blazed away into the woods. The ar
tillery on our right opened fire and min
glcd their thunder with the sharp roll OF
the musketry. Soon our Napoleon guns
(hree of which were posted in an unfin-
ished redoubt, and three on the left near
a rifle pitt opened with case shot, which
went whizzing through the air, over the
heads Of our own men, right into the
midst of the enemy, and there exploded,
scattering death through their ranks.
On the left, the rebels were seen coming
through the woods TO flank us. and wheel
! ing three Of our guns so as TO bear upon
them, we poured case shot among them
with unexampled rapidity and terrible
! effect.
The destruction was horrible. Our
| spherical case shot are awful missiles,
| each Of them consistingof n clotted mass
/ Of s,yenty-six musket balls, with a
| charge OF powder in the center, that is
fired by a fuse the same as a shell. The
missile first acts as a solid shot, blowing
its way through masses Of men, and then
exploding, hurls forward shower Of
muskct balls that NOW down the foe in
heaps. Our battery threw twenty -four
Of these a minute, and as we had the
exact range OF every part Of tho field,
every shot told with frightful effect. But
the enemy were not at all daunted.
| They marched steadily on, and hailed n
perfect tempest of balls upon us Why
we, as well as our horses, were not every
one shot down will forever remain mys-
terry TO me. We did not mind the leaden
hail, however, but kept pouring our case
shot into the dense masses Of the foe, who
came in prodigious and overwhelming
force. And they fought splcndidly, too.
Our shot tore their ranks wide open, and
shattered them asunder in manner that
was irightful TO witness; but they closed
up again at once, and came on as steadily
as English veter ms.
When they got within four hundred
yards we closed our case shot and opened
on them with canister, and such destruc-
ton ] never elsewhere witnessed. Al
each discharge great gaps were made in
their ranks indeed, whole companies
went down before that murderous fire
but they closed up with an order anC
discipline that was awe-inspiring. They
seemed to be animated with the courag,
of despair blended with the hope of 4
speedy victory if they could by an over
whelming rush drive us from our position
1t was awful TO see their ranks tori
and shattered by every discharge Of can
lister that we poured into their faces, anC
while their dead and dying lay in piles
they closed up, and still kept advancing
right in the face of that fire. AT on
} time three lines, one behind another wer
steadily advancing and three of thei
; flags were brought in range Of our gun
shOtied with canister.
Fire" shouted the gunner, and dow
went those three flags, and a gap wa
opened through those three lines as if
ihunderholt had torn through them, an
the dead lay in swaths. Dut thoy o
once closed up and came steadily OF
4 never halting or wagering, right throug
, the woods, over the fence, through III
8 field, right up to our guns, and sweepin
, everything before them, captured ever
piece.
I. When we delivered our last fire, the
10 were within fifteen or twenty PAGES A.,
4 as, and as all eur horses had been kille
or wounded, we could not carry of Gun
! Our whole division was cut TO piece
{ with what loss | do not know. We fe
p back TO a second line Of entrenchment
= and there held the enemy in check ii
B, reinlorcements arrived, and then we keI
% our position till night put an end to tt
battle.