Ashtabula weekly telegraph. [volume] (Ashtabula, Ohio) 1853-1873, 1862-05-17

under-rate The valor and strength of Tho
rebels, and it was not until borne down b,
vastly superior numbers that the long.rol
was again sounded. Then there was "mus
tering in hot haste" and soon all wen
pouring forward in the "impetous tide oil
war"
Our battery, having taken their position
In McClernands Brigade the dav previous
were IN the front line of camps, aud at the
FIRST summons formed in order while frag
ments of shell we're whizzug through the
trees above their heads. In few minutes
we were speeding on galop to the scene
OF strife, frst taking position within a
hundreds rods of our quarters ut the edge
OF piece Of woods. The third section.
embracing two pieces, under command of
Lieat King, acting in the absence OF Lieut..
Smith, was ordered forward aud took posi-
ton at crossing of two roads to protect
them aud subject the enemy to raking fire
on their approach. From here the line of
fire could be distinctly seen, and wounded
men were constantly fling 10y on their way
to camp while those unable to help them
selves were being carried past by their
comrades on muskeis aud rude litters.
Soon The remaining pieces were ordered
up aud the whole battery commanded 10
move to the liuc Of fire aud then take posi-.
tiou in the woods to our left. Our Capt.
This bombardment demolished not only
Fort Pulaski, bnt all the slone forts in the
world. Not fort in Europe could stand
4S hours bombardment by combination
OF heavy rded guns and Coumbiads. They
were well enough when opposed to smooth
lS, "a aud 32 Founders. They would crum
hle directly under fire of G8 and 100
Founders from James and Parrot guns
We have thus, in the course of years
war, established the utter inability Of any
Of The navies or forts of the wosld to resist
an attack from the vessels and weapons
which we are now using. Aud we are only
just beginning to learn lu the Sc of
the next six months, our weapons of ofTense
and defense will probably be as far superb
or 10 those now in use as the latter are su-
perior TO those which were used u year ago.
We hear already that General Gilmore is
prepared to breach ForI Sumter at Charles.
ton at a dislauce Of 1000 yards We un.
derstand that the Monitor has lately been
provided with a missile which will penetrate
it they were made of wood Capt. ROdman
under whose direction SIX 10 nch guns are
being cast at Pltisburgh fog the new Mon
itorS, has cast Il 90 inch gun, and is expert
menting with 80 inch guus he expects TO
cast guns for coast de.enSe which will throw
u ball weighing 5000 pounds. Should the
Warrior, in the course OF her attempt to
lombard New York and Hoboken," come
| in contact with one of these missiles il
would be q matter OF difficulty ten minutes
| afterwards, to ind out what had become of
| her, or where she was when der voyage was
abruptly terminated.
In the opinion of a Prussian officer who
recently left this country, there is no army
in ;he world so completely equipped, in re
gard to artillery aud rifles as the army Of
the Potomac. There are picked regiments
in France and in Germany as well armed
as any of ours. And there are batteries
of artillery in many countries equal to any
thing on this side of the ocean. But no
where in the world except on the Potomac,
does there exist body OF 100000 men all
armed with the best possible weapons, or a
park of 400 pieces Of light artillery, all
perfect and of the best make aud most ef-
lective character This Prussian officer de-
cared that the Emperor Napoleon had no
such army uuder his command. He might
have added that no army but ours posses
Sed such corp as the Berdans sharpshoot-
ers with their telescope rAes. The sharp
shooting in the Crimea was mere boys play
in comparison with the performances Of the
men of this regiment, who pick off gunners
at a distance when their forms can barely
be described by the naked eye In the
words of Col. Lysons-probably the most
experienced officer of the British army
"as soon as the regimenlal officers of the
army of the Potomac become more efficient
"A matter of time-that army will be
simply irreStstabe
is said to have replied to this order THAT
is not my place, | cannot hold my Guns
there half an hour, my boys will he oil cut
to pieces There was no time for parely,
however, and We Immediately took the
place assigned us-a most unfortunate posi-
tion, where we could not even see the enc
my, at a distance of fifty rods, who, true to
their reasonable instincts, advanced, under
the American colors.
The 18th Iowa and l4th III. our support
ing Infantry, took position in our rear to
the right and left respectively, so that from
the first we bore the brunt of the fire The
treachery of the rebels aided by the color
of their clothing, which was the exact hue
of the dead leaves covering the gound, en-.
abled them to advance and deliver a telling
fire before we were certain of their identity.
The Iowa Regiment rose aud replied and
Immediately fell back, leaving our righ:
flank undelended. Our Guns now opened
fire and served with great rapidity aud &C.
curracy, doing terrific execution. ploughing
great gaps in their lines, and preventing
any advance upon our front.
The Illinois Regiment on our left, who,
from their position, could see the effects of
our fire, bettor than ourselves, by reason of
the dense smoke, would cry out, by way of
encouragement, Give it to 'em boys, you're
cutting them all TO hell ?
The 'ebel forces swept nearer aud nearer
till some of our men heard one of them say
distinctly by God, here's Battery
that has no Infantry, that we can take as