Memphis daily appeal. [volume] (Memphis, Tenn.) 1847-1886, 1863-07-22
THE SIEGE OF vIeKsBUeG.
BY ONE or THE GARRISON.

TEE sEGGE OF VGgRsBUGG.
by ONE or THE GARRTsOE
/ From ths Sunday Re sis'eT and Advertlssrl
! On Sunday, the l7th Of May, the Cezfade
/ rate srlay fali back frsm their position cast O
| Big Black, their bresstwsTks hRviRg bean storaa
/ ed sy the enemy on that nsTRinE, aud ab9u
( eight o'clock Sunday night resebed the city o
/ Y.ctsbuTC. Whsrs they were Immediately rsor
! EeEiz33 aR5 placed il tho following portions
[ General Sm.th's division on the eLtrems left
| Mejor-eezersl Fornsy in fhs center, AsioT-Gsn
! ers Stevenson On the right, and BTigasier Gen
oral BJweu's division Of AiissouriaHs held IN re
serve. A. sb9ui TIVE o'clock on BIeaday after
Bosn The enemy's skirmishsTs cane in sight aaC
spsRFd FIRE On aug line Of works Witsout d0iRs
any damage whatever ts the Confederate srsy
! b. seven O'elsck that night tbey had PlsceC
| several batteries in position about three ha1
I drsd yards frsu ths bTsAstwerks, but skstsine.
| fron firing. On Tuesday msruisg before day.
/ light they opened FIRE froR their batteries, eui
/ guns responding Immediately and With fine ef
/ tset compelling the saemy 20 sAiit tbair bate
/ ries several times. a. the same tirae ths enemy
/ snseavered 70 threw forward a basy Of sharp
! shelters, bat were prevented by the FIRE of oni
Reu, fre8 so aeiag. The artillery dHel Gn3
| sbErpsbsotiug continued for shout three hours
! when General Psnbertoa rode up and ordered
| esr Iaen to cease 6riag, as be desired no arti-
/ cry duelsi Ia obedience 20 the order eur neu
| ceased firing, and The result was that the next
s0rniBg the ensay embeideuo6 by sur silezce
/ approached ore hundred yards Bssrer than they
we're the day b0fere, without any opposition.
I On Tuesday the enemy mads thsir FIRST assault
ou the line of woIzs hsld by BigsiioI-Gs
I Ssoup's brigade ct LsuisianiaHs. They march
ed up ia solid column, our mez Withholding
EnfH rad oh y
within thirty yards Of the lines, when they
opened a terrific vsley Of mBsksuy. The
enemy wavsTsd q Rsment, thsR marched
forward they wsrs sgsn met By another
vollsY, vixen they broke and fed under
cover Of the hills This was the snlV
sttampt made on that day to force eur lines, and
the s.iempt was evidently made more with the
iatsn ion Of " feeling our liaeS than with any
serious idss ef storming thsn The days inter
7sEiur from the 18Th 20 tbe I'D were spent in
sne esuGnued bsmbardisg and shsrpsEssting
duTiEs the day, in the night they generally
CEASED firing. On tba morHinZ Of The % ] tse
enemy opened . terrific Gre with their Parrot
CUES, aud cniaues it till abeHt eleven o'clock,
VIXEN the bsmoaTdmeHt CEASED, and kesvy col
umrs Of the enemy c8ud be seen fsrniag il
line Of battle. Oar forces we're all ready fer
them su5 esgcT fer thsir advance. at ahoat .
quarter 70 twelve the columns Of the Yankee
ar-ly advanced al along tie lises ig splendid
order and with q leud chscr 5S5bse rs to the
wsIEs. They were calamity responded to BY
eHr brave boys, ana the first charge rgpUl5ed
Ga the extreme right Of eur iiHs5 the usture Of
the ground prevented the enemy fTsn mskiEg
any heavy attack, bat on tas right Of the ceHtar,
.he ceaCr and the left Of the center, the assault
was desperately made aad E2lianay met-but
0Ec8 did cur lines break, and that was In Lss' =
brigade; the enemy gained q temporary footing
On the UHa-gits, Bat Lee quickly rallied Bis men,
sad after desperate hsu9-t0-hsad riPht, drove
thea 0Ht az6 reoccupied sbe lines. The engage
2sut st this point sRd the right of ths lize,
held by Brigadier-Ge1 L. Herbert, was of a
terrible Es.aTe, the Yankees having thrsws
their best troops On these works. Five tiaes
die they charge, and each time were repuised
The last charge oa the right Of Brig -Gsa. Her,
bsrt's lines was made by az Irish regiment (ths
l7,h MIssoaSiD), carrying the green Asg Of Erin
I iBoy csras Et sgUbie qBjck up the hill, each
man In the trent rank furnished with ladders to
reEoa the works Three times they eSsayed tc
Biazs their ladders, bat were prevented blythe
Obstinate resistance offered by the esBsolidsts3
2lst sAd 235 Lsuisiana regiments. At the tkiTd
charge they came within ton yards Of the lire
bat tive vgleys Of buck-sh8t frOu the sAet-
gEus Of our forces compelled them to make a
pT0ciBitsts retreat from lhs fTeAt Of eur works
Z
cuargs, snd were again repulssd, when they re-
tired, aHd cid bot attempt any further demon
STATION that day. The loss Of the enemy en-
thai day is estimaisd, by competent parties, st
aot loss than frem s 900 to 10000, while eur less
was Between 600 aH5 1000 In ldllad and wouad-
Cd. To se-cribe the battle would be an impes-
sibility. The cannuna3iRg appeared like one COS
tiHUsl peal of thunder, and the sharp crack el
thousands Of da's lent grandeur to ths scene
lha. isEas description. Tas. day wss No doubt
tbs bes7iggt aud most depcrata agssuit en- a
line Of brsasswaTks that has ever been at
tsprtsi during his war. No higher praise cap
30 given t. Our troops fer rspulsiHg tie enemy
than .he Acknowledgment that tbs Ysukess
fought with 3 7sigr worthy of q better cause,
AID the frank acknowledgement Of Gen. Grsnt
hat the troops that KEEP! him eat OF KicksbUrg
for lcrty-Sevon days on sHC-4NETt6T rations, were
the bravoss troops he ever saw, and men that
could kavs kept him out as lsBg as they had
Br0visicu. On she 223 wo lost some noble men,
sRsBe whom we're Gel Hsrriek, Of the 2lst
Louisians, Capt Gsmez Of the ssms regiment,
ssd other gallant and clivalrous Southern men.
Fem The commencement of the siege to the
26 h Of May, the Yankees had only fred during
the day, bat froa Tuesday the 26ih, they keel
up one continued fire night and day, The
mortars On the peninsula opposite NieksbUrg
opened FIRE on TIE 25th Of May, and continued
an u5cessing fro Entil the surrender of tie
city. Each day new batteries were crested,
and q large amount ef guns brought TO bear
u2pu the tsTn- T. was estimated that as many
,E 5000 mortar shalls alone wero thrswR iuse
NicE5sugg every tTsnty-four hours, and on the
line in TIE rear Of the city Gs many as 1000 per
day.
Asar TIE grsRd attack on the 22i Of May,
tho euony eviseItly perc5ived the hopslessnsss
Of takjnE VicksbWg by stsrHi; they tbcn com
msucea 7ninisg cur works To give "a idss Of
W-y they vsntursf 20 aiina eur bnes We would
state that orr men having 10 obey the order Of
Gen. Psmbsrtou, did net waste any animani-
tion On sac enemy" but allowed thena to GENE
wi.Aia Fifty yards Of eur line Of brssstwerks,
when they commenced throwing up works ane
erscjEg forts this they were allowed to de
withsu, aHy further Eolestali0n than the oeca-
casicasl throwing Of few kaaa grsEades, in
maEy eases tha sne@y ftngiog them back to
u.s. Ffem lhs 228 of May % the 25th Of jose,
ne attempt wss inside Of any serious nature,
with the exception of the attack BY TIE turrel-
ed ir0H-clad gunbsat Cincinnati t. silence oRe
Of our land batteries. The engagement lasted
absut teen minutes, when tbs Cincinnati com
manced sinking, having besH pierced several
times by the Brs0k gun, known - w WsistiBg
Dek" This was a spirited and exciting en-
gsgezont, aB3 the result appeared whsiy uR-
expected ~ the 1snboes1 IS they cQHuaently
anticipated the destruction Of the batteJy By
their vauatod ireu clad. Daring the engage
meut q number cf the enemy congregated on
the bspk OF the river opposite Yicksogg, while
Sherman, with bis entire corps, rested on tAeir
arms waiting fer !as destruction Of the works
when he would "outsr Yisksburg without any
trouble" As soon as 1t became evident that
the boat was sinking, she was ran ashore and
ses on fire. She now lies a dismaRHed wreck,
Immediately above the city on tbs Mississippi
shore.