Memphis daily appeal. [volume] (Memphis, Tenn.) 1847-1886, 1863-02-20

corps, the ground between Gen. Hoods right
and the railroad at HsmiIions crossing was
mostly held By the large division commanded
/ by that excellent officer, Gen A p. Hin. Be-
hind the lins Of Gen 2 Hill, the division of
I Gen D. Il Hill was held in reserve. To the
right Of Gen. A. Iill, the division once com
maaded by Gen. Eweli who lost his leg (itl
mistake not) at She second battle OF Manassas,
but now commanded by Gen. Early, held the
woods right up to aud across the railroad at
Hamilt1u'5 crossing. Ia front of Gen. Early
/ the powerful artillery of Colonel Walker was
thrown forward, to fTe as was expected, INTO
/ tie enemy's faux. Across, or to the east Of the
railroad on the extreme Confederate right, Gen.
! J. = StuFt, with his cavalry and horse eFtil-
/ lery. covered The faux Of the Confederate line,
I his resr almost resting upon MassaPonsz creek
MOVEMENTS or THE UNION TRoOPs-THE
REBELS ON THE "oLD FLAG
As regards tie disposition of the Federal
troops, nothing mors Is known than that the
three great bodies Of troops were commanded,
that on tue Federal right by General Sumner,
that on the Federal cAntre by General Hooker
and that on the Federal left by g neral Frank
/ lin It is estimated that not less than 40 coo
troops were engsg 4 in the stack directed by
General Sumner, and that so 600 were employed
on the Federal center and Jeff.
Friday the 18th of December, was employed
by the Federal generals IN arranging and mass
ing their troops for tie next days attack Act
i've skrmishpg was kept up By the pickets on
bosh sides for several hours and in the after
noon, with a view to feeling the Confederste po-
sft,Oa. the heavy Federal guns thundered across
the river, and were only fes0Y replied to by the
bs teries on the Confederate left. The solemn
tv or the Immediately approaching battle cast
is shadows over the sesne, and hat earn stness
and tranquility If demesuor which, on the eve
ef rBom nlous events overtake even the most
carruous and thoug tless, reigned unulisteka- /
bly, upon every counteranee. At night, as tne 1
pjc ket of the two armies were ststaned within /
a hundred wards ofeseh other, the Cunfsderates /
could hear the earnest aud impassioued speeches /
If Federal ogat9rs Tousing tae spirit OF then /
fr5op- and making v-hsment appeals to the /
sancrity Of the .'cld hsg" the old flag is
plavei ont ~ shouted the ConfedeTstes in reply
"Sonlehow,' remarked ore OF The C0ntederats
O me there must be 4 want of grit among the
Yankees Otherwise they wouldn't want All Lhis
talking g"
It is impossible not TO contrast the spirit of
the tgo aTmies-she Confederates so calm, SO
resolute, so satisfied with their generals so suf
fering yet rejoicing to suffer as long IS hard
ship Is the price of liberty; the FedeTss, iashed
into tine field by the thong Of golden bounties,
and ia ths Eeid lsshed against the enemy by the
invectfve and appeals OF abe spOkesmen, SO
Of their generals aud each other. SO
aud yet so dissatisfied The aurora
boTesiis which oVerspTesd the heavens, and
darted bla0d-rsd tongues of hame swiftly from
the meridian down to the horizoa, was accepted
BY the Confsderates As the cross outlined on the
sky was accepted by COnssandne-an earnest
Of assured victory
THE DAY OF THE BATTLE.
DECEMBER IS, 1862 The morning of the
18Th Of December-s memorable day to the his
.orian of tbe decline and fall of the American
repubic--broke still and warm while as on the
preceding day, a thick haze enveoped the town
Of Fredericksburg and the circumjacen valley.
and delayed the opening Of FIRE By the antsgo-
nistie batteries until the sun had been up some
three or four hours II was strange to contrast
Saturday, the 18Th of September, with Saturday
the 6sh, and to compare the intense cold of the
earlier Saturday with the sPring-hke warmth
aus caluness of the lstter. The day which
sm describing was one Of those outbursts of
that Indian summer which fingers long and
fondly Ia beautiful Virginia; the morning haze
which shreuded heath, and plain, and forest,
vas the ordinary prelude to the warmth and
glow of the sun at MONDAY. As the fog lifted
about ten in the morning and the sun burst !
through the clouds, the long lines Of the Federal
army which had passed the whole preceding
lay ia deploying and preparing for the attack
we're distinctly visible in the plain and gave
awful indications of the amount Of the Federal
lost which bad crossed the river. The Conled /
,Iate army, wholly undsunse1 by the extrava-
rant stories about the strength of their foe
vaited calmly, drawn up for the most part
within the fringe Of the woods, confident in their
position and in tie vslor whica has never failed
hem
STRENGTH OF THE REBEL ARMY.
And here It may be as well finally to dspel
i L q = IL z
be Northern press to veil the disgrace of defeat,
When the fact itself admits Of no denial The
7hole number of Confederates in the field this
ay did not exceed from so, 600 to 10000 men. .
)f these some $4,000 men taking tho very high
st estimate, took part in the fight BY the ur-
ent entresty Of several Of the leading Confede- j
ste generals, it has long been sought rather to r
eep down than 70 swell the numbers Of the
oulhern army. It is well known to the saga !
ious generals of the Confsderacy that such an E
Fmy IS obeyeG General Lees command this
ay, if well handled, and imbued with A fine =
pnt, is more than a match for any number that Z
sn be led against them The statements of the
'eder4l Secretary of War. to the effect that be !
as 500 600 men st this moment in his pay,
AIRY com tort rather than dismay to the hearts
f the Confedefates So cumbrous and uu
'ieldY maehiue as the Federal army cannot :;
ut break down by its own weight and BY the
asb amount OF tIGbep0Is Nnlcn It's pAmpere0 ~
)ldiery requires and, in addition to many
Ihsr testimonies TO lis immobility, the statement
the Princs de Joinvile, that one railroad is
OF sufficient to supply such an army As General 0
IcCi4i ga led aQsiast Richmond, viii csuy =
onvietion to as EuroDesa aubic
TRE ARTILLERY Is PLAY
u Is imoosaioie for ait 70 describe the noSi- r
0ns ef each Of th- numerous Coefadars'e bat :, y
,-ies which stretched along the langlh IF their
g.. 50 al I sd q
as the batteries which were most hatiy en- ! I
aged and bore fhe brupt of the aetien BY :
II the most importont position was oceuoird I
h the Washington Artillery commanded by
'ol Walton, Of New 0Asans, sud posted on :
he Nights in the immedists neifhborhoOd of :
7r dericksburs, not more than tour hundred =
ards from the town. Tkese nights Shich are =
reciselyo that altitude which is most lsvor- !
bic for .lle pay Of artillery are surrounded :
y q brick h91se--noW rddiea by round shet-i = =
ei0nging 81 Mr. Msrye. and ere commonly
alle3 Marye's nights. At their base road
7inds projected on one side By the bills, and i
a the other by solid stone wall, about fonr !;
ret hight. oyer " ich brigade of Corfed- !.
rsses, themselves perfectly shetered poured r
he deadliesi and moss effective Of fTss A :
title furthar back, to the southeast of Msrye's :
tights, stands another and higher hill. :
rom which the most Commanding v'eH of :
he entire field is obtainable, and which, as !
IS the usual station OF the commsnder in 4
hief, is now known as Gan. Lae's Hill From :
bis bill, during lsrge portion Of Saturday, :
81 pounder Perrott gun, cast at the Tredegsr !
works, in Richmond poured a destructive FIRE =
nto the Fe5erals Suddenly, about 3 o'clock !
n the afternoon, on its thirty seventh discharge
his gun barst with a dreadful explosion, but :
apply, did no injury to any Of the by-stsnders J,
II the moment Of its explosion. Captain Phil /
ips, Of the GrensdieT GuaTd-favoTablY re- : :
marked this day fer his behavior under fire I
Major Venablss, Of General Lees staff and Ma :
or Haskell, were eouYersing within a few feet
lf The gun. Their escape, without injury, was
title less ttan miraculous. As the Confederate
ine tends away to the right, the batteries Of Gen
Hood s division were actively engaged against l.
he advancing columns Of Pennsy ylvsnians o
lui next 10 tue batteries on Marye's nights, and L
5snersl Lees bib, / should say that the artil- Il