Richmond enquirer. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1815-1867, 1863-07-17
CHARLESTON.
ATTACK oS FORT WAGNER or SATURDAY.
IEr)n the Courier

From the Couricr!
The assault Saturday morning on battery
Wagner. and the heavy bon,bardmcnt kept
IN on that work BY the Monitors and wooden
punboats for several hours Saturday and
Sunday. has demonstrated fully that the ell
cmy has determined to make his present
movement decisive attack on orr city.
Its not known us yet with certainty what the
force Of the enemy is; but prisoners report
it from fifteen 10 twenty thousand. Several
demonstrations have been made on James
Island and the Savannah railroad. doubtless
intended as fcnts, 10 divide attention and
cndeavor ~ carry some weak point. If 81.
the enemy, We agn confident, VIII find him.
self mistaken.
About duylight Saturday morning the enc
my made their first determined assault on
Battery Wagner. the centre fertilization Of
Norris Island. Il WIS IL" doubt intended 10
be Il surprise. The assault was led by four
companies of the Seventh Connecticut snp-
ported on the right and left by the Ninth
Maine and Scvcn,y-siXth Pennsylvania reSi-
ments, with the Third New Hampshire, For.
tv-cigalI New York and Sixth Connecticut. in
rrservc--in ali. between four and five thou
sand men. The irpnt line advanced hravcIy
up to tho battery, our men, according TO pre-.
viorlS orders. rcserYinc their fire until tic en-
cmy had got within mu>kct range. when Il
terrible fire Of grape, canister and InIISkctry
opened upon the advance Srmc few OF the
foremost COMPANIES rushed forward only to he
shot down Or taken prisoners. The havoc in
the front line caused the others 70 waycr but
for Il moment. when they rc;rcatcl precipitatc-
ly in apparent confusion lack hchiui the sand
hills.
The cncmy'> loss * estimated to have been
at least FULLY five hundred. One hundred ct
his dead lay directly in front of the battery;
one hundred and thirty umhurt and about
eighty wounded were taken prisoners. The
commanding officer ni III" ;t>Saultiny column,
General Strong. j. reported by the prisoners To
Le seriously wounded. Tic last seen Of him
he had falcn from his horse and WAS carried
of the field hy his men. Several other officers
q! the enemy are reported by the prisoners tu
be either Killed or badly woundetl-.amons
them Lieut.. Col. Rodman, Captain Theodore
Burdick, Lieut. John Wilson. of the eth Con-
uccticut and Major John W. Hicks Of the
10Th PENNSYLVANIA Among the officers pris-
uncrs, unhurr arc Capt. D. g. lIooglani, Capt.
V. b. Chamberlain, Lieu;. W. Z. Phillips,
Lieut.. +. &. Jordan. afl Of the I'll Cunnccti-
~
loss was reported l" hr iiv" killed and ten
wounded.
The prisoners r"n"rt their los Of the pre-
vious day about t,ty killed and wrundcd.-
They also state that iicut. Bee was still alive
Saturday. hn5 v,r- severely wounded. Lieut..
Campbell, who WAS ut Capt. Mitchcli's battery
at the time Of the attack and took part in the
action, gives the following particulars:
Lieut.. G. c. Hayward, who was fighting
one of the guns, upon being ordered to re-
treat, declined, and said he would fight his
gun to the last The enemy mounted his
work and carried the battery at the Joint OF
the bayonct. Lieut.. Haywood was shot
through both hips. y shell struck tn" gun
worked by Lieut.. Bee, and exploded, ten
pieces striking his is. bEritaaa aixtaaat Of about five
ll.aGMrSd lie Mr;SSd yards hy his men. when being hard
pressed ly the enemy they were compelled To
leave hin, and laid him in front OF Captain
Mtchell's tent. Capt. Macbeth was stunned
bv shell AMI taken prisoner. The prisoners
report him doing well when last seen. Eight
gunS and three mortars fell into the hands Of
the enemy These h,d been placed in posi-
rion on the sand hills at the lower end of the
Island, and were designed to command the
approaches from Little Folly Island.