The Burlington weekly hawk-eye. [volume] (Burlington [Iowa]) 1860-1876, 1863-08-15

elusive of what he lost on the 18TH, MS
morning report of the 18th, which l cap
tured, showed $500 enlisted men present
for duty that day. Unless he gets addI-
tional force, / can maintain my line to the
| Arkansas river, but if Price and Holmes
with what they had left after the Helena
fight should swing this way, it will put me
to my trumps. Eowey er, the ''old man
will do the best he can. 1t is better after
all and under all the circumstances, than
being police officer in Kansas.
| Yours truly. JAS. G. BLUNT.
I-LeoUenworth Commercial
The Pinch of the Fight at Gettys-
/ burg.
| The morning of the Sd passed quietly
We had heard, in the way camp rumors
| get out, that Meade had said, at the council
on Thursday night, that 'if Lee could af-
ford to wait, so could he," and we fancied
the waiting had begun, when, about one
o'clock on Friday, a single gun on the OPP
posite side of the valley went "bang," and
there was the whirr of shot. Presently,
another "bang," and then chang, bang,
bang, bang, bang" until it was impossible
to count the shots; and, along with these
reports came every kind OF hustle, whirr,
whistle and shrek that man has heard or
can imagine, the most terrific of all pro-
ceeding from some elongated missile which,
ceasing to reyolve around its axis, dashed
'promiscuously'' through the air, becom-
ing visible on such event. The 12-pound
shot were also to be seen as they came; and
the worst of it was that every shot seemed
to be coming straight to hit you between
the eyes. Horses were the greatest suffer-
ers here, for the men laid down and es-
capped; but the poor brutes had to take it
standing. General Gibbon had sent two
regiments to the brick house on the En-
mittsburg Road, from which we inferred
that he expected en- attack in that direction
Although Generals don't stop to tell the
soldiers what they are doing this or that
for, yet now and then one catches word,
when one happens to be near by, and SO
picks up hint, if the Internal rampage
allows time for thought. So, when General
Gibbon was heard to say to an aid, ''Tell
General Meade that the enemy is advanc-
ing his infantry in force upon my 'front.'
and the aid We seen to put spurs to his
horse and go off in a full gallop, we began
to brace up for what was coming. By this
time. after an hour and half of such firing
as have described, we could see, from
where we stood, the enemy moving
up in three lines from out of the woods
/ They would come out, marching by flank,
till they reached the desired ground
when they would face to the front. Their
second line was about a hundred yards in
the rear of the first, and on the edge of the
4 woods, across the valley, was a third line.
| 1t was splendid sight to see them. No
one looked at their uniforms or no uni
FORMS their hats, or caps, or bare heads
Every body looked at the beautiful way in
which they arrayed themselves in order of
attack, regardless of the shot and shell
which we threw into their ranks. The SOL
\ diers on our side again and again praised,
while they awaited the approach OF the en-
envy. Nor did they wait long. When they
approached to within about two hundred
yards, part of our division, ] think it was
Halls brigade, opened fire, and we could
see men fall and others go to the rear
Still on they came, crowding little in
front, but as steady as rocks. just then an
officer rode by and said the Vermont regi-
ment on the left was worrying the enemy.
But they did not mind that either; on they
came. When they got within a hundred
yards more, our regiments opened fire; but
it did not stop them. Some regiments re-
served their fire till they got within fifty
still they came, and we could see their
faces, and hear their officers. 1t was al
most too much for human nature to stand,
and a portion of the "a Brigade, which was
behind the stone fence, you will recollect,
began to leave cOver-not because the enc
my was upon it, but because it seemed i'm
possible to stay. Not a man ran, or seemed
to feel like running, but they fell back
slowly, loading as they did so, and firing,
while the flags Of the enemy, which are
small red affairs, with white cross diago-
nal on them, got up to the stone wall, and
some crossed the line of the rail fence, per-
haps hundred or SO, led, as I beard, by
General Armistead. They were able to do
this because, as l have told you, the I'd
Brigade did not stand up to the line of the
stone wall and rail fence, so that the divis-
ion was bent backward in the center, as it
were, the ends on the right and left stand
ing fast; at least, SO it seemed, for there
was a great deal of smoke and a terrific
noise to confuse ones power Of calm obser-
vation.
This was the pinch, and the officers knew
it. General Gibbon had Just been hit,
some one said and almost at the same time
General Hancock was badly wounded, and
both were taken Off the field to the rear
But Iesollect seeing Gibbons aid try to
rally the men, and do it manfully, too
He did mans part in steadying the line
So did Webb, who was on foot in the midst
of the men. Entreaty, command, expos
tulation, encouragement, We're employed.
Webb was everywhere. So was Colonel
Smith, of a Pennsylvania regiment. At
this tine the enemy were crowding over
the stone fence, near the clumps OF trees,
and their red flags We're waving, as it
seemed to me, in triumph already, though
Hall was all right, and his men were
steady on our left. Presently, some one
near me said that the enemy were maSsing
their men in front of Webb, opposite the
clumps of trees, and we began to wish for
Halls health. By this time the officers
had stopped the falling back, and were
driving stragglers to the front, though
we did not go forward to the stone wall,
yet all We're facing the enemy and firing
heavily-not in ranks, for every one SEEM
ed going it pretty much on his own hook,
bnt Gheerfully, which was a good sign
we mad wished for Hall, so he came as
ne wished, and his right marched by the
Hank to our left and got mixed with our
men. AS the Sd Brigade (Halrs} came up
by the flank, there was disposition, un-
der the heavy fire to which it was exposed
to edge away from the stone wall. but the
officers overcame this, and soon compact
body of men was formed, who delivered
a heavy and well directed fire upon the en-
envy as they came over the wall and rail-
fence toward US. Just then an officer. T
think it was the same who had gone for
Hall, Gibbons aid, came over, with some
regiments from the LIST Brigade (Harrow's)
on our left, and from him it was re-
ported that the extreme right of tho
enemy, which was opposite Meade, was
breaking badly and that men there