, 1864-06-13
LETTER FROM CARLETON"
Els DESCRIPTION OF A REBEL
NIGHT ATTACK,
Generals Grant and Meade In
the Field.



There has bsca q constant fire along th6
lines all daY. The skirmishers are 30 close
that the Losses On both sides 4ro many. The
surgeon-in- Chief Of the 9Th corps informed
me that they had averaged 9fI wounded an
hour-abous 200 during the tnenty-four
hours. Probably the I'd and 18th have lost
quite Is many. The enemy h4ve retired in
part, from our right, and tho losses in the
9Th aud 9th are less.
The breast works and trenches are in SONG
places n ct more than 200 feet apart, so deter
minedly have ne pressed upon the enemy
advancing our works = few PAGES every
night. We have bslf dozen lines Of breast
works. II ne should be driven from the
front one there are still several others ron
msn take their places at midnight, where
they must stay till, under the cover Of dark
neRa they can ba relieved. There they ait
croucbed, cramped. To raise their heads
above the parapet is certain death. And 60
along the rebel lines tbore are Loop -holes
The soldiers on both sides delight to draw
the fire Of their opponents. They raise their
hats = -whiz-whiz-vhlz-ths bullets
60 around, Or my be through It. Tho OBJ
st1nacy Of the rebels ia matched BY the per-
sistency Of our own mea. It IL not often in
neld oPerations-not siege-that opposing
forces come in sach close contact.
The foreign papers are full of, the war in
Denma1k-a war in which, in the greatest
battle fought, the loss 1as lesa than thou
sand men placed hors du combat. How lftt1s
the wo7ld knows OF tho magnitude OF our
own war! How little We ourselves know Of
It! Our Bklrmishes even, of,which NO hard
y take notice, are Of greater moment shan
the battles, the accounts Of which I'LL the
foreign newspapers.
There Was slow canabnade In tho morn
ing, which gradually died away; but tho in.
fantry took It up. and 10 the Sabbath hours
have been far from peaceful
At sunset, there Wns tha booming of distant
cannon-heavJ guns to the left Of Richmond
whether from tho gunboats, or from the
rebel artillery in the defencss. repnlsing
Sheridan, who has gone in that direction We
have no knowledge.
rs $50 E mTas ). s,.,7 sna has gone down and
hour for the ripple Of musketry along tho
lines, and several nights VIC hAve had 1.-THE
rebels choosing 1t for attacking our advanced
force.
We hare had occasional shots from the ar
tileJ. Thersts one piece which hurls Its
shells far oTer our lines to ward headquarters.
Other than this there ls but little to break
the silence. The skirmishers along the lines
who have been firing through the day, seem
tobe weary. But it il the calm before tho
storm.
L NIGHT ATTACK.
There It comes, one, two, three, 4 dozen,
a hundred shots, = roll, deep, heavy, pro-
longed, like the rush Of a mighty torrent
suddenly let loose. How 1t deepens! Il is
like tho ripping Of tho mower, s4inslpg his
sc5thc In ElPened grass, dried and scofchcd
there upon that tiald, stalking Unseen BE-
tween the trenches, walking in darkness,
bordefed with lightning fashee, showering
it with leaden rain, making it the Valley Of
the Shadow Of Deathl There aso tho can
non. Boom. boom, boom, FIVE, ten, twenty,
one Aundred discharges 8 mlnnte! 4 forest
vt pines shuts ont the sight, but above the
evergreen branches the hashes fame upon
tha starry heavens. No artist can picture It.
no language describe It. It is tarrific, yct
E1and nnd sublime. It makes one neryons
to hear it, stirs tie blood, rouscs aud oxcltes,
to know that the defenders Of those wsrks
arc holding their ground. You need no tele-
4 sudden lnll, after savage CRY, would IN.
dicate disaster; but there Ia tho cry, the
Indian Jell, not the cheer which dist1u-
guishes tho charge Of Union troops
from that Of the enemy. There IL no cessa-
tion of the roar. It deepeas rather. The
cry, which moment ago rose sharp and
clear above the battle tide becomes fainter.
There is perceptible ebbtng Of the tida, It
been two minutes reading this narrative,
How little you know Of the reality. I hear
It, but have little conception Of what is tax
ing place. shall realize 1t more fully In the
morning, when the aubulances come In with
the wounded. But TO be there, in 1t, part
ofit-With blood at fever heat-with the air
full OF strange, terrifying. noises-hissings,
deaienipg explosIcns-all darkness, except
Ing the binding flashes and sheets Of fame! |
The altar Of our country drips with blood. It |
Is Sabbath evening sacrifice, pure and pre.
cious, freely offered. Fathers and mothers ]
have given the f1stlings Of their tlocks, rith |
thanks that they had them to give; they have |
given the best, they have given all. Patriot
ism Is not dead.
...--- June Ga. N.
THE ATTACK LAST NIGHT.
While the cannonade and musketry were
rolling so terribly last night, rode up to
zen. Aeade's headquarters, It was past
o'clock. The pile Of brush On fire In front
II Gen. Mead e's tent lighted up tho main
n front Of bis tent, looEing now upon The
he western sky. 'These are Smiths bat.
cries; those are Rusael's," be said, as the
one sfter another opened thelr
hunders. "It is going all right. Ishould
Ike to have them try It every day and every
llGAt, LII co0tInueus listening 20 the up
car.
An aid came In with q telegraphIe dis
'atch. Holding 1t to the light, BE read what
hancock had cent.
"Tbe firing commenced on the right, ran
own the line, and Was pEotty sey ere In front
f my line, but they have done Us but very
little damage. Ourloss very slight''
Passing over to Gen. Grants Headquarters
here vas efmilar sc<ne-the bright camp
re-the General and his staff sitting around
+ Gen. Grant was holding bis half con
umed cigar IL bis hand, taKng now and
len. a Whit, and reading aloud from the
'iehmcnd Esa@sner ofthe I'd, = criticism on
rants canpa'sn-full OF faEschoods The
ieneral made comments in the utmost good
umor. He WAS not exercised in tho least
bout Whist vas going on at the front, It
Vas al right thus far, anl 1t would BE- Ill
'eht.
HbH excellent the quality or faculty Of
eepipg cool, especially for the comma7dcr
ia great army. Gtn. Grant Is imperturba-