Mineral Point weekly tribune. (Mineral Point, Wis.) 1859-1868, 1864-06-01
From General Buffers Department.
THE REBEL ATTACK ON BUTLER.
resp onaeucs Of the State Journal.
WALHALLA LANpING, May II, 1854.

After three DAYS ShlrmlShlng along the
Richmond and Petersburg pike, the rebels
continually falling back, We at last succeeded
IN obtaining position under the very guns
of the forts which occupy Drury's Bluff and
vicinity. The 18th Corps, under Gen. Smith,
occupied the right of our position, and the
10th, under Gen Gilmore, the left. The
outer line of defenees very formidable and
stretching away for miles, had all been car
red, and we were ready for the bual assault
which should give Us the possession of the
stronghoids which barred the way TO our fur
Their advance toward the rebel Capital. Yes
terday morning the assault was to have been
made But who can tell what day may
bring forth and how little are the events of
today or tomorrow under our control All
that human skill and foresight could do had
been done, and we seemed on the very eve of
a most brilliant and important achievement
Day broke with a thick and impenetrable
fog enshrouding Us. Hardly had the morning
dawned, ere terrific assault was made upon
our right wing, composed of the brgades OF
Hickman and Durham. The enemy four
lines deep, advanced through the dense fog
unperceived, to within a few hundred yards
of our line, and then with terrific discharge
of musketry and artillery, and the most fright
full wells threw their whole force with crush
ing weight and effect upon the doomed brig
AIDES Thee could not abide the awful storm
which had burst so suddenly and crushingly
upon them. Tom, mangled and bleeding,
their brave columns, veterans all, were swept
from their position by the attle-blast-brave
Gen. Hickman made prisoner-the whole
right completely broken up, and the frag
ments tossed upon the pillows of that terri
bic onset. And yet they had time, brief as
it was, to hurl destruction into the ranks of
the swiftly advancing foe. Their dead and
wounded were piled in CORY heaps upon the
field.
The right wing broken and crushed. and
all in danger of being lost, Col. Sanders, In
command of the centre, was ordered to take
the lSSth Pennsylvania of his brigade and
post / on the pike a support to Ashby's
battery, then IN extreme peril. Very soon
after the regiment had taken its position,
fire from a Hawking party of the rebels killed
every horse in the battery but one, and
despite the exertions of the ISSth, which are
rapresented as truly heroic, the battery was
finally captured.
In the meantime the balance OF Col San
ders' Brigade was called upon to contend with
the fierce tide OF battle which set in upon it.
Moving from It's original position, it had
formed anew beyond StFlp Ut woods halt
or three quarters of mile IL the rear, Its
right resting on the pike and near the Half
yay House This it did with the thunder Of
the CONNECT tIdSIl9 dLLu TIC AAOAI tALLd
hail falling in a deluge all around them. 1t
went to its new position cody and with I'M
/ broken ranks: formed its lire under fire and
/ -6Een withstood the onset of the enemy. This
! brigade with Burnham's, which was partially
/ rallied, stayed the progress of the rebel as
! sault or the right, and unquestionably saved
/ Us from very great loss.
! The battle-storIa did not fully cease un-
| I'll after o'clock P. n, but continued 10 rage
/ fearfully at times along the entire line. I'll
/ more's Corps met and endured the shock 8
! little later-the first and heaH lest assau'
! having been made made upon our right, along
! which the rebels during the night had massed
| four times our number of men. Prisoners
/ taken unite in saying that large reinforce
ments haG been brought in for the purpose
Of disIodging us from our position, and driy-
inc us from toe close proximity to the rebel
capital.
We have been driven back but not defeat
ed. The heavy fog ard heavy masses of re-
bells were too much for Us. In single word,
the fog beat us. Friend could not be dis
tiuguished from foe thirty PAGES distant
| This only made the strife more deadly when
the grapple came, and fearfuIy has the enc
nv paid for all he has gained. Our men ere
IN excellent spirits to-day, and ready 10 meet
-sLe foe again tomorrow
Che losses IN Yesterdays fight IN killed,
soLa.led and missing Will probably foot up
nearly one thousand. Some of the regiments
lost hea.yily, especially those composing Heck
mans brigade We lost many valuable Off
GERS, Gen Butler had a shoulder-strap shot
AWAY. Col Eanders lost the tassel of his
hat-cord In tks same manner. Narrow es-
canes were numerous as | can testify from
NV own experience The 18th Wisconsin
lost 50 men-4 killed and 80 wounded;* the
IsSth PENNSYLVANIA, killed and 81 wound
/ ed. The entire loss of the brigade viii not
| vary from 200 Lit Col. Strong was made
| prisoner at the opening of the fight by four
| rebels, and afterward rescued by his own men
and the capturers made prisoners.
| have not time TO write more minuteiy.--
Nv notebook contains many interesting in
cidents. and as early as may be | will Put
them in shape for your readers Let all be
of good cheer, the end is not far Oft We
haze the means for accomplishing all we de
sire RADIx.
SECRETARY WELLEs IS "RILED. "-seeretary
Welles il not always the sleepy characts9
some newspapers would have the country be
Iieve. The correspondence between hin
and the naval commanders before Charleston
shows that he Is rot always in the PLACID
mood. Com. Wilkes and Admiral Dupont
both succeeded IN stirring the depths of hi:
nature to a considerable extent. The gist o
the difference is that the naval officers be
lieve very little in the monitors and the iron
clads generally, and their scepticism, 1t mus
l.. 1.r., F,-=oJ Grd- srroro .fupor+ in tho "a c+