The Burlington weekly hawk-eye. [volume] (Burlington [Iowa]) 1860-1876, 1864-10-15

tudes by the first Of March. ~
HEAVY LOSSES OF NEoRo TROOPS NEAR
RIcHMoND.-The correspondent OF the
New York Times, who accompanied Gen.
eral Butler in his late movement north OF
the james River, gives the following &C.
count ofthe uses made, and losses Of the
General Paine made his dispensation
excellently, and the order was given to
move forward without firing shot, and to
take the work at the point OF the bayonet.
letter, but at great sacrifice oflife. They
went at their work with cheer and rush.
The rebels behind the brestw0rks took de-
liberate aim at them a. they advanced,
and almost every shot brought down =
man. -
Two hours after the line Of works had
been carried, rode over the field. !
counted los dead bodies; nameless black
men, who had won ne title Of ''heroes" by
their unfiinching courage In going through
this terrible ordeal.
The capture of these works rendered the
Notifications on the right Of them almost
untenable, and. therefore, il was compara-
swing in upon the right Of the negroes and
double up the enemy, who evacuated New
Market Heights, to the right OF the road.
after q feble resistance. The 7th New
Hampshire, of Col. Abbot's brigade, now
occupied the heights, and their casualties
did not foot up more than twenty
All this time not an artillery shot had
been fred by either side. Purposely Gen.
Butler had kept his artillery in the rear,
determining to waste no time, where every
thing depended upon celebrity Of move
ment, in useless artillery duels. For the
same reason, when he was stubbornly in
tent upon taking the rebel works, the Or
n apU nj ~ Of
Of the bayonet. In this way it was bellev-
ed that both time and life would be econo-
mized. and the event proved the correct
ness of the plan. ETsrsF
After the capture Of this line, the troops
moved forward on the New Market Road,
vance, Paine'a colored goldiers nexty-1 fol-
lowed by Brigadier General Bieney's COM
mand, and Terry's division rnassed in Fe-
serve.
In this order they reached without oppo-
ksition, second line Of rebel fortihcations,
| 1T the junction Of the Mile and Newmarket
Roads, six miles from Richmond. The
works the enemy was found In small force.
apparently the rear guard of the fugftives.
Foster drove them out with little resistance
ON their part, for they evacuated az soon
as he dep1oyed his column, and made dis
positions for the attack. s3ss.g
1 OuE tIOOpS Hu0u0u Oh W LILO JQuCtAO4 Vi
the Varina and Newmarket roads, three
quarters Of mile further, where recon-
noissance revealed . strong lunette-shaped
fertilization, with out works on either
flank, to the left of the road, and comman-
ding it fully. These works Gen. Biruey
ordered to be assaulted. The troops en-
ployed were Foster division and Briga-
der Gen. Birney's colored troops, thelatter
on the left of Foster. Twice these works
were assaulted, and on each occasion the
charge was gailantly made, but failed
| Our men suffered greatly, being exposed,
as they crossed the wide open interval, in
front Of the rebel position, to whitening
enfilading fire of grape, canister and mus
kerry, from . rebel fertilization further to
the right, which completely plowed the
! field.
The colored troops again distinguished
themselves here. Gen. Birney's brigade,
or at least . portion oft, reached the works
on the left, before which was ditch twelve
feet wide and ten feet deep. About two
thousand of these negroes got into this
ditch and never came back. At least 20 Of
them climbed on the parapet Of the fort,
and were shot dead, tumbling sback upon
their comrades. The rest, It Il said, were
slaughtered by the enemy with shella
thrown among them by hand.