, 1864-10-26
The BATTLE uf CEDAR RUN.
The Disaster Of the Morning.
The Surprise and Rout Of Gen.
Crooks and Gen. Emory's
Forces.
THE ENEMY CHECKED EY
THE 4iXIH CpR?s.
arrival Of Gen. Sheridan On the
Battle Field
The Grand Charge Total Kout and
Flight Of the Enemy.
Fifty Pieces Of Artillery Cap
tureds
| The BATTLE Uf CEDAR RUN.
Fifty Pieces Of Artillery Cap.
tur9Qs


Correspondence Of the n. i. WorId,1
HEADQUARTERS ARa1 or TIE SHENANDOAH
October la, 1861
Just before day break this morning, E1r1y
began his movement. An impenetrable fog
enyeloped the whole region, fayoring his
destgns. The three Divisions with nlich he
began his assault, and which were massed at
the point on our left before alluded to, the
previous night, we're disencumbezed Of every
accoutremtnt except their xrms and ammu.
nition.t The men were not even permitted
to carry their canteens, lest their clanking
ehonld advise Us Of their approach. just ii
the first CLEAN Of dag began to mingle with
the dim moonlight, the advance Of Lees d.
vision was preceded and covered by IN unim-
po,tant and feint attack on bur extreme
right. As this attack began, tho sentinels Of
the enemy, along our whole front, fired sig.
hal muskets ftom night to left. Immediately
atttrnarl the three rebel Divisions, under
Psgrsn', RamEturr, and Gordon, :ad dyanced in
solld columns without skirmishers, and as
saulted Gen. Crooks position IN front and
iiHnk. The warning giyen by or ptckets
wts not, 1t seemed, timely enough to secure
an adequate manning Of the breastworks,
The result was that the repe1s, firing
rarid md terrific Tolless Ct mnsketry, swept
over the works almost without opposition.
Gen. Crooks whole line gradually giving
nay, the artillery In the b1eastworks {two
batteries. B, First Pennsylvania, D, Filth
REGULAR was SO posted that it WIS next to
Impossible to prevent its capture. By ST.
peThuman Efforts all the guns but one Of bat
1ery D nere got away. The remaining gun,
enif1e-eeven guns In all--tel into the hands
Of the enemy The latter came trooping IN
like SO many derils, yelling and keeping up
an unduninished fire Of musketry, which con
fused Gtn. Crooks SOLDIERS still more, and
gave them little Or no opportunity TO form
vantage which placsd both officers aud men
In the predicament Of not knowing where to
turn IN making combined Resistance to toe
assault. Nearly all the eucampments of the
command we're overrun by the enemy, num-
bertt of our Soldiers being taken prisoners
tents were in some instances pulled from
soldiers lying In their blankets, Tue camp
equ'page IN great part became the spoil Of
the foe. General Crook and his division
commanders did their best, under the cir
cumetances, to meet the shock, and con
stAntly opposed half organized front against
the entmy. The latter, pushing. up beyond
and around onr lett, entered tie CAMPS Of
the provisional diTision under Col. kitchIn,
routing II also, ano driving those uLd Gen.
Crooks troops on toward Inc pike.
In the meanwhile, the tWo remaining rebol
di7isio, s-N bmton's aud Ktrsnaw's-trk-
ing the advance Of the others Is signal, had
moved On up the pike toward our centtr,
bringing artillery, and opening With It on
the lines of the Nineteenth corps. That
force which made the first adsaucs used no
artillery, the nature OF the country through
which 1t passed being impossible for wheels.
The force which moved up the pike, there
tore, brought all the guns usei by the enemy
in tue battle. Their opening IRE was vigor-
ous, and Fas followed up by m advance Of
their infantry acrose the. creek, joining In
The assault nude by their comrades on the
the Nineteenth corps. General Emory 3 lett
flank Was wholly exposed By the retreat of
Crook, md the attack upon t wAs, therefore,
overwhelming Colonel Dan. Mc4uleF,
commanding the third brigade Of General
Growers division on the lett, was ordered to
swing out Of his position in front, ana meet
the flank fire OF tie rebels. lie did 40, Iaak-
ing gallant but inedectln II uppoaition; aid
he bad scarcely left the b1eastW arEs to per-
torm the movement, when the enemy sNept
p 9p into them. ags!nst the t, uasrai1tng fire of
vision on the right, General
Dwight himself Vas aheent from cotnmand}
1ccelvtd as eevcre an attack at thu s4me mo-
mtnt, and In short time the eutire 18th
=,
tirlDg 10 more or less confusion. The same
clHcultJ-oElng to the sudden aud resist
less a.tack-preyailed in getting away tae
artillery OF the corps as had previously been
the cese with Gen. Crooks. Two or three
pieces were captured In the breastworks,
the remainder were quickly harnessed, and
nearly all would probably have been Eayed,
had 1t Lot been for,tne unfortunate nature ot
the ground In rear A declivity down which
the batteries were being drawn, nas 80 steep
that the Impetus Of some Of the guns proved
too much for the horses; the latter stumbled,
the battery wheels rolled over them, the
pieces went tumbling down into a ra7ine be-
Low, whence It was impossible to extrlcate
them. Eleven cannon belonging to the 10Th
corps were thus, according to tue reports to-
Light, captured and LETT upon the field.
1t Was Iow past daylight. TIE sun, red Ia
the east, gradually dispersed the tog, and
ehone upon Ecene the memory Of which Is
so y la and tumultuous, tnat scarcely know
how to attempt q description OF it.: The
roar IF musketry aloyg the lines in trout
Ing pushed nth sinister 7igor. Their arttl-
lery, posted On the oppbsite bank Of the
creek, was raining deadly Tail OF solid shot
and ehel1 upon our broken 1iues.
Some Of their batteries were being moved
across preparatory to opening fire IRON the
completely turned, and cur whole line re.
fused from beyond tue center toward the
right, SO that our actual front toward the en-.
envy vas nearly ut right angles to what 1t had
been before. The rebels were etill creeping
on up The LETT, toward MfdaletoWn, q mile IN
the rear, tbreateBing our trains upon the pike
| and almost in possession of that thorough
| fare Numbers Of Gen. Crooks brigade and
regi1entl headquarter wagons had been cap.
tured in the frat charge, and thtrty.fone an
bulspets, mostly belonging to the 18th corps,
| including an the medical supplies and mtli-
n ali y
OF the enemy. The country, for miles in the
rear, wa3 thickly peop1ed with dieorganizsd
soldiery. PlurgiDg into bitches, skc1klny in
the woods, Struggling across The fields, these
men, thus fleeing from combat which had
scarcely Jet begun, bslied their character as
| 1ancee 1ere hurry1ng to the rear, Gu:rlllas,
| prowlirg around the f1snke Of the army OF
straggle1f, shot md captured not few. Evi-
| derces Of gigantic and (shaIl Fay II y lis.
| graceful 1out were visible almost every shers.
All this nf.fcrtune and disorder " AZ u 4rt-
| ed and under way before hardiy any person
| in the army was aware o1, OF could e0mpre-'
| bend, the true nature o1 the attack. Hen-
| tral Wright, the General In command, was
aroused from Lis elumbers only by the first
yoliey poured in on tha flank Of General
| Crooks command. Tue first message witch
be received Il believeI am correct In tlis,)
Nas one from General Emory, announcing
| that the attack was upon General Crook. At
| the moment this message wAa receiVcd, ulnli
OF lew Einutes in the firing took place.
Central Wright asked the officer Tho brought
| the message If he knew how the attack re-
! suited. General Emory, the officer replied,
did net know, bnt supposed FROM the sound
| OF the firing that General Crook had repulsed
the attack. II hope so," said Gsu. Wright,
| as he epraug into Ills saddle, but We shall
see." The firing was fercely resumed, as
the General, accompanied by Ills staff, rode
hurtieGlf IN Its direction, and few minutes
eufflced to show that tie enemy, indeed,
meant business. PoWerless to stay the disaa-
lowed it in the centre, General Wright, as
| soon as he had 1nfurmed himself Of the true
condition Of Affairs, promptly ordered q
| brilliant movement to check the adverse tide.
The first order went to tbs 9Th corps, q his
toric lrgfon, famed tor some Of the graudest
achievements in the records Of an army OF
which 1t may still be considered part-the
Army of the Potomac
The 9Th Corps, it will be remembered, was
in line on the tight Of the 18th Corps. 1.-THE
cavalry bling in front OF its rightly partially
in reserve. The order directed the Cops to
change front, swing round-what had been
ite lett before being the pigot-meet the ad.
vancea OF the enemy in the center, and
another order went to the caralr7 en- the
extreme right-MerEitr's and Cusrar's diyi-
sionE-lo move rapidly across in rear, from
right to LETT, and cheek the advance Of the
e,emy in the direction Of the pike toward
These orders had scarcely been received
before Gen. Ricketts,, with the 9Th Corps,
ard Gen. .To1be1t, with the two divisions of