The Burlington weekly hawk-eye. [volume] (Burlington [Iowa]) 1860-1876, 1864-12-03
The Deyaseatfon Or war.
RICHMOND, Oct. 2

the scene O0tWe00 MACO0 anu the OCO00O
river Just after the Sherman raid. But the
constant succession Il rifle pits and re-
doubts thrown up for cannon, told a very
different story Of the struggle in Virginia
as compared with that in middle Georgia.
A matter Of surprise to the passengers,
most Of whom had been over the road, 20
to speak, q thousand times, was the great
length of the North Anna bridge, which
had been burned by the enemy for thethird
or fourth time, and IL still unflnished.-
Passing over the top Of q bridge inside the
cars Is one thing, and crossing the stream
on foot over q plank trestle is another
What surprised me ~ much a. the chasm
bridged at the North Anna, was the cheer
fulness Of the few people We meet at the
blackened ruins of the dep0ts, and the un-
consciousness of the war displayed by the
passengers, who sat in the cushioned seats
reading newspapers and eating grapes and
peaches as costly and contented as though
war never existed.
When you get to Hamflton's Crossing,
the dssolation Of war breaks upon you. A
few trees remain upon the hills near the
site of the depot, but there IL not . fence
nor an Inhabited house all the way to Fred.
ericksburk. A few cattle may oe seen graz
1ing on the rich plains. which bear no crops
now bat luxuriant weeds. These cattle be-
long to tho people Of Fredericksburg, who
CIuO VU&ot uSE 00U u1I0 u POOI O4O An0u W
attend them while grazing. There are no
hands at work In the fenceless fields, no
sign Of animated life about the deserted
houses. The dr0wsy crow Of the cock the
neighing Of horses, the cawing of crows,
and the laughter at children in the yard,
and the 'swO-haw'' of the plow.driver, are
no longer heard in this blasted region. All
is still us death for miles and miles, under
the sweet autumnal sun.
Fredericksburg itself is torn 40 by hur-
riCane. Much Of it has been burned, and
the tall chimneys standing all alone tell .
woful tale of ruin. Part Of the town II de-
stroyed by f1res caused By shell, and part
by the torch applied by Yankee hands: All
the lower and the upper portion Of the
town have been so shattered as to be unin-
habitable; the stores haye been Quilted Of
their shelving and counters to make dry
places for the countless thousands of YAM
KEGS wounded ut the Wilderness and
Spottsylvania to lie on. Tie churches have
been repeatedly struck, and SO have most Of
or thirty holes in the fine mansion of Doug
las Gordon, which was nearly complete be-
| fore the war broke out. A shell had passed
diagonally through and through the house
in which I stayed, and one had exploded in
the parlor under the room In which 1slept.
Looking out Of my bedroom window,
snw naked chimneys and deserted homes
in every direction.
OF course / went to Marye's Hill and saw
! the famous stone fence which served rs a
rampant for our men. I walked over the
wide fields which the enemy had to pass
before they got within range Of our deadly
rifles, and stood under the tree which cobb
leaned against when he was killed. This
tree is Just behind the house Of Mr.. Ste
phens--a small frame building-which
must have 4 thousand bullet holes through
and throughit. Mr.. Stephens showed me
where Yankee amer Yankee was buried in
his garden, as many as twenty in some
/ which about thousand Of Burnside'sc
were piled and packed like dead mackerel
in a barrel. Many, very many other gar
dens and yards contain dead Yankees by
the score.
The stone fence il at the bottom Of hill,
and on that hill ID the fine old homestead
of the Maryes, now gone to wreck, with
i countless apertures made by sho. and shell
and open to all the winds that blow. All
it was a sad thing to tread the deserted
halls and chambers Of the old house, and
hear only the echo Of your own footsteps.
Not even rat squeaks behind the wain-
scot. The silence is awful. Outside the
house, and running through the yard,
which isstill beautiful with its shade trees,
are the rifie-pits, and on the hill tops are
heavy earthworks for artillery, all thrown
up after the battle of Fredericksburg had
been fought and won. Truly, Burnside'a
work had Just commenced when he reached
the stone fence. But-bat-why did moi
Lee follow up the repulse why did he mol
she'll the town and order q midnight %.
j! sault3 The peopleof fredericksburg, who
had been crouching all night in their Gel
liars, prayed that Leo might do this. If be
had, SUCH victory would have been won
-oh! such . victory. Too late. toolatenow
/ went over into Stafford county, oppo.
site fredericksburg, and there il wide
} wild scene or neutrality-suspicious. fences
NOR trees for leagueson leagues, houses de-
serted and burned, and 20 many roads tC
& the enormous camps Of Hooker, which ex.
tended nineteen square miles, that the old.
est inhabitants are in danger Of losing
J themselves. In their native county. The
i Lacy House ID baronial pile in the extent
t of it's buildings, and its terraced grounds
Il and gardens are in keeping. Ruin reigni
there also. The walls of the large old.
j fashioned rooms, and even the pillars Of
the porches are scrawled and bescribbled
with obscure Yankee names and obscene
) Yankee phrases and pictures. Further
!, back, on higher range Of hills, commando
/ ling the whole country, are the walls Of the
u Phillips House, which was burned out o.
q SPITE by StOneman, because his brother
. officers objected to his using it as his pri.
/ vate quarters. What q picture of ravaged
!. beauty is to be seen from the hight on which
: this house stands!
D Strange to tell. Stafford county, natural.
/ " sterile and sparsely peopied, Is now
; richer and more thickly settled than it has
been since the colonial days. 1t is deba-
3 table land, in which neither Confederate
) nor Yankee rule Is acknowledged, and II
t Is filled with deserters, who have grown
r rich by gathering and selling the immense
f debris Of Hooker's camps to Washington
] or to Richmond purchasers, as happened
+ to be the most convenient-for these law
81 Hooker's incredible relics have not We
; been all gathered in, for saw at Freder