Wood County reporter. [volume] (Grand Rapids [i.e. Wisconsin Rapids], Wis.) 1857-1923, 1864-06-16

"Cio pIaCeu III the forefront to receive the
baptism of fire, but behind these Law the vet
Grams ofHilfs corps, and it is these we now see
dashlng forward to retrieve the honors We
had snatched. Barlow's brigades--stout hearts
not used to pale before the greatest odds
could have held their owa under conditions
the least short of desperation, but the sirua
ton in which they now found themselves
oerleaped its limits. It was not merely the
overwhelming front that came pressing down
| upon them, of that they had no fear, but the
position they had gained placed them in ad
vance Of the whole line Of battle, and gave
the rebel artillery the opportunity for dead
| ly enflading fire. Beside this they had lost
the directing heads of two Of the chief com
manders, Brooks and Byrnes, "souls Of cour
age all compact" fell mortally wounded, and
| all the organizations had suffered fearfully
from an unparalleled loss Of officers. In this
state Of facts they fell back, bringing with
them the prisoners they had taken and a cap.
tured color, but not the guns They fell back
but not to their original position; to posi-.
ton far in advance Of that they had held
and at different points not more than fifty
yards from the enemy. Here they intrenched
and here | leave them to pass on to Gibbons
division of the same corps on the right, and
which was engaged at the same time.
Gibbons advanced simultaneous with Bar.
low, but in moving forward, he came upon
one of the swamps of the Chickahominy,
which had to be turned or overpassed, in the
process Of which it became very difficult to
establish the connection between different
parts Of his line. This overcome, however
his troops pressed forward with the same
Vigor that marked the conduct of their com
paniOn division on the left. Parts Of the
brigades of Tyler and Owen gained the rebel
works, but for reasons identical with those
that forced back Barlow's troops they also
were compelled to give: up what they had
won. Gibbons division, too, lost very heavi-
ly. In giving way, it also was far from los
ing all the ground it had gained. 1t took up
an advanced position, close to the enemy,
and just over the crest, the rearward slope of
which was held by the rebels. This position
it has retained during the day, and McKean's
brigade has held all day a position within
fifteen yards of the enemy's works.
THE KEY POINT OF THE BATTLE, AND HOW IT WAS
Not until the splendid attack of Hancock
corps had been made, not till after its blood
bought victory had been wrested from our
hands, was he or any man in this army aware
Of the supreme Importance of the position
this morning carried and lost. The key
point in the battle of Gaines Mills, two years
ago, it is strange and notifying that no one
should have appreciated its value This DO
sition is bald hill, named "Watts' Hill
dominating the whole battle ground, and COW
ering the angle of the dispatch Road
Along this ridge the rebel works formed a
salient, and in front of it was sunken road.
Of this road Hancock got possession, and the
brigades Of Miles and Brooks actually struck
and carried the work directly on the salient |!
Had we held this point, we should have had
position whence the entire rebel line might
have been enfladed ; and think it is not too
much to say that that the day would have
been ours, and Lee pushed across the Chick
ahominy. Had we even known in advance
its commanding Importance, very different
dispositions for attack would have been
made; we would have massed on the left
and made this victory certainty. These
considerations certainly inspire bitter regrets:
but who do does not know that it is on pre-
cisely such contingencies that the fate of a
battle often hangs?
THE LEFT CENTER AND CENTER-wRIGHT AND
SMITH.
simultaneously with the attack of the Sec
ond Corps, the Sixth, under Wright, con-
Meeting on the left with Hancock, made
general advance at quarter before five
o'clock-each division assauting on the en-
tire line. Of this corps, the Second Diyis-
ion (McNeilD held the Fight the Third Df-
vision Riohetsel she eentrn, and the First
Division (RusselD the left. Five batteries,
under charge of the Chief of Artillery of the
Second Corps, Col Tompkins--namcIy
Adams First Rhode Island Battery, Cowan's
First New York, independently Hahn's Third
New York, independently McMartin's First
and Rhodes First Rhode Isl
and, were planted in good positions and did
effective service in covering the advance.
The assault of the Sixth Corps was made
with the utmost Vigor and succeeded in car
rying the first line of rebel rife-pits along
its entire front, and got up within two hun
dred and fifty yards of the main works.
Smiths Corps, connecting on the right with
the 9th, had advanced III con junction with it;
but the left division, that under Martindale,
who led the attack in heavy deep columns,
got disarranged and was repulsed. Gen.
Smith made three different attacks to relieve
Martindale, but his last supports did not get
up in time to allow him to held on. The eff
feet of this repulse on the left of Smith had
disastrous effect on the position of Wright.
1t uncovered the right flank of the 9th, and
exposed Ricketts, division, which was stoutly
holding the advance position, to a savage
fire on the prolongation of its line In this
state of facts, to retain possession of posi-
ton somewhat in advance of his point of
starting was the utmost Gen. Wright could
possibly do.
OPERATIONS ON THE RIGHT AND RIGHT-CENTRE-
WARREN AND BURNSIDE.
Operations along the fronts Of Warren and
Burnside were of an Importance quite subor-
dinate to that of operations on the left No
results were achieved except the carrying of
the line of rife-pits occupied by the rebel
skirmishers. The Fifth and Ninth Corps no.
where struck the enemy's main work. Burn
side kept up furious cannonade for some
hours; but it was nothing-uor ct preteyea
Mill. From the tenor of one of Burnside's
morning dispatches, it was at one time hoped
that he would be able to turn the enemv's
left; but this hope also was doomed to disap-
pointment.
South AMERICAN AFFAIRs-Kar betueeq
Peru a,"t Spain.--The Ocean Queen from As
pinwall on the Goth ult., brings important in
telllgence from the Pacific coast of South
America, in reference to the effect of the re-
cent proceedings of the Spanish Admiral and
Commissioners in commencing war on Peru,
| by the seizure of the Chincha Islands and