Lewistown gazette. [volume] (Lewistown, Pa.) 1843-1944, 1864-05-25


listening to the officer who brought the re-
port, and consulted a moment in low tones.
The orders for sending reinforcements were
given, and for little time not a word was
spoken III the group of more than twenty
officers. They but looked into each others
faces
/ At length Grant says, with laconic en-
phasis, " don't beiieveit He was right.
Long before that Hancock had recovered
from the first shock, held his own awhile
and now was gaining ground In forty
minutes from this attack the enemy was
completely beaten back with tremendous
slaughter, and the loss of some hundreds
OF prisoners.
1t was now nearly sunset From one
end of the line to the other not shot
could be heard. The days work seemed
/ over, Our line to night would be that of
last night The auguries were good. In
two days lighting We had lost heavily, but
not more than the enemy. Our assaults
had been futile, but the enemy's had been
equally so; and it is by these massed as
saults that he has ever achieved his Yicto.
ries
The inference was clear that we had
overmatched him fighting at his best and
strongest.
Men separated in TIE heat of the day,
now CHANGING to meet congratulated each
other. The rebels cant endure another
such day, and We can, was the expressed
conviction on all hands, and this statement
epltOmlzes the situation at sunset.
The sun went down red The smoke
of the battle of more than two hundred
thousand men destroying each other with
villainous saltpetre through all the long
hours of long day. filled the valleys, and
rested upon the hills of this wilderness,
hung in lurid haze all around the horizon,
and built dense canopy overhead, beneath
which this grand army of Freedom was
preparing to rest against the morrow.
Generals Grant and Meade had retired TO
their tents. Quiet .reigned, but, during
the reign of quiet, the enemy was forging
a thunderbolt.
Darkness and smoke were mingiug in
grim twilight, and fast deepening into
thick gloom, when we were startled out of
repose back into fierce excitement The
forged thunderbolt was Sped and by
master. A wild rebel yell away to the
right. We knew they had massed and
were charging. We waited for the volley
with which We knew Sedgwick would meet
the onset. We thought it but night at.
tack, to ascertain if we had changed our
position. We were mistak en-it was more.
They meant to break through, and they
did On Sedgwick's extreme right lay
the I'd Brigade, Sd Division of his corps,
under Gen. Seymour, who had been as
signed to it but the day before The bri-
gade is new to the 9th Corps, and is
known as the Milroy brigade, connecting
on the left Of Seymour by Shaler's and
the NeiPs brigades, the latter being bri-
gade of Getty's division that had not been
sent to Gen Hancock These troops were
at work intrenching when fallen upon.
The enemy came down like torrent, roll
ing and dashing in living waves, and
fooding up against the whole 9th Corps.
The main line stood ike rock, but not SO
the extreme right. That flank was instant.
ly and utterly turned. The rebel line was
the longer, and surged around Seymour's
brigade, tided over it and through it, beat
against Shaler, and bore away his right
regiments. All this done in less than ten
minutes, perhaps not five. Seymour's men,
seeing their pickets running back, and
hearing the shouts Of the rebels, who
charged with all their chivalry, were smit-
ten with panic, and, standing ON 10 order
OF going, went at once, and in an incredi-
BILE short time made their way through
mile and half of woods to the plankroad
in the rear They reported in the frantic
manner usual Of stampeded men, the entire
corps broken. Grant, as in Hancock S case
did not believe it. But when three of
Sedgwick's staff rode in to the army head
quarters separately, and stated how they
had ridden from Sedgwick's to keep Sey-
mour's men TO their work, had been borne
back by the panic, and had last seen Sedg-
wick and Wright hard to the front working
like Trojans to hold the wavering line, the
situation appeared moro critical. No word
came in from Sedgwick 1t began to be
feared that he and Wright, disdaining to
fly, were prisoners.
Artillery moved quietly TO commanding
positions, to be prepared for the worst, and
cool heads felt that were the whole 9Th
Corps broken, the army. as an army, would
still" be invincible. Warren's corps is in
stantly but In perfect composure, disposed
TO meet the situation. Grant, and Meade,
and Warren, are in Grants tent, to and
from which officers come and go with
\ certain earnest dir that bespeaks urgent
lnd important cares. So during an hour.
No firing has been. heard the last three
quarters OF an hour. The rebels must have
leased to advance; bat how far have they
penetrated, and what is the present situa-
ion?
The 9th Corps flag comes in Where