Daily Ohio statesman. [volume] (Columbus, Ohio) 1855-1870, 1864-06-03
The Scene of the Impending Bat

/
The situation of both the opposing ar
mics in yirginiais such, at the latest adj
vices, that a battle may be considered i'm
minent. In view of this fact a brief topo-
| graphical description of the battlefield may
not be uninteresting. Both armies are now
| in Hanover county. with the North Anna on
the north and the Chickahominy on the
south. Lees army, as is announced in
official dispatches from General Grant, is
on the Mechanicsville road south of the
| Tolopotonion river, one of the tributaries
of the Pamunkey, and between that stream
and Hawes' shop, with his right resting on
Shady Grove.
/ The surface of Hanover county is hilly
and the soil sandy, but there are few natural
impediments to the operations of an ar
my. Hanover Court House, the county
seat, is memorable as the scene of Patrick
Henry's early career, and as the birthplace
of Henry Clay. The object of Lee will be
vance of General Grant, and for this reason
he has selected field which covers all the
highways leading into Richmond. General
Grant seems inclined to give his enemy no
opportunity to move nOrthward, and there
fore has ordered the destruction of the
bridges over Little and the North Anna
rivers.
Lees left-assuming that he faces to the
south-is protected by the Chickahominy.
The road from Hanovertown crosses this
stream at Mechanicsville, which is on the
turnpike five miles northwestof Richmond.
There is another road Just in the rear of
this which also leads to the rebel capital.
In moving down these roads Gen. Grant will
encounter the lines of Lees army, and the
situation is so contracted that there is little
probability of another flank movement be-
ing successful. If the Chickahominy is in
tended by Lee as the last line of defense,
the position has been well chosen. The
stream itself is peculiarly adapted to the
defensive warfare. The river is a small
one, and flows sluggishly. 1t divides itself
into half dozen streamlets running into
and out of each other at random. These
water courses occupy space of about sey-
enty yards in width. Immense trees grow
up out of the water, and the entire stream
is covered by thick woods. 1t is re-
markable instance of river running
through and watering long strip of
land fiat surface extends for about half
mile. This is nearly always overflow
ed, and becomes an impossible mo-
rass. 1t is only when the water in the
river is very low that men can safely walk
upon the ground bordering it. On these
fiat surfaces there is not q solitary tree.
They are bare, and anything moving upon
them can easily be discerned. From the
borders of these plains, huge hills, in some
cases two and three hundred feet high, alb
ruptly rise. They are covered with thick
woods, and are SO steep that wagons cannot
be hauled directly up their face. The few
roads 60 down them diagohally to the
bridges, across the swamp and river. This
Chickahominy valley, one of the strongest
in America, is the outer defense of Rich
mond. From the tops of the hills on the
one side, across the swamp to the hill-tops
on the other side, the distance varies from
mile to mile and a half. The ordinary
twelve-pounder rifled Napoleon gun can
just throw shell from one hilltop to the
other. From the Fredericksburg Railroad
crossing down to New Bridge, distance of
eight miles, the Confederate works are all
along the hills on its southern border.