The New York herald. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1840-1920, 1865-01-14
WHINING TON.
The Demonstration Against
Fort Fisher.
Reports Of Generals Butler, Weitzel
and AmeS.
.~~~~~~~~~>~~~~~~~~--~>
The Delay Of the Navy the Cause Of the
Failure Of the Expedition.
General Weityeps opinion as to the Effect Of
an Assault on the Fort.
Interesting Correspondents Between Gen.
rails Grant and Butler,
&C., &C., &c.

aAe expedition against Fort Fisher, As the report
Il Rear Admiral D. D. Porter has been published in the
papers, would respectfully request that General But
ss report with all the papers accompanying it, be also
given 70 the public Very respectfully your obedien'
asvant U. s. GRANT, Lieutenant General
Major General Buffers Report.
HEADQUARTERS VIRGINIA NORTH CARDINAL
ARMY JAMES
In THE FIELD, Jan. 8, 1866
Lieut. General o. 8 GRANT. Commanding Armies Of the
United States:-
0nERA-on the It'll Of December last in obedience tc
POUR ORDERS moved force Of about sxtyhve hundred
N,b0o) effective men, consisting Of General Ames div
don of the Twenty corps and General Paines dv
SION Of the Twenty NTH CORPS under command Of Major
General wetze, to an encampment near Bermuda
On the 9Th the troops embarked for Fortress Monroe
On the 9th friday reported TO Rear Admiral Porter
That the portion Of the conont expedition directed
against Wilmington was ready TO proceed
VIC waited there Saturday. the 10th Sunday, the llth,
end Monday, the 18th.
On the 18th Rear Admiral Porter informed that the
naval dce would sail the 18TH but would be obliged TO
put into Beaufort to take board ammunition for the
Monitors
The expedition having become the subject Of remark,
fearing lest it's destination should get TO the enemy,
srder direct from all attention, the morning Of
Tuesday the 18TH three O'clock ordered the trans
port proceed up the Potomac during the day 10
Matthias Point, to be plainly visible TO the scouts
and signal of the enemy the Northern Neck and
retrace their night and under the lee
u Cape Charles
Having given the navy thirtys hours start, mt
twelve O'Clock noon, Of the 14h wednesday, Joined
the transport feet Cape Henry and put sea- arriving
at the place of rendezvous Off New Inlet near Fort
Fisher on the evening OF the 18th tThursdayl
We there waited on the navy Friday the ION sa,nr,
tha1 and nnhn
had the finest possible weather and the smoothest
sea
Beaufort the place Of rendezvous That evening tho
sea became rough and Monday, the 10Th, the wind
uprang up freshly SO that was impossible TO land
ssoops and by the advice OF Admiral Porter, commun
Gated to by letter, directed the transport fleet TO
psndexvous at Beaufort This was matter Of necessity
because transports being coaed and watered for ten
days had already waited that timc-to wit: from the 9th
Che day on which we were ready 70 sail to the 10th
Thursday and a3d (Friday) it blew a gale. was
cupied In coaling and watering the transport fleet at
Beaufort The Baltic having large supply of coal was
enabled TO remain ut the place OF rendezvous with a
brigade board OF twelve hundred men, and General
Ames reported to Admiral Porter that he would coope
On the 2sd sent Captain Clark, Of my stan, from
Beaufort, on the fast sailing armed steamer Chambern,
~ Admiral Porter to inform him that the evening OF
Abe oath would again be ~ the rendezvous, with the
transport feet for the purpose Of commencing the attack
n the weather permitted
sight OF Fort Fisher and found the naval feet engaged Ia
fombarding II, the powder vessel having been exploded
Or The morning previous about one o'clock.
Through General weitzel arranged with Admiral Por
Ser TO the landing under the Of the gun
boats 40 early eight o'clock the next morning II pos
sbie as the fire OF the Half Noon and Flag Pond
Hin batteries had been senced These are up the shore
some two or three miles above Fort Fisher
Admiral Porter was quite sangune that he had senced
Shc guns OF the Fort Fisher He then urged, that
we're 80 20 run BY The Fort into Cape Fear river ana
then the troops could land and hold the beach without
tbc liability o. being shelcd BY the enemy's gunooats,
he Tallahassee being seen In the river
II is TO be remarked that Admiral Farragut even had
never taken fort except BY running by and cutting
Oh from all prospect of reinforcement ~ Fort jackson
and Fort Morgan, and that no casemaed fort had been
senced by naval fire during the war; that the Al
would put his ships in the river, the army could
supply him the beach, as we had proposed TO DO
Yarrau at Fort ST. Philip; that least the blockade Of
Wilmington would be eiectual, even II We did not cap
To that the Admiral replied that he should probably
lrse boat by torpedoes II he attempted to run by He
rem nded that the army mght lose hve hundred
by the assault and that his boat would not weigh
IN the balance, even In money point Of view, TOT
moment with the lives Of these men The Admiral de
sned going by and the expedition deprived OF thai
Al twelve oclock noon Of the 25h Sunday, Captain
ulesson commanding the covering division OF the neot,
seported the batteries slenced aud hs vessels IN posi-
nv flagship stood In within eight hundred yards u the
beach and at once commenced debarking The land ny
euccepsfuy effected Finding that the reronno eting
party h. landed could hold the shore, determined 10
Ind sporce with which assault might be- attempted
Breyef riradier General Curtis who deserves well for
es gnlantry and conduct Immediately pushed ~ his
brigade within few hupdred yards Of Fort Fisher cap
turing the half moon battery aud lis men, who were
taken on by the boats OF the navy This skrmish line
advanced within seventy I'VE ards OF the fort,
ieoted by the gtaes which had been thrown up in such
form as 70 give ccver--thc garrison being completely
kept their bombproos by the Are OF the navy which
very rapid and continuous Their sheis bursting over
The work with very considerable accuracy A. this time
We lost ten men wounded on the skrrish line by the
yheiIs from the fleet Quitting my flag ship went On
the o shs and % tsn, ss Sa.
visible. . appeared TO be a square Fashioned
cork Of very high relef fifteen feet surrounded BY
o vet ditch fifteen feet wide. IL was prct@ ted
from being envelopcd by assanliiDR force Ivy sto
sde which extended from the fort TO the on the one
sde and from the marshes Of the Cape Fear rver TO
No material damage TO the fort ne defensive work,
had been done Seventeen heavy guns bore up the
beach, protected from the ro Of the navy by travefses
eight ten feet high, which were undoubtedly bomb.
proofs II was easy TO maintain this positions but The
shsls OF thc navy which Kept tho enemy In their bomb
proofs, would keep my troops out When these ceased
hilng the parapet was fully manned
Lieutenant Wsiing, Of tho One Hundred and Forty.
seeond New York pressed mp TO the edge Of the ditch
ard captn red flag which had been cut down by she'll
rom The navy i r. mistake a. wa, 2. mr.. rsportea
Killed about third OF mile from the fort and his horse
taken.
svo hundred and eighteen men and ten commissioned
scers Of the North Carolina Reserves and ether pri
sousrs From Thorn learned that kirslsnds snd nap
khe Army OF the James near Richmond and we're within
two miles Of the Of my forces and their kmshors
were Then actually engaged, ana tnht .no 'em ' ~
Hokes division had come the night before TO Whining
I'm, and then the march also learned that
these troops le, Richmond Tuesday, the 10th Know
tns the strongb 81 Hokes division, found force
opposed TO outside the works larger than my own.
In the meantime the weather assumed threatening
speot The surf began 70 roll In that the landing
bseaDc difficult
AT this time General weiigc reported 20 that 70
sranlt the works. In his judgment and in that OF tho
experienced officers his command who had skirmish
nne with any prospect Of success impossible THIS
opinion conceded with own, and much az regretted
ia pcce ton fha ititV
~yas plain. Not strong work Pert FISHER had
been mkcn by Assault during this wnr ADD
lad 10 guide my experience OF Port Hudson, with
80 Uttered thOusands VA the rpuscd assault and
siss Aonble assault Of Fort Wagner where thousands
w~re rsorffced IN attempting 10 take less strong
shap Fort Fisher after u had continued and fully aa
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