Daily intelligencer. [volume] (Wheeling, Va. [W. Va.]) 1859-1865, 1865-01-21

0 severly if not fatally wounded, while every
Q member of Gen. Ames's staff and nearly
3 every regiment commander was either
s killed or wounded. The loss of all, or al
Q least so large number ofi,his officers had
= disorganized and CONFUSED bis men, 80 that
it was almost impossible to get them into
the closing labors wbicbf with some three
hundred fresh and organized men to rally
his men about, it was thelopinion OF the
General might be successfully and glori-
. ously accomplished. simultaneously with
the message tho Admirals sent another,
saying that the enemy appeared to be land
ing re-enforcemeuts at Fort Buchanan, and
word was received from Gen, Paine that
Hoke has driven in his pickets at the north.
ern defensive line.
Gen. Terry reflected Hipment, with an
anxious eye, held a hastY consultation
with Lieut.. Col. Comstock, and then told
Gen. Ame's messenger to ASSURE the latter
that in an hour he should have the aid of
Abbotrs brigade, and to hold that ground
he had. a Conrier-wa Instantly dispatched
for Col. Abbott to move up with his brigade
and notify Gen. Paine to so dispose his
forces as to fill the gap occasioned by the
withdrawal of Col. Abbott's troops iu
other words, to attenuaCe his line suffici-
entity to occupy the entire northern defeu-
siVe works which be could do with safety,
owing to the added strength given them by
the six howitzers prudently planted there
the night before. Gen. Terry ordered the
assault to be made upon Fort Fisher.
e. An anxious hour was spent until about
dark, when the Colonel dashed up close
behind his gallant men. They advanced
Immediately up the river beach, and
though the moon soon after rose hut little
past its full, we could see nothing but the
| fash, of musketry in increasedl frequency
upon the dark outlines of the fort An
other hour, two, three, of cruel anxiety
went by and our hearts sank with the
chill of disappointed hope. Our men were
still slowly advancing, and a dispatch sta
ted that two thirds OF the fort was ours
We bad all the north part of the work, oc-
cupied the northern @traverses, AAad had
swept around N their rear up TO the cen.
trail fort or bastiou, which the rebels still
defended.
This bastion was the only inclosed por.
ton of the work; the two wings or cur
tains of successive traverses being open to
the plain or beach of,the Cape Fear river
in their rear. Intrenching tools were sent
forward and our men commenced con-
structiug earthworks, go as to, maintain
their position in case the work should
hold out till morning. About 8 o'clock
Gen. Terry, unable any longer to restrain
the anxiety from which he suffered, went
forward himself to examine the-pr0gress
made, and personally confer with General
.Aues. At ten o'clock precisely q Ffnging
cheer swellOd down upousthe night breeze
from the frowniug PHrFpe of the Slood
stained fort; anothaVs and another followed.
Lieut.. F. Z. BeaEdsleyI Chief of the Signal
Corps of the expediuonary forces, who all
day had stood to his duty exposed to the
sharpshooters of the fort, flashed u mes
sage from the General to the Admiral that
the fort was ours, and almost instantare-
ousiy the whole sky was ablaze with signal
rockets from the rejoicing feet.
| AbboPs Brigade was ordered to advance
upon Fort Buchanan, the stroug rectangu.
lar earthwork fort mile to the eastward
of the mound battery and mile and half
from Fort Fisher, before described. Here
the wounded Gen. Whiting aud Col. Lamb
had been conveyed, and some seven or
eight hundred of the garrison had it seems
retreated. Col. Abbot's forces moved up
the Cape Fear shore, and on arriving be-
fore the fort found that two officers had
been dispatched with flag Of truce to Of
fer the capitulation of Fort Buchanan, and
soon afterward they came ia accompanied
| by Capt. Graves, of Gen. Terry's staff, and
at IL o'clock the fort was formally surren =
dered. .--..-. --....-.-...'- q -
The interior of Fort Fisher was the most
complete picture. of destruction and DESC
laIion which it is possible to conceive.
The dead and dying lay thiokly strewn
along the pArapets aad upon the plain be-
hind as we'll as in front. The bomb proofs
were crowded with cringiug rebels, and
many of their wounded, estimated by one
of our surgeons who had made a hasty
survey, as. highss 500. The parapets sad
traverses were ploWed and corrugated By
shot and shell 10, every direction, as we IL
as the sand plain IN the rear of the works.
The barracks inside of the bastioR were
shivered into epiinters scarcely large
enough for stove wood, while the large
columbiads along the parapets were dis
mounted and strewn ia confusion amid the
wreck of their broken carriages Every
thing evinced the merciless and most in
fernal rain of death dealing and destroying
missiles that ever the world has seen.
Y To storm and expect to carry such a
work with the forces used by Geu, Terry,
without the aid extended by the navy,
would be the height of folly; while, for
the combined 'navies' of the world to at
tempt to batter down, alone, earthworks
such as these, would be as foolish as for
them to essay to demolish Teneriffe.
AS to the number of prisoners l can
speak with tolerable exactitude. At half
past twelve o'clock the Provost Marshal
Informed Gen. Terry, in my presence, that
twelve hundred and seventy eight had been
brought in. had, in company with the
General, just Witne s5ed the formal surren-
der of Fort Buchanan, with prisoners, &C.
+ cording to Col. Abbotts estimate, not less
than eight hundred, while all the rebel
wounded were still remaiDing inthe bomb
, proofs and must have numbered Mt least