The Tipton advertiser. [volume] (Tipton, Cedar Co., Iowa) 1856-1962, 1865-02-02

! shss describes tho havoc caused BY the
second bombardment: ..
"The interior Of Fort Fisher vas the
most compl6se pissurs Of DESTRUCTION md
desolation which il = possible b 6Oo.
oeive. The dead and dying lay thiekly
ssrewn slong the pafoPets and upon the
plain behind a we'll o. in front. The
bombproof wss crowded with Bringing
| rebels, and many Of the wounded, est.
mated by'ons gf our Surgeons Who made
|s hsssy survey, 81 high a 500. The
psrapets and tEsysrsAs Were plowed and
corrugated By shot and shell in every d.,
recsion, as wen IS the sand plsn 10 the
| resr Of the works. The barracks inside
Of tho rbsstiou we're shivered into spin.
tiers scarcely large enough for stove wood,
while the large oolumbiads along the par.
spsts were dismounted and strewn In
confusion amid tho wreck Of their bro
ken carriages. Everything sviuced the
| merciless, and most internal rain Of
death dealing missiles that the world has
ever seen. >. :, yq.,,. IDA aaa .snoi a,
Was i, then, any marvel sh.t General
Terry could undertake the daring assault
Gen. Weitzsll advised against and Gen.
Butler declined to order! / a,nv ,1gd
But the msligpsrs Of Gen. Butler have,
uuwittingly but yet inevitably, aroused
tho ire Of Gen. Weitzelvs friends, since
il Is impossible to losnsure Gen. Butler
without disparsgiDg the skill, energy,
and coursge Of Gen. Wsitzell. And 30
the Cincinnati Commercial thus defends
tho latter officer, BY comparing the cir
cumstauces attending bis failure and
those under which General Terry aehiev.
Cd bis brilliant success: .,.D-,. .. . .
l. The force under Gen. Terry was
considerably larger than that under Welt.
sell, and no had not superior officer
along to take the glory, without cepting
the danger and responsibility of the com.
msnd, With q powder boat 70 experiment
with, aud . quarrel with tho Admiral to
cultivate. r..
2. Terry bad, all tho time, the hearty
co operation of the feet. This Weitxsll
had not, and knew he could not have.
8 The second bombardment of Fort
Fisher was much more Efficient than the
first, The ships, on the second occasion,
took position nearer the Fort than they
did the first time, and made much better
artillery practice. !. .-a 49,. .~ s.
4. Terry had line of..works, armed
with artillery across the peninsula, be.
tween Wilmington and tho fort, end
was enabled to check the demonstrations
of Hoke's division to the resr. This wss
. vital precaution, and Weitsel had not
the troops, the guns or the time to take
it even If his instructions had contempla-
ted such thing, which they did not.
S. Terry was eficiently-iudeed, We
may say essentially-supportsd by q col.
umn of sailors and marines, two thousand
strong, put ashore BY Admiral Porter to
aboard the Fort," with "cutlasses vol
sharpened," and who advanced with
splendid gsllansry. drawing the attention
Of the enemy, and receiving the 6ercess
Of his FIRE, until Terry stormioe column,
Cd tie paTaPos. wsiszei had no promise
and no hope of such cooperation, and no
expectation of assistance Of this sort co.
tered into his calculations. :. ......
Now, We put it to the common sense
Of al men, if Terry, with oil the advan.
tages We have enumerated, was barely
able, after contest of the most doubtful
and sanguiuary character, protracted for
several hours, to carry the fort, what
would have been the fate of WeitxePs
men, it he had undertaken to storm tho
fort with them! Without more efici.
ent bombardment Of the fort, end the
diversion made by the sailors and marines,
be would have suffered bloody repulse;
and then, without line of works, With
howitzers, across the peninsula, Hoke's
division would have swept down and COB
bled the shattered column.
With these facts before them is it not
high time that oil those not entirely lost
to sence Of dscency, at once abandon their
sbuse Of Gen. Butler on the pretence Of
the Fort Fisher affair, aud, at least, base
it on the true grounds-their hatred of
bis vigorous treatment of rebels and trait.
orr. -Dovenport Gazette. #~