The Charleston daily news. [volume] (Charleston, S.C.) 1865-1873, 1870-07-06
FREDERICKSBURG.
THE CONFLICT OF THE BLOODY
HEIGHTS.
Thrilling scenes-The Famous Charge
Of the Irish Brigade.
TFRoM OUR OWN CORRESPONDENT /

[FRoM OUR OWN CORRESPONDENT
FREDERICKSBURG, VA, June q.
How natural the transition from the gloomy
Businesses of the Chickahominy to the sterile
shades of the Wilderness" The vast armies
which struggled through that week of agony
in the river-swamps, relaxed their interlacing
death-grapple for very weariness and decima-
ton, but ere the vast pail Of smoke had drifted
away, they met again in conflict. The attack
from the east had failed most disastrously. and
the northern lines of advance were reopened.
The Confederacy changed front, crushed the
Army of the Potomac on Bull Run, sent its boys
into lukewarm Maryland, beat that unfortun-
ate army again at Antietam, and then fell back
with vast plunder and glory enough for doz-
en- campaigns. Once more, at Fredericks-
burg, the ever-vctorious Southern army and
the ever-beaten Northern legions were brought
face to face. For one thing let ns give due
credlt-tbere was never before an army which
was so often and so terribly beaten, so outgen-
eralled. out-fought and outmarched, and yet
held so well together. With one man out ofeve-
nv three stricken from the rolls Of the battles of
June, it had braced itself to meet another san
culinary scourging In August, and was none
the less ready to cover Sharpsburg Heights
with $4,000 of its dead and wounded ia Sep
tember In December, with full ranks silken
banners, superb artillery, and all the pride of
war, they "came up to the scratch once more
smiling, as pugilists say. as though they bore
the unstained prestige OF dozen victories.
Thus from the ''loins of the frozen North"
new multitude had reinforced the veterans Of
the two years Of vicissitude, and their united
masses overhpng Fredericksburg and the lit
tie Southern army in occupation thereof.
Brave little army, shedding its best blood at
every step, it always found the weak spot in
the enemy's armor; and as unerringly and as
fatally as the sword of Achilles, 1t pierced to
the vitals On the day of the December mas
sacre under Marye's heights, one more deep
wound was scored through the rich mail of the
ill-starred Hector.
After an infinite annoyance from the Mlssis-
sippi rifles, which called down tremendous
fire of artillery from his batteries, Burnside
had succeeded in throwing his pontoons across
the RappahannOck, and then the grand divi.
slons fled over in solid mass-one steady
stream of regiments and batteries, bands and
banners, crossing into that shattered city, and
deploying toward the grim heights beyond.
There was no battle here-it was only q vast
massacre. In the face OF such detences, held
by such men, the Old Guard Of Napoleon, the
Tenth Legion of Cesar, the Macedonian pha-
lanx of Alexander, would have quailed and
fled. A division would pour out from the city,
form beautiful and imposing line, advance
by brigades steadily up within rifle range, per-
haps squirt up with cheer within a few yards
of the stone wall that encircles the hill, and
then when the river of men had diminished to
a mere waving rlll, they broke and fled In
panic to the horror-stricken army waiting in
the outer streets of the city. And then
fresh division, leaping into line, went
through the same ordeal, and LETT
the green meadow tesselated with their
dead. Hancock led $500 men to the assault
IN ffteecn minutes 2Ola of them were shot
down. Then in rapid succession the COM
mands of French, Howard, Sturgis and Getty
marched out entered the line Of fire, broke,
and streamed back across the fields. When
the order came for the Irish brigade to storm
the hill, the whole Northern army held its
breath. This was the finest body of men on
the field-it had held the works at Galness
Mill against inundating masses of Confede-
crates and when orders came for its retreat,
it marched out in the twilight with flags
flying, music playing, and company lines as
nicely dressed as if on review. Hilps division
could hardly help cheering at their splendid
audacity. So now they moved out with the
battle-iight on their faces, and as they entered
the jaws Of death, they gave wild Fonte-
noy yell, and dashed toward the wall.
Minutes were hours-inchcs were miles
in that corpsc-strewn field. On they went,
beyond tie farthest point reached by any
previous command--on and on! In three
minutes more they will have crossed
the fame-scarped wall; but the roar of the
cannon above and the rattle Of the rifles below
swells louder; every bullet finds Its billet; the
line doubles into "; the TANKS melt away;
the cheering ceases; the advanced colors stop,
waver, turn back; the invncble Irish brigade
is broken and in full flight The boys in gray
Jumped upon and over the wall, cheering and
exultaut. They wanted to charge sack, to
enter the city, to show how they used the
bayonet and bore the flag. But in the twilight
another dense array was seen approaching.
It'was Humphreys division, 1000 empty mus
kets, ordered up by General Burnside, against
the entreaties of his corps commanders. With
deadly earnestness they came on. The fire
sackened at some points along the Southern
line, as ammunition failed, but one more long
crash of shell and canister and riae-balls. and
Humphrey fell back, leaving 100 men piled
on the field. 1t was the last attempt. The
proad old flag was humbled once more; the
Potomac army had lost l5,oee more men: and
on this field, so much resembling Bunker Hill
and New Orleans in its features, one more vic
tory was inscribed on the battle-fags Of the
A. N. V.
Behind that stone wall was long line of
troops from the far SouGil-prominent among |
whom were the 24th North Carolina and Cobb's |
Legion, brave men from sister States. These |
were men who had hunted the wild duck from |
the Santee to the north end of Currtuck, and |
Renewed mOuntaneerS from Rutherford. |