The daily dispatch. [volume] (Richmond [Va.]) 1850-1884, 1875-02-10

" Hips division, 6 In Magruder's COM
,nand fcomposed of 3 divisions Of 2 brigades
eacbI. In Huger's division, and 2 IN
Writings djyision-in all, q. General Lee
had 80 brigades Of infantry under his com.
mand In the battles around Richmond-to'
wit G in Lopgstreets. division, O In A. +.
HIPS division, ! 10 d. III. HIPS division, IN
GLIDING Ripley's brigade; 6 In Magruder's
4 In Huger's division, including
Ransom's brigade from Holiness command;
2 In Holiness division, Including Wises
small brigade; and under Jackson, IN
GLIDING his own division 81 3 sbrigades,
Ewelps Of 3brigades, Whiting's2 brigades:
and Lawton's brigadc-the twelve brigadcs
added after Seven Pines being Ripley's, Law
toms. Ransom's, j. G.. Walkers, Danieps,
Wise's e reglments), aud the brigades OF
jackson and Ewell-making the twelve.
All Of this appears from the official reports
contained 10 the first volume Of the Reports
OF the Operations of the Army of North
ern Virginia fer 1862. Ripley's was the
first brigade that arrived, aud IN his report
(page 234) he says: 1.-THE aggregate force
which entered into the series OF engagements
on, the 26th Of June was twenty.three bun
bred and sixty six, including pioneers and
the ambulance corps" But you suggest that
the large brigades may have been divided,
aud a portion Of them distributed in other
brigades. Ripley says: "1u conclusion,
heS to remark that the troops of this bri-
gade, arriving at Richmond just after the
battle Of Seven Pines, were ordered immed'.
ateiy to the front, and performed picket ana
outpost duty with Slight internission until
the march towards Mechanicsyille. TWO OF
the regiments-tbe First and Third North
Carolina-had been some time in service,
but not In action. The Forty-fourth and
Forty.eighth Georgia were new troops, ana
it is perhaps 10 be regretted, as the whole
| we're engaged for the first time, that some
further opportunity could not have been al.
| fordcd for perfecting their organization ana
| discipline as brigade"
The fair inference from this statement is,
that the four regiments mentioned eoDstitu-
| ted the whole Of his brigade when he brought
| it to Richmond, and his report shows that
the whole OF them were still in the brigade.
The next bligades that came were Holiness
tbree-to wit: Ransom's, j. G. Walkers,
land Daniels. Ransom says, on page 800:
| ON the oath ultmo the brigade left Peters.
burg for Richmond, with orders to report to
General Lee. About 10 O'Clock at night |
reached Richmond, with the Twenty.fitth
North Carolina volunteers, Colonel Rut-
iedse), the Twenty-fourtb, Thirty-fitth, and
Forty.ninth having preceded-the Twenty
sixth and Forty-eighth being left to follow"
This, then. was bis whole brigade, and on
page 3GS he repeats the enumeration of his
regiments, stating that the Forty-eighth
North Carolina was absent on duty with the
brigade of Walker. He says: "Tbe effective
force present was about three thousand" He
had in some previous skirmiShes lost about 10
men in killed and wounded. Taking the ave.
rage for the strength of the absent regiment
and We make the whole force brought by
him about 300. On page 325 Colonel
Mining. commanding Walkers brigade,
says: "The brigade, composed of the Third
Arkansas, Thirtieth Virginia, Fifty-seventh
Virginia, Twenty-seYenth North Carolina,
and Fifty.siXth North Carolina regiments,
and the Second Georgia battalion, Captains
Frcnchs and Branch's light batteries, and
Captain Goodwn's cavalry company-in all
amounting to about four thousand men and
officers crossed the pontoon.bridge- and
reached General Huger about II O'Clock NJ.
on Friday the 9th of June" The Fifty
seventh Virginia was subsequently, trans
ferred to Armistcad's brigade, and in its
place was put the Forty-eighth North Caro-
lima. On page 151, Holmes says the brigade
returned to him on the 29,h of June, with
5000 effective men and two batteries. On
puge 322, Daniel says bis brigade, composed
Of the Forty fifth, Forty-third, and Flftieth
North Carolina regiments, two batteries Of
artillery and battalion Of cavalry" all
about seventeen hundred effective men,
left Drewry's Bluff Oh the 10Th Of June and
crossed the river at the pontoon.bridgcs.
HolmeS says the infantry Of Daniels bri.
gadc was 1870 strong. On page 3l9 Wise
puts bis infantry at 814 and his artillery at
147-aggrcgate, 96l. This brigade properly
belonged or had belonged to Huger's divi-
sion, and did not constitute part of the
troops brought by Holmes to the army
Holmes says the battalion Of cavalry num-
bered $50 men; and on page 40 is return
10y Colonel DeShler, showing in the four bat
terics with Walkers and Daniels brigades,
an effective force of 29G. Taking the fore
going Ggures-to wit, 300 infantry in Ran
SONS brigads, 5000 in Walkers, 1910 in
Daniels, 96l infantry and artillery in Wisc's,
100 cavalry and 296 artillery men, and we
have 1025I as the whole force added to the
army from Holiness command. including
Wise's, and.wlthout the latter, 9,296. This
latter number constituted the whole force
brought by Holmes from his department
after Seven Pines, even if the cavalry
and artillery belonged 10 if. On
page go, in speaking Of the charge
Of his brigade, he first 1t had
been III, Lawton says: "a continuous line
CT thir.y-tive. hundred men moving forward
il rerfect order into the wood, and at once
opening fire along its entire length, (chietly
armed with Enfield ritles,) made decided
impression, and promptly marked the pre-
poudcrance Of musketry sound on our side,
as was observed by other commanders on
the field" Lawton's brigade was composed
of six regiments, and its organization was
never changed. 1t may have had pear six
thousand men on paper, but the above is the
ettectiye strength with which it came to Vir-
ginia. By iEquiring of him you will Cpd
that I am correct. From the battle OF
Sharpsburg twas in the division command.
ed byrme, and it never after that time
reached three thousand men. Drayton's
brigade did not come to Virginia until
after the battles around Richmond. 1t was
composed Of the Fifteenth South Carolina
and the Fiftieth and Fifty-frst Georgia
regiments and Third South Carolina
battalion. A part, if not all of it,
was engaged In the fight at Secession
vile, S. c., on the 10th of June, 1862.
Its first engagement in Virginia was
Gu the Rapphannock the 25th of August,
1862. After Sharpsburg it was so small that
it was distributed among some other brigades
in Longstreet's corps. 10 roster Of Long
streets corps, published in the Banner Of the
South BY General Alexander, the history OF
The regiments composing Drayton's brigade
is given. Coming to Virginia after the
seven days battles it, Of course, had no effect
in increasing General Lees numbers at these
battles. There is some strange mistake on
vollr part or that of General DraytOn. about