River Falls journal. [volume] (River Falls, Pierce County, Wis.) 1872-2019, 1879-07-17
sTORMING OF STONY POINT.

night of the 9Th OF July. Starting ou'
from Sandy Beech, fourteen miles above
Stony Point, at noon on tins date, Wayne
f and his twelve hundred infantry took up
+ the line of march over roads and paths
so excessively bad and narrow that it was
eight o'clock IN the evening before the
van reached the vicinity of the enemy s
position. Compelled to pass over high
mountains, across deep morasses and
through difficult ravines, the column
was stretched out the greater part OF the
lay in single file, and only recovered its
formation at the final halt. The point
where they stopped was near tie house OF
one Springfield, mile and a half from
. the British works, and there Wayne made
has last disposition for the assault. First
he went forward with his principal of
ticers, and reconnoitered the approaches
to the fort. Returning, he divided his
force into two storming columns--so far
modifying Washlngton's plan, which
proposed but one such column-and ar
ranged all details 1t is interesting to
note that one of the last things the bold
soldier sat down to do was to write let
ter to friend, expressing his emotions
on the eve of the desperate work he sup
posed he had in hand, and to request
that the education of his children be pro-
vided for II am called to sup" he wrote,
"but where to breakfast? Either within
the enemies lines in triumph, or in an
other world"
The plan as finally decided upon was
TO advance simultaneously, on the right
and left, and break through into the
works from opposite points. His right
column, which Wayne made the strong
est, VAS composed Of Febiger's Virginia
men, then Meigs' Massachusetts follow
ing. The left consisted of the Pennsyl-
vanians and Marylanders under Butler,
and Murfrees North Carolinians in the
rear. The final instructions to the comps
were pointed and imperative. Both coll
umns We're to move to the assault with
unloaded muskets, and do the work with
the bayonet alone. # any man should
attempt to load his piece on the way, he
was to be put to death upon the spot.
The utmost silence was to be observed
until the main work was gained, when
all, as they entered, were to shout the
watchword of the night" The forts oar
o1n!" To distinguish them from the
enemy IN the darkness of the night,
every soldier and officer was ordered t.
fix piece Of white paper in ''the most
conspicuous part of his hat or up. / nat
the main bodies might meet with as few
obstacles as possible in then forward
course, each was to be preceded by a
''foIlorn hope" which VS. to act as a
surprise party; and still IN front of this
were TO be place tw lty volunteers, I'M
der determined Illcer, who were to cut
away the abat;j For the right column
the '<torlorn | Cpe" consisted OF one hun
bred and l.ty men, under the gallant De
| Fleury, md the advance guard of twenty,
undCI Lieutenant Knox, of the Ninth
| Pc nsylvania; for the left column Major
otcward led the one party, and Lieuten-
ant Gibbons, of the Sixth Pennsylvania,
the other These officers had been as
signed to these posts of honor either by
lot or because of their previous knowl-
edge of the ground. Finally, all things
arranged the whole body moved forward,
at half-past eleven O'Clock at night, when
steadiness and determination that
urged nothing but success.
As in the case of all military exploits
where victory depends upon precision
and rapidity, the assault which now oc-
CURED was accomplished In a remarka-
bly, brief space of time. Three-quarters
of an hour after midnight, and all was
over. Even Caesars condensed dispatch
would have been too long to annouce the
result, The light infantry came, and
conquered. They "saw" nothing; it was
dark
Twelve O'Clock was the time of the ac-
tual charge to begin. To reach the Point |
within assaulting distance it was neces-
sarv to cross the intervening marsh as
quickly as possible. Here there was an
unexpected obstacle in the overflow of
the tide, and ia enty minutes We're lost
valuable time Just then, but fortunately |
not fatal loss. AS the two columns |
neared the enemy, Murfrec and his North |
COrolinians, by previous instructions, |
took position directly in trent of the |
British works, and opened a rapid and |
continuous fire, for the purpose of draw |
ing attention to themselves, while the |
storming parties moved on silently ON the |
right and left. This ruse contributed to |
the night success. Immediately there Is
hot work in progress. The hoped-for
surprise Is out of the question, for the |
enemys pickets have given the alarm.
In ten minutes every man Of the gar
rison is up, completely dressed and |
at his proper station. If the fort is to be |
taken now, only hard fighting can do it.
Meanwhile a mighty courage and resolu- |
lion seem to urge on the American in |
fantry with an irresistible momentum |
Toe valiant Wayne, determined to share |
the perlls as well as tie glories of the en- |
terprise, leads the right column. spear in |
hand. Not man falters. AS they APP |
proach the two formidable lines of abatis |
ah!ch stretched across the point in front
of the main works, the fire from the enc
mv's musketry becomes tremendous and |
incessant" Although on account of the |
the darkness much of its effect is lost, |
men nevertheless here and there begin to |
fall in the ranks of the light infantry |
Lieutenant Colonel Hay, of Pennsylvania,
,'bravely fighting at the head of his bat
talon. is wounded in the thigh. Cap |
tain Ezra Seldom of Lyme handsome |
young officer, fresh from Yale College at |
the opening of the war, but nov II vet |
eran of tour campaigns, and belonging |
to Colonel Starts First Connecticut, re-
ceives a wel-nigh fatal wound in the |
side. Though weak from loss of blood, |
he makes his way into the fort. shot
breaks the standard of Meigs' regiment, |
but Ensign Ib' abod Spencer tears the
colors off, winds them round his arm and
keeps charging on. Out of TWEEN
ty of one of the advance parties,
seventeen are either killed or wounded.
But on, on, the two columns go. The
ascent is rocky, even precipitous. 1T
takes time to open passage through the
Instructions, and men continue to fall.
At the second abatis Wayne receives a
| fiesh-wound in the head. Thinking it
fatal at the moment, he calls on his two
aides, Captains Fishbourn and Archer, TO
carry him along, that he may die in the
| fort. In five minutes more the work is
DONE The head of the right column
reaches the sally-port of the main fort
| first, and the first man in it is De Fleu-
nv. "The forts our own he shouts, and
tnen strikes the enemy's colors with his
own hands. Right after him, spreading
along and climbing over the parapet, fol-
| low the forlorn hone and TIE main col
umn. Lieutenant Knox is the second
man in. Sergeant Baker, of Virginia,
wounded four times during the assault,
is the third. Sergeant Spencer, from the
same State, IS the fourth, with two
wounds Wounded twice also is Sergeant
Dunlap, of Pennsylvania, the fifth man
over the works. The rest come swarming
in On the other side the left column