Clarksville weekly chronicle. (Clarksville, Tenn.) 1873-1890, 1880-08-28
HANcOCK AT CmERURusCo.

Raphael Semmes' Account of the Young
Lieutenant's valor.
Raphael Semmes, since the ia
NOUS Confederate privateer admi-
raj, was at Cherubusco on the staff
of Gen. Worth, and in describing
| this affair he relates the following
anecdote: "We made great many
prisoners; many of them threw
themselves at our feet in the greatest
alarm and CONSERVATION. / hap
pened to witness an amusing scene
Just as came out upon the road. /
saw lying PROSTATE under the shade
trees a remarkably bully-looking
figure in the uniform of a Mexican
General and a soldier of one OF our
companies standing by him. Sup
posing the officer to have been kill
ed, inquired of the soldier if this
were the fact. Oh, no, sir, said.he; |;
'he is only little out of wind being
fat man; have just run him
down. The General afterward in
formed me that, in the hurry of the
retreat, his aid-de-camp had run off
with his horse, and that this was
the cause of his being captured, a
thing which, / suppose, could only
occur in Mexico"
Tt was in the hot fight for the bridge
at Cherubusco that Lieutenant Han
cock won his first brevet. The day
was perfectly clear, but the smoke,
as it rose over the heads of the COM
batants, formed a deep canopy that
partially obsoured the sun, and re-
flected back the vivid flashes of the
guns as they belched fire and iron
from the frowning fortification upon
the advancing ranks. Then it was
that it became the duty of the Sixth
Infantry to charge straight through
the hell of fire upon the works in
front of them. The rest of the brig
ade was ordered to move by the
flank, parallel to the road through
the fields; the Sixth was ordered
directly up the road to storm the
tete du pont. Lieutenant Han
cocks company, Captain Hoffman
in command led this terrible charge.
The Mexicans in the work whose
attention up to this time had been
directed to the troops advancing
through the corn on either flank,
seeing the gallant Sixth making
this direct assault, turned all their
guns upon it.
Some of the men recoiled under
the sweeping stroke of the artillery,
but the officers rallied them, and
with shout, they again rushed for
ward. But it was not to be done.
The awful storm of lead and iron
that poured down and across that
causeWay permitted no living thing
TO stand against it. In the words of
a staff officers report, 9the Sixth
infantry was met by 50 destructive
fire, ripping and cutting its ranks
in pieces, that it was forced to recoil
and fall back; which however was
done with the GOODNESS Of a parade"
General Worth, who was with the
advance on the flank, shQated to
Lieutenant Han6Ook's Company to
leave the deadly causeway and In
cline to the right in the corn. Then,
while still under a CALLING fire, they
dashed past at a doublequick, the
deep wet ditch that surrounded the
work, and carried it with tile bayO-
net, Lieutenant Hancock by the
side of his Captain, leading his men
to the embrasure and over the walls
without the ladders. The enemy
could not withstand the shock, but
gave way; and in a moment more
the cheers that rang out gave notice
to the brave fellows fighting along
down the line that the key to the
battlefield had been taken.