Ellsworth American. [volume] (Ellsworth, Me.) 1855-current, 1883-10-25


a terribly significant silence They had nc
breath to waste. Knapsacks and haversack.
were thrown right and left, and through the
storm Of bullets rushed the 5th Wisconsin
to the rescue. A stalwart lieutenant of the
9Th Maine leaped on the parapet of the large
redoubt and shouted, "For Gods sake, 5tl
Wisconsin, hurry up The call was moi
needed. In another instant the line of bat
tie reached the rebel works. The greater
part of the 9TH Wisconsin rushed over the
parapets into the larger redoubt, the re.
malnder swept down the rifle pit to the left
and threw itself into the smaller one The,
emptied their rifles right and left among the
enemy, the muzzles sometimes touching the
bodies of their opponents
Men were found dead next morning with
their flesh scorched with powder. A terri
BILE and indescribable struggle ensued Ii
was "hand to hand and foot to foot" The
men from Maine and the men from Wscon-
SIN, without semblanCe of organization
fought side by side. The Louisianians
cut off from the pontoon bridge, and with
deep river in their rear, fought desper-
ately. Muskets were seized and torn froul
the grasp Of those who held them, and men
grappled and fought with their fists. In
side the large redoubt the melee was
trightful. The rebel artillery men stuck
| by their guns to the last, and fought
savagely with hammers, hand spikes, swords
or whatever was at hand. A handsome,
curly haired young man of the 9th Maine,
who curiously enough bore the name OF
JEFF Davis, killed one of the rebels with a
blow so terrible that the stock of his rifle
B pH NJ I-,,n ,fI
nents shattered to fragments The next in
slant he himself fell shot through the head.
I Sergeant Joe Goodwin, of Company A. 9Th
I Wisconsin, and the one or two others Of
| the regiment. wheeled one of the captured
cannons around to the rear of the traverse
\ on the left Of the redoubt, and seeing a line
I being formed near the pontoon bridge, ap-
Y parently to charge back upon the fort, hurled
among them double charge of canister in
tended for US, breaking them up and driv-
/ ing them away from the bridge As he put
his shoulder to the wheel to run the gun
back. he fell, shot through the heart.
7 These two regiments carried on this ter
rible and unequal struggle for fifteen or
twenty minutes, and in that time sixteen out
OF twenty -one commissioned officers and 4
! hundred and twenty three out of three hum
dred and fifty enlisted men Of the 9th Maine
had fallen, and of the 9TH Wisconsin, seven
officers and tfty-six men were killed or
wounded Wi,bou, cor,,orIar ,;,La,,.
y,ri1,,;o, tho nv, c,,,,.L, i.,.'Ir.. ..',
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M. I,r,. ra,jant,, IN,
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tho regim.n, vars .,.,.L 'io, I "'''''>r III
W,lt.~ ~I,,-I,I IT,, -mN.
~ N. r,h Mn. ht ="
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D'.',' - : ''o'' ''''' '''''! W.T.
inside 'he ioFt anu a Htt.e 70 the .tit ot
Oiu"AH iaN Lieut. Mchih.tN, p the bth
Na'"'' WIZ hiN nranN blown nnt- Around
h'm' too' IAy nan dozen OF ms men who
RI" ,ol!o"cd him y the dtath. lhu> \ VA
an a."hE lhW terrible me. he ar was
h''ed "itf medley OF shouts, Nhrek> and
Sf"Ah>' sails y surrender yel!N p Gctlancv
lmpFcca'ioH> ana curses, and through and
ah"'t Ali o'h.t sounds the uncea>!nE crash
ahN fattIe n musketrN he artillery nm
n"ti >!Ht' was silent, tor tedera!s and con
irGtfatt> were 80 mingled together that they
'"n,u ho' 'eh iritnd from foe
nat portion OF the Ntormlng party which
had passed 70 the .eit Of the larger redouot
'"eP' do"n tne r'iie PIT to and beyond the
smaller Tcdouot, crowdIns the enemy back
incn "a ihch toward the river az their rEht
nahk and rear. rs they were broken up
'hey would pass up toward the ponioon
oHdSe, thus strengthening their fellows M
the night, gong on around the larger rtlUubt.