The Forest Republican. [volume] (Tionesta, Pa.) 1869-1952, 1885-10-14
THE SIEGE OF VICKSBURG.
EXTRACTS FROM GENERAL GRANTS
ACCOUNT OF THE FAMOUS sErGE.
Roginning of the Sicge-ExpIOding
Mines Before the City-Gonernl
PcmbereOm,s scheme 10 Escape.

Inc following EXTRACTS are taken llOh
General Grants account of the siege o.
vicksburg, published in the Century.
Describing the beginning of the siege
the general writes
1--WE had no siege guns except six
thirty-two Founders, and there were
none at the West to draw from. Admiral
Porter, however, supplied us with
battery of navy guns of large caliber, and
with these, and the field artillery used in
the campaign. the siege began. The
first thing to do was to get the artillery
in batteries where they would occupy
commanding positions; then, to establish
the camps, under cover from the fire of
the enemy, but as near up as possible;
and then to construct rife pits and COW
cred ways, to connect the entire COM
mand bv the shortest route. The enemy
did not harass us much while we were
constructing our batteries. Probably
their artillery ammunition was short, and
their infantry was kept down by our
sharpshooters, who were always on the
alert aud ready to fire at head when
ever it showed itself above the rebel
works.
ain no place were our lines more than
six hundred yards from the enemy. 1t
was necessary, therefore, to cover our
men by something more than the ordinary
parapet. To give additional protection,
sand-bags, bullet-proof, were placed
along the tops of the parapets, far enough
apart to make loopholes for musketry.
On top of these, logs we're put. By these
means the men were enabled to walk
about erect when off duty, without fear
of annoyance from sharpshooters. The
enemy used in their defence explosive
musket- balls, thinking, no doubt, that,
bursting over our men in the trenches
they would do some execution. lido not
remember single case where man was
injured by piece of one of these shells.
When they were hit, and the ball ex-
ploded, the wound was terrible. In these
cases a solid ball would have hit as we'll.
Their use is barbarous, because they pro-
duce increased suffering without any
corresponding advantage to those using
them.
"The enemy could not resort to our
method to protect their men, because we
had an inexhaustible supply of ammu-
milton to draw upon, and used it freely.
Splinters from the timber would have
made havoc among the men behind.
''There were no mortars with the be-
siegers, except those that the navy had
in front of the city; but wooden ones
were made by taking logs of the toughest
wood that could be found, boring them
out for six or twelve FOUNDER shells, and
binding them with strong iron bands.
These answered as coehorns, and shells
were successfully thrown from them into
the trenches of the enemy.
"The labor of building the batteries
and of lntrenching was largely done by
the pioneers, assisted by negroes who
came within our lines and who were paid
for their work; but details from the line
had often to be made. The work was
pushed forward as rapidly as possible,
and when an advanced position was Sc
cured and covered from the fire of the
enemy, the batteries we're advanced. By
the 30th of June there were two hundred
and twenty guns in position, mostly light
field pieces, beside battery of heavy
guns belonging to, and manned and
commanded by, the navy. Wewere now
as strong for defense against the garrison
of Vicksburg as they were against us /;
but knew that johnson wasin our rear,
and was receiving constant REINFORCE
ments from the East. He had at this
time a larger force than had had at any
time prior to the battle of Champion
Hilln
Writing about the explosion of mines
before the beleaguered city, General
Grant says:
''From the 23d of May the work oi
fortifying, and pushing forward oui
position nearer to the enemy, had beer
ateadily progressing. At the point or
the jackson road in front of Ransom'i
brigade sap was run up to the enemy''
parapet and by the 25th of June we hao
It undermined and the mine charged
The enemy had countermined, but die
not succeed in reaching our mine. At thi
particular point the hill on which stood
the rebel work rises abruptly. Our saI
ran close up to the outside of the enc
my's parapet. In fact this parapet wa:
also our protection. The soldiers of the
two sides occasionally conversed pleas
antly across this barrier; sometimes the,
would exchange the hard bread of tn
Union soldiers for the tobacco of tn
Confederates, and at other times the
threw over hand -grenades, the rebel
throwing them first, and our men ofte
catching them in their hands and return
ing them.
"Our mine had been started some dis
tance back down the hill; consequently
when it had extended as far as the para
pet, it was many feet below it. TIL
caused the failure of the enemy in h
search TO find and destroy it. On ii
25th of June, at 8 o'clock, all bein
ready, the mine was exploded. A heay
artillery fire all along the line had bee
ordered to open with the explosion. I'll
effect was to blow the top of the hi
off and make a crater where it stooC
The breach was not sufficient to enab
us tt pass column of attack through
In fact, the enemy, having failed
reach our mine, had thrown up liz
farther back, where most of the me
guarding that point were placed. Ther