The Vermont watchman. [volume] (Montpelier, Vt.) 1883-1911, 1885-08-05
Incidents Preceding the Evacuation
of Richmond.

Incidents Preceding the Evacuation
of Richmond.
The night before Lees army aban-
doned their intrenchments to engage
in the memorable race toward Apo
mattoX Courthouse was an impressive
one. Sunday morning came in with a
sharp, brisk skirmish in our front at
Bermuda Hundred, to test the inten-
tons of the confederates and feel their
exact strength. The fight took place
in the gray dawn and only lasted
number of brave fellows who were long
ing for home, and for the end of the
contest, to fall where they fought.
When the sharp crack of the musketry
and rifles died away, the sun burst over
the tree-tops in unusual splendor and
brightness, and the Sabbath was a day
as uneventful as many before it had
been on that front. Where troops had
not trodden it, the young clover was
green and bright, and the woods fra
grant with fresh spring flowers and the
resin of the pine thickets. None deemed
the collapse of the rebellion so near at
hand. On that Sunday afternoon a
regular old-fashioned Methodist prayer
meeting was organized inside of the
confederate camp, and the men were
called together with the drum-beat.
Not breath of air stirred; and the old
time melodies, in deep and rich tones,
swept across the narrow space between
the two armies, and men usually IT.
reverent halted in their amusements
and Sunday occupations to listen rever-
emily. The eyes of many stalwart
soldier on the picket line were moist
when Old Hundred was intoned, at the
close of the exercises, by scores of con-
federate voices. AT that moment a
dozen pieces Of shotted artillery stood
in the embrasures of the works
in the rear of our picket line, and
when the drum-beat announced the
termination of the religious services
flying and bursting shell constituted
the sequel. The response of their bat
teries was prompt, sharp and decisive
for few moments, and then the angry
sounds died away again, while the sun
was sinking behind the tall pine tree
tops which curtained the space between
them and us, looking out of the mist
and smoke like fearful and ominous
ball of fire. The strength of the picket
line was doubled as night came on. The
writer of this was assigned a tour of
duty that night again in the outer
trenches, with positive orders of in
creased vigilance. The hours up to
midnight passed slowly, and gloomily
sometimes, much as they had for
months before. Through the night.
however, there was increased activity
in the running of trains on the railroad
between Richmond and Petersburg, a
line not many miles distant from us,
but well covered by Mahone's division.
During no night of the siege had there
been such sounds of railway industry.
The scream of the steam whistle
was incessant, and the rumbling of
trains almost constant. The common
est soldier became aware that some
thing unusual was afoot, and there was
no need of prompting by officers to vigi,
lance. a little after two O'Clock in the
morning the picket fires g up hill and
down dale " cleaned in melancholy
and monotonous way, and surprising
noise of chopping with axes in our i'm.
mediate front began. The writer and
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over the abatis, and then crawled or
hands and knees as far toward the
sounds as was safe and prudent. The
underground and the darkness almost
completely screened the operations OF
the enemy, and it could only be sur
missed that they were cutting ways fol-
artillery in the pines toward our in
trenchments. This conjecture was sem
to the division headquarters, with a de,
tailed report of all the the circum
stances, and the caution of increased
watchfulness was received as response
The sounds soon died out, and painful
and embarrassing silence prevailed
while every man on picket was alert tC
receive the blow when it should come
An hour or so passed, and not another
sign was given of impending conflict
The Union line always took up the Sc
rena of the hour, or all's well," from
the bells OF gunboat stationed in the
James river. The confederate serena
was about fifteen minutes later thar
ours. AS it approached four O'Clock OF
that Monday morning everything wa,
as still as death in those dark woods
The railway trains had ceased running
anu tic oClccCulHS VI lHc lOCOIuOllN'
had died out. The cracking of a busl
could be heard long way off. Finally
the bells of the Union gunboat strucl
the hour of four, and the melancholy re
frain of " Four o'clock-all's well, ,
passed up our picket line, repeated
from station to station, until it died ava,
in the distance, following the intrench
ments for miles toward Hatcher's Rur
beyond the Weldon railroad A deat
silence set in for fully fifteen minutes
and at the end of that period the con
federate cry of " Four o'clock-all',
well" was shouted from post to post, un
til it came to APPOINT opposite where thu
writer and several others were closet,
hugging the ground for the purpose OF
observation. The man opposite III
cried out Four o'clock-all's well, ;
and then murmured " Knapsacks on,
which was repeated with the serena by