The National tribune., 1890-01-23
STORY OF A CANNONEER.
Continued from 1st page.)

neers made an improvement on this system of
chevaux de frise. They took small logs about
eight inches in diameter and 10 feet long.
and bored one-and- -one-haif or two-inch
holes through them every I2 or is inches
Then they bored the same number of alternate
holes at rightangIes to the first ones. Through
these holes they drove stakes about seven feet
long, sharpened at both ends, so that when fin
ished the thing looked like the head of a revoIv-
ing horse rake with two sets of teeth. These
bristling affairs were then placed by night
about 100 or $50 feet in front of tho works
aud the ends locked up together with wire, so
they could not be cut apart easily
Tho mode of working was as follows As
soon as tho lines had been laid out the whole
of the infantry and artillery were divided into
two grand reliefs, plentifully supplied with in
trenching tools, aud when it was dark they
lined their trenches from end to end and rap
ldly built the parapet with earth cxcavated
from the bitches in front. Everybody had TO
work. In addition hundred of thousands of
logs were required for revetting, for making
palisades. chovauX dc frsc, etc. and the smaller
limbs of the trees were woven into bask cts for
gabions. The region in tho rear Of the lines
was heavily timbered with mcdium.sizcd pine
and oak trees. just suitable for that use, and
tho teams of the fighting trains, and also many
OF tho artillery teams. were brought to haul
these logs, etc. from the woods TO the works
They would haul the stuff in daytime as near
and then run it into the intrenchments at
night.
Meantime, the fire on both sides was inces-
SAINT night and day, varying from spattering
pot-shots between tho outlying pickets in the
rite-pits to perfect blizzard all along the Iine
which generally occurred two or three times a
day. The Avery House Redan was finished
and mounted with siege guns ready for action
about o'clock in the morning of July or T.
6en. Warren being present in person when the
Embellishments were told off for the heavy
guns. was assigned to the right gun in the
northwest bastion as No. 4, Sergt Chas Phillips
of one of the New York batteries, being Cap
tain oil the gun. This was l-inch Rodman,
bran. new and perfect beauty Gen. Warren
mad decided to have our gun bear on the rebel
salient diagonaly opposite US, which they
called Fort Rivcs" And just before daylight
he came to the embrasure in person, pointed
out to us the proper lay" Of the gun as he
wanted it to bear,
AND THEN PERSONALLY sUPERINTENDED
the replacing Of the gabions. so as TO close up
the embrasure as narrowly as possible and the
hanging OF the mantelet of coiled rope to pro-
tect the Cannoneers from sharpshooters. While
engaged in this. he thought there was too much
slope OF the terreplaine to the rear, which would
let the gun recoil too far, and said al think
| boys, you will have trouble in running your
gun up. There is still half an hour before day-
light, and as there is quite pile of timber ont
side the p0stern, i think you had better lug it
in and place it so as to elevate the rear of your
platform" SO, in about ID minutes, we had
levcled up onr platform by some two feet at the
rear end. and had secured two heavy beams by
stakes driven in the ground, so as to catch the
wheels and stop the recoil otherwise as we
atterward found, the gun would have recoled
clear oil tho platform after il got hot. | may
say hero that there was corps commander
IN the army whose manner toward his rank and
hle was so kind and gentle as Gen Warren's
lie was with US nearly every day, always ad-
dressed us as "Boys,' frequently inquired IL
We had plenty of rations and comfortable camp
ing. places, told us TO report 10 him in person
any neglect OF our wants; and giving US orders
which lie invariably did direct he would al
ways say. Boys, think you bad better do this
or DO that" or Boys, don't you think so and
so would be better!" lie was never rough or
pre-emptory, but always courteous, kind and
cOusidcrate.
Often when he was on the line he would
mildly rebuke an officer in charge for cursing
the men, and on such occasions | have heard
him say, Stop that, sir! The ends OF good dis
eipiine are not attained by such language as
that. sirl"
Well after while daylight came. and with
the first gray streak In the east, enabling us
to see The rebel works dimly. the Gunner, who,
As i Tecolect, was Stilman, turned tho screw
of our big Rodman down till her sight line
just cleared the throat of an embrasurc in Fort
Rives, cleared the wheel. and. as Serg't Phil
lips gave the signal, pulled my first siege gun
lanyard! The shot-a percussion she'll bolt
went right into the rebel embFasure, exploding
as IL struck, and disabled one of their guns the
first pass! At all events, they did not begin to
fire from that embrasure till moro than an hour
atterward, and when they did
WE REPEATED THE DOSE,
after which that embrasure was silent for the
rest Of the day. Onr fire was very slow and
deliberate, not more than 10 rounds an hour
as Gen. Warren had told us that the object Of
that days bombardmcHt would be to establish
the ranges of various points in the rebel lines
and drill the men who had never before ham
died heavy siege pieces.
The rebels did not reply with much vigor on
our part OF the line, because, | have since
been Informed by their men. they had no guns
mounted in the works opposite us except field
pieces, which were no match for the artillery
we had in our redoubts. But to our right,
nearer the river, and in the Ninth Corps front,
they had heavy guns mounted, and on that
part of their line they held their own pretty
well. This bombardment ceased generally
about o'clock IN the afternoon, though Occa-
sional shots were fired until dark.
Our works wero not damaged except that
some gabons were knocked down, but these
were replaced that night. No guns were dis
q,
and there were no casualties in our redau.
found the 4l-inch Rodman a superb weapon,
perfectly reliable up TO n range of $500 yards,
and easily handled for its weight; but it was
pretty light in proportion TO its load, and re-
coiled sharply.
| remarked that the redan was completed
at this time, but as "A matter of fact those works
were never completed. Work on them was
going on all tho time until the evacuation of
Petersburg, either repairing damages caused by
tho enemy's shells or by the weather, or in OK
tending and strengthening them.
The main line OF works built by the Fifth
and Ninth Corps in June and July, 1864 from
the Jerusalem plank road TO the Appomattox
River, were usually termed "the old lines"
to distinguish them from the later works
erected from time 10 time further around to
the left They were much stronger and more
elaborate than there was any need of, viewed
as mere approaches" but there was a reason
for that. They were made of extraordinary
strength, and practically impregnable, because
they were intended as place of arms" or
base OF operations, and to form an impenetra-
bio cover for our communications But while
the work was very hard and trying we were
not wholly without diversion.
One night the infantry picket relief brought
in copy of the Richmond Examiner, which
they had got from the rebel picket. We fell
lows in the redoubt chipped in and paid 81 for
this paper. lt had description of the Cold
Harb0r assault, and also one of the assaults
on Petersburg the 18th of june There was an
editorial reference To these articles which,
among other things remarked that "a the Van