The National tribune. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1877-1917, 1894-02-22
FROM PULASKI
TO NASHVILLE
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Continued from first page.}
stands cotton-gin. The same distance
west of the pike, farther from the works,
stands small locust grove, the trees from
four to six inches in diameter. Half way
between the gap and their earthworks on
the west side of the pike, is a farmhouse,
with few scattering trees. A row of hills,
or rather a ridge, encircles the battlefield
from the river above to the river below.
| The diameter of the field from east to west
is about one and one-half miles from north
to south, one mile. Remove the Instructions
mentioned and there would be nothing to
hinder the view at the works from one end
of the field to the other. 1t is an open
plain, the ground gently rolling but not
hilly.
| A little before O'clock p. m. the brigade
moved forward directly across the battle
| field to the town. In front of the farm
house before mentioned they found the
Second and Third Brigades in line-of-battle
on each side of the pike, with no protection
except low stone wall a short distance on
the west side of the pike. Somebody's mis-
| take.)
| Gen. Wagner and Gen. Opdycke held a
| short consultation, and then the brigade
passed on through the line of works into
| the town. At this time the writer took
sick man (Capt Kyzer, 73d ILL., across the
river and succeeded in getting him aboard a
| train, already in motion, for Nashville.
The streets in the town were blocked with
the train, not yet having had time to cross
the river. On returning to the brigade
found it in an open field about $50 yards
north and west from where the pike crosses
the line of rife-pits, making coffee and
cooking their dinners and trying to take a
little rest.
About 100 yards behind the rife pits at
this point the ground rises TO considerable
elevation, sufficient for batteries to fire with
On this elevated ground, and quite near
the pike, was large, two-story brick house,
known as the Carter House. 1t was directly
behind this house, and extending west, that
the brigade were resting The rife-pits at
this time were crowded with soldiers from
river to river.
Gen. Thomas, in his great anxiety to save
the large train, had sent down from Nash
vile two or three regiments of
RAW TROOPS,
and two of these regiments had been placed
In the works close to the pike on the west
side. somebody's mistake.)
In the meantime the whole of the rebel
army had debouched through the gap in the
hills onto the pike, and deployed to the right
and left, until their lines-oEbattle extended
away beyond both fanks of the Union
breastworks. The lines were double, treble
and quadruple in some places, but much
the heaviest ON and near the pike on both
Sides
At this moment, every soldier in the
Union army was waiting for and expecting
the batteries to open upon the line of Union
breastworks, from one end of the line of
hills to the other; but not a gun was fred,
except a few shells, occasionally, in the di-
rection of Fort Granger, and the railroad
bridge in the same direction. Why not? No
body knows. The position for batteries was
far superior to that at Gettysburg, when
Pickett made his celebrated charge.
1t was $3.50 p. m. when the rebel pickets
commenced moving and firing as they ad-
vanced, followed by the whole column of
infantry, extending across the field, one
grand and overwhelming assault, expecting
AT ONE swooP
70 drive the whole Union army into the
Harpeth River, capture the train, and move
on to Nashville.
The batteries on the elevated ground
near the pike were silent on account of the |
two brigades in front being in line-of-battle |
on little higher ground than the charging
rebel columns The suspense was of short |
columns in the center made furious charge |
on the two brigades in the middle of the |
field. No troops on earth of like number |
could Withstand, without any protection
whatever such a charge as that; they were |
like chaff in the teeth of a cyclone.
The battle was now raging from one end |
of the line to the other. Every battery
that could reach the rebel lines was in full |
play. The battery in front with the two
brigades fired one round, and then came
laundering down the pike past the rifle
pits, and went into position in rear of the
works near the Carter House. As the bat
terry passed the line of works, several of the
soldiers on duty in the riie-pits were sud-
denly taken sick and sent to the rear The
two brigades were not far behind the bat
terry. After firing few rounds they turned
and fled, en- masse, to take position in the
rife-pits in the rear. They had hardly
covered half the distance, when the troops
that had been placed in the rife-pits near
the pike left the works and fed,
LIKE A FLOCK OF SHEEP,
to the rear, some of them even forgetting to
take their guns with them.
The First Brigade, from behind the Carter
House, had been watching closely all the
moves. So soon as they saw the rifle-pits
abandoned in front, leaving wide gap for
the passage of the enemy through the lines,
with common impulse all the men seized
their muskets (the bayonets were already
fxed). Having no time for regimental or
organization, and without any