The Princeton union. [volume] (Princeton, Minn.) 1876-1976, 1894-09-13

It's most terrible features was unrolled.
For the first hero, Hancock, The Superb"
for the second, Nelson A. Miles.
The Weldon road, from North Carolina
into Petersburg, served the Confederates
besieged in that town as line Of supply,
and after the siege had fairly begun it be-
came Grants object to cut the road. Aft
err few miles Of 1t had been destroyed
the enemy simply bridged the gap by wag-
oning their freight the last few miles into
the Petersburg camps. Hancock, with
two divisions Of his Second corps and
Gregg's division of troopers, marched
along the track on the Gath of August
and halted at Ream's Station, four miles
from the left of the Army Of the Potomac.
Some weeks before, Wilson'S cavalry divf-
sion returning from raid of destruction
within the Confederate lines, found their
march checked at that point by a column
of Lees cavalry, and in order to give bet
ter protection to their slender force had
thrown up slight intrenchments, covering
small section of track from the north,
south and west. The existence of those
works contributed to the accident and dis
aster of Aug. rs. Poorly constructed and
unscientifcally planned, they proved
snare and delusion to Hancock's men.
Early on the s5th Greggs troopers rode
out from the camps at Ream's Station in
the direction whence the enemy might be
supposed to approach, for, of course, Lee
could not look quietly on while the bread
and meat supply was being cut off from
his soldiers in Petersburg. In fact,
body of Hamptons cavalry had hung off
on the flank Of Hanoock's column all the
way down the railroad, and messages from
Union headquarters in front of Peters
burg reached Hancock during the night
of the Gath stating that 5000 or 10000
Confederates had marched out of their in
trenchments in pursuit of the railroad
destroyers. Still, rumors Of this stamp are
common and often not trustworthy, and
when Gregg's scouts and skirmishers re-
ported that the enemy hanging about the
outposts would not stand and appeared to
be few in number Hancock told his sub
ordinates to continue tearing up the tracks
and burning bridges south of the station.
Hancock's Second division, led by General
John Gibbon, moved down the road for
that purpose, but did not proceed far be-
fore it met one of Gregg's mounted bri
gades hurrying back to the main camp,
pursued by body Of mounted Confeder-
ates. After showing a bold front to help
Gregg's men to get back safely Gibbon also
fell back to his old position within the in
trenchments. Hancock's First division,
under General Miles, had meanwhile re-
manned in the trenches and formed the
right Of the line. Gibbon held the Left
the two divisions covering three sides of a
parallelogram extending east and west
Gregg's cavalry was drawn up on the east
side, where there were no parapets A
study of the diagram Of the field will give
the reader a lesson in the art of war, for
it shows how faulty arranged cover for
fighting troops may be worse than no cover
at all. The lines running east and west
were SO close together that when they en-
envy should attack one their fire would
pass over and take the men holding the
other in reverse The west face of the works
had it's peculiar element of weakness also.
The parapet lay 20 or 80 yards in front of
the railroad track which was partly elevat-
ed and partly sunken, so that REINFORCE
ments and ammunition could not be sent
from the rear to the men fighting in front
without exposure to the enemy's fire, and
for the same reason troops overpowered at
that point could not retire upon their sup
ports without breaking their formation.
The Confederates formed their line of
battle behind curtain of woods which
screened their movements, and about 2
o'clock charged along the whole front.
Two cavalry brigades, led by Wade Hamp-