The Manning times. [volume] (Manning, Clarendon County, S.C.) 1884-current, 1894-01-17

The fire OF the enemy was kept up
briskly, and their shells were falling al
around. AS soon as I had information
that the 2Sth Georgia had embarked,
and that the boats we're reacy=for an
othec detachment, sent off GompaG-
les r. D, Z, q and II. They, ike the
Georgians, took with them l2pound-
er howitzer. Ne tried to conceal the
fact from oGr own men that We were
evacuatlpg the fort, end did al that
we could to cause them TO believe that
fresh troops we're near to take their
places N the garrison. Great circun-
spectior and caution was required.
The enemy were in our ditch and not
more than fifty feet from Us. ! have
recently had q conversation win Capt.
Remy, of the cruiser Charleston, VINO
told lne that he was with the troops IN
our iitch.) \ patic among oar men
would have been ST once fatal to the
whole movement. No troops could
haY- behaved better than the garrison
at Fort Wagoer.
.Ite St. Matthews Rifles, Com pany
T, Cap. Martin II. Sellers, were posted
bshind the fl INK wall Oh the outside Of
the fort. While the events jos5=car-
rated were trarspiricg inside OF the
fort, First Sergt. Carson, of Company
+, one CT the best non-commissioned
officers IN the service, was killed. Had
he been spared he would certainly have
attained q puSltioa better suited to his
ability. Hls comrades, with their bay
one's, dug grave ID the sand behind
the flank wall anG baTisd him there.
The booming of the enemy'S guns and
bursting of SHELLS were bis funeral sa-
lutte. Truly he was buried with the
hOnoys OF war.
A courier arrived from Cummings
Point with the Information that the
last detachment sent Off had embarked.
I next sent eff companies B, y and X.
Col. keitt and his staff l-fC about this
time. | bad roH with PIE inside the
fort Company l; Company I was still
holding It's position behl2d the outside
wa;i. Oar SuSpaESe MAS very great.
Every slack ID the enemy's fire caused
our hopes of escape 10 sing: The next
shot was welcomed as the harblnger
of success. We knew then that our
movements We're not discovered. Com
pany l had been filing al the posts
made vacant by the Withdrawal OF the
others. Both companies I and | be-
haved with great bravery and c0olness.
They nov knew that they were cover
ing retreat, and that if pursued they
must be overwhelmed by superior
numbers. Napoleoa's old guard never
acquitted themselves WITH greater
credit.
A messenger at length came with the
intelligence tha! the last detachment
sent Was off and the boats again ready.
led out Compan in perfect order
and was joined at the sallyporC By Capt
Sellers with company F. Lieut. Z. B
Brown and ten men of Company were
detailed to report to Capt. Huguenin.
That officer with this detail, and 4 few
more men of Other commands, had been
ordered by Col keltt to light a slo@
ma;ch mmunlca;lng "l'h the magaZ-
Ire, in which was Quantity cf powder
The match was so timed that the mag
~Z;ne would be blown up after the last
troops hsd left the fort. The Journey
20 Cummings Point was psrilous
trip: shells were falling and bursting
around and over US. We kept in the
sna6 ew cast py the fort. The calcium
light Of the enemy lighted up our
works as brilliantly as on the previous
night. The shadow of Wagner extended
Dearly to Cummings Point. The sail
ors of the Confederate lrolclad gun
boats We're the oafSmen who rowed he
boats upon which We embarked. We
were carried to steamers IN waiting
just above Fort Sumter. an officer OF
the navy commanded each of the small
boats. TIE skill OF the odrSmen was
astonishing. The boats kept abreast
with the le2ght of an oar from the gun
vale to the eni of the blade separating
them. The cars thus inCerlocked never
touched or lnterfered wltl each other.
The bon bardnent of Wagner by the
enemy was still goinlng On after we
reached the steamers. It had not. tnen
been discovered that the work had been
evacuated. The boats returned for
Huguenin and his party, but before
they came back we heard firing of small
arms in the direction of Cummings
Point. Great fears were entertained
that the brave captain and his detach-
ment had been overtaken. In a few
however, he and the officers
left with him and nearly all of the men
arrived. The bots which bad returned
from the steamers to Cummings Point
for Huguenin'S party were everhauled
by the enemy's picked boats as they
came out Of the creeks and were max
ing their nightly rounds. We lost OF
the garrison ffty-seven men captured
by the enemy, a few of them naval
officers and the rest sailors and soldiers.
Six of the men were of Company l.
We reached Fort Johnson and 6isem-
barked in safety. AS soon as the news
was Communicated to our batteries
that the evacuation Of Morris Island
had been accomplished they ard the
gunboats in the harbor opened with al
their guns on that island. Three rockets
were sent up. which was the prearrang-
ed signal for opening fire.
Wen all Of the detachments Of the
had reached camp we found
that the killed, wounded and missing
of the 25tt S. c. Y. footed up 1872, near.
~ OuS lUuIlu VI IIc LNCN GGAOA W OAV
Wagner.
Weheard to-day full particulars Of
the plan of attack that was to have
been made On Fort Wagner. Gilmore
and Dah!greu's correspondence was in
terpreted by our signal corps. The f!est
was to come-up at the usual ncuT and
join the land batteries in TIA lombard
ment, which was to continue with great
fury till o'clock in the morning, the
hour of low tide. During 3he cannon
ade troops were to be massed behind
the last parallel. At the hour, appoio-
ted for the assault a red flag Was TO be
run up on the Ironsides. The batteries
and ships were at tnls signal to cease
firing. a brigade Of infantry was to
pass on the beach between the flank
wall of the fort and tbs water, and at
tack Us in the rear while another body
Of troops came over the last parallel
aad assail US in front.
JNo G. PRESLEY.
Ex-Lieut Col 2oth ) Z. Y.
Santa Rosa, Cal, OctoO7r %, 1893.