The Hawaiian star. [volume] (Honolulu [Oahu]) 1893-1912, 1894-04-07


long line Of PROSTATE m,n which eyewit.
nesses, Judging oihand from appearances.
named the Dead Regiment -
The key Of the Confederate position on
their left flank at Antietgm was an elevA-
ton IN the vicinity Of the woodland desig.
mated the west wood al M the turnpike
near Dunkers Church. Some Of the choic.
est troops Of the south were massed there
the fiery Hoods splendid division, Stuart's
cavalry In its prime, the famous Washing.
ton artillery and Stonewall Jackson's oriai-
nal Army OF the Shenandoah. Lee him
self, jackson, Longstreet, ID. II. Hill and
Hood were there In person-the spot where
the battle was to be decided On the Con
federate front Of that position upward Of a
quarter of "A mile east of the turnpike and
the long strip Of woods parallel to 1t was
small group of tmbeT known in the battle
reports as the east wood The space be-
tween these two pieces of woods was cleared
ground, partly pasture or meadow, partly
stubble and partly covered with tall stand
ing corn-that is, the corn was standing
when the battle opened, but long before the
end IL had gOncdOwn Ms If under the blast Of
"A terrible storm. The Confederate line ex-
tended in a direction generally north and
south, the troops facing eastward The
north and east, and In order to hold them
at arms length the Confederates threw
their skirmishers into the east wood, and a
bloody collision resulting naturally from
that maneuver decided the nature of the
combat over the whole field throughout the
memorable day of Sept. IL.
Fighting Joe Hooker set the ball in mo-
tion at an early morning hour by marching
his corps southwark along the pike. His
line Of battle extended east and west ut
right angles TO the Confederate The Con
federates were of course the strongest near
the pike and the west wood, where their
masses and reserves lay, and they checked
lockers advance in that quarter so effec-
tlally that his left columns, moving down
on the east wood and the open space be
tween that point and the pike, got ahead
and started an independent fight in the
east wood and along the northern edge OF
the corniield. Those troops on Hooker's
left were Meade's division. Lawtons di-
vision Of Confederates re hidden in the
corn, with their skirmis' err posted In the
ct st wood. Meade's br r.ga' es came to "A
! halt along n farm fence that separated the
cornield ON the north from an open field
and ridge, over which t1ey marched and
where they dropped their rtillery to go
-
&c either to cover retreat 1ack over the
ridge or toss shell ahead to clear the way
for advance.
Meade's left brigade--Ssyn our's-struck
the east wood, and close and deadly shoot
ing instantly broke out hetl cen Lawton's
soldiers on one side Of & e oOd and Sey.
N lur's on the other Hoo er's artillery
back on the ridges meanwhi threw shell
and occasionally canister II to the corn
NJ aade's brigades along The ience west of
tn little woods, were An,leri ms and Ma
jilton's Resting under fair shelter they
poured bullets into The corn on the flank Of
Ltwton's men, and the Ia ter quickly
turned from attention u : ymour, who
was getting terrible pun sh' rent, and ad.
vanced northward to the fenc A wild and
unequal but frightfully blood contest then
ragged for an hour over the whole angle
/ formed by the east wood tn west wood
and the ridge where Hook RS batteries lay.
| Mnjilton's brigade backed or from the
| fence to move around the G. st wood and
| give support to Seymour. awton's men
saw the gap made In the nion line by
Ma sjilton's withdrawal and ru he'd for 1t as
blindly as sheep over wall
Ransom's Union battery WIS on a ridge
just behind the gap and the impetuous
southerners clambered over the rails, bay
onet in hand, to capture the guns. Ransom
opened with canister moving down the
men in gray, who fell like the stalks of corn
behind them under the same iron hail Sey-
mour's men in the woods ON Lawton's ex-
posed flank found easy shooting In the new
turn Of affairs. Majilton's fresh ranks
united with Seymour's, and the two bri-
gades, firing from the east side of the
angle, with Anderson's men on the north
side beyond the gap aiming obliquely,
caught the luckless Confederates in pen,
from which retreat was as deadly as ad-