The Manning times. [volume] (Manning, Clarendon County, S.C.) 1884-current, 1894-01-17
LAST WEEK IN WAGNER.
AGRaPHlC STORY OF TIE 8OM5aRC-
MENT OETHE FORT.

AGRaPHlc STORY OF TIE 8oM6ARD-
MENT oETHE FORT.
Diary of Lieut.. Col. j. G. PRESLEY, Conn
msud,ns Twsnfy-fGh South Carolina
Volunteers IN the Fort Durirg the Last
Week of the Bombsrdment.
To the Editor ofTne News and Cou.
rirer: In the account of the unVelllng OF
the monument to the Confederate Gesd,
erected BY the ladies OF Orangeburs
County, published 10 The News and
Courier OF October l9, 1898, your Co
lpmbia correspondent used the following
language in reference to the Edlsto HI.
fes and the St. Matthew's Rifles, two
companies of the 25th Sonth Ca olina
volunteers, which I bad the honor to
lead in more than one bloody engage
ment in the civil war, IN which these
companies covered themselves With
glory and were conspicuous in winning
un6ying fame for the whole regiment:
You say: "They were IN the battle OF
Secession7ilie IN June. 1862, and IN 1863
served in garrisoning Battery Wagner
the Edisto Rifles being one OF the com.
panies in the evacuation Of Morris Island
in September, 1863"
This language Is somewhat obscure,
and from 1t 1t is fairly inferabIe that the
St. Matthew's Rifles were not IN Fort
Wagner during the last days Of that
greatest OF modern military works aDd
during the most terriid bombardnent
known to modern history. To set the
matter beyone question in the future and
to make record of which the children
of these brave men will be proud as hero
ism stirs the human heart, propose to
send you few extracts from my diary,
written very soon after the events to
which reference is made. The 25th re-
giment bad but one tour of duty ID Wag-
ner, ard that was from the 1st to the
7th of September, 1868:
FIRST OF SEPTEMBER, 1868.
Orders received this morniog directing
me to proceed with the regiment to Fort
johnson, there to take The steamer to-
night for the purpose of being transferred
to Morris Island to constitute a part OF
the garrison of Fort Wagner, rellevin:
one Of the regiments in that fort. These
orders were not this time countermanded,
aid the regiment in hpe
spirits, marched to Fort johnson
this afternoon. There We found a row
boat large enough to carry one company.
This boat was turned ever to Company
A, (Washineton Light Infantry } under
the command of Lieut.. 81. B. Olney,
which embarked upon 1t and started late
in the afternoon for Cummings Point.
The rest Of the regiment was embarked
upon q steamer about dusk. The changes
OF the garrison were always made at
night to prevent the enemy from sinking
our boats, as nearly the whole OF The
harbor was under ire Of their feet and
land batteries. 1t was the custom to
make detail of beats from our nava
vessels in the harbor to transfer the
troops from the transport steamers to
Cummings Point. The steamer on
which the 25th was embarked stopped
near Fort Sumter. The usual detail
rom the navy failed to report, and the
steamer was deficient II sailors to man
the few boats which she had on board.
One boat with 8 few men pushed of, and
the captain of the steamer offered me a
scow large enough to carry about fifty
men if I could find oarsmen. There was
no difficulty in this. A number OF men,
mostly from the Beauregar6 Light In.
fantry and the Wee Nee Volunteers,
declared their ability to row and ex
pressed their desire to 60. I soon had
the scow full, and with DR.. ". Z. Ra.
yenel, our surgeon, Lieut.. F. J. Lesesne,
acting aojutant, and about fifty
men and officers started to
Cummings Point. When about halt
way the monitors came up and com
menced to lombard Fort Sumter. The
steamer with the balance Of the regiment
on board, being in great dagger, returned
to Fort johnson. The harbor was
smooth. the moon sHcLe brightly. en"
spurred on BY the exlecta'i'' 81 oi
from the monitors, my Cassm a made
rapid progress. Wewere sovn waoIngout
of the water under the guns OF Battery
Gregg. Our boat drew so much water
that she could not get near enough to
enable Us to land on sierra 6rma."
Company A, had reached Cummings
Point, and with the men brought WITH
me my command consisted OF eighty or
ninety, rank and file. There was no
prospect of getting the remainder OF the
regiment before the next night. This
detachment was marched to Fort Wag-
ner, where reported to Gen. Colqult,
whom fonnd in command. AS had
not men enough to relieve any Of the
batalions or regiments he ordered me to
return to the sand bills between Wage'
ner and Gregg and protect my command
as well as could. All that part of tie
island was under the enemy's 6re, aud
their shells were continually dropping.
We retired to what the soldiers called
''prlvate bomb proofs" These were
holes IN tie sand about large enought to
hold TWO men. Here man was safe ex-
cept from shells bursting Immediately
overhead or falling verrcally. l did not
ind ''hole IN the ground" very com
Portable, and so Lieut.. Lesesne and l
spread our blankets between two sand
hills, aDd UNDER the shelter OF small
bush passed the balance of a very dis
agreeable sight. It became quite cold to-
wards morning. The monitors bombarced
Sumter all night. Battery Gregg. on
Morris Island, Fort Moultrie and the
batteries cn Salllvan's Island took part
In the affraY and did some excellent FIR
ing. The monitors would belch cut
columns of fame from their Is inch guns
in their turrets. When The shot from cur
batteries struck them they would seem
to be covered bv sheet lightning. Fort
Wagner and the enemy's batteries IN
front exchanged shots all night.
SECOND OF SEPTEMBER.
This morning the enemies last parallel
200 wards from Wagner, vas nearly