The news & observer., 1895-09-15
THE FIGHTING 10th
HIS TORY OF THAT 1900, FROM
SMITHS ISLAND TO AP-
pOMATTOX.
CHARGE 1T JaCES0R'S MILLS

WIS IN 3ne E0FK CaSW0Il engagement
The Woundjng of Heroic Hedrick
The ssyengefuI Singing OF the Minnie
ball'' at Bentonville. Goodness I'm.
der Fire. Somebody Blandered
But, Concludes. MEx Davis, '"the
War was Revolution of the Poll
ticians, Not the People,
[Continued from Last Sunday
President Jefferson Davis, visited ouI
command in the fall Of 1868 and, from
his knowledge of ali the surroundings
all the detached heavy artillery com
panies on the Cape Fear river and vicin
ity of Wilmington were sent to Bald Head
(Smith's Island) and organized the 40th
regiment North Carolina troops, as
above stated; which numbered about
1900 men. Petitions were sent to oul
Major General commanding to be sent
to Virginia to do field service In reply
General whiting stated that it was g
soldiers duty to stay CT go where he was
ordered, and that we were Just where
the government wanted us to be-" Sc
We took the rebuke, and commenced
John j. Hedrick. who was a good civil
engineer We built Fort Holmes, with
IL guns on the point, opposite Fort Gas.
well, and a gun battery, on the creek,
near the Light House; these were inter,
sected by strong breast works and re
doubts, and we also cleared two roads
through the Island in order that we
might bring in position whenever neces-
sary, the Whitworth and Parrott guns
whice were principally used to protect
blockade runners, while trying to run in
port. (The artillery service at the en-
trence of the Cape Fear river, used
every means possible to protect
blockade running. If such ser.
vice had not existed, and kept the
enemy out of his rear, Gen. Lees army
would have ceased to exist at least two
years before it did, The Whitworth
guns mentioned were terror to the en-
envy their range was immense, their
accuracy as that of telescope rifle
Nevertheless, the enemy would shell us
whenever they could. On the 9th day
of March, 1864, we fred upon the block
ade steamer 'sPeterhoff' while laying
back of the beach, east of the Cape.
After firing six shots, most Of them
taking effect, she ran out to another
blockade ship, and before they could
transfer their supplies she sunk. In a
few days a heavy Northeast wind and
sea broke her up, and she washed ashore
to the beach, which was strewn with de
bris of the sunken ship We gathered
up lots of valuahles to us. This was the
best shot | witnessed during the war
Soon after this, at night, small sizad
blockade steamer ran aground under the
guns on Fort Holmes. The tide being
falling, she could not get off before day.
To prevent being captured, the crew set
her on fire and made their escape to an
other ship. The next day We got two
cannons of of her. 1t was while the
regiment was at Fort Holmes, with only
a small d tail at Smithyilie, that Lieut.
Gushing, with a boats crew from the
fleet, made a raid at Smithville He
landed at the salt works wharf about
| o'clock a. m, taking with him
negro plot. He went to Brigadier
General Herbert's quarters, he being at
Wilmington. They captured Capt. Kelly,
Of his staff, and made their escape, tax
ing with them their prisoner and the
negro pilot. on board the blockade AT
ter which a river picket, in boats, was
kept between Bald Head and Fort Cas-
well, with rocket signals to be displayed
at the discovery of any movements of
the enemy. We also kept picket sta
tion c.. the beach at the head of "Buz
zared. Bay (where ''Corn Cake Inlet"
now isl, this being low, narrow, fiat
beach, where negroes and deserters from
the army would escape to the enemy, by
hauling beats over this beach, then
launching them into the sea and go Off
to the blockade ships. This was done,
until there ,uld not be a boat found,
unless 1t had been Kept under guard at
night, any where in that section. Gov
ernor Varce, who was candidate for
reelection as Governor against W. W.
Holden, visited our command in July,
1864 The Regiment went on review in
honor OF the great "War Governor. "
The election was held in August follow
ing, the result Of which was
that Z B. Vance, received
almost the entire vote Of tho reg
iment. that being this writer's first vote.
On the goth day Of October, 1864, com
pany A, Captain i. W. Ezzsn was or
dored to Fort Anderson, about ten miles
above SmithYille, on the Cape Fear river,
where it n rtmained until The fort vas
evacuated February 10Th, 1865
On November the 25th, 1864
companies B, Captain Tripp,
G, Capt. Legget, D, Capt Lane,
G, Captain Buchan, /, Captain
Whitehurst, of the 40h K z
iment under the command Of Maj)r
Holland. with five companies Of the
Seth Regiment undsr the command OF
Maj. Stevenson, were ordered to Georgia
to reinforce Lieut.. Gen. w. j. Hardea,
who was then falling back from Atlanta,
Georgia. On reaching Augusta, the
27th, we went forward in the direction
Of Waynesboro. That night about ~
o'clock, citizen of that town drove up
to our picket, en- route for Augusta,
with information that the enemy, under
the command of Gen. Sherman, had
torn up the railroad between Augusta
and Millen, which cut us off from Gen.
Hardee's command. The next day we
returned 10 Augusta and took the train
for Savannah. On reaching Charleston,
s. O., the 29Ch, we found the city under
bombardment from the batteries on
Morris Island, which had been going on
over five hundred days, with great dam
age to that city. The next day (the 30th)
we arrived at CoosaWa chic, s. c., where
We were ordered to leave knapsacks and