Pine Bluff daily graphic., 1897-07-16
THEIR DEADLY FIRE.
THE AMERICAN RlTlEMsH AT THs
 BATTLE OF AEH ORLEANS

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 ory@-Hon PaekeEhasns Veterans yYess Defeated by FTontierasnen.
 Tn The Century William Hugh Roh- arts has an article entitled 'Napoleon's Interest In fne Battle of New Orleans. '- h this isenafea q hitherto unpublished letter writer by General Jackson to Mr James Monroe. 1 portion ef the lette7 follows:
 There was 9 very heavy fog on the river that morning, and the British had formed and were moving before ] knew 1t. The-displjsition of the rihemen wss gery# simple. They were told of in Nos 1 and 2. No. was to fire first, then step back and let No ? shoot while hs reloaded. Abeut 600 yards from the rife. men there was 8 great drainage canal running back from the Mississippi rive2 to the swamp in the rear of tho tiled land on which we were operating. Along this canal the British formed. under ths ire ef the few artillery pieces | had near enough to them to get their range. But the instant I saw them ] said to Coffee, whom directed to hurry to his iiHes which was 10 be first attackeds By -. we have got themi They aTf ouTsi'' Coffee dashed forward, and, ri0 ibg along his Iine. called out, Don't shoor till you eaB see their belt hncklesi' The British were formed in mass, well closed up. md about two eompanies front.
 The British, thus formed, moved Oh at g qaiek step, without firing 2 shot, to i WI:ain I00 yaeds of the kneeling rife.
 men, Who were holding their fire til@ they could sec the belt buckles Of theiS enemies The British advance was exe.
 sufed as though they had been on pa.
 fade. They marched shoulder 70 shonl der. with the step Of veterans as they were. At 100 yards distance from oug ] line the order was given: Extend col- emn front Double quick, maTohi 5hargel" With bayonets at the charge,
 lhey came on ns at run. I own it was an anxious moment. l well knew the l charging column was made up Of the picked troops of the British army. They had been trained by the duke himself were commanded by his brother-in-law and had successfully held off tho ablest of Napoleon B marshals in the Spanish campaign. My rifemen had never seen auoh an attach, nor had they ever before l fought white men The morning, too, was damp. Their powder might not burn well. God help ustt' l muttered, l watching the rapidly advancing line. Seventy, 60, 50, finally 40 yards. were they from the silent kneellng rifiemen. All Of my men that l could see was their long rifles rested ell the logs before them They obeyed their orders we'll Not shot was fired until tha redcoats wers within 70 yards ! teard Goffee's voice as he foared out Now. men, aim fer the center Of tine cross beltsl Firel" I 4 second affcF tic order q cracking, ala1ing flash raa all along our line. The smoke hung se heavily in the misty morning air that 1 could not see what ] had happened 1 called Tom Overton and Abnar Duncan of my staff, and we galloped toward Coffee's line. In few seconds after the first fire there came another sharp, ringing yolley. As came within 150 yards of Coffee the smoke lifted enough for me to make out what was happening,
 The British were falling back in confused, disorderly mass, and the en. tire first ranks of their column were blown away. For 200 yards in our front l the ground was covered with a mass of writhing, wounded, dead and dying red. coats. By the time the rifles were wiped the British line WAS reformed, and on ] it came again. This time they were led l by General Pakenham in person. gal
 lantly mounted and riding as though he was on parade. Just before he got within ] range of CoiTeeis line 1 heard single rifle shot from a group of country oartE
 we had been using, about l15 yards dis. l taDt. and . moment thereafter l saw 1 Pakenham reel and pitch out of his sad. i ale have always believed he fell from l the bullet of freeman of color who l Was q famous rife shot and came from l the Atakappas .egion Of Louisiana. The l second advance was precisely like the i first in its ending. h five volleys the 1 1, 500 or more riflemen killed and l wounded 2,1i7 British soldiers, two. l thirds of them killed dead or morfally 1 wounded. ] did not know where Gen.
 eral Pakenham was lying, or 1 should have sent to him or soue in person to offer any service in my power to render
 was told he lived two hours after l ha was hit. His wound was directly
 through the liver and bowels. General 1 Keene, hear, was killed. They seut
 6 flag to me. asking leave to gather np their wounded and bury their dead,
 which. of course. granted. was told by q wornded officer that the rank and file absolutely refused to make third charge "We have no chance with such
 shooting as these Americans do, they said
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