El Paso daily herald. (El Paso, Tex.) 1881-1901, 1897-01-08
OLD HICKORY.
Sketches of the Hero OF the Battle OF
New Orleans

Sketches OF Jne Hero vi INC DdIllo VI
New Orleans
In the January Century William
Hugh Robarts has an article In Whlcn
is quoted hitherto unpublished letter
written by Gen. jackson to M. James
Monroe. A portion OF the letter Is as
follows: .
There was a very heavy fog on the
river that morning, and the BRUSH
had it. The disposition OF the rlhemen
was very simple. They were told OH
in numbers one and two. Number one
was TO fire first, then step back and let
No. shoot while he reloaded. About
600 wards from the ritiemen there was
a great drainsge canal running back
from the Mississippi river TO the swamp
in the rear of the titled land on which
we were operating. Along this canal
the British formed, under the hre OF
the few artillery pieces L mad near
enough to them to get their range.
But the instant | saw them, said to
Coffee, whom l directed to hurry to his
line, which was to be first attacked:
| "Bv-, we have got them: they are
ours" Coffee dashed forward, ana
riding along his line, called out, Don
shoot till you can see their belt buck
les" The British were formed in mass,
well closed up, and about two compan-
les front.
at a quick step, without firing shot.
to within one hundred yards of the
! kneeling rltlemen, who were holding
| their fire until they could see the belt
buckles Of their enemies. The British
advance was executed as though they
! had been on parade. They marched
| shoulder to shoulder, with the step OF
veterans, as they were. AT one nun
dred yards distance from our line the
order was given. Extend column
| 'front.' Double quick. march.
| Charpen' With bayonets at the charge,
| they came on US at Il run. [ own it was
an anxious moment; | well knew the
charging column was made up OF the
picked troops of the British army.
Theyi had been trained by the duke
| himself, were commanded by his
brother-in-law, and had successfully
held off the ablest of Napoleon's Mar
| shals in the Spanish campaign. My
rlfemen had never before seen such an
attack, nor had they ever before fought
white men. The morning, too, was
damp; their powder might not burn
well. God help US all!' L muttered,
watching the rapidly advancing line.
Seventy, sixty, fifty, finally forty yards,
were they from the silent, kneellng
riAemen. Ali Of my men l could see
VAS their long flies rested on the logs
before them. They obeyed their Or
ders we'll: not a shot was fired until the
red coats were within forty yards L
| heard Coffee's voice as be roared out;
Nov. men. aim for the center OF the
cross belts, Fire." A second after
the order a cracking blazing crash re n
all along our line. The smoke hung so
heavily in the misty morning air that
could not see what had happeCed. L
called Tom Overton and Abner Duncan
of my staff, and we galoped toward
COffee's line. 10 a few seconds after
the first fire there came another sharp.
ringing voliey:: ASH came within one one
hundred ard fifty 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
entire first ranks of their column were
blown away. For two hundred yards
in our front the ground was covered
with mass of writhing wounded,
dead. and dying redcOats. BY the time
the rifles were wiped the British line
was reformed, and on it came again.
This time they were led by Gen. Paken-
ham in person, gallantly mounted, and
riding as though he was on parade.
Just before he got within range OF
Coffee s.line | heard single rl1e=hot
from group of country carts we had
been using about one hundred and
! y
ment thereafter I saw Pakenham reel
and pitch out of his saddle. | have
always believed he fell from the bullet
of free man of color, who was d
rIfleshot, and came from the Atakap
pas region of Louisiana. The second
advance was precisely like the frat in
it's ending. In five vOlleys the 800 or
more riflemen killed and wounded 3
III British soldiers, twO-thirds OF them
killed dead or mOrtaliy wounded. l
did not know where Gen. Pakenham
was lying ,or [ should have sent to him,
or gone in person, to offer any service
in my power to render.
was told he lived two hours after
he was hit His wound was directly
through the liver and bowels. Gen.
Keeue, | hear, was killed dead. They
sent flag to me, asking leave to gath
err up their wounded and bury their
dead, which, of course, l granted. |
was told by a wounded officer that the
rank and file absolutely refused to
make a third charge. 1--WE have no
chance with such shooting as these
Americans do" they said.
NEW ORLEANS CAMPAIGN.
On the afternoon of December %. 49,
10. General Jackson sat in his head
quarters at 1o6 Royal street, New Or
leans. Three gentlemen came riding
down the street They were Map Vii
lere. Colonel de la ROnde and DussOn
la Croix. Mr. la CroiX had just brought
the news that the advance guard of the
British army was encamped on the Viii
lere plantation, nine miles below the