The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1898-01-02

l vi W AuuN - LOh hVuUAI puukDus Auo HlDH
f! sat there on their horses. their reins loose.
studying and discussing the work of the batter
les, apparently Indifferent 10 tho danger. 1t was
very interesting as n study of human steadlness.
THE ARTILLERY ASSAULT OF JUNE 80.
BY the middle Of June our lines were so near
the onemy's on Sherman's and McPherson's
front that Gen. Grant began to consider another
general assault. The chief difficulty in the way
was that Netherlands lines were too backward.
This obstacle was soon removed, for on the 18th
Of June McClornand was relieved and Gen. Ord
put into his place. Tho immediate cause of Nc
Clernand's removal was q congratulatory adj
dress TO the Thirteenth Army Corps which he
had Illuminated In May, and which first reached
tho besieging army in n copy Of the Missouri
Democrat. In this address McClcrnand
claimed for himself most Of tho glory
of tho campaign. reafiirmed that on May
% he had held two rebel forts for
several hours, and imputed to other officers and
troops failure to support him in their possession.
which must have resulted in the capture of the
town. &c. Though this congratulatory address
was tho occasion of Netherlands removal, 1t
was not the cause of it. That dated further
back. The cause, as I understood 1t at the time,
was his repeated disobedience of important or
ders, his general unfortunate mental DISPOSE
ton, and his palpable incompetence for tho du-
ties of his position. LEARNED in private CONVEX
sation that in Gen. Grants judgment 1t was
necessary that McClernand should be removed
for the reason, above all, that his bad relations
with other corps commanders, especially Sher-
man and Mcpherson, rendered it impossible that
the chief I'M of tho army should devolve
upon him as tho senior Major-Gencral. as it
would have done were Gen. Grant disabled,
without some pernicious consequence to tho
cause.
Two days after Netherlands removal Grant
began, at 4 o'clock in the morning, an artillery
attack in which about 200 cannon were engaged.
The assault lasted about six hours. but accom-
plished almost nothing. During tho firing nc
Confederates were visible. nor was any reply
made to our artillery. Their muskctry fire also
amounted to nothing. or course. some damage
was done to the buildings Of the town by our
concentrated cannonade, but we could not tell
whether their mills, foundry, or storehouses
were destroyed. Their rife pits and earthworks
werc. Of course, little injured.
MCPHERSON SPRINGS A MINE.
Aftor the artillery attack on the Goth the next
exciting incident of the siege was the springing
OF q mine by Mcpherson. Directly in front of
his position the enemy had a great fort, which
was regarded as the key OF their line. As soon
as Mcpherson had gotten into position behind
Vicksburg he had begun to run trenches toward
this fort, under which he subsequently tun-
nelled, hoping that by an explosion he would
open it to our occupation. After a months labor
he had his mine ready and charged with 1900
pounds of gunpowdcr. About 4 o'clock of
tho afternoon of June % the mine was sprung.
The explosion was terrific, forming a crater
fully thirty.ive feet in diameter; but it did not
open the fort. There still remained between the
new ground which we had won by the explosion
and the fort an ascent so steep that an assault
was practically impossible. From this point q
desperate attempt was made, however. to gain
ground which would be of practical value. The
fight was kent up with fury for several days,
but we were never able either to plant a battery
or open Il rifle pit there.
Eventually Mcpherson completed q new mine.
which he exploded on the first day of July.
Many Confederates were killed, and six were
thrown over into our lines by the explosion.
They were all dead but ono, a negro, who got
well and joined our army. Mcpherson did not,
however, get possession of the place through
this mine. as he had hoped.
APATHY AMONG THE BEsIEGERs.
Little advancement was made in the siege
after MCPHERSON sprang his first mine on the
25th of June. except in time, and to hold the
lines Of investment. Several things conspired
to produce inactivity and n sort of listlessness
among the various commands-the heat of the
weather. the unexpected length of the siege,
the endurance of the defence. the absence of
any thorough organization of the engineer de-
partment. and. above all. the well.grounded
general belief of our officers and men that the
town must presently fall through starvation,
without any special effort or sacrifice. This
belief was founded on the reports from
within Vicksburg. Every new party of desert
ers which reached us agreed that the provisions
nf tho plara ,ynre neor fha point ~ fatal axl,o,,
ton, that rations had been reduced lower than
ever, that extreme dissatisfaction existed
among the garrison, and it was generally OK
pected-indeed, there was a sort of conviction
on all hands that the city would be surrendered
on Saturday, July 4, If, in fact, it could hold out
as long as that.
The general indisposition OF our troops to
prosecute the siege zealously and the evident
determination on the part of the enemy to hold
out until the last caused Gen. Grant to hold a
council of war on the morning of June 80 to
take judgment on the question OF trying another
general assault, or leaving the result to the ex-
haustion Of the garrison. The conclusion OF the
council was in favor of the latter policy; but
two days later. July ., Grant told me that IL the
enemy did not give up Vicksburg by the 9th he
should storm it.
PEMBERToN ASKS FOR AN INTERVIEW.
iiapliiJ ohSAS Neo ho ~ ulll II
9Th. The general expectation that something
would happan by July 4 was about to be con-
frmed. On the morning of Friday. July 3. a
man appeared on the Confederate line, in Nc
Pherson's front. bearing n flag of truce. Gen.
A. j. Smith was sent to meet the man. who
proved TO be an officer. Gen. ]. S. Bowen. He
bore a letter from Pemberton, addressed to
Grant. Tho letter was taken to headquarters,
where it was read by the General and its con.
tents made known to the staff. 1t was a re-
quest for an armistice to arrange terms for the
capitulation of VicksburE. To this end Penn
berton asked that three commissioners be ap-
pointed. to meet a like plumber TO be named by
himself. Grant Immediately wrote a reply:
Tho useless efrusion Of blood you propose stop.
ping by this course can be ended at any time you
may choose by an unconditional surrender OF the city
aud garrison. Men who have shown so much on.
durance and courage as those now In vicksburg will
always challenge the respect OF an adversary, and I
can assure you will BIO treated with all the respect