The Montgomery advertiser., 1902-11-09

CiSafiHe, ana Wnen we were "iehh AZ"
yards Of 1t, the enemy lighted up his Turk
ing places with a blaze of mussetry.
Exposed to hfdd4n foe we returned the
fire until ordered to fall back. carrying
with US our dead and wounded. We had
felt" OF the enemy. During this night
brittle a minnie rife ball cut out the let
ter c. from the hilt of Colonel Steed"
mans sword. leaving the letter S-t.c-
| ssroying the Confederacy. hut leaving the
States. The sword Is still In his possess
sion Q902). Lieutenant-Colonel Locke
wore the sword that night by mistake
| The vital Importance of the delay thus
secured by these days Of aghting In ad-
vance Of our main line of defense. Will he
better understood by adding here an ex-
tract from Colonel Stssdman's officiai re-
port of the siege of Port Hudson. Had
not these rifie-pits been constructed. tina
enemy would have entered Port Hudson
May 27th.
Extract from Colonel steedman's Of
Acia1 Report Of the Siege.
THE enemy's demonstrations on this
day convinced me beyond doubt that
he had determined to attack our lines In
the vicinity of our commissarv depot, ar
senal, etc. Up to Monday night, the 18th
Of May, no works of any description had
been thrown up to defend this position,
extending from Colonel Johnsons adj
vanced work, on the right of my COM
mand to a point within five hundred
yards of the river on the left, including
a space of three-fourths of mile. There
| was not a rifle pit dug nor gun mount
ed on Monday night
I reported my convictions to the Major
General commanding. The >evidence was
satisfactory to him, and he ordered all
the available tools, negroes. etc. to be
placed at the disposal of the CHIEF En-
gineer. The work was promptly laid out
by Lieutenant Dabney and ere the dawn
of Tuesday, considerable progress had
been made. A battery of four pieces had
been mounted during the night on the
hill in the immediate vicinity of the COM
| missary depot which. since that. has been
called Commissary Hill. The emergency
| being great, this work was pressed with
energy all Tuesday and Tuesday night.
| 80 that by Wednesda morning ap imper-
| feet line of rifie-pits had been thrown up
| to protect the most exposed points on the
| left wing"
During the night OF the 26th the entire
| Confederate Army took position along our
| lire of hreastworks. where We remained
| during the period IF 40 lays IF siege that
| followed. Port Hudson was not provl-
stoned for siege. General Gardner had
received orders to evacuate it. but the
| rapid approach of General Banks pre-
vented It's execution.
The position of the command and the
| assignment of commanders COR the siege
| were as follows: Major-General Frank
! Gardner commanding all the Confederate
| forces; Colonel /. u. w. Steadman, act
| ing brigadier -ge neral, commanding thu
| left wing: rigadier-General w. n. X.
| Beal. commanding the cente-; Colonel
rsr Ak ri,,fr
| beginning at the extreme left and given
in the order in which they occur, the
left wing was comp >sed of the 39th Mis-
sssippi, detachment of Colonel Wing
| fields dismounted cavalry. 10th Arkansas,
| Ist Alabama and 18th Arkansas regi-
rlents; the center Of the BIRD Arkansas.
| 18th Arkansas, LIST Arkansas and 18th Ar
kansas; the right wing of DeGournay's
| battalion or artillery and Colonel Miles's
| legion.
The distribution of Confederate batteries
numbered from left to right were as fol-
| lows: On the left wing batteries 3, 6,
| u fort Desperately, Il, 10, IA, Is, Is II;
| on the center batteries IS. 10. 20, q, %, e,
! "a. rs: on the right wing. batteries Is, q,
| %, 20, 80: the missing numbers indicate
| batteries planned, but never constructed.
| On the left wing were no defenses except
| that the timbers for two hundred yards in
| front had been felled the surface being
| so rugged that the skill of the engineer
was hardly deemed necessary. The posi-
| ton of the First Alabama about three
| quarters of a mile from the extreme left
was between the 10th Arkansas on its
left, and the 18th Arkansas on its right
| A ravine pierced the right of our regi-
ment. separating Company and its bat
terry from the rest of the regiment. The
length of the left wing was l 1-2 miles
| long and defended by 1000 effective men.
| This puts the men along the line in sin
| gle file about five feet apart. Our regi-
ment never at any time had Its full
| strength at the breastworks; attachments
from Companies A. B, G and X being
| kept at their respective batteries and two
attachments from Company K being as
signed, one to a redan on the Jackson
road, and the other to battery II on the
| river
| During the siege. several heavy guns
were transferred from the river batteries
to the breastworks, wooden guns shaped
| and painted like cannon being substituted
to deceive the enemy below. 1t is singular
| that the fleet made no serious effort to
capture any of our river batteries during
| the siege.
Contrary to expectation, the enemy did
| not push his advance May 26th. and this
gave the regiment an opportunlt TO en-
trench. This delay of one day by Banks
was a fatal mistake to him.
Late in the evening of the 26th, General
Banks sent in to General Gardner for
NAL demand for the surrender of Port
Hudson. 1t was a lengthy document,
written in that elegant style for which
| General Banks was so noted. 1t set forth
| his ability to take Port Hudson at his
| will but expressing earnest desire to
| save the unnecessary effusion of blood.
To this General Gardner replied briefly
| that his orders were to defend Port Hud-
| son and that he should obey his orders.
1t was midnight when VIC were ordered
to quit work and to sleep on our arms.
| The men, falling on the ground in rear
| of the bitches. were soon in slumbers.
The firing had ceased and the note OF the
whippoorwill n the ravine above us alone
broke the stiffness of the night. To the
thoughtful 1t was an hour for serious
reflection. To many it was the last sleep
before that of their final rest.
At early dawn of May 9th Banks
opened a heavy cannonade upon our
whole front the feet shelled the river
batteries. Shot, grape, shrapnel were
whizzing everywhere, tearing up our
breastworks here. blowing up the ground
there, knocking the trees into smithcreens
wonder amid terrific explosion of shells.
About 100 pieces on land nearly as many
heavy pieces from the fleet had their fire
concentrated upon us. This was main
tanned an hour when there Immediately
issued from the woods in front long line
of burnisred. steel and waving banners.
-sLi. 1,.os followed nv another lire, and