Sistersville daily oil review. [volume] (Sistersville, W. Va.) 1902-1905, 1903-11-14

uerCe anu WllueIluS nIS VI 1IlllleIy
Besides the fieldpieces bearing directly
on the front of the column two n
Founders poured upon its flank a storm
of missiles of all sorts, with fragments
Of railway bars and broken chains OF
grape, rusty nails and the rakiDgs Of
q scrap iron heap for canister. No part
of the column ever passed beyond tine
abatis, nor was it even possible to ex-
tricates the troops in any order without
greatly adding to the list Of casualties,
already Of fearful length. Banks wac
for putting in the supports, but before
anything could be done came bad news
from the left, and at last it was clear
to the most persistent that the day was
miserably lost"
Chaplin and O'Brien were shot dead
while struggling to cut their way
through the abatis. Nearly every off,
Ger in the storming party was killed or
wounded, and the Twenty-first Maine
color guard was totally destroyed.
The right wing Of Banks army un-
der General Weitzel happily escaped
the dull and hopeless slaughter sui
fered by the left and center. The Con-
federate defenses on the land side at
Port Hudson were nearly four miles
long and touched the river at each end.
In front of Weitzel the defenses had
been hastily prepared to meet the at
tack by telling huge logs along the
crest Of the hill. The ravines approach
ing the hill were barricaded with
network Of limbs.
WeitZeps men could not even see the
enemy they were to attack. They be-
came a bold mark for destructive fire
of small arms, grape, shell and CAMS.
ter the moment the line left the cover
of the hollows and the timber. Final.
ly, after climbing over hills, logs and
fallen trees and forcing the ravines
filed with brush, the troops drove back
the Confedaates and seized the ridge
about 200 yards from the main point
selected for attack.
AS the infantry advanced the pic
neers opened the roads, and five bat
teries were hauled to the crest. Some
of the regiments took an hour to move
bali a mile. So thick was the brush
That men could see only a few feet
and at one point Confederate officer
and his skirmishing party were sur.
prised and captured in ravine before
they were aware that the FederaE
were coming.
Weitzers attack began early in the
morning, and after it had spent its
main strength an attempt was made
on the extreme right to force the Con-
federate lines near the river. Two col
ored regiments Of Louisiana negroes
lined up in front of a rugged bluff
which projected boldly from the main
height. forming a natural baStion with
perpendicular sides and inaccessible
except by narrow road winding along
it's base The ridge was held by Colo
mel Shelby's Mississippi regiment, aid
ed by six field guns and two column
biads firing s inch and 10 inch shrap-
mel.
When the head Of column Of negroes
reached the foot Of the hill, Shelby's
men opened upon them with musketry
from the rifle pits on the crest. The
negroes pressed CALAMITY on and soon
got within range Of the field guns
which raked the line with shell and
shrapnel. Still struggling on, they
came under the entlade fire OF the
columbiads. Pushing into the narrow
gorge leading up the hill, the foremost
negroes were within 200 yards OF the
top wnen all the guns bearing upon
their course began belching canister.
Courage against canister Is like a
broom against the ocean. Blood and
bones cannot stand it. The leading
regiment fell back il. disorder and
struck the one following at the base Of
the hill. Both regiments rallied under
cover and reformed for second
charge. Finally they moved forward
toward the hill, but were not ordered
in again.
Confederate bullets, shrapnel, CAMS
ter and scrap iron did not fly wild at
Port Hudson, Notwithstanding the IT.
regularity and confusion of the lines
Over 100 Federal officers. including two
generals ind nine colonies. were hot
down and nearly 1000 soldiers in the
ranks killed and wounded. The Con-
federate loss was comparatively light.
although Banks guns bombarded the
works at intervals, beginning at day
light. and the Federal feet maintained
a fire from the river upon the strongest
parts of the fortress.
General Neal Dow was captured In
his quarters by a skillful raiding party
and carried to Richmond after an ex-
citing trip across the country. He was
long held as hostage for Fiz.Hugh
Lee.
Banks went into the movement
against Port Hudson in the belief that
Grant would send help from Vicks-
burg. This help was ordered from
Washington, but the dispatch didn't
r.oab Grant mill his trOODs were in