The Montgomery advertiser., 1906-09-02

paign began at the Wilderness.
 After the repuise at, Cold Harbor Grant again swung his atmy off by the left flank. and on June 18th the Stn was again engaged at White oak Swamp. losing two only.
 CHAPTER XIV.
 Pcfersburx--The Crater.
 On June 18th Grant having reacneo his gun boats on the James River. ana having crossed that stream to assal Petersburg, our Brigade crossed the James at Chapin's Bluff, and reached Petersburg at D. m.. where the regi- ment took position in line near Bat tery No. 30.
 All the world now knows authorita- lively. from the reports of General Lee as well as by common tradition, now our troops suffered during the campaleh n from the wilderness to Appomattox Tor want of clothing, shoes and food Ahe lack of full rations had become so common that in the diary of Captaln Pagan, upon which the writer IS now largely relying for accurate inIorna- ton as to the sth Alabama at PeteIs- burg. the food question is for months scarcely ever mentioned. The gaiian' Captain took it as matter or couIse that the boys must be content w,n , whatsoever the poor Confederacy coulo afford them But 1t Is refreshing 10 read the following entry by hini, on Thursday. July 21:
 Daniel returned. and we had vegetable dinner. for the first time this year. We had cabbage, squash. Ir,sh potatoes, beets, and tomatoes, with plenty of vinegar"
 Just think of the happy fellow. how he enjoyed that dinner with plenty or vinegarr'
 Attack on the Enemy's Left Flank, June 22, 1864.
 The following description of this battle is taken from Captain Fagan's diary supplemented by letter to him from J. M Richardson, who, Captain Pagan says, has very retentive mem | ory and was one of the best soldiers or his old Company, "K."
 | Ever since Grants repulse at the Wilderness he had been moving from time to time to get upon Lees right | flank. Lee always confronting nm wherever he formed his line, Thus maneuvering the two armies had grad ualIy swung around an arc that stret- l ched from the Rapidan to the front of Petersburg; and now on the 22d of | June General Grant suddenly found l that Lee was on his flank The Divi- | slons of Anderson, Wilcox and Bushrod | Johnson, with Mahones had been or | dered to make this movement The | fighting seems largely to have been 1 done by the Alabama, Georgia and Vir- | ginia Brigades of Mahone's Division, as l It was the troops of these Brigades
 that captured all the flags taken from | the enemy The Alabama Brigade was on the left in the attack, and the Sth | Alabama was on the left of our Bri- gade. The Alabamians marched through l the woods and the Sth was halted and | laid down in front of the enemys | breastworks, where it was subjected to l a terrific fire. Three color corporals. | one named George Harris of Company | K" and the names of the other two not remembered, were shot down. In the meantime, the other four regi-
 ments of the AIabamians, together with the Georgians and Virginians, moved on the extreme left flank of Grants army and then all advanced to gether. The enemy fled In great con- fusion. losing 1900 prisonerds and ten flags. Of these the 11th Alabama cap- tured the colors of the 106th PennsyI- vania; the 18th Massachusetts and the 42nd New York (Tammany RegimenD The colors of the 18th Massachusetts were captured by the 2nd Georgia Bat tallion: of the 18th Massachusetts by the 0rQ GScOFBAds Ol tuS atA 4NSW JSAoSy by the eth Virginia: of the 5th Michl- gan by the fist Virginia; while the 61st Virginia captured one United States flag, regiment not known. l As soon as we had occupied the works of the enemy, our men expecting an attack provided themselves each with two guns of those captured from
 the enemy, and loaded them, every man | of the Sth (and 1t Is probably true of other regiments) had not only his own, but two loaded guns besides. Soon the enemy were reinforced and made gall lant attack to recapture their works, but they were risastrously repals- l ed
 That night our troops returned to | their stations with the spolis. The loss of the Sth in this battle was 1 twenty-seven, killed, wounded and mis- l sing.
 On the next day, June 2Srd, the regi- | ment was again engaged at Gurley's Farm. where 1t lost one killed and two wounded. On that night it returned to | its original position at Battery No. 30. near Petersburg.
 | On the 29th of June our Division, with Hampton's and Fitz Lees cavalry. l intercepted the enemy's raiders at l Stony Creek Depot sometimes called
 Reams' Station. on the Weldon Rail-
 road, and assisted in capturing 19S men. seven ofiders, twenty-three ambu-
 lances. fifty-three wagons and fourteen pieces of artillery. The loss of the
 regiment here was five killed. wounded
 and missing.
 On the night of the 29th the regi-
 ment returned to it's original position
 in front of Petersburg
 Our former Major General. R. H. An
 derson, had now been made Lieutenant General and although our Brigade l (now Saunders') was for some time to
 come generally stationed near Battery
 No. 30, in front of Petersburg, our Di-
 vision (now Mahone's) was really in
 reserve and did not usually occupy the ] front line trenches" but was held in l readiness to render aid at any point
 whatever where it might be needed
 along the entrenchments. or to resist
 any attempt on either of our Hanks.
 The Division had therefore in the Pe-
 tersburg campaign much hard march,
 ing and hard fighting to do, through
 the heat and dust of the summer as
 well as in sleet and rain and mud dur
 ing the long winter through which the
 Petersburg campagin extended. Cap- l tain Pagan records that our Brigade
 moved out thirteen times during the
 siege. to intercept raids or resist at-
 tacks. The old Brigade never did bet
 ter service than on July 30, 1864 and no
 combat in all the history of the army
 or Northern Virginia is more credI-
 table to the troops engaged than was
 Tue Battle of the Crater. l According to all military preeedents IL would seem that when General