The times dispatch. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1903-1914, 1906-06-03

signal guns boom upon the still air.
Then heard we the thunder Of tho
captains and the shouting: Attention.
Forward! Guides center March!
The rebel Yell spontaneous rising, rent
the skies, and the armies mixed o.,
Spotsylvania's eclloing heath. The red
mouth artillery belches hell. The mus
kerry growls the voice Of death. IA
thousand ghosts shrek ut once on the
hollow, Wind"
Our left wing slsir1nishes with Brooks
to entice him to llnger. but he responds
with loud roar of his artillery, and.
unacr cover of its smoke and noise, re-
tires safely to Banks Ford.
Kershaw and NVofford, wheeling to the
left, move through the tangled wood,
linrrassed by shell and canister from
N1cCartney's battery (1Tjrst Massachu-
setts) but, when they emerge. the enemy
IS gone.
Wrights valiant Gcorgians circle
Downman's Hill, face to the front, and,
| like a cyclone rush upon the bristling
foe; straight they make for Rigby's Bat
terry scattering the covering regiment;
but let Rigby speak: "The rebels attacked
us with an overwhelming force. ana CON- on,
PEELED our troops to retire. poured shell
and sharpnel into them; they advanced
steadily, and when about two hundred
yards from the battery the regiment In
my front broke and run into tho battery,
frightening my horses creating so much
confusion that l could do nothing" q.
A. Rigby. captain Battery A, Baryland
Artillery So Rigby ltnbcrcd to the
rear and followed Brooks
Hoke's splendid North Carolnians aud
IIuyss gay Louisianlans were filling
their cnntcens from tho ripping Hazel
when tho three cnnnons fired; quickly
they form. spiritcdly- they climb Guests
Hill, "surging forward like the waves OF
ocean against q shaggy rock, 1T they dash
full upon Neil's Brigade. General Neill,
in his report, speaks thus: "Thc whole OF
Longstreets Corps (none of tLongstreets
Corps IIoke, Hays and Gordon only) ut
tackled my right and front, massing large
numbers OF his infantry in tho ravines,
/ which were held by their troops. After
losing about one thousand men. ! was
Obliged to retire, my regiment being un-
able to cope with the overwhelming num-,
bers." But behind Neill's was another
line. Lying low upon the hill, and hid
by It's mantlng brow, Grants Brigade
OF Vcrmonters expectant walt. When
Hays's and Hoke's men are but twenty
PAGES from them, they rise fierce as ten
furies. terrible as he'll" then. above the
din OF war was heard the command
"Fire!", A sheet Of flame burst forth
dense with death, tearing our seyried
ranks to shrcds. Our men recoil.
mo thought Of flight, none OF retreat,
that argued fear, each on himself RELIED
quick rallytng, they form again in Guests
field, ana 'llke a returning tide" rush
unanimously on the blazing foe
Now Gordon advancing his sturdy Geor-
gians, gals tho flank Of the stubborn foe
who rctires slowly. muttering lead.
Night falls and the battle ceases.
Grant, in his report, says: The Yer
mont regiments remained firm and un-
broken closely hugging the crest and lit-
orally presenting q wall OF fire. The
enemy rushed desperately forward and
nearly gained the crest when the regi-
mcnts suddenly rose and gave him ter
rible volley; the ground In our front was
literally covered with the rebel dead and
wounded. The enemy rallied. however.
pressing further to the left threat ening
to cut US off from the river. making des-
perate attempts to force our left. Dark
ness now came on and the firing ccascd")
b GENERAL sEDGEW1CK's RETREAT
ACROSS THE RAPPAHANNOCK.
by the bridges at and below Fredcr-
icksburg. General sedgewick and part
OF General COUGHS Corps (Frst and Sec
ond Brtgades OF Gibbons Divison) some
twenty-five thousand men with their
artillery, passed over to the attack
BY the two bridges at Bunks's Ford,
our 1911 wing, unoer General SedgeWick,h
Of about seventeen thousand men and
their trains and ffty-five pieces OF ar
ltillery, re-passed the river in about forty
five minutes, between two o'clock and
three o'clock. A. NJ, on the 5th May,
1Se3)."-B. w. Benham. Brigadier. COM
inandiing Engineers.
These were the three closing acts OF
great drama: 1.-THE Campaign of Chan
cellorsville,' - was an epic poem, written
on the fair brow of Virginia, in the
mingled blood OF the sons of the Eleven
Confederate Sisters.
And sad. also is 1t to tell, that In every
State of the Union from Maine to Minne-
sofa, there were many mothers weeping
for their sons who lay forever st'll on
Virglnlas sanguinary lap. Me-
CIIAS. RICHARDSON.
willis Hill," Fredericksburg, Va, May
s. 1906.