The National tribune., 1907-10-17

usual impetuosity. Old HeintZelman.
who had done nothing but biunder
since the beginning of the campaign.
had posted his corps SO as to leave a
gap three-fourths of mile wide be-
tween Sumner and Franklin, into which
MaEruder rushed his men Gen. Burns's
Brigade rushed into the gap. splendiclN
supported by Brookss and Hancock S
Rrigades. Four light batteries were
galloped up and massed. and Magruder
was forced to recoil before the muir
derous fire poured upon him. He was
unable to gain any advantage. and the
troops retired without further molesta-
ltion across White Oak Swamp Bridge.
which they destroyed by fire.
The first step was successfully ac-
complished. and Mcclellan. with nearly
ione-third of the army, reached the high
open ground near Malvern Hill, where
he easily brushed aside some troops
brought up by Gen. Holmes and Henry
A. Wise. He planted himself directly
on the bank of the James in full COM
municatiOn with our fleet, and his posi-
ton was strongly defensble. All that
then remained was to bring the rest of
the army into it. The rear was seven
and a half miles away at a crossing of
the White oak Creek, where dogged,
brave, fighting old Sumner was standing
grimly at bay to protect 1T. This made
q long line from him to Keyes at HaXalfS
|
tirely to be a comfortable protection To
the thousands of wagons, the reserve
artillery, the $500 cattle and the rest
of the vast array of impedimenta which
was being pressed forward thru the mar
row and devious roads of the swamp.
Mcclellan had planned his march well
| in making the concentration where the
four great roads entered the swamp and
struck his flank. These were the VIII
| liamSburg road, running almost parailel
to the railroad; the Charles City road,
itrending off to the southeast from it;
the Darbytown road. still further to the
southwest, and the New Market read,
further over toward the James River.
The Battle of White Oak Bridge.
AS soon as Lee comprehended Nc
| Clellan's movement he divided his army
| into two parts. Stonewall Jackson was
given five divisions and ordered to fol-
low directly in the rear and strike Nc
Clellan at every opportunity. Long
street was given command of the other
| five divisions, and ordered to move out
upon the roads enumerated above and
try to pierce McClellans flank. The
1.-TWO, Jackson and Longstreet, Were wide
! ly separated, but not so far that the
cannon of one would not be n signal to
the other, SO that attacks could be made
simultaneously. The destruction of the
bridges across the Chickahonliny had
delayed Jackson for a day, and thus
prevented the swift cooperation which
Lee had planned
| At daybreak, June 80, Franklin, with
the divisions of Smith and Richardson
i and Naglee's Brigade, occupied the ap-
proaches to White Oak Bridge and Fra
zier's Farm. To his left was Slocum's
Division, with his right resting on the
| Charles City road. HeintZelman had
moved off to the left during the night
to take the position at Glendale formerly
held by Porter Mccall had left Fra
zier's Farm, and his troops were boiling
coffee and broiling pork at NelscH's
| Farm when Sumner Joined him with
SedgWick'S Division. keyes was MAX
ling good his hold upon the James River.
with POrter'S Corps extending his line
toward Mccall. All Of these command
ers had been in a measure cropping their
way thru the unknown wilderness. but
their enemies knew no more about the
Icountry than they. Lee, with that abil-
iity he afterwards so Strikingly demon
strated, had seen the full Importance OF
shrinking Mcclellan Il crushing blow
which would bring about the ruin of
his army. He was straining every nerve
to do this, and animated his subordi-
mates with hopeful pictures of the wild
isuccess they would achieve If they once
pierced this line and reached the GEN.
! ter of that moving mass of wagons, cat
tie and troops. The ruin of the Army
of the Potomac would in that case be
immediate and irretrievable
Jackson pushed forward with all the
speed he could infuse into his men.
reaching White Oak Bridge about II
O'Clock in the morning, and found
Franklin firmly posted there. with the
two Regular batteries of Hazard and
Mott, sweeping all the approaches. Capt.
Romeyn B. Ayres afterward a dstin-
| QriShed n1er of diyiSfnn the
Fifth Corps, and an artillery officer OF
| the highest skill, had planted his guns
effectively with heavy batteries of rified
| I10-pounders on higher ground in the
rear of his first line. Jackson had from
double to treble the force of Franklin.
as he had with him at least four strong
divisions and from Is to 20 batteries of
| light artillery. The woods were so thick
and the passages SO intricate that he
| was unable to make his great superior
lity of force available. His first essay
was to crush Ayres's batteries by the
volume of fire that he could fling upon
il from his greater number of guns. In
little while Hazard and Motifs batteries
were virtually destroyed, with Hazard
Imortally wounded. Even the guns them
Iselves and their carriages We're battered
down by the storm of missiles poured
upon them. The 10-pound rifles in the
rear. however, proved their value in the
In spite of this great superiority Jack
sans artillery had to acknowledge de-
feat. The fight lasted the whole day,
with Jackson hoping from time to time
that his artillery had crushed the in
fantry on the opposite side. when he
would rush forward his own infantry
only to have it wither away under the
murderOus torrent from the rifles Of
Smiths and Richardson's mistaken regi
ments. Thus Franklin held back one
half of Lees army for a whole day. lie
had suffered heavy losses. but had in
flicted still heavier upon Jackson.
The Battle Of Glendale.
I.ongstreet had heard Jackson's angry
lcannonade. and accepted il as signal
for his own determined attack on the
Union troops behind some clearings OF
the Glendale Farm. He Immediately set
in motion some $4,000 or 10000 meh
under A. p. Hill. The first attack struck
Slocum on the Charles City road, and
was repdlsed with comparative ease.
when a more serious assault was made
by the way of the New Market road,
and fell directly upon McCalrs Division
Mccall had been thrown out in the wa!
of a salient, which made a weak forma-
ton. He had placed Meade's Brigade
on his right, Seymour's on the left and