Norwich bulletin., 1909-08-18

Boston, Aug. li.--AL lne CONCLUSION
of today's manoeuvres in the war
game in which the army Of the Red
Under Brigadier General Tasker II.
Bliss is striving to defeat'the army OF
the Blue. commanded by Brigadier
General William A. Pew, Jr., and cap
ture Boston, the army of the Red had
made a material advance and unless
Pew of the defenders can concentrate
his troops tomorrow morning to meet
the attack of troops, which General
Bliss has massed heavily ON the Blues
left, General Pew faces defeat.
Headquarters Nearing Each Other.
The two headquarters tonight are
within less than a dozen miles of each
other-General Pews quarters are still
at Robbins pond, within six miles OF
Bridgewater, while General Bliss has
made material advance from The
Rock. a point eight miles southeast of
Middleboro, where his headquarters
were last night, to Eddyville. in East
Middleboro at the source of the Win
netuxet river, which is some six miles
| northeast of Middleboro.
To Annhilate Pew's Left.
\From the general direction Of the
| movements of General Bliss and his
army and the strength 6f his command
the plan which he intends to follow to
capture Boston is apparently revealed
for the first time. This is to annihilate
General Pew's extreme left and to pass
| that end with a comparatively clear
road to Boston. But for the fact that
| the hour Of O'Clock, when both armies
| cease operations for the day. arrived a
| tri1e too soon, the plan would have
been eminently successful today. As
| il is, unless General Pew can support
his second brigade OF infantry, COM
/ prising the Fifth. Eighth and Ninth
regiments and Battery 3, under COM
mand of Colonel William II. Donovan,
which is the Blues left wing. by all his
cavalry and artillery, which tonight
are in the center, some six miles away
| from the scene. and thereby hold the
roads tomorrow morning until his first
brigade can be rushed from the right,
! he risks defeat.
Three Blue Regiments Face Entire Red
Army.
| over at the extreme left Of the Blue
| line the three regiments named are
| facing practically the entire Red army
| General Bliss southwark movement to-
] day was one of determination. on a
settled plan. with which every organ
| ization was apparently familiar. In
addition it was cleanly executed and
| strategic and gave evidence that the
Red scouts had fully posted General
/ 4jliss on the position Of the Blues. In
| the Reds advance there never was a
! sign of hesitation when the Blues out
| posts were encountered and then either
! captured or driven in in short order.
Connecticut Men Engage Blues Front.
How expeditiously and scientifically
this was accomplished was best illus
! trated at Middleboro Green. Here
/ Major Charles RI. Cutler of the Blue
army. with three skeleton companies
OF the Eighth infantry, was encounter
ed and rendered non-combatants In
: quick time. While the Connecticut
squadron of cavalry engaged the Blues
| front. Major Grierson of the Reds with
his three troops of the Tenth United
| States cavalry (colored), who dis
mounted and acted as infantry. sup
/ ported by two machine guns turned
! the right flank of the Blues while at
\ the same moment Major Briegman
with the New York cavalry executed
the same movement on the eft. II II
| had been actual warfare 1t is believed
| that there would not have been a Blue
| soldier left in considerably less than
half an hours time after the engage
ment had begun. General Bliss in his
| advance placed all his cavalry. consist
ing of five troops, on his left flank and
| they easily dislodged all the Blue in
| fantry on General Pew's extreme left
as the advance was made. General
1
I the First under command of Brigadier
General George II. Harries and the
/ Second under Colonel Daniel Appleton.
| together with the Twenty regi-
ment OF engineers and all his field ar
| til!ery.
He arrived at Eddyville where the
, highway forks TO the east and north.
at noon. The First brigade took the
| eastern road which would have car
ried them around Pew's left end whils
the Second brigade toik the northern
road. heading directly for Boston
On this northern road the Blue army
gained a decisive victory that did
much to make up for the reverses at
Middleboro green and the precarious
condition of the left wing.
Walked Into Blue Ambush.
The Second brigade of the Red army
had proceeded less than a mile along
the northern road when II received
genuine surprise. Companies c. II,
VI. and B of the Eeighth infantry
under Major w. II. Perry occupied a
magnificent hilltop position supported
by Battery b of Worcester. COM
nanded by Captain l.. w. Wheeler.
The entire Blue force was well con-
cealed on both sides of the road with
the battery posted so that IL could
sweep the highway with a plunging
crossfire from both sides Into this
trip the Red army, flushed with sue
cess, marched through the mud with
jaunty rread. Then the Blue ambush
opened. The Red front had advanced
beyond withdrawal well into the trap
when infantry and battery opened a
murderous cross fire. At such range
in actual warfare the front of the
Red brigade would have melted like
snow before IAN April rain. The Red
brigade promptly fell back while Gen
e.al Bliss eudeavoreI to get his artii-
lery located. Before he could do this
to retrieve his fortunes at this point
O'clock had arrived and hostilities
for the day were suspended.
Civil War Peninsula canp paien Re-
called.
Today's battle took place under
conditions strongly resembling those
Of the peninsula campaign about
Richmond in the civil war The coun-
try roads. for days Inches deep In the
dust of summer drouth. were changed
into rivers of mud before the most Sc
we're northeast ralnstorm OF the sum
mer.
Waded Through Mud Foot Deep
The constant movements of the cav
airy, artillery and infantry had cut up
the roads badly and the soldiers. most
Of them unused to such conditions
waded through mud foot deep. The
suspension of hostilities brought 30
relief NAll day the rain poured In tor
rents. The shelter tents of both armies
we're quickly soaked through. The
bitches dug around them tlled with