The Washington herald. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1906-1939, 1914-06-16

tuS6o VI kuS al VI. k04 OI11II4 SolAL6s
and Gen. George q. sMon1st conal 6ndins
the Army of the RetSinae5 srvlsed n
front Of Petersburg sndkfSund that the
opportunity had passed Nor seizing the
city, the prize Grant had creased the
James River to secure
The successful strategy Of Grant In
moving his army from Cold Harbor, be-
fore Richmond. where Lee had checked
him, fifty miles to the James and crossed
the river before Lee could learn what
had become Of it. had given the Federal
campaign for the destruction Of the Con-
federate military power a new and
favorable turn.
Grant had aimed to secure Petersburg,
the key to Richmond's railroad connec-
items with the South. and to the store
house from which Lee drew his supplies,
before 1t could be strongly defended.
In this program delays-which too often
In the war kept the Federals from reap
ing the fullest benefits of their campaigns
defeated his object
On June Is Petersburg might have been
captured by rapid work at the crucial
moment. A Federal force large enough
to capture 1t was at hand.
Observation-Disclosures. want Of precise in
formation. faulty maps. and want Of ex-
plicit orders cost the Federals their ex-
pected easy conquest of Petersburg.
These were :raceable In part to the
character of two armies-the Army of
the James and the Army of the Potomac
A force from the former. the Eigh-
teenth Corps, Cen W. F. C"Baldy'O
Smith. was to advance upon Petersburg
from City Point, while the Second Corps
Of the Army of the Potomac. was to ad-
vance upon II from Windmill Point, sew
eral miles down the James.
Failure of these two forces to form a
junction promptly failure for which
the blameris not easy to fix-cost Grant
Petersburg.
low Fighting Was Begun.
Gen. Smith had marched from City
Point on the morning OF June Is for
Petersburg with about 1900 men. He
had but six miles to march to reach the
outer works, two miles from the city.
He arrived there early. Finding the
works defended by artillery, which was
smartly served. he assumed that the
guns must be well supported by infantry.
In this he was wrong, as the only de-
tenders Of Petersburg at that hour were
embraced in 900 men Of Gen. Henry A.
wise's infantry command and about
Zoo cavalry under Gen. James bearing.
Gen. Smith spent some hours recon-
noiterins the ground in person. no engi-
neer officer having been sent with him
for the purpose.
At p. m. Gen Smith ordered a mass
ing OF his artillery opposite a salient in
the enemy's works. He found the artil-
lery horses had been sent to the rear to
be watered. An hour passed before
they came up. At p. m. Gen. Smith
moved to the attack with a heavy Skin
mish line. There was hard fighting until
dar in yVh vnila a half nf the
works. nearly 800 prisoners and four
guns were captured. The fighting then
ceased for these reasons, as reported
next day by Gen. Smith:
by this time darkness had set in, and
having learned some time before that
were rapidly coming in
from Richmond. and deeming that
held important points of the enemy's
line Of works. I thought it prudent to
make no further advance, and made my
to hold what already had"
why Hancock Was Late.
This exercise Of prudence, though by
an old and able ofiicer, and other events
OF the day. were to prove fatal to Grants
plans. The blame was not all Gen.
Smiths. for a force large enough to take
with relative ease might have
been at hand to aid him had the Federal
plans for the day not been disarranged.
The primary cause of this disarrange-
ment lay in the failure of Gen. Grant.
or possibly of his staff. to communicate
to Gen. Meade the orders issued by
Grant for the assault on Petersburg.
and the part Hancock was expected to
have in it
Gen. Hancock. when ordered by Gen.
Meade to march to Petersburg, did not
know that AM assault was contemplated.
Hancocks corps had been ferried over
the James on June IA. and landed at
Point, ten miles below City
Point. and sixteen miles by direct road
from Petersburg.
That evening Gen. Hancock was or
Tered by Gen. Meade to hold his corps
n readiness to march in the morning to
given point-"where the City Point Rail- !
Dad crosses Harrison's creek, where We |
low have a work"
These orders were based on topograph- |
cal information evidently supplied by |
ZEN. B. F. Butler, who had been on the |
ground with the Army of the James |
'ince May s. They were misleading. The |
:reek mentioned was inside the enemy's
ines and. Of course. there was no Fed
.ral work there.
Gen. Hancock was also ordered to- Is
ue rations to his men before marching. |
he rations to be sent to him by boat
rom Buffers Army.
On the morning of June 10 Gen. c. II.
iorgan, Hancocks chief of stan. rode 10
he wharf. saw a steamer there assumed
/ was the boat with rations and reported
o Gen Hancock the rations had ar
lived. An hour or more later II was
ound a mistake had been made. The
oat with rations had not arrived.
At 9 a. m. an order was given by Gen.
ieade, who had not yet crossed the
ames for Hancock to march without
atoms. This was to be signaled across
he river. 1t was not signaled. Gen.
forgan meanwhile had visited Gen.
ieade and. receiving a duplicate of the
rder started across the James with il
he steamer carrying him went aground
nd an hour was lost III
1t was 1890 a. m. before Hancock's
orps began to march-a body Of 20Oo
len on a wild goose chase. seeking the
,cality named in its orders. A detour
{ four miles was made. Many anxious
ne position of Harrison's Creek. The
fternoon was thus lost.
Grant Rushes Army Up.
Meanwhile Gen. Grant had sent an
fficer to Gen. Smith to say that Han
ock was coming up, Smith then sent 4
n officer to find Hancock and urge him
orward He found Hancock at $50 p.
i. His message was the first intimation
hancock had received that there was to
e an assault on Petersburg that day.
The corps was now marched at a rapid
ace four miles to the left of Smiths
ositon. 1t had marched twenty miles
rat day. There was some delay in find-
=. ,,h.~o 10 .horld take noaitfon IA rc- /