Year: 1863

ance. The little that escaped the hoof o
: the wheel, as the guns moved from pIac
> to place, has since been nibbled oil b
hungry horses during the night bivoua
- subsequent to the battle. Not stalk O
: wheat Is upright. Not blade of corn q
mains uninjured, all has fallen long be
/ fore harvest. Another harvest. in whic,
death was the reaper, has been gathere,
above it.


On our extreme left the pointed sum


nit of u hill OF a thousand feet elevation


rises toward the sky. Beyond it the coun
try falls of into the mountain region tina


extends to the Potomac and across it in


to Virginia. This hill Is quite steep. an,


difficult of ascent, and formed a stron.


position, on which the left Of our lin,


could rest. The enemy assaulted til


point with great fury, throwing his diyis


ions one after the other against it. Thei


efforts were of no avail. Our men de
Tended their ground against every attack


1t was like the dash OF tie French al
! Waterloo against the immoyable column,


of the English. Stubborn resistance over


came the valor of the assailants. Time


after time they came 10 the assault only &


fail back as they had advanced. Then


final retreat left the remnant of our OWL


men still standing behind their works.


The rebel dead and wounded were seat


terIng thickiy about the ground. Oui


own were not wanting.


/ Nearly to the left extreme OF the line


and half way between the crests OF the
| ridges, stands a neat farm house. Around


this dwelling the battle ragged as around
| HougoumonU at Waterloo. At one time


1t was in the rebel possession, and was
! tiercely attacked by our men. The walls
were pierced with shot and she'll, many


of the latter exploding within, and max
ing of themselves a scene OF devastation.


The z lass was shattered by rifle bullets ON


every side, and all the woodwork bears


testimony to the struggle The sharp.
shooters were III every room, and added


to the disorder caused by the explosion
of shells. What the missiles spared the
soldiery destroyed. The rebels were driy-
en- from the house, and the position was


taken by our own men. They in turn
were dislodged, but finally took and held


the place.


In an orchard IN the real OF this house
Was the position of the rebel batteries du-
ring a portion OF the action upon our left.
Fifteen Of their horses lie dead on the
ground, swollen To AN enormous size As
yet, the citizens have made no attempt
to burg the putrefying masses. Ali over
the Held are numerous men from the coun-
try, engaged in gathering whatever is OF
value. A few are merely IN search OF rel
lrcs, but the most of them are bearing
away any and every thing that they con-
slider of pecuniary value. Here in this
orchard | find countryman engaged in
cutting the harness from one OF the dead
battery horses, and preparing TO carry it
from the field. Another has collected a
dozen blankets, dropped, by soldiers in
the heat of the engagement. Another
walks past me with three of the best mus
kets he can find on the battlefield SEN
tries have very properly been posted
where they can take visitors all that is OF
value TO the Government


Retracing my steps before reaching the
extreme lett | return to the center of our
position on the Cemetery Hill. do not
follow the path by which ! came, but
take route along the hollow, between
the two ridges. IL was across this hollow
that the charges were made in the assault
upon our position. Much blood was pour
ed out between these two swells OF land
Most of the dead have been buried where
they fell, or gathered in little clusters be-
meath some shading tree or beside clumps
of bushes. Some OF the rebel dead are
still uncovered. The first that meets my
gaze | come upon suddenly, as | descend
a bank some three or four feet IN hight,
10 the side of small spring. He Is lying
near the spring, as if he had crawled there
to obtain draught of water. His hands
are outspread upon the earth, and clutch
ing at the little tufts OF grass beneath
them. His haversack and canteen are
still hanging TO his side, and his hat Is ly-
ing near him. His musket is gone-ei-
ther carried off by his comrades, taken by
some relic seeker, or placed in the accum-
ulated heap by our own soldiers.


Another corpse, few PAGES distant, lies
with its hands thrown upward, in the po-
sition taken when the soldier received his
fatal wound. He was probably killed in
stantly while standing upright, and fell
backward as he expired. His clothing is
not torn, no blood appears upon his gar
ment, and his face, though swollen, has
no expression of anguish. Twenty yards
from him are the remains OF body cut
in two by a shot or shell. The grass is
drenched in his blood, that even the rain
of yesterday has not washed away His
gun is shattered in pieces, evidently by
the same missile that killed its owner,
and is laid ten feet away. As move for
ward | find another corpse, evidently that
of rebel, who was struck while in the
act of taking aim over his musket' His
hands are raised, the left extended be-
yond the right, and the fingers of the for
mer partly bent, as if they had Just been
grasping the stock of gun. One foot is
advanced before the other, and the body
is lying on its right side. To appearances
it did not move a muscle after receiving
its wound.


The body of another rebel attracts my
attention by a singular circumstances
The face is discolored in the extreme
black as that of the purest Congo negro.
The hands are as delicate as those of
lady, and of snowy whiteness. With the
exception CT the face, the body is but lit
tie swollen, and there are no signs of the
commencement of decomposition. Sew
eral bodies that / find show blackened ia
ces, but no other than this display such a
contrast between the color of the face and
hands. Near a small white house on the
rebel line lies the body of an officer, evil
IDENTIFY lieutenant or captain. His right
arm is extended as if to grasp the hand
of friend. All possible positions in
in which dying man can fall can be no.
ticed on this field.


Reaching the Emmittsburg road find
the same signs of battle that have men
toned elsewhere. The rails are every
where Scared by bullets, the fences
thrown down, the ground cut by the
wheels of the guns and trodden smooth
by the feet of the soldiers. In every
place it is strewn with the wreck of battle
A shattered gun carriage shows where
rebel battery stood and received the shot
of our own. l met here a woman and
three children on their return to their
home on the left of the line of battle
Five days ago they were forced to flee to
town to escape from their locality between
the two contending lines. This morning.
for the first time, they return back.
fear the battle has made sad havoc with
II II I