Year: 1865


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THE CAPTURE or PETERSBURG.
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Mr.. Thomas n. Cooks Despa1eh.
PErHRsBuR0, Va, Aprif3 1855.
Petersburg is ours The three words tell the story.
With it, fall the rebel capital falls Volumes that may
DO written will scarcely add TO the intensity Of the Joy
that will fill the popular heart Of tho North at the
nouncement General Grant has added lustre to
his great fame military chieftain He has bearded
the Lion In his den and conquered him. Lees army has
received more terrible thrashng than It met with
before and flying in scattered parts third Of being
now prisoners In our hands.


suHhARY OF MILITARY OPERATIONS


Let me briefly summarize before proceeding to elabo
rate the details Of the brilliant combinations and move
ments that have resulted SO glorously


BATTLES SUNDAY.


The operations Of yesterday the rcbef army On the
south Of the Appomattox in twain The elegant fighting
Of the Ninth Sixth and Twenty CORPS gained for
entrance into and Of the main rebel
works west Of the Baxter leading into Petersburg
with their guns and immense number Of prisoners
Still further to the left Sheridan was operating with his
grand column OF cavalry, supported by the Fifth and
portion Of the Second corps. Tho operations nearer
Petersburg severed the rebel lnes leaving the forces
contending against Sheridan isolated The whole right
imminent
danger Of being captured bodily. Vigorous pushing
gained for us numbers Of prisoners but for reasons set
forth in the dispatches Of your correspondents with
part of the army the main force managed withdraw in
the direction of the Upper Appomattox.


THE srAMPRDE


Pressing our advantages on the right were rapidly
doubling the rebel lines up when night nterposed giving
them an opportunity Of withdrawing which they did,
leaving their guns tents and works they had used and
occupied them excepting such had previously cap
tured and the road left open for our into
the city, which was made at hafpast four O'Clock this
morning by Colonel Ralph Elys Second brigade Of Bre
vet Major General Orlando Willcoxs First division Of
the Ninth corps, Major General Parke commanding Tho
First Michigan sharpshooers the undisputed claim
ants of the honor of the first entry into the CITY,
VICTORY.


At this whiting is impossible to give anything like
accurate reports Of the result Of the Up
evening twelve thousand Eve hundred prisoners had
been reported at general headquarters. It is but small
estimate suppose that thousand were added TO the
number during the night and this morning -making
tWcnty6ve thousand in dI One hundred pieces Of ar
ery including siege guns Of all calibres in the works
about the city, will be no tem in the grand result
Small by the tens Of thousands have Immense
warehouses filed with all Of army stores still
main unharmed in Petersburg Battle flags, army





beyond estimate included in tho captures The
beion ioses also by this signal victory, the further
services OF such General A. Hill and Colonel
Pegram both killed in action and host Of officers of
lesser note The casualties among their been
fearfully dsproporonate to those among their men, an
indication at least Of the rapidly increasing demoraza
ion Of their army requirin unusual exposure by their
officers to keep them up TO the fighting spirit.


CHARACTER THE FIGHTING.


The fighting that has us this signal victory has
been vastly different from that which has hitherto cha
racterized tho conflicts between these two armies 1t
has not been the steady, organized determined, IN
yielding deadly struggle Of charlottesville Gettys
burg, the Wilderness The slain numbered by
Of thousands. The hospitals overun with
torn and bleeding paaients Many good have fallen
and the hospitals contain numbers OF brave men
wounded but not 10 exceed twelve fifteen thousand
" many, have been disabled doubt whether the
number will exceed ten thousand Such, then, being
the general character and result Of the glorious affair."
doubtless the reader will DO interested in reading the
story more in detail.


OPERATIONS rxNEDrATHY BKyoRE rxzyxmURG.


The operations up 70 Saturday night have already bsen
given in full Sunday mornings battle has been briefly
alluded to The full operations Of that day given by
tho HnALD's corps OF oonesponden from his
own standpoint II was my fortune TO be with the right
Of our line, where the Ninth corps posted In the
old works Of the Army Of the Potomac. The work
signed TO this corps in the original psu Of the
ment simply 70 hold this line while the Of the
army moved out the left to draw Lee out Of his works
or turn his flank The movement succeeded in both
objects, and hence the magnitude of our victory.
NINTH CORPS.


The line seld by the Ninth corps extended from the
Appomattox TO the Weldon Railroad distance Of fully
Eve miles, confronted nj all points by the strongest
works Of the rebels, mounted with their heaviest M
ery These are tho opposing lines the extending and
strengthening and perectng Of which have occupied the
two armies since early last They what
officer yesterday apty termed the bloody linea" Be
tween them have been fought oil the battles that have
occurred in front of Petersburg


wuLcox's LINES


The First division Of the Ninth corps under command
Of Brevct Major General Orlando b. WILCOX held the
extreme right, having It's particular territory the line
from the Appomattox 10 Fort Emory just west Of the
Baxter road something two miles in extent. To
this portion Of the line attached myself and the i'm
portant operations here effected will relate.
A DENOMINATION


Al midnight on Saturday General Wilcox received or
ders TO make demonstration on his extreme right in
order to draw many OF the rebels as possible in that
direction, and thus assist the attacks that had been
planned for the following morning Tho demonstration
made with great earnestness at the seme time that
Admiral Porter hammering away with his gunboats
up the James river All the artillery that part Of the


line ordered into play and the skirmsh line in front
Of Ey's brigade advanced Tho was yet shin.
ing and the night was perfectly clear that tho attack
was distinctly witnessed from tho blufs In the rear The
men moved forward steadily and the sharp voeys
Of muskcry indicated their approach to the rebel lines
the artillery on the heights behind them fired more
brisv the shells phreknr throuph the air over their