USA > Massachusetts > Record of the service of the Forty-fourth Massachusetts volunteer militia in North Carolina, August 1862 to May 1863 > Part 15
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The New Berne road was picketed this night by a detachment from Company C, who learned from the Rebel pickets that our wounded were at a house some two miles up the road, with good medical attendance, and in care of ladies, and doing well. Hobart was shot through the left lung, not considered dangerously, Leonard had lost his right eye, and Lawrence was slightly wounded in the neck with a buckshot.
Thursday morning, the 2d, the gunboats below ran up and engaged the Hill's Point battery, but without effect, and after considerable expenditure of valuable ammunition dropped down the river again, - being the first of a daily series of such perform- ances. Renshaw says of the boats within the lines : -
" The 2d instant one hundred and twenty-one shot and shell of various calibre and description were fired at the gunboats and town by the enemy without doing any material damage. After consulting with General Foster I ordered that no notice should be taken by returning their fire. The enemy were briskly engaged during the latter part of the day erecting bat- teries opposite our intrenchments."
Virgil Gilbert ran the blockade up the river with despatches to-day; reports Rebel pickets all along the river-banks. A brisk fire was kept up on the right of our lines through the day by the Rodman's Point battery.
Friday, the 3d, a new battery on Ellison's Hill, near the enemy's left, opened on the forts, making things especially lively for those in Fort Hamilton. Commodore Renshaw says: -
"On the 3d instant, together with the two batteries that had been playing on us, a third one opened directly abreast of us, containing a rifled twelve- pounder distant about six hundred yards ; they succeeded in firing five shots, when it was silenced, our shells completely demolishing the work. The other two batteries fired ninety-eight shot and shell during the day."
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The writer was on guard this day, and while on post saw a mounted man ride out from the cut in Red Hill, through which the Jamesville road passes, and, dismounting within some six or seven hundred yards of our lines, take a leisurely survey of them ; several thirty-two-pound shots were fired at him, but he paid them no attention until he got ready to go, when he mounted, and deliberately rode back into the cut. About ten o'clock the gunboats below came up for the usual diversion at Hill's Point.
Commodore Renshaw sent a small despatch-boat down to the fleet, under Master's Mate Mckeever; he was fired at twenty-one times from Rodman's Point, and narrowly escaped being hit; was fired upon twice from Hill's Point. At 6 P.M., despatches were again sent down to General Palmer, who was below, but the boat was not fired upon.
At night the "Ceres" gunboat, acting volunteer Lieutenant McDearmid commanding, ran the blockade with a supply of am- munition, which, as already mentioned, was running short, as well as our commissary stores, with the exception of coffee; meat had by this time disappeared from our rations, and we were reduced to two-thirds rations of bread ( eight hard-tack per day). Two men of the Twenty-seventh were badly injured in Fort Hamilton by a premature explosion of the thirty-two-pounder, being blown over the parapet.
Saturday, the 4th, the Rodman's Point battery being reported abandoned, Companies H and K and two companies of the Twenty-seventh were sent down on the "Ceres" to occupy it, but with orders to return if the battery had not been removed. When well towards her destination two guns opened fire, and she turned to come back, but the river was so low that she grounded. Boats were immediately sent to her assistance, and the troops were brought back with the loss of three wounded. Commodore Renshaw says: --
"Fortunately no damage was done excepting two men who were wounded by the enemy's shrapnel. While the 'Ceres' was aground she did good work with her guns. For want of ammunition, or being de- ceived by her appearance, the enemy ceased firing, and all the troops, fortunately, were safely landed."
In the evening the " Eagle " towed the " Ceres " off.
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About 2 P. M. a new battery was opened by the enemy on the Widow Blunt place, in rear of Fort Hamilton, but was soon silenced by our guns. They had two six-pound rifled guns, but their shot mostly fell short; they were seen from Fort Hamilton to come up and fire their guns, then run back and hide. We learned from the previous night's pickets that our wounded had been removed to Greenville. A tobacco ration was this day served in Company G, from the company fund, and thereafter every two or three days.
Sunday, the 5th, was comparatively quiet on our part of the line by Blockhouse 2, but Hall (" History Third New York Artil- lery") says under this date that the fire on the fort began to grow heavy. Ammunition was short and our fire slow and accu- rate ; the supply was now brought up by sail and row boats at night. The weather began to be warm, and we also began badly to feel the need of our spare clothing left at New Berne, as most of us had only what we wore when we left there, and wanted a change badly. Heavy firing reported, as usual, down the river ; it was said that nine gunboats were seen below.
Monday, the 6th, was warm and pleasant. Company G was formed in rear of its place on the line, and each platoon de- ployed as skirmishers, and the skirmish-line marched up to the works; then each man was directed to mark his place on the line, and construct a loophole to fire through, with a shelter for his head, which was done. The loopholes were revetted with sods, and in many instances were very neat and workmanlike affairs, commanding a good sweep, and completely sheltering the rifleman. Camp-fires were visible all about us. This day General Foster visited Fort Hamilton and directed the abatis strengthened on the land side; also had the parapet loop- holed as above. Commodore Renshaw's report says: -
" An occasional shot from thirty-two-pounder in Rebel upper battery. The enemy busy at Rodman's clearing the woods and building a raft. About 4 P. M. an explosion at that point followed by the burning of a large building. At 8 p. M. started a dummy down the river ; the wind being light and the tide slack, it did not arrive off Rodman's until nearly If P. M., when they opened fire from their batteries upon it, also volleys of musketry."
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Tuesday, the 7th, there was quite a lively little fight between the Rodman's Point and Widow Blunt batteries on the enemy's side, and Fort Hamilton and the " Eagle" on ours. Renshaw says : --
" Having been informed that the enemy were fitting a steamer and two flats to come down the river, also that they were well protected by cotton- bales, I conferred with General Foster, and determined to build a naval battery in a position that commanded the channel above. At 10 P. M. a thirty-pound Parrott gun from the ' Ceres ' and a twelve-pound rifled how- itzer from the 'Louisiana' were in battery ready for action. The river was well protected two miles above by our torpedoes. One hundred and twelve shot and shell were fired from the enemy's batteries during the day at the gunboats and town without material injury ; none were replied to except one in the swamp, which was instantly silenced."
With regard to the above, another account says : ~
" The Rebels planted a gun in the swamp this morning and opened on the gunboats, which opened broadsides of one-second shells and canister, the range being only about one hundred yards. The firing from the boats was terrific, but for all this they managed to fire the gun once more, and I have not the least doubt that nearly every man there was killed, as they did not fire again."
Another account says of the boys in the lines : -
"Opened again towards night. Down we go into the dirt. Both bat- teries directed here, - Widow's and Rodman's, - also from 32 across the river. Shells burst directly over us. Some one stands on parapet to watch ; when he sees smoke at Rodman's cries out, and down we go close to the bank in that direction. Soon he is up again and cries '32 !' Down we go again. Again he rises, cries out 'Widow's !' Down again. Sometimes two batteries fire at the same time, but it's always all of thirty seconds after we see the smoke before the shot strikes."
Thursday, the 9th, we were turned out at half-past three in the morning, but nothing unusual happened. Two schooners came up in the fog about one A. M., with fifteen tons of ammunition, and were fired into by our sentries. Nothing else of note hap- pened this day. Artillery firing was heard during the afternoon which proceeded from Spinola's column, who had run against the enemy at Blount's Bridge.
About noon of the Sth General Spinola, with a force of some 5,000 infantry, including the Third, Fifth, Eighth, Seventeenth,
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and Forty-third Massachusetts, and the Fifth Rhode Island, with Riggs's, Ashbay's, Howells's, Belger's, and Ransom's batteries, started from New Berne to come overland to our relief.
About noon the next day, the 9th, the head of the column canie upon the enemy in force, in a strong, natural position at Blount's Creek. He was posted on a hill on the farther side of the creek, his flanks covered by a swamp, and his position was approachable only by a narrow mill-dam, completely enfiladed by his guns. Belger's battery was at once ordered forward, and opened, under a heavy fire of grape and canister from the enemy. Belger himself was wounded; and some eight or ten more casualties having occurred in about two hours' firing, Spinola gave up the idea of proceeding, and drew off his men, having made no attempt either to force or to flank the enemy's position. He retreated direct to New Berne, marching with con- siderable haste, and reached that place on the evening of the 10th, with his men well used up with marching. So ended the only attempt made to relieve us from New Berne. An officer of the Seventeenth in a letter to a friend says: " It was considered a most perilous one, - a forlorn hope. Most of the officers con- sidered we were marching to entire defeat, and to death or a prison." There certainly seems to have been a plentiful lack of energy and capacity shown in the conduct of the expedition, and it seems very strange that the extended line of the enemy could not have been broken through by a force of at least one third of his own entire number, and with his forces divided by a river, the only bridge by which direct crossing could be made being closed to them. If the same dash and push had been shown as was done at Southwest Creek in the previous December, in a some- what similar situation, it appears to the writer that a way might have been found to force or flank the position.
Spinola's loss of the confidence of the men was quaintly ex- pressed thereafter by a transposition of the letters of his name, he being familiarly mentioned as " Pi-snola; " he was also known as "General By-Jesus," and " General Dickey," in allusion to the high white collars which he then did and does still, we hear, make himself conspicuous by wearing.
It was the custom of each company on the land side to picket
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its own front; this night, the 9th, among Company G's detail were the writer's two tent-mates, Dolbeare and Atwood. We occupied a tent about the right of the line held by the company, and very near the second traverse on the right of Blockhouse No. 2. The well, on the top of the plateau on the western slope of which was our tent, was about a hundred yards to our right and rear; it was an old-fashioned affair, with curb and sweep and a " dug-out" trough, and with the tree beside it, and Company G's cook-house which stood " convanient," must have been a conspicuous object from the enemy's batteries on Red Hill.
On the morning of Friday, the Ioth, my two comrades had come in from picket duty, and had turned in to make up their sleep; about nine o'clock I was engaged in hanging out my blanket to air behind the tent; a squad of men were at the well, drawing water and washing, some of them stripped to the waist; some firing was going on as usual, but attracted no attention, until one shell seemed rather nearer than common, when I looked up just in time to see it burst, seemingly almost overhead; the group at the well stood not on the order of their going, but scattered with more haste than dignity, some of them making comical ex- hibitions in their endeavors to combine rapid locomotion with the completion of their interrupted toilet. I started to seize my gun and equipments, and to warn my comrades in the tent; as I emerged with my traps in my hand, a second shell cracked as near as the first, and I saw a splinter come spinning and bound- ing down the slope as I ran for my place at the next traverse; when I got into its shelter I found most of the boys of the second platoon comfortably seated in the sand, with their backs to the traverse, laughing at those who had to come in later under fire, which was quite severe, coming apparently from eight guns in a new battery, the first to reach our part of the line; as we were on the left face of the salient between the fort and Blockhouse No. 2, the fire enfiladed us and took us slightly in reverse; the mark of a shell in the inside of the line was noticed by the writer later in the day.
The fort and blockhouses promptly turned their attention to the stranger, and in half an hour the firing was stopped so far as we were concerned. When this seemed definitely ascertained, a
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detail of twenty of us were despatched to the town to see what lumber we could raise to make a roof for a splinter-proof. We went straight to the Grist place, where we found that his gin- house had disappeared, with the exception of its floor ; this we raised bodily from its foundations, and bore it back with us on our shoulders, with many groans but much satisfaction, and it became the principal factor in the construction of our " rat-hole," as we called it, of which the illustration will give as good an idea as I can do in writing; it was a fair sample of the shelters made
" TRAVERSE AND SPLINTER: AS PROOF NEAR QUARTERS OF CAO, WASHINGTON, N.G.
all along the line, though there were as many differences in detail as there were varying circumstances.
The tent in the traverse ditch was occupied by Lieutenant- Colonel Cabot, who commanded that part of the line, and Cap- tain Hunt; and according to the former was known to the officers as " Hotel Hunt."
The enemy opened on us again about noon from the new bat- tery, and again at dark; but by that time our " rat-hole " was nearly finished, in spite of these interruptions. On the forenoon of this day Dr. Ware died. The news of his death cast a sadness over the whole regiment, as he had won his way into the confi- dence and regard of the entire command. The fire on the fort this day was very intense, amounting, Hall says, to two hundred shots per hour. "The topmast of the flagstaff was shot away, bringing the flag down by the run. David Myrick of Battery G, Third New York Artillery, climbed the mast and nailed the flag
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to its place. Shots struck the pole above and below him while he was up there, and one of them jarred him down."
When Colonel Cabot was quartered at our traverse, he asked for a man to act as orderly ; upon which Colonel Lee called Cor- poral Stephen A. Powers of Company G, and presented him in these words: " Here, Colonel, here's Corporal Powers; he'll sing you a comic song, dance you a jig, or shoot you a Rebel, which- ever you want." Powers was thereupon duly accredited as Lieu- tenant-Colonel's orderly, and obeyed and respected accordingly. He really was the life of the company, making fun of everything. On one occasion as we sat in the splinter-proof listening to the whir of the shell overhead he remarked, " Oh, thim 's only pigeon- wings, boys!" and shortly after broke into song with a parody of one of the songs of " Il Recruitio," itself a parody : -
" We're the boys that 's awful hungry, For there's nothing we can eat ; The bloody Rebs are trying to starve us, And we cannot now retreat ; "
and all hands joined in the chorus.
The position of sentry on this traverse was rather trying during the " morning exercises," and in one or two cases was filled, when a volunteer was called for, by Private Alden J. Adams, who was as gay when under fire as when safe and snug in the "rat-hole."
And here it may be as well to explain how we did guard duty at Washington. Each man of the platoon went on in rotation, there being two posts on the line between the traverse and the blockhouse, and the ceremony of a sentinel at Lieutenant-Colonel Cabot's headquarters being dispensed with. The tour of duty was, during the day, two hours; at night, one. The sergeant of the guard sat with the corporal by a fire behind the works, at the meeting of the two beats; at night, when a man's time was up, the corporal would hail him as he came to that end of his beat, "Your time's up, - who relieves you?" "Cogswell, sir." "Well, go and wake him up." Having obeyed which order, the ex- sentry would turn into his own blankets without further cere- mony. We thought this was getting guard duty "right down fine; " and it certainly was a contrast to the elaborate guard- mountings of our New Berne quarters.
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Saturday, the 11th, the batteries opened on us promptly when the river-fog cleared, about 8 A. M. The firing was quite rapid; most of the projectiles were twelve-pound Parrott fuse-shell, few of which burst, but most of them " tumbled " handsomely, making a great racket as they passed. There seemed to be also a few six-pound smooth-bores. Some of the shot reached the extreme left to-day, one falling in the river, very near two of Company D's men who were washing there at the time.
Yesterday, when I returned to my tent to get my blankets, as we were to sleep in the splinter-proof, I found a shot-hole through the side toward the batteries; in Company A one shot plunged through the " guy" end of a tent, picked up a knapsack, and out with it through the other side of the tent, tearing the guy to ribbons, and dropping the knapsack a little farther on, in a very demoralized condition; in fact, as a knapsack, its useful- ness was over when the shot got through with it.
Some of Company D's men found on the Schenkl fuse-plugs of some shells picked up in the lines the mark of Messrs. George D. Fox & Co. of Boston ; perhaps they came to Mr. Hill, in care of Maj .- Gen. John D. Pope, the summer before. The companies on our right, nearer the fort, seem to have experienced more annoy- ance from the enemy's fire than we did; and it seems very singu- lar that there were absolutely no casualties in the regiment after March 30.
This night, about 11 P. M., Company E's sentry heard a noise in their front, and gave an alarm which turned out the company; on investigation a man was found wandering about who proved to be one of our own pickets; how he got there was not explained. We were ordered back to our tents to sleep this night.
Sunday, the 12th, we were all busy pitching our tents near our place in the line, so that we could all be on hand in case of alarm. About 9.30 A. M. the enemy commenced the ordinary morning diversion, which lasted about three quarters of an hour, with the usual results. General Palmer arrived below this day. To-day we were served a ration of flour in the shape of soft bis- cuit instead of hard-tack; but it was questionable whether the change was for the better.
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Renshaw says : -
" 12th instant, finding that the enemy had repaired their fort in the swamp abreast of us with sand-bags and cotton-bales, I directed the gun- boats to fire on it, at the same time ordering small pieces of port-fire to be put in the shells, which had the desired effect of setting fire to the cotton. The enemy, under the galling fire of the gunboats, attempted to extinguish the flames, but their efforts proved unsuccessful. They then placed a red flag with a dark cross directly in an embrasure and left it ; when we ceased firing there was but little vestige of fort or flag left. One hundred and four shots were fired during the day at the gunboats and town ; the latter suffered slightly."
At night the enemy opened on the "Louisiana " and bridge, but without effect; at the same time the " Widow Blunt " scolded at the fort for a while, but also without results.
Monday, the 13th, we woke and found it raining. Fire was opened from the fort on the Red Hill batteries about eight o'clock, but drew no reply. After the enemy left we found that they made a practice of bringing up their guns each morning and putting them in battery under cover of the river fog; when this cleared away they would open fire, often with a volley, and when things got too warm for them they would haul them off out of range again.
Commodore Renshaw says of this day's operations : --
"Our batteries on shore fired a few shots, but no response from the enemy. Rodman's and the battery containing the thirty-two-pounder above fired one hundred and twenty shots at the gunboats and town; the ' Eagle ' was struck twice, producing but little injury. At 5 P. M. a thirty- pound rifled gun opened fire on the 'Louisiana,' one-half mile distant on the New Berne road, doing no damage except cutting some of the light rigging and blocks away, the shots mostly passing over and taking effect in the town ; this gun was silenced in fifteen minutes by the 'Louisiana.' During the night I directed the mastheads to be decorated with bushes to correspond with the woods, the enemy having range of us from both sides. Having understood that the Rebel infantry were in the habit of keeping guard on the river below to prevent our small boats coming through, I ordered acting volunteer Lieutenant MacDearmid to take any small schooner he could find, mount a howitzer, and drive the Rebel pickets from the water. About ro p. M. he encountered the Rebel boats filled with infantry ; after cxchanging a few shots they were compelled to retire, since which they have not ventured on the river to prevent our
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smal! boats from pissing up and down. At 11.25 P. M. the steamer 'Escort ' gallantly ran the blockade with reinforcements for our army."
Towards midnight there was heavy artillery firing on the river, increasing in intensity and nearness, followed by great cheering and shouting in the town. We were turned out, but soon found that instead of the Rebels having assailed our works, the " Escort," with our old comrades of the Fifth Rhode Island, Colonel Sisson on board, had successfully run the blockade and arrived at the town.
The boat was loaded with baled hay, and the men protected as much as possible; and although they ran the gauntlet of a heavy artillery and musketry fire, their losses were slight, being only a few wounded.
The New York " Herald " says : -
"It appears that on Saturday night, April 11, just after the return of General Spinola to New Berne, and before any time had been given them to recover from the fatigues of their previous labors, the officers of the Fifth Rhode Island called on General Palmer, and stated that their men had en masse requested permission to run past the batteries below Wash- ington, or to land and capture them bodily.
" The offer to do this former was gladly accepted, and the transport ' Escort ' having been selected, the brave boys of Little Rhody, with the mud of their previous march not yet dry upon their clothing, went on board at midnight, hardly any one but themselves knowing of the circum- stance. So completely exhausted were the men with their four days' hard marching and fighting. that when they found themselves on board the steamer they sank down to rest and sleep upon the bare decks, as only tired warriors can. . .
" A run of seventeen hours brought them to the fleet of gunboats, five miles below the battery at Hill's Point, where delay was necessary in order to arrange a plan for running the Rebel blockade. This displeased the Rhode Islanders, who wished to face the music at once ; but they were obliged to wait the trial of their heroism till Monday night.
" About ten o'clock on Monday night the gunboats which had taken position just below the Hill's Point battery opened a brisk fire upon the Rebel works, but were unable to elicit any reply.
" During the cannonade the 'Escort,' loaded with supplies and troops, steamed up past the gunboats, and before the Rebels coukl realize the fact, was abreast of the battery, and had entered the pass of the blockade, which had been buoyed out by Captain McDermott [MacDearmid] of
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the ' Ceres,' through which she passed in safety. The Hill's Point battery did not molest her in passing, owing to the fact that the gunboats kept up such an incessant and well-directed fire upon the fort as to make it impos- sible for the Rebels to get their guns into position.
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