USA > New York > Services of the Tenth New York Volunteers (National Zouaves,) in the War of the Rebellion > Part 9
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POPE'S CAMPAIGN.
town of Williamsburg, and the corps went into camp a mile or two beyond the town. After two more days of forced marching, Newport News was reached on the evening of the 18th.
The commander of the Fifth Army Corps, who had fought his troops so skilfully and bravely at Gaines' Mill and Malvern, had, seemingly, not yet been seized with the inertia which he was accused of exhibiting ten days afterwards, and which caused his dismissal from the army, for we have the testimony of Greeley (Vol. II., p. 171) that " Porter was under orders to halt the advance at Williamsburg, until the crossing (of the Chicka- hominy) was completed ; but, intercepting a letter which apprised him that the enemy were concentrating rapidly on Pope, with intent to crush him before he could be reinforced, he took the responsibility of pressing on to Newport News, which he reached on the Isth, having marched sixty miles in three days."
Two days thereafter, our regiment, with the Fifth, embarked on the steamer Catarebu, passing up Chesa- peake Bay, and landing at Aequia Creek on the 22d. Platform and other cars were here provided, and the brigade was railroaded to Falmouth. From this place the march was in comparatively short and easy stages, along the Rappahannock to Ellis' Ford, thence to Beal- ton, Warrenton Junction and Bristoe Station, on the Orange and Alexandria Railroad. At the last-named place, which the corps reached on the morning of the Osth, evidences of severe fighting were everywhere seen. Wrecked locomotives and cars, together with debris of burnt wagons and sutters' stores, with several dead Con- federate soldiers, bore witness to the sudden attack of the Rebel forces upon our baggage and supplies at that
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THE NATIONAL ZOUAVES.
spot, and proved also that no time had been lost by the enemy in evacuating after their first and unexpected at- tack had resulted in the stampeding of our trains. The stout fighting shown by Heintzelman's corps had evi- dently been too much for the Confederate raiders. We bivouacked here during the remainder of the day and night.
On the morning of the 29th, Porter's corps marched to Manassas Junction, and from thenee about four miles to the neighborhood of a small stream, known as Daw- kins' Branch, and about the same distance southeast of Gainesville. To this last named place it was Gen. Pope's desire (expressed in an order of this date) that both Gen. McDowell and Gen. Porter should procced with their joint commands, it being his (Pope's) wish to prevent the passage of Rebel reinforcements through Thorough- fare Gap and Gainesville.
The position near Dawkins' Branch was reached about the middle of the day, and, after several hours of man- œuvering* along dusty roads, and in the mazy labyrinths of thick woods, with the occasional use of artillery against a force of the enemy in our front, Sykes' division went into bivouac at night, and listened to the desultory musketry and occasional cannonading which succeeded
* The following dispatch, sent to Gen. Sykes at 5.45, P. M., of the 29th, illus- trates some of the see-sawing movements of our own brigade :
"GEN. SYKES :-- I received an order from Mr. Cutting to advance to the support of Morell; I faced about and did so. I soon met Griffin's brigade withdrawing, by order of Gen. Morell, who was not pushed out, but retiring. I faced about and marched back two hundred yards or so ; I met then an orderly from Gen. Porter to tien. Moreil, saying he must push on and press the enemy; that all was going well for us and he was retiring. Griffin then fred al out and I am foll wing him to sup- part tien. More I, as ordered. None of the batteries are camed up to me.
" Respectfully, G. K. WARREN."
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POPE'S CAMPAIGN.
the desperate fighting along portions of Gen. Pope's line that afternoon .*
Our losses on the 29th are estimated to have been from 6,000 to 8,000. These casualties were borne by Hooker's, Kearny's, Reno's, King's and Reynolds' divisions.
Whatever may have been the military strategy, mis- construction of orders, or dietates of policy which guided Gen. Fitz John Porter in not moving his corps promptly into certain positions on the 20th of August, as he was directed to do by Gen. Pope, of whose army Porter's corps was now really a part, it is certain that no fault could be attributed to the troops under his command. Although their marching, counter-marching and man- œuvering during the last two or three days had been tedious, and they were subsisting on one-quarter rations. the rank and file were ready to meet any emergency that might have arisen.
The troops who fronted Porter's corps on the after- noon of the 29th are stated to have been Longstreet's. recently come upon the field. A letter written by Gen. Longstreet to the Philadelphia Times, of February 23d, 1878, contains the following direct evidence of the pre- sence of his troops :
* Carleton, in his " Following the Flag," Chap. X., writes as follows concerning a portion of the battle on the afternoon of the 20th : " Time slipped away -- precious hours ! Mc Dowell had not come ; Porter had not been heard from : ' Longstreet is getting ready,' was the report of the scouts. The attack must be made at once, if ever. It began at two o'clock by Hooker and Kearny on the right, pushing through the woods and across the fields between Dogan's house and Sudley Church.
" The veterans of the Peninsula move upon an enemy whom they have net be- fore. Jackson has made the line of a half-finished railroad his defence. and his men are behind the embankment and in the excavations. It is a long desperate conflict. There are charges upon the enemy's lines at I rom.les. Three, four, five o'clock. and Porter has not come. McDowell, who should have marched northwest to Groveton, to meet Longstreet, has, through mistake, marched east of that place, and foined the Ime where Kearny and Hooker are driving Jackson."
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THE NATIONAL ZOUAVES.
"As we approached the field (about twelve, M., of the 29th), we heard the sound of a heavy battle, which proved to be Gen. Jack- son, very severely engaged with the enemy. * * * After a careful examination of the ground, I rode back to Gen. Lee and reported that the position (Federal) was very strong, and the prospects hardly such as to warrant the heavy sacrifice of life that a serions attack would involve. * * * Before the question was at all decided a dispatch was received from Gen. Stuart, giving us notice that a very strong column was moving up against my right. Gen. Lee ordered me at once to reinforce that part of my line and be ready to repel the attack. I ordered the reinforeing cohnnn to the march, and rode out rapidly in advance that I might see precisely what was needed. The threatening column proved to be Gen. Fitz John Porter's command. After secing it I reported back to Gen. Lee that it was too light a col- mnu, in my opinion, to mean a real attack. This presumption was correct, and the advance soon halted, and then withdrew."
Gen. Longstreet did not make the attack proposed by Gen. Lee, i. e., upon the main position of the Federal line. He writes that further reconnoissances made at night proved that the Union position was too strong to be carried, and he therefore ordered his troops back to the line first ocenpied. He does not in this letter credit Porter's corps with any share in causing his final deter- mination not to attack the main line. Gen. L. testified. however, before the board of officers appointed for the rchearing of the "Fitz John Porter case," that " Gen. Porter's position checked his (Gen. Longstreet's) forces till it was too late; if Gen. Porter had attacked that day (29th), any time after twelve o'clock, the forces of wit- ness would have annihilated him, for the Federal lines were then too much extended and disjointed." He also testified, " In view of the impenetrable woods, it would have been very hazardous for Gen. Porter to take his
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POPE'S CAMPAIGN.
command around the road to Groveton, and, if he had attempted it, his foree would have been broken up."
Per contra, Gen. Pope says, in his official report, dated at New York, Jannary 27, 1863 :
"I believe-in fact I am positive-that at five o'clock in the afternoon of the 29th, Gen. Porter had in his front no considerable body of the enemy. I believed then, as I am very sure now, that it was easily practicable for him to have turned the right flank of Jackson, and to have fallen upon his rear; that if he had done so, we should have gained a decisive victory over the army under Jackson before he could have been joined by any of the forces of Longstreet." #
The author does not intend to rehearse the now fa- miliar facts in connection with Gen. Porter's actions be- tween the 25th and 30th of Angust. It would, however, be pertinent to remark that the unofficerlike conduct of the general was more conspicuous in his dispatches and movements of the 26th, 27th and 28th than upon the 29th, for on the afternoon of the latter day he had prima focie evidence of a freshly-arrived force of the enemy in his front, and, although he did not attack them, he was
* In Gen. Pope's first official report of his operations, made September 3d, 1862, he says, in connection with the movements of the agth : "As soon as I found that the enemy had been brought to a halt, and was being vigorously attacked along Warrenton turnpike. I sent orders to McDowell to advance rapidly on our left and attack the enemy on his thank, extending his right to meet Reynolds' left, and to Fitz John Porter to keep his right well closed on MeDowell's lett, and to attack the enemy in flank and rear, while he was pushed in front. This would have made the line of battle of MeDowell and Porter at right angle, to that of the other forces en- gaged. The action raged furiously all day, McDowell, although previously in rear of Porter, bringing his whole corps on the field in the afternoon, and taking a con- spicuous part in that day's operations. To my surprise and disappointment I re- vived, lay in the afternoon, from Perter, a note saying that his advance had met the enemy on the Bank in some force, and that he was retiring upon Mana .s .- Junction without attacking the enemy or conang to the assistance of our other forces, although they were engaged in a furious action only two miles distant, and in full hearing of him."
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THE NATIONAL ZOUAVES.
afforded a soldier's excuse to evade orders which were possibly obnoxious to him. Gen. Pope desired that the junction of the Fifth Corps with his own army should be made with the utmost celerity. This is indisputable. His dispatches and orders to Gen. Porter between the 26th and 30th, familiar now to many readers of this vol- ume, exhibit the strait which rendered necessary the presence of all available troops at this momentons time. Adopting a liberal view of Gen. Porter's actions, it is equally uncontrovertible that, in consideration of per- sonal motives, and primarily in his zeal for the interests of his old commander and fellow-soldier, Gen. Mcclellan, he was tardy in his movements and apparently desirous of impeding, rather than assisting Gen. Pope, thus far failing in his duty to his Government and wrecking the soldierly reputation he had previously won. An un- prejudiced mind can hardly help contrasting the move- ments of Gen. Porter just previous to the 30th of Angust with those of other commanders at critical periods dur- ing the Rebellion. The energetic Stonewall Jackson, when on the march towards MeClellan's right at Gaines' Mill, had only to send an aid to Gen. Ewell, a division commander, requesting him to "file off to the left and. take the road to Cold Harbor." Porter's corps felt the terrible impact of battle immediately afterwards. The glorious, battle-scarred Fifth Corps witnessed in after months of campaigning more than one unexpected attack upon its battalions, made by Rebel commanders jealous only of the honor of their flag-watchful, vigilant and ready to strike wherever opportunity offered. Had the entire available portion of the Army of the Potomac- experienced veterans of the Peninsula-been hurried to the vicinity of Manassas and Gainesville at the proper
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SECOND BATTLE OF BULL RUN.
moment, a Gettysburg might have palsied the Rebel war-power in August, 1862, instead of ten months after- wards.
The morning of the 30th saw Porter's corps on the road towards Groveton, and after considerable marching it took a position in the afternoon along the general line of the army-its two divisions present (Morell's and Sykes') forming the left centre of the line as now ar- ranged. Fire was almost immediately opened from Haz- litt's and other batteries, near Warren's brigade, which was returned by the enemy.
Swinton, in his "Army of the Potomac," says :
"The Warrenton turnpike, which intersects the Manassas battlefield, runs westward up the valley of the little rivulet of Young's Branch. From the stream the ground rises on both sides, in some places quite into hills. The Sudley Springs Road, on cross- ing the stream at right angles, passes directly over one of these hills, just south of the Warrenton turnpike ; and this hill has on it a detached road with fields stretching back away from it some hundreds of yards to the forest. This is the hill whereon what is known as the Henry House stood. To the west of it is another hill-the Bald Hill, so-called-which is, in fact, a rise lying be- tween the roads, and making about the same angle with each, and running back to the forest. Between the two hills is a brook, a tributary of Young's Branch. Upon the latter hill Gen. MeDowell directed Reynolds' division and a portion of Rickett's command, so as to check the flank manœuvre that menaced to seize the Warrenton turnpike, which was the line of retreat of the whole army.
" The oreupation of this position was judicious on the part of Gen. McDowell ; but the detachment of Reynolds from Porter's left for that purpose had an unfortunate result, for it exposed the key-point of Porter's line. Col. G. K. Warren, who then com- manded one of Porter's brigades, seeing the imminence of the danger, at once, and, without waiting for orders, moved forward
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THE NATIONAL ZOUAVES.
with his small but brave brigade of about a thousand men, and occupied the important position abandoned by Reynolds .*
Upon the occupation, by Warren's two regiments, of the point just mentioned by Swinton, six companies of the Tenth, under Lieut .- Col. Marshall, were ordered out as skirmishers, and they advanced through the forest which covered the front and left of the brigade. Reach- ing the edge of the woods at the other side they were immediately posted, and in a few minutes had obtained sight of the enemy's pickets, and were exchanging shots with them. The remaining companies of the regiment entered the woods a short distance and halted, acting as a main reserve. A few rods to the rear and in the open was stationed the 5th New York in line of battle.
Gen. Porter had ordered an attack upon the enemy's position on his right, and it was now that the movement was made. Gen. Butterfield, with his own brigade, sup- ported by the balance of Morell's division and several regular battalions, advanced with splendid courage, but met Gen. Jackson's forces strongly posted, and were com- pelled to retire with heavy loss. They suffered consider- ably from an enfilading fire from Longstreet's position on Jackson's flank.+
* Gen. Sykes' Report, " Pope's Campaigns" (No. 35, p. 146) : " The Pennsy !- vania Reserves, under Gen. Reynolds, had been posted on my left, south of War- renton Pike. Just previous to the attack, these troops were withdrawn, leaving my left flank entirely uncovered and the Warrenton road open. Col. Warren, sth New York Volunteers, commanding my Third Brigade, seeing the paramount ne- cessity of holding this point, threw himself there with his brigade, the remnants of two regiments, and endeavored to fill the gap created by the removal of Reynolds."
Davenport's "5th New York Volunteers" (p. 2671: "Gen. Porter's infantry force this day and the following one consisted of but twenty-four skeleton regiments : Griffin's brigade na being present. These regiments, though nominally compri -- ing five brigades, ouat made in reality, as conquered to the enemy 's similar organiza- tions, four and care-halt : as Warren's brigade of tw > regiments was smaller by one- half than any brigade in the Confederate army."
t Alluding to Gen. Butterfield's att.ick, Gen. Sy kes says: " The enemy . seeing
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1
SECOND BATTLE OF BULL RUN.
This repulse of Porter's troops by Jackson was seem- ingly the signal for an overwhelming advance by Long- street upon our line south of the pike. According to Confederate reports, as given in Davenport's "5th New York Volunteers," Law's brigade, of Hood's division, was on the north side of the pike originally, but crossed over during the advance and joined Hood's own brigade. This latter brigade was composed of the 1st, 4th and 5th Texas, 18th Georgia, and the Hampton Legion, and was lying south of the pike, directly in front of Warren's position. Evans' brigade was just in the rear of Hood's old command, and the whole were supported by Ander- son's division of three brigades. On the right of Hood were the divisions of Kemper and Jones-three brigades each.
It was now nearly five o'clock, and the enemy had become rather bold in exposing themselves and exchang- ing shots with the skirmishers of the Tenth, under Lieut. - Col. Marshall. Suddenly the Rebel piekets arose and rapidly advanced, firing as they came, and the Texan brigade burst into view from the woods opposite, fol- lowed closely by its supports. The attack was so sudden that the deployed companies of the Tenth had barely time to discharge their pieces once before the Rebels were almost upon them. The order was given to fall baek, and a retrograde movement was made through the woods, the men loading and firing as they retreated. So rapid were the movements of the Rebel brigades, however, that our skirmishers hardly reached the reserve
it's fathire and that our weak point lay on my left, in front of Warren, poured upoa His little command, under cover of the forest, a mass of infantry that enveloped- .t.most destroyed-him and completely pierced our line."
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THE NATIONAL ZOUAVES.
of the regiment before the gray coats were seen through the woods, and the next instant a destructive volley tore through the ranks of the two devoted regiments, both from the front and left flank, killing and wounding a great number. Col. Bendix immediately ordered the companies in reserve to march back over the intervening space of a few yards, and take position on the flank of Duryee's Zouaves, in order to give the skirmishers an opportunity to form, and also to allow the 5th to fire at the enemy. The movement was made quickly, and the four companies, on gaining the position, instantly faced about and opened fire upon the advancing Rebels, who were now actually firing in the faces of the two regi- ments. The skirmishing companies formed as well as possible under the circumstances, but numbers of these men kept on further towards the rear, where many halted and delivered effective fire at the foe. Mean- while the 5th, whose line had remained unbroken, de- livered a scathing volley full into the Rebel regiments. which were almost upon them-the united fire of the brigade cutting swaths in the Rebel ranks and causing the advancing and yelling mass of men to slacken their quick steps and then to halt.
The resistance made by the two regiments on thi- ground, almost surrounded as they now were by the ene- my, who had really pierced our line, was necessarily of short duration : but the loss was very heavy. In the Tenth, Color-Sergt. William Duff, of Company I, who carried the regimental flag, was mortally wounded, and his flag was seized by Sergt. Daniel J. Dougherty, of Company K, who was riddled by bullets. Most of the
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HEAVY LOSSES OF THE TENTHI.
color-guard were killed or wounded, and this flag was ultimately lost .*
Sergt. Albion Alexander, of Company K, who bore the United States color, was wounded, but managed to escape from the field, bearing with him his charge. Lieut. Josiah Hedden, of Company C, was killed, and Lients. Dewey, Culhane and Mosserop and Capt. Dimmick were all severely wounded, falling into the hands of the enemy.
Individual cases of heroism and ineffectual bravery were plentiful in the regiment. Company A, one of the four remaining in reserve, fought bravely and sustained the heavy loss of 17, killed and wounded. A small per- centage only of the original "Sandy Hook" members were left in the company after this desperate after- noon's work. Acting Sergt. Baker, Corp. Lon. Rogers, the gifted Harvey Compton, "Tailor" MacHale, and the tall Frenchman, Lombard, were among those who were killed or mortally wounded. The color company (I) also suffered heavily in killed and wounded, and the loss among non-commissioned officers throughout the regi- ment was marked.
Lieut .- Col. Marshall was among the last of his skir-
* The color was taken by the 18th Georgia Regiment, and afterwards deposited in the State Capitol, at Milledgeville, Ga. After the entry of Sherman's army into that place, in the winter of 1864. this flag, with others which had been captured by Georgia troops during the war, was taken possession of by the Union forces and sent North. It is now safely preserved in the Bureau of Military Statistics, at Al- hany, N. Y., together with other colors carried by the National Zouaves during the Rebellion.
Alfred Davenport, in his " sth New York Volunteers," says: 'The Tenth having been surprised by overwhelming numbers, without any warning, were forced to fall back to save themselves from annihilation or capture. The majority of them passed through the right and centre of the sth Regiment . but, before they could extricate themselves from their perilou, position, they suffered a loss in a very few minutes, killed, wounded and missing. of ris."
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THE NATIONAL ZOUAVES.
mishers to retreat from the woods, and, as he gained the cleared ground in front of the line of battle of the 5th, a brawny Texan close behind ordered him to surrender. Private Charles Lederer, of Company C, instantly lev- eled his musket and was the quickest to fire, the Rebel falling lifeless in his tracks.
But a few minutes elapsed before overwhelming num- bers forced the remnants of the two regiments to retreat precipitately, in order to save themselves from certain death or capture. Several officers of the Tenth and Fifth, with groups of gallant men, offered praiseworthy resist- ance to the wild Texan soldiers at different points of the field and thus many were killed or taken prisoners. The field officers of the Tenth were conspicuous in their efforts to rally their men and oppose a determined front to the enemy's masses, as were also the line officers who were not disabled.
The scene at the height of the battle upon the field held by Col. Warren was terrible, and wofully lacked the elements of inspiration calculated to incite our sol- diers to successful efforts. Shells flew over and through the brigade from both front and rear, and men were falling in all directions over a cleared space of perhaps five or six aeres. The bright red uniforms of Duryce's Zonaves, and the blue blouses of our own regiment, cov- ered the ground thiekly. Brothers and boon comrades were shot or bayoneted by the enemy while attempting to succor those who were dear to them, and such efforts were at last impossible. To the right, where the battle raged with less bias, the regular battalions were hotly engaged, as were MeDowell's troops on the left of War- ren, and the steady rattle of their volleys, mingled with the incessant thundering of artillery, became more ob-
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A DESPERATE CONFLICT.
servable as we grew accustomed to the din immedi- ately enveloping us. Gen. Pope's line had become en- gaged along its entire centre and left, as the Rebel divisions, gathering additional courage from their success on Warren's front, now sought to crush the Union left completely and seize our lines of retreat.
The stand of our own little brigade, although lasting so short a time, had not been in vain. The volleys of musketry from the two regiments, though irregular, had been murderous, and the check which the oncoming thousands of the enemy thus received in their impetuous advance from the woods was enough to seriously dampen their ardor, and afforded an opportunity for different dispositions of the troops on our right and an effectual resistance to the determined charges of the Confederates upon Porter's gradually retiring brigades.
A. H. Guernsey, in Harper's "History of the War," says : " Warren's desperate stand had not, however, been unavailing. To all seeming it saved the defeat from be- coming a rout." *
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