University of South Carolina Libraries
* . J* ' : LEWIfr^22?^' ^ &* Inbfpniknt *;niulu Hmspajjfr: for |)r0iitotion of % f olifoal, Social, jtgritatoral ani) Caimnmial Jnicrtsts of % Son% ^ ^^^.*1if VOL. 14. YORKYILLE, 8. O., THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 17, 1868. NO. 38fa %nOriginal |laurclette. j Written for the Yorkville Enquirer. 1 VICTOR: I jscqnel to Jsolttte, t|f Jrmalt jspg.! BY J. WITHERgPOON ERVIN. 1 CHAPTER X. The next morning opened beautifully bright and ' clear. With the first peep of dawn, the soldiers, in the Confederate camp, were aroused from their slumbers by the reveille, and rose from their beds, ' on the hard earth, to prepare for the dangers and j duties of the day. The earfy risers, who cast their j eyes around, were cheered to see that Some tddk don had been made to their numbers during the 1 night Their deep slumbers had been disturbed, * in nan. hv the n&ntina of the iron horse and the 1 rolling of heavy car wheels, but a couple of hundred yards to the rear of the position in which they bivouacked; but their sense of weariness was too great, and their sleep too heavy, to permit them to realize the ceaseless activity of the preparations for the morrow, which were being made around tbem. When the morning aroused them from sleep, and they saw, through the misty atmosphere, the hundreds of forms to the rear of their line, beginning to cast aside their blankets lazily, in obedience to the same summons that called them to rise, the sight had for them all the charm of a glad surprise. As they lazily threw off the fetters of sleep, and lazily yawned over the ~newly kindled camp fires, or slowly rolled np their blankets in marching plight, the word passed around, from group to group, that "Boshrod Johnson's fighting Brigade," and some five or six regiments from other brigades^ with one or two' batteries of field artillery, had 001116 UP to their assistance daring the night Instead of being a mere handful of six hundred men, the camp now numbered some three thousand, and the word went round that additional reinforcements were on the way and were hourly looked for. The faces of Colonel Giles* intrepid heroes brightened, as the joyfol news passed from mouth to mouth, and the laogh and jest went freely round. Among the last to awake on this eventful day, were those who oomposed the squad of scouts sent forward to gather information of the enemy, the evening before. Arriving at their camp but two or three hours before the dawn of day; they had turned their prisoner, Walsh, over to the guard, and sought that repose which their wearied and exhausted condition rendered so neoessaiy. Spreadin^ their hlankets near together on the hill-side, where a wide spreading oak gave them shelter from J the dews of night, they were soon lost in slumber, and when they first awakened from sleep, the camp was already astir. Victor's thoughts, on his first waking, recurred to the events of the previous night He had, at , last, met Nellie alone. The party were retiring from the old mansion, and Nellie,. moved by the kindly instincts of her heart, had, come down to bid the young soldier farewelL The others of the ( pnrtjhm] gone, when Victor frond himself standing alone with Nellie at the steps of the piazza. , Not willing to trust herself to speak, Nellie timidly held forth her hand for a parting salutation. Her eye was steady and her face calm, but her heart was too full for utterance; and there was on her cheeks a perturbed smile, such as maidens wear when they would repress and conceal emotions to which they would not give utterance for the world "Oh! Nellie, Nellie !" said Victor, giving way to the impulse of the moment, "I am bnt a stran- , ger to you as the world would call me, yet I can never think of you as a stranger from whtfta I can turn away with simply friendship and admiration. No! Nellie, no! I know my presumption?but, Nellie, I love you with my whole heart It may be folly in on* to tell you so, who knows that he may be cold clay to-morrow; but if this be my fate, I would have you know that I will carry my love for you to the grave. Will you not let me delude myself, and make the toilsome and hazardous life that I lead more happy, by trusting that yon will think of me as more than a stranger?more than a mere friend?" "Trust it, Victor?trust it; not as a delusion, but as a truth that I have kept buried in my heart until now." "Thank you, dear Neflie?I have something to live for now; one pure woman's love is worth all the world beside. I prize it more than life itself.'' And bending forward, he kissed the maiden's cheek, pressed her soft hand, and was gone. When he first awoke from his slumber in the bivouac, there were pleasant fancies, undefined and shadowy, busy at his heart, as when one lies down . to slumber under the impress of grateful feelings. The intewiew with Nellie rose to his mind, and her parting words rang in his ears. He mused upon them and a gentle calm stole over bis face, but the next moment a half audible sigh escaped him as he looked around upon the busy and stirring scene, and thought of the countless dangers to be faced before the light, now blushing in the east, should spread its farewell banners in the westeru sky. It is so hard to imperil life, when its sweetest promises are unfolding audits most treasured hopes are approaching fruition. There was much of stern seriousness and solemnity in the camp ; for men who are earnest and thoughtful, feel that a great battle is a terrible event. Th\. young and untried soldier may pant for its excitement, but no man of & healthful mind who has stood a fierce charge or joined in making one, and seen the ranks around him thinned by grape or musketry, will think of entering into one but with feelings of awe and deep solemnity. It must be a shrewd jest, indeed, that wiH set the laborers in a powder mill in a roar. There all may be blown up in one tremendous explosion ; but in battle, it is an inevitable event that many must - ? * n * ,M J J tall to rise no more; ana ieanai mumauous auu gaping wounds?that it makes the flesh creep to look upon?are not mere probabilities, but calamities beyond all peradventure. Even in battle, as solemn as such an event is, some ludicrous event may set the line in a roar, for in the midst of excitement men may forget?for a moment?their danger, and the calculation of chances has its hopes for each soldier of the line. All the roads leading to the camp had been as strongly picketed as the small force gathered there would allow; and those who remained in camp were suffered to pass their time in such manner as they desired, while awaiting the call to arms. Here, some sturdy, systematic old soldier might be seen, with knapsack on the grass, breaking his fast on the fragments of his yesterday's luncheon, poor and scanty at the be'st. Some who were so fortunate as to have a little wheaten flour, having kneaded it to a thick paste with cold water, had wound the dough around their iron ramrods and were cooking it over the embers. There, again, some provident and fortunate campaigner, using his tin cup as a boiler, was drawing him a cup of coffee, and, with spoon in hand, was bending over the steaming decoction with a face on which gravity and complacence were blended together. Prescott aud Victor, in whom old habits were still in the ascendant, having rolled up their blankets ready for strapping on their shoulders, had made their ' way to the spring, at the foot of the hill, to per-, form their morning ablutions. Stripped to the must, they were enjoying the luxury of a morning 1 bath and luxuriating in the invigorating influences > )f cold water, while half way ap the hill, on the < roots of a huge tree, Giles Shorter sat breaking his hat and eyeing the employment of the youngsters with the disdain of an old veteran, who had dis- : aided, as jnvenile follies, and inconsistent with the habits of camp Hfe, such thorough ablutions i is they still persevered in. i "Just look at them boys, Robin," said Giles to 1 bis companion, who was seated by him, busy, like- 1 rise, with the slender contents of his haversack, i rhey are green yet, and hain't learned to take < amp fife by the smooth handle. They want al- i travn to look as ifthevhad iust steDDed out of the : band-box, and it's nothing witb them, the livelong Jay, bat wash, scrub and dross. Soap and water utd a dean shirt, is their whole life. They are i like yonng oolts that ain't broke into harness. , Ehey haven't been in camp long enough to get tho srire edge taken off. I never think a fellow is fit ' to serve as asoldier, until he has learned to wear a i shirt three weeks, and to take the mud and dust as it opmes, without making a hullaboo about soilid hands. Now, just look at me?I've learned to bear such things. I'm, as you may say, broken < in." "Yes, Giles," retorted Robin Lassiter. "You take to dirt kindly. You look like an old clay i ihimney turned wrong side outwards." "Well, Robin," saidGiles, apologetically, "what's the use of trying to keep dean ? It's an onpossibility in camp, and it's labor thrown away to try it [t's like washing a hog?the first mud puddle he somes to will show you what a fool you made of yourself in throwing soap and labor away. By aight, just take a look at them boys, and you will ind that they might as well let all this trouble alone. It wouldn't surprise meat all, some of these Jays, to find thenr turning out with ruffled shirts m J) Ignorant of this oolloqny, of which they formed the subject, the young men soon finished their ? .? ?j _?xi. xi v:i rooming Da to ana umet, ana wnu iue Hiiunnuug jensations which it inspires, withdrew a space to m*ke their morning meaL This had scarcely been sooclnded, when word was passed that Captain Carbeny's Company was to be thrown oat to the front )n picket duty; and with the promptnes. of welltrained soldiers, the line was formed and hurried forward, as if . there was fierce work ahead awaiting them. They were deployed on the summit of i heavily timbered ridge, with a valley behind them, through which flowed one of those small, clear brooks, which form almost a net work in this portion of Virginia. The highway they were guarding, was the same along which the scouts had passed the previous evening. The station whioh they occupied was about a mile from the camp, and there was only a squad of two or three mounted men beyond them, to watch the road and give timely notioe of the approach of the enemy, if his aolumns should be seen advancing. Captain Carbeny had orders to fire upoir the enemy's advanced guards, and, without making any attempt to hold his position, to fall back gradually nntil he should meet re-inforcements sent to assist him. Then, forming a strong line of skirmishers, they were to retire slowly npon the rail-road, where the line of bottle would be formed to meet the enemy. Captain Carberry was no rigid military martinet, and his men were suffered to lie at rest along the ridge, and pass the time at their pleasure, until the moment for action should come. With his portly form reclined at leDgth by the roadside, and a group of his men lying around him, they presented the appearance rather of a camp of free and easy hunters, whiling away the hours in sociable companionship, than soldiers who might, in an hour's time, be engaged in a terrible and bloody conflict. Two or three hours passed on and there was still no news from the front A Sabbath still ness brooded over the scene, and the soft snnlight of early Spring stole down npon the forest, just decked out in green foliage and fresh flowers. The gentle breezes of May were stealing in soft whispers through the magnificent oaks overhead, laden with .? " c t._ J?j a *i.;nQ me periuuies ui uuus uuu uunua, ?#?**?head had the deep clear blue of May, and Victor's eyes?as he lay on the freshly springing grass and gazed up towards the blue sky, seen, here and there, in patches through the green foliage?had the soft and half-saddened expression of one whose thoughts are far away, musing, perhaps, of white robed girls in the old school house, with the loveliness of a May-morn in their faces, and the gladness of a bright May-day in their laughing ringing voices. He heard not the jests that rang out from the sociable group gathered around their leader; he noted not how that worthy, with a sober face, put his follower, Giles Shorter, through all his paces for the diversion of the crowd. Giles was made to recount, over and over again, with indignant emphasis, the wrong done him in mistaking him? a Southern man, born and bred?a nullifier, a secessionist, and a soldier to boot?although beyond the conscript age?for a common cheating, swindling, yankee peddler. He gave the liquor scene in the closet with infinite gusto and good nature, and alternated from wrath to laughing good humor, in the course of his narrative, by a transition quite natural, yet quite as ludicrous as natural. The sun rose high in the heavens, and yet the quiet of the scene was undisturbed by any other souuds than those to which we have adverted. None of the mounted scouts had as yet come in, and the opinion began to gain ground that the enemy, having met with so spirited a resistance, had withdrawn his forces and given up his designs on Petersburg. On the supposition that he still meditated an attack, his hesitation and delay were unintelligible. His only hope Of success was in moving forward promptly and resolutely, before reinforcements should be sent forward for the relief of the city. Under an impression?which every hour of delay served to strengthen?that the enemy had retreated, the soldiers began to cast off the seriousness they had manifested at an earlier hour of the day, and the expression of anxiety and suspense, so natural to men in their situation, began to give place to cheerfulness and hilarity. It wanted not quite an hour to noon, when some little stir and excitement was occasioned by the appearance of three of the mounted scouts coming down the road at a leisurely pace, but frequently halting and turning their horses across the road as if attentively regarding some object behind them. Captain Carberry was, in a moment, on his feet, and with a group of soldiers clustered around him, stood watching the movements of the scouts with the keenest interest. It might simply be that the - * ? 1 11 P .?? 1 enemy had thrown torwara a smaii iorce ui vuvun-y to mask his retreat, and that the Confederate scouts were retiring before a small squad of these, whom they were too few to attack. Still, the movements of the scouts were watched with the deepest interest and anxiety; for all their motions evidently indicated that they were watching some force of the enemy that was approaching. The all-absorbing interest with which they watched the road, their air, their manner, their slow, deliberate gait, and their cautious movements?now checking their horses and pausing to look back, "with beards upon their shoulders"?and now again advancing, with reins gathered up, as men who are on the alert to betake themselves to flight from a danger that follows them; all these were indications, exciting to the last degree, to those who witnessed their mysterious movements, but who were prevented, by the windings of the road and the inequalities of the ground, from obtaining any knowledge of th< objects which evidently excited so much npprehen sion and anxiety. So absorbed were the ncouts in giving heed h that which was passing in their rear, that the] failed to notice the group oocupying the road it their front, until they had approached within i couple of hundred yards. After a moment's hur ried conference, one of them, separating himael from his companions, came forward at an easy gal lop. Every eye was upon his face to read, if pos able, by its expression, the magnitude of thcorisL of which he came to forewarn them. Ho was i nnam otam Inn tin Or man. With & Tltttlirflllv fltV) and earnest face, now slightly pale with the excite ment* of the occasion. "What Regimentis this ?" he demanded, looking enquiringly around him as he halted before thi group. ' 'Captain Carbeny'aXlompany, of the *th Soutl Carolina, on picket," answered Captain <barberry stepping forward. "You will hare to retire rapidly, Captain," sak the trooper: "the enemy ore almost upon you." "In what force?" asked thecaptain, with an ai of gravity far removed from his ordinary levity o manner. 'Thousands upon thousands," returned the troop er, laconically. "For three miles across, the coon try i9 swarming with them like ants. It is tirni for you to hurry up, if you expect to get out o their way." "I was sent here to be in their way," returne< the Captain, with a smile. "Very well," replied the-trooper, moring on t< rrinrt in "You will 6ee for yourself, whet they oome, that a whole brigade would not b much in their way." He touched his horse witl his spur and rode off at a gallop, whik Captaii Carberry, deploying his company as skirmishers marched them back to take advantage of the par tial cover of the shrubbery that skirted the brool at the foot of the hill. The company wtis divide* so that about one half was on either side of tb road, at the place where it crossed the brook. The: had scarcely taken their position, when the othe two scouts came clattering down the hill at a brisl trot They paused,'but for a moment, at the foo of the hill, to speak a word or two with Captaii Carberry, and then hastened on at a gallop to tb top of the hill beyond the brook. They were scaroe ly well across the brook when an ambulance, pre ceded by a portly, grey-haired man on horde-back appeared at the brow of the hill in front descend ing along the road. The horses were ur,?ed on b the driver, and the elderly man, who went before seemed to be pointing out to him the smoothes path down the hill "Look yonder, Captain," exclaimed Giles Short er, pointing to the ambulance when it first appear ed on the hill. "Durned if theenemy ain't oominj upon us, rear in front What does he mean b; sending his ambulance corps ahead." 'That is some wounded countryman, Giles, suppose, that his friends are trying to hurry out c the way of theenemy. They will see the very devi in the next five minutes, unless they aie uncom monly lucky." Viotor, who was standing near by, behind aclum; of alder bushes, thus had his attention directed t the party. In the grey-haired man on horseback he recognized Mr. Danvers, of Petersburg, th brother of Colonel Danvers, whom he had encouc tered in passing through the city. His heart leape wildly as, at a glance, he divined the truth. H was but a few yards from the road, and as the am bulance came down the hill, at a trot, hs obtaine a glimpse of the occupants. There sat Nellie, pi) lowing the head of her father in her lap, while man of middle age?probably a surgeon irotn tn city?was kneeling at his side, striving to preven the wounded man from being incommoded or paine by the motion of the vehicle. As the ambulanc was passing, Nellie, ohancingto raise her head, er countered Victor's gaze. At first her face flushe up, but the next moment it became dtradly palt and in grasping at the standard of the vehicle fc support, a cambric handkerchief escaped from he hand and fluttered to the ground. Victor spran forward to restore it to her keeping, but by the tim he had picked it up, the ambulance had gone sev eral rods, and it would have been trifling, at a tim like this, to delay and endanger the whole party fc a mere bagatelle. When Nellie looked back, Vi< tor was standing in the road with the snowy can brie in his hand, liaising his cap, he gallantly fai tened, it as a keepsake, on the front, and bowing t Nellie, with a smile, returned to his post. Great events sometimes depend oh things appj rently very trivial. The ambulance, with its pr< cions burden, had scarcely mounted to the summ of the hill beyond the stream, when the hill in fror was swarming with the blue coats of the encmj Their column had scarcely appeared, when it er countered a concentrated and deadly fire, poured i upon thein from the cover of the alders and willow that skirted the stream. Recoiling from the fire, th column was driven back for a moment, but a stron line of skirmishers thrown out, on either hand, an far out flanking Captain Carberry'ssmall force, cam steadily down the hill-side, firing volley after vo ley, which, fortunately passing over the heads c the Confederates, lopped off branches and tore u the bark of trees above and around them. One'c two more rounds were delivered by the Confede rates with fatal effect, when Captain Carberry, re moving his wounded, retired across the brook; an posting his men on the top of the hill where the were sheltered behind the bodies of huge oak.< prepared to dispute the advance of the enemj The fire of the Confederates had been delivere with such fatal accuracy, and bo many of the en( my had fallen, that some minutes elapsed befoi they had completed their preparations for advar cing. When, at length, they appeared, makin their way across the brook, the Confederates receh ed them with a most galling fire. Their blood wa up, and they were now ready to dispute their fui ther advance, inch by inch. The enemy, not ye aware of the inconsiderable number of their oppc nents, advanced with extreme caution, and in th full belief that the Confederate line of battle wi Hr?Pnrp them, rendv for the conflict. Several mir utes were spent in skirmishing, when the fecbh ness of their fire betraying the weakness of tb Confederate force that held the hill, a charge wt ordered on the part of the enemy. As. they wei making their way up the hill, they received a vo ley more fatal than any yet given, and when atlai they gained the summit, the Confederate pickei had melted away and disappeared like shadow! Making a stand wherever the nature of the coui try rendered it safe to do so, Caytain Carberry ai noyed undharrassed the enemy in his advance, an so retarded his march, that fully two hours had < lapsed before the skirmishers of the enemy drov him in. When he reached the spot where a ba talion of his own regiment had made so heroic stand on the previous day, he found a regimei coming up to his support Here the skirmishei of the enemy were forced to retire upon their mai line, and the battle began in earnest The Confe< erate line faced towards the East, and the fight ha lasted but half an hour, when, somewhat to tb north-east of their position, from a wooded hil which has previously been mentioned, a couple < guns opened upon them with a heavy fire. Tb Federal troops having suffered severely, fell bac under cover of a wood at the foot of the hill, leai ing it to their artillery to drive back their antag* nist Sharp-shooters were thrown out to hara/ the gunners and drive them from their post, wit i indeed, bat little effect; and after a few minutes, - finding themselves suffering from the fire of the guns, which their small arms were unable to si) lence, the line was ordered to fci back to a posir tion where they would be Altered fVom the deadi ly shot and shells, by the nature of the ground. i This morement was soon made, and in a few min utee the whole line was. sheltered from their fire. f One of those brief pans? in the fight then took - place, like a hill which sometimes comes in the - storm. During this brief space, the soldiers had s time to look around them and enquire as to the fate i of their missing oomrades. ; i At this time, the battery hating driven the line - back, bad limbered up and was moving to some more eligible position, whence ha fire would be efj fective. Previously to this tim% however, at reg3 ular intervals, was heard-the report of a musket beyond the hill, where tb^Ooaffederate hue bad i been drawn up. ~ Only a fevfrtfpd this ample cir, cumstanoe, the attention and ttoughts of all being ocoupied by the enemy's movements and the fate 1 of those of their comrades who bad disappeared from their ranks, r "Where is Giles Shorter," cried one of the men f of Captain Carberry'a Company, with a face fall of apprehension. "Can anybody tell what has be come of Giles?", "Giles ain't here," said another; "he's gone np 9 the spout this time, certain and sure. Giles don't f straggle when a fight's on hand, and yon see he ain'there." 1 Captain Carbeny, who was deeply interested in the fate of so good a soldier, was making anxious 3 enquiries for the missing man, and it was just ai greed npon that he must be among the killed and 3 wounded, when, to the surprise and delight of his i comrades, he was seen leisurely approaching, coma ing over the hill in front, with his masket on his , left shoulder, his right band in his breeches pocket, . and wearing a very grave expression, t "Are you wounded, Giles?" cried his comrades, ] as he came walking very slowly forward, e 1 'Wounded ? Why, no 1 What did you all fall y back for?" r "We>ere ordered to retreat," answered several i voices. t "I didn't hear any such order, and I just kept a my place and fired into that battery as fast as I e could, and made the place too hot to hold them. I h didn't give more'n a dosen rounds when they limh be red up and left that place like they heard hornets a buzzing. If I didn't silence that battery, . all alone by myself, I'm a dutchman I. I made ev7 ery shot tell, and they were durned glad to limber , up and get out of the way. Did you see how I ^ used 'cm, Cap'n?" "Do you wish me to mention it in my report, _ Giles?" asked the Captain, with a laugh. "That's just as you please, Captain," returned g Giles, complacently. "If a staff officer gits his y breeches torn while a fight's going on, it's sure to go down in somebody's report; but there is no j chance for a private, do what he will. I don't f brag on what I've done, Captain, aid don't spejj cially want it noticed unless you see fit, but this I h do say, you'll live a long time before you'll hear again of a battery being silenced by one man, with only a smooth bore musket" p Captain Carberry, who was amused at the sober 0 pertinacity with which Giles adhered to his belief 1 that the artillery had beea-driven-from its position e by his fire, was about to reply, in a jocular vein, when orders came for the regiment to move at the double quick, to the left of the line, against which e overwhelming forces of the enemy were moving, j In a moment, this gallant regiment was in moI tion, hurrying on to the point of danger, where a dreadful carnage was going on, and where the gala lant 21st South Carolina stood, like a wall of rock, ? with hostile waves beating upon its front and flanks. it * d e CHAPTER XL l~ The point sgainst whioh the enemy was directd iag his main attack, was near a bridge on the line !> of railroad, about a mile from the right of the line, ,r to the defenoe of which, on account of the weak!r ness of the Confederate force, "but a single regiment S had been assigned. e Courier after courier met the regiment on its way, upbringing tidings of loss and disaster. Hure tying along the line of railroad, the regiment, to ir which Victor belonged, scarcely pausing long ey nough to recover their breath, hastened to bear to l" their comrades the sucoor they so sorely needed. Keeping the line of railroad on their right, they 0 were alternately protected from the fire of the enemy by an enbankment that crossed some small vali ley, or exposed to it as their way led over eminen }- ces through which the road was cut To the ngut it of the road was a range of hills, crowned by the it enemy's batteries and swarming with his infantry, from which shot and shell were sent howling i- through their ranks, on every rising piece of n ground, where no enbankment afforded a welcome s protection. Showers of leaden bullets whistled, e and many a good soldier here sank down to rise no g more. d The enemy had already flanked the left of the e Confederate line, and when Colonel Giles reached 1- the spot, he found the regiment he was sent to as>f eist, completely enveloped, and attacked at once, jn p front and flank and rear. >r We will attempt to describe the spot as accuratei ly as we may, but we fear we can give but a feeble i- picture of the locality and scene, so indelibly dad guerreotyped on the memories of the brave soly diers, who came suddenly upon it in the midst of }, a desperate struggle. r. The region around was hilly and broken; here d the road passed on a short enbankment, over some i- depression of ground; and there its way lay through e some cut in the hills, varying In depth and in i- length, according to the nature of the eminence g where its track was traced. The last cut on the r- left was the deepest and longest of alL For some is fifty or sixty yards, it formed an admirable trench r- for the protection of infantry, being from three to it five feet deep, and then, for a considerable dis> tance, possibly seventy or eighty yards, it attained e a depth of from seven to ten feet; then it ran out is across level ground and a short trestle work which i- carried the road over an oozy and boggy stream. Such was the character of the position on the exe treme left of the Confederate line, is The stream, which intersected the road at right e angle, was skirted and covered by a thick growth 1- of brush-wood and trees, which afforded a fine nat5t ural cover for the concealment of troops, ts The men in the deep cut had clambered to the 3. top of its eastern face, and opened a fire of musi ketrv unon the enemv's infantry, who lay, in con l- siderablc numbers, upon the wooded eminences in d their front. Between them and the enemy lay an j- inconsiderable and open valley of no great depth, e dotted here and there by a clump of trees, over t- which the enemy could not advanoe to an attack in a front, without being exposed to a most destructive it fire. But the hill sides, along the stream, was rs covered with a dense growth of timber, under covn er of which the enemy oould advance quite near 1- unperceived, and flanking their position, open a d most deadly enfilading fire upon them from the ie neighborhood of the trestle. The enemy soon a1, vailed themselves of their advantages, and estab)f Fished themselves on the farther side of the trestle le and swept the railroad cut with a storm of bullets, k that galled its defenders severely, and carried them t- off by scores. Nearly at the same time, a regiment )- of the enemy having crowed the stream below the is trestle, passed across the railroad, and again crossh ing the stream abov*1 the trestle, enveloped them from the rear, while another regiment began its charge across the valleyin their front. Unable to defend themselves successfully from fees coming upon them at oooe from so many quarters, thoy, nevertheless, prepared to sell their lives as dearly as possible. The enemy from the neighborhood of die trestle were rushing into the deep out, and those in front and rear, were leaping into the cat and carrying on a terrible hand to hand fight. Such was the condition of affairs when Colonel Giles same upon the field. Forming his regiment promptly in line, they poured a volley into those of the enemy who were assaulting the rear of the position, and at onoe charged down upon them with the bayonet His men, flushed with excitement, raised a wild yell and dashed impetnonsly onward, to complete their work with the bayonet Throwing away everything that might impede their flight, some were driven across the stream, while otherasoaghtsafety from the murderous bayonet, by leaping into the railroad oat and joining themselves witli mmwitw ahn ?pm Hlfllggling. PromDfc ly wheeling his regiment to dislodge this new enemy, a most horrible conflict onsned. Charging np to the month of the chasm, the men of his regiment hurled down rocks and stones upon the enemy, who fought at a great disadvantage, having to oontend with men flashed with success, and vigorously employing against them missiles unknown to regular warfare, of which they were in no condition to avail themselves. There was no way of combatting againstweapons of this character, r. down upon them with the rapidity of hail-stones. Some of them were slain outright, while yet larger numbers were disabled. The Confederates leaped down, and with the bayonet and the bntt of the musket, completed their success. I' It was a short but terrible conflict, and many of the disabled, owing to the character of the weapons with whioh they fought, presented a horrible and ghastly aspect The regiment of Colonel Giles had now, for the oeoond time, been brought face to face and foot to foot with the enemy in the open field, and had acquitted themselves like veteranf With courage exalted by success, they had become invincible and disdainful of the enemy. After this taste of the horrors of a charge, the enemy contented himself, the greater part of the afternoon, with annoying and harrassing the Coni federate line with the fire of his numerous batteries ' and small arms, from a safe distance. Sharpshoot . w . .1 - _ xiil era were detailed to annoy tne enemy s aruueiyI men, and to pick off all who dared to expose themselves within range. Muskets were sputtering, and minnio balls were whizzing by on every side, but such caution was observed, that it was only now and then that a wound was inflicted on either side. The ibrees of the enemy were so greatly superior in number to those of the Confederates, that the latter could not venture to assume the offensive. It wonld have been extremely hazardous, in view of the great disparity of their forces, for them to have adopted the offensive until all their reinforcement should come up, which consummation could not be reached for some days. In the meantime, there was the painful prospect before them that they would be compelled, for some days, to remain on their guard, confined to such positions as the movements of the enemy should impose upon them. Towards the close of the day, Victor found himself posted, with his company, on the right of the rogiment, at the entrance of the cut where it was scarcely two feet in depth. The earth thrown out on either side, however, formed a breastwork, which served as a tolerably secure protection against the missiles of the enemy which were constantly flying around him. The small arms were fiercely sputtering all along the line in answer to the enemy's fire, and shells were bursting above this portion of the line, or solid shot ploughing up, each moment, the slight earth-work formed by the soil thrown out from the excavation. Preacott was crouched down by Viotor's side, with that indolent, impurterbable expression upon his face, lighting up with interest and animation, only now and then, as he caught the flutter of some hostile uniform through the foliage on the wooded hills in front, and levelled his musket eagerly, but calmly, to diminish the number of his country's foes. After having been on the qui vice for several minutes, in the hope of getting a shot that might tell, the young giant yawned lazily, and turning deliberately from the breastwork, stretched himself out upon his back with his head resting against one of the Btring pieces of the road. His feet rested against the bottom of the drain, and his position, to judge from the expression of his face, was one of superlative enjoyment Victor, too, wearied with the labors of the last few days, after a short space, ceased, for awhile, from firing, and following bis example, stretched himself by his side. "What are you thinking about, Prescott,'' asked Victor?you seem to be in a brown study." "I am thinking about the fine times we had on James Island," rejoined Prescott, turning on his side and facing the speaker. "We came off with a hurrah, anxious to meet the enemy, muzzle to muzzle, foot to foot, and all that sort of thing. Well I here we are, and there is the enemy just to our wish, but I would be glad enough to be back on the Island, and fight the enemy at long taw with a mile, or ten miles of marsh between us the rest of the war. Shelling is right pretty diversion, when there is a .bomb-proof at hand to-slip into when the shells come too fast and too near, but this driving back the enemy .at the point of the bayonet is plagued ugly work, anywhere except in the columns of a newspaper. We are going tc see the elephant before this campaign is over." "Yes, we have hot work before us, for days to come," rejoined Victor, thoughtfully. We cannot drive the enemy with our present force, and to He here, it may be a week or ten days longer, repelling one charge after another, will be a drearisome carnage. Presoott?oneof us may fall here." "I shouldn't doubt it," answered Presoott, in a cold matter-of-fact tone. "I wish you to do me a service, Prescott, if a stray bullet should chance to reach me," continued Victor, taking from his pocket a memorandum book and pencil, and writing down a couple of names with the address of each. "Here it is," said he, tearing out the leaf and handing it to his companion; "only two letters to tell where and how I fell." "One to your mother and one to?why hey! how is this?" asked Prescott, with a look of surprise?"Miss?" - . ^ , A. ii "Hush I Hrescott, saia v ictor, coloring 10 wie tips of his ears?"Don't breathe her name in a place like this. If I fall, let her know how it went with me, and tell her all I ask is, that she will, when this war is done, plant a rose tree above the spot where my comrades lay me." "I hope to write to her in a strain I like a little better than penning an epistle on so doleful an occasion," replied Presoott, thrusting sad thoughts away. ' 'It shaD run in this style?'Harry Prescott presents his compliments to Miss D? and will do himself the pleasure to dance upon the occasion of her wedding with Victor Garnett' That is a little more to my fancy than planting flowers, possibly, by mistake, over the grave of some lousy Dutoh mercenary, who died for the inspiring consideration of eleven dollars a month in greenbacks. A death's head and cross bones for those who like them, but cakes and ale for me, every time 1 But, Victor, you are a lucky fellow to have earned a place in a girl's thoughts before you have been here twenty-four hours. I don't understand it" It now became necessary for Victor to enter into an explanation, which he did with modest reluc taooe, coloring up, in Ms oonfuaon, and picking at the tender grass which had sprang up along the * road-bed It was an m>wontedig>ectacfe?a youth ? telling his comrade the story of his first love* while ^ bursting shells were ftffing, and flying bullets were & whistling around them! Sorely the passion must be a syren that can wean the thoughts away and w lnQ them in the repose of forgetfulnesB, when dan ger and death are holding their carnival around. ^ While the thonghts of'Victor andhisoompanion w were far away, a cry rang along the line? ; st "Here they come! Look out men?to your m ggns I" sung ont a chorus of voices, while the fire ^ from the Confederate line ceased to sputter here and there, and became one continuous roO along w l ffitt nanlro witfinnf. nanon af iwfawmiuuiraa - Vi/4fO* and Prescott sprang, up to their places, and look- p< ing over the slight earthwork before them, saw the w enemy emerging from the shelter of the woods and rnshing on to the attack. ^ The lull, from which ihej mui) desuandbft was & scarcely more than two hundred yards from the is crest of that through which the railway cut was st made, and midway between the two was a hollow ai which, like the hill sides which sloped down to it, w was destitute of any growth that might shelter the J enemy in their advance. Here and there, at long w intervals, stood a clump of small oaks or an old field pine, but these were too few in number, too d diminutive, and too scattered, to offer any shelter <* from the fierce fire of small arms that now biased along the line of road. The regular dope from the excavated road-bed, down to the hollow midway ? the opening, formed, for the most part, a natural t< glacis, across which the Confederate fire of small d arms would sweep with terrible effect n As the enemy came down the slopeof the oppo- ^ site hills, in three columns, the green bin side was ^ dotted quite thickly with their slain and wrihnded, fc but when, having passed the hollow, they began a to ascend the slope of the hill to the railroad, they ^ fell no longer at irregular intervals, but whole plat- ^ oons fell under the scathing fire that swept the hill as with a scythe. m Had there been but one line to contend with, C not a man would have been able to reach the sum- ai mit of the dope alive; but though the foremost fine jf had been fearfully thinned, the. second, closely fidlowed by the third, began to mount the slope al- u most intact It seemed in vain to oontend against p soch overwhelming odds. u If they could be staggered but only for a moment 1 If tbey would but quail before the fire and " stand irresolute, for but a few seconds ere they ^ rushed on, the bullets would have time to tear ^ their broken line into shreds snd patches. Oh I si the value of time at a moment such as this was. w Bat twenty seconds of looking to the right and & left, of skirmishing from the murderoas fire rolling ? down, and of moditating upon a retreat! aye, even jt , ten seconds; to suffer one or two more volleys to be f\ hurled into their ranks, and the day will rest w with those iron-hearted men, pale with excitement? n not with fear?whose hearts are leaping wildly, ^ fiercely, tumultuously, in their bosoms, as they see $ line after line, that they cannot break with their fire, rushing on to the assault. They grow despe- ai rate in their resolution to die on the spot?die fighting for theirsunny South, without one thought p of yielding to the fee. They feel thai in a few jj minutes all will be over for them, and a fine of gory ? corpses and multilsted forms, too terrible to look upon, will mark the line where their struggling ft ranks made a heroic and desperate stand. Each it one feels that he, too, will form one in that line of fj gory death or living agony, rooked with tortures ^ that language cannot compass. a Victor was a brave soldier, and yet the sweat of Q agony stood on his brow, when volfey after volley k swept down the hill in vain, and he heard the t tramp of armed men rushing up, and could dearly ? 1 read their countenances as, with set teeth and pale " stern faces, they came swarming up in the fhoe of ? the unintermitting fire that swept the hill in vain. ? 1 There was a slight curve in the line of the raik o road, and the enemy were now within forty steps of. d ! that portion of the line where his Company stood, . while the right of their line, having a greater spaoe " ' to pass over, had not yet begun to mount the slope. c 1 Victor felt that before he could run down another Q cartridge the enemy would be upon him. "Fix o ' bayonets!" was the order that Captain Carberry at * this moment issued, and Victor promptly prepared jjj for the shock. He samnothingof what was passing B behind or on either side of him. All his thoughts 1 were engaged with the enemy in front, whom he g 1 was about to meet in a fierce death grapple. He a let go all dreams of victory or of life. The enemy c were too many for the feeble line, of which he 8 formed a part, to oontend with successfully. He put away the hopes of life and desperatelyresolved t to die where he stood. There was a wild throb of ti 1 his heart as he thought of his mother and of Nel- 1 lie, and then, with a mighty effort, be put them r ' away from his thoughts, that a vain longing after ? ' things of life might not give a double bitterness to e death. a 1 At this juncture a calm, quiet, composed voice o from behind reached his ears, and startled him by *its very composure. " "Take care there in front; I am about to open ? withmyguns!" -- . ' ? ' Victor started, and glanced baek. Scarce twnftty a feetbehind, mounted upon a handsome charger, and t! with a small riding whip in his hand, sat the bltie- - eyed artillery officer directing his guns into posi-1 ! Hnn Victor was startled bv the aDnarition. Mo- IV ' Gregor'a face was as calm and serene, as quiet and * 1 composed, as if he were bat taking a pleasant ride d through the balmy air of May, and felt in his own v soul, the soothing influences which the green land- D scape and the fresh flowers and verdure of Spring , were calculated to impart. His tranquility was on- ?( disturbed by the long lines of excited men, rush- ^ ingon to mortal combat with fierce yells, the ground tj trembling beneath their feet, and'the air lighted up to by the metallic shimmer of their gleaming muskets and flashing bayonets. The prayers and impreca- 0 ' tions of the wounded, their wails of agony, and the ? fearful objects, frightfully still,, with which the b ; slopes of the hills befbre him were covered, seemed tJ mere phantoms conjured up by the excited imagi- * tions of others which, for him, had no reality?no * existence?save that his face was beardless and in the fresh bloom of youth, his sudden appearance u on the battle-field would have reminded one of le Neptune's rising from the boisterous waves, d "Vultu quo fluctua SerenM." There was but brief time for thought Having uttered his caution, as the men in the railway cut n shrank back to the right or left, the muzzles of the oi terrible field pieces appeared looming over the low . enbankment behind them and, one after another, fi with a roar that made the hills quake, breathed b aiul flamo a?wi rtiano oli/ii ? tortn & Slumi ul SUIUKC <*uu uauie wuu qib^v cmjvw ^ upon the ranks of the enemy, that withered away I before the terrible discharge. Owing to the position of the enemy's line it was an enfilading firri y ' that made a fearful havoc in their ranks. Here K went up a wild cry of agony from the red field, but ^ along the Confederate line there arose a lond cheer that told of re-animated hearts. - h rfhe guns of the battery that hadoomenpon the Ij field at so opportune a moment, were handled with h a will, and poured in so rapid a fire that the lines ? of the enemv faltered and broke. The mo&etiy o kept np its deadly rolling fire, and in two. inmates' * time, toe mangled and bleeding cohrmM of the V enemy, like a wave broken on the rock/or a ser- o pent struck with a deadly blow, were rolling tack n to the cover of the wood, shattered, dispirited and cowed hy the unyielding finnmws that had hnried C them back, when victory seemed almost within ? their grasp. / "We have been & little too hard far fattier Jonthsn, thirboat," exottmed ont of tbrarlifleryaaa he wiped the streaming perspiration fain oe. "When they don't coma mora than fire ><m$,they axe bound.tobe whipped, and yoacaa ifeJv swear to that! Victor ghnoad book towards the speaker, and asrejoioedtoreeogiriiefahiffifherefMBliiwtifioha* Brack, who waa attiring; By bmgoodeoodoet, 1 wipe away the stain that rested upoo hifl name, ^ith his dooehed hat poshed faaek noa his heew, Mi his fc* flashed by h? raottt exertions, he ood looking triumphsitifr at the scattered mmmteof the enemy | cotamns disappearing onder considerate interest in the nmoitanate ftflow.tnd bo sought to Ratify and strengthen* his self-reject by a kind and considerate word at eteifwpirtrmity; '*700 handled year rammer fflce a mad ho felt what was at Stake. I am greatly pleased 1 see yon so prompt and oook Yon hare done mrdutywelL" . a consolation to om and I wnFfayto deserve it " OL AD I wish is to die like a cum at my gun, id wine out, with my blood, what oaa never he called. Some of these days, I wiB hare.my iah; and then yon can write to poor Neffietbat le past is Wiped ont, and that she need net bhuh ith shame ft* her father." A tew of genuine and hearty repentance trickled own the cheek of the erring man, and Victor mid not bat feel how blessed is die hand of Merr wheq she tarns aside the sword of Jratice from 1- .*11 Victor caught tha firo of HoQiomt, who boftjl ad smiled, and was about coming toward to apeak ) hiro, when his attention was claimed by an aide-camp, who delivering him a brief message, htfed on to bear an order to Colonel Giles. "Very good; I shall toy to make the oboe too ot for them, was the response of McGregor <6 le aide, as the latter was nchaar off; and moving is grins some fifty yards from the spot, ha opened rapid fire of shot and Ads upon the wooded ill where the enemy had taken refuge. Inn very unt time word passed along the fine?a mystort18 whisper at first?that the Confederates were, i their torn, about to charge the enemy and make a attempt to drive them from timer position curlers were passing and repassing akmg the line, ; od while it was evident that some movement of portance was about to^be made, it was a matter bp oonjecture whether the movement would ha a large or a re treat The muskets were stiffmpsring along the fines, this point a mere dipping fire, while at other points the firing freshened p into a pretty brisk and continuous rasDade. The sun?the same sun that ot motoring's ? akening had lighted up so many foes that ware ow upturned to the evening eky, rigid, paBid and istorted, with the dry hair clinging around the ammy brow?was now ranking, after this day of anghter, behind the green trees that fringed As est era horizon. It seemed like a terrible aye flout to withdraw its accusing mt from the awful sene of rip, and miaery, ana bloodshed, oil which had looked It hung in the wastern tkj hfce ? icid hall of fire* no longer sending down its ebeerll rays upon the earth aofbflofmmnre. It had ithdrawn its beams from the earth. There was either sunshine nor shadow on the field of the ead, but in their place that oold grey tint that ave equal prominence to every object m the fcatWe panorama. It was an ominous kind of fight, lat seemed to cast shadows onfy upon the bans od spirits of men. . /J' There waa an. air of suspense and breathtas ezectatioa on every free. One of those mysterious, isrincrive promptings?of the nature of whieh ton now so little Imocmed to tadnam every mansf )methiuff new sod st&rtiiDg usi st hifid * Tho battery had been directing itofifc cteaffir >r near fifteen minutes upon the wood-erowned hill v i front when, suddenly far away on the extreme ;ght of the line, and faint from its very distance, here were heard the wild and inspiriting cbeesrof tie southern boys, rushing to the charge. Nearer nd clearer rose the sound of the cheering, caught p by sooce8rive regiments along the line, as with ladled ardor and impetuosity, they too, rushedjou a participate in the danger and glory of the daring augbthrf the inspiriting cheers, andas one man, rifcfi the confidence of successbeaming from their ices, dashed forward from their ^DdQT tyd swept n at the double-quick toperfonn their psnfo toe a,fa work. They went down the slope and mounted the hill 9 front, And from the wood, into which thiy disapeared, was heard the rattle of musketry and the lash of steel. bat over all?drowning the noise of rasketry with itsjubilant tones?rose the wild yell f the. Southron; sweeping the enemy before him s the storm drives the chaff. The shooting and be firing-needed ?vs* further and firintly iato the infjmnwj telling, that the enemy was rooted and one lore battle won. MoQm^W^d^^nthe reardTUs nimatiou. When it became endeot that the barge was snooessfhl, his face relaxed its severity, ad ne rave orders to put his battery in motion. "limber Up boys ana be after them. We may e needed at the front, and a sore thing it will be o be wanted and not to be there. We wfil eras be road yonder." Pointing with his ridnm whip 9 a point where it was practicable to crsn the railMid track, about a hundred yards to the right of rhere he stood, he soon had his guns in motion to * illow np the infantry and support them in ease the nemy should attempt to make -astand.' Making detour to the rigfa to cross the road, he again Uiqued to die left and followed in tne tradtof iolonel Giles1 regiment There wasa good wagon y&d through the woods, into which he tett withms ons as he~was mounting the hill, and along this he trewa with the fallen ana wounaeaof the eoeifty ad, here .and there, nraeg T grey, unifbnn tow aey had not fallen altogether unavenged. - McGregor rode a few paces in front of his gnns d examine the road and give directions for avetdig the obstructions that might be in their my. le had advanoed into the wood soaroe a hundred ards, when full in his path lay a Confederate aolier, who had fallen upon his face. The read was rorn so deeply at this point that die guns oookl ottorn aside and avoid crashing the body beneath >\ leir ponderous wheels. Calling forward a couple f his men, he ordered them to remove the body i the roadside, .and as they Sited it from oat of ae way, and deposited it upon the green tarf by lie road, Be coldly and mechanically turned his foee 5 glance at the Dody. An expreasaon of intense mental pam passed ver his features, and be was at onoe upon his feet nd bending oyer the still warm body wSh all his eligibilities painfully aroused. Thefioodma still nbbling forth from a wound in the side, and dyed he sod upon which it was laid. The cheeks from rhioh the warm flush had not yet quite gone, and he full Hps gently dosed as in dumb*, still worn he expression of life. "Brack! you most keep watch over this body til I can return. This poo^feDowmnalWotbe it for a fatigue party to huddle away insane half ag grave in an obscure spot If iuaa p?imfcd om returning, have the body conveyed to the eky ad deoeutly buried, at aqrexpenaa, in aema church urdand, mind you, Brack, let the grave be larked with his name. It is a sad, sad ate, for Be so young and so promising." . "I shall ao it for the poor Mow, oheecfyiy and ??' illmol* T .ionfonint. IM wm Mimr ) that most assuredly," answered Brackj Us &m )ftening into an expression of tender pdy, at he ent over the yet warm dead. "What name shall put on his grave, Lieutenant?" You may fiw$etit, and I will write it down for on, answered McGregor; and bendir^ upon one nee hy the side of the body, he wrote the name pen a card and attached it to the breast of the Jlen soldier. . 'Sf6 S&" ** lieutenant, m he rose to If youbte me, Brack,see htm dooent' buried in some Aurchyard, end report the spot >nje. Did my duties alfcw me, I wouM not leave * body until the last duties were pud it The Hfi with his name, I have ftatened on his breast" WJregor took the pusebas hand in his own, reamait warmly, ana while a sob burst from his reast turned quickly away, mounted hb horse and xle on with his batteay. Brack beat over the card and read?"Ftctor Tarnett, *th South Caro&na?a tridoto't only ton. hchitwar r [TO BX oomnD nxft.impuj