Hearts Touched by Fire

Author:Harold Holzer [Holzer, Harold]
Language: eng
Format: epub
ISBN: 978-0-679-60430-3
Publisher: Random House Publishing Group
Published: 2011-04-04T16:00:00+00:00

THE 29TH PENNSYLVANIA FORMING LINE OF BATTLE ON CULP’S HILL AT 10 A.M., JULY 3.

Most of the enemy’s projectiles passed overhead, the effect being to sweep all the open ground in our rear, which was of little benefit to the Confederates—a mere waste of ammunition, for everything here could seek shelter. And just here an incident already published may be repeated, as it illustrates a peculiar feature of civil war. Colonel Long, who was at the time on General Lee’s staff, had a few years before served in my mounted battery expressly to receive a course of instruction in the use of field-artillery. At Appomattox we spent several hours together, and in the course of conversation I told him I was not satisfied with the conduct of this cannonade which I had heard was under his direction, inasmuch as he had not done justice to his instruction; that his fire, instead of being concentrated on the point of attack, as it ought to have been, and as I expected it would be, was scattered over the whole field. He was amused at the criticism and said: “I remembered my lessons at the time, and when the fire became so scattered, wondered what you would think about it!”

I now rode along the ridge to inspect the batteries. The infantry were lying down on its reverse slope, near the crest, in open ranks, waiting events. As I passed along, a bolt from a rifle-gun struck the ground just in front of a man of the front rank, penetrated the surface and passed under him, throwing him “over and over.” He fell behind the rear rank, apparently dead, and a ridge of earth where he had been lying reminded me of the backwoods practice of “barking” squirrels. Our fire was deliberate, but on inspecting the chests I found that the ammunition was running low, and hastened to General Meade to advise its immediate cessation and preparation for the assault which would certainly follow. The headquarters building, immediately behind the ridge, had been abandoned, and many of the horses of the staff lay dead. Being told that the general had gone to the cemetery, I proceeded thither. He was not there, and on telling General Howard my object, he concurred in its propriety, and I rode back along the ridge, ordering the fire to cease. This was followed by a cessation of that of the enemy, under the mistaken impression that he had silenced our guns, and almost immediately his infantry came out of the woods and formed for the assault. On my way to the Taneytown road to meet the fresh batteries which I had ordered up, I met Major Bingham, of Hancock’s staff, who informed me that General Meade’s aides were seeking me with orders to “cease firing”; so I had only anticipated his wishes. The batteries were found and brought up, and Fitzhugh’s, Weir’s, and Parsons’s were put in near the clump of trees. Brown’s and Arnold’s batteries had been so crippled that they were now withdrawn, and Brown’s was replaced by Cowan’s.

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