The Greensborough Patriot
Aug. 7, 1862
Page 2
From the Forty-sixth
Regiment.
From a private
letter, written by a member of the Forty-sixth N. C. Regiment, we make the
following extracts: “We had a fatiguing march yesterday, (30th July)
and when we halted for the night the rain began to “sprinkle,” and we have been
making ourselves as comfortable as possible, waiting patiently for matters to
develop themselves. We are near an old
Church, called “Merchant’s Hope” lying among the trees and bushes to keep concealed
from the Yankees at the gun boats, as it is but a short walk to the river. Out of the old Church a morning since a trio
of Yankee pickets crawled forth. As they
had “seen nothing” our forces allowed them to depart uninterrupted, exhilarant,
no doubt with the idea that they had all alone achieved a great and glorious
“victory.”
“An engagement of
some kind is certainly imminent, and we are momentarily expecting to hear our
batteries open on the gun boats. From
the eminences along the river at some points the Yankee camp can be decried,
commencing at Harrison’s Farm, with their
hundreds of tents dotting the fields and hills, until distance hides them from
view. But little is seen of their
occupants, who are not stirring with that spirit and buzz that might be
expected to appear in a Yankee war-camp.
No doubt this metropolis of McClellan’s brings to their minds other
matters than making finger-rings, Jack-knives, pretty buttons, &c.,--matters which have always consumed (and
of such men, so superior as a race, well merited) their undivided attention
heretofore.
“Aug. 1, 6 p. m.—A
little after midnight our artillery composed in all of ____ pieces opened
simultaneously upon the enemy.—The prelude to this grand and terrific discharge
was given by a captured gun, (“Long Tom” I believe) which blazed away, throwing
his load of wrath with a fearful creak and whiz right into the midst of the
Yankee camp, which was lighted up by the fires at the guard tents. The infantry supporting our batteries were
then called to “Attention” and instantly the woods for a great distance along
the available points blazed with the bouncing flame and flashing of the guns,
illumining the hillsides for the moment as if by so many streaks of vivid
lightning. The campfires of the enemy
and the lights on their vessels were at once extinguished, which served not to
retard the progress of our artillery no more than did the fire from their gun
boats dislodge us from our position. The
cannonading continued for at least two hours with incessant discharges on the
fleet in the water and the encampment on shore.
It was terrific beyond conception, and as our guns had been placed in
position with the utmost care, and the points selected without the knowledge of
the enemy, the damage inflicted upon them must have been heavy and severe. Balls could have been heard striking against
the iron clad steamers in the most rapid succession,
and the colliding sounds of the confused and terror-stricken transports, tugs
and schooners composing the motley fleet of Commodore Wilkes’ expedition could
be distinctly heard amid the din and thunder of the battle. We can give no definite idea of the injuries
they sustained, it being a night attack on the river a mile in width, and the
guns at long range. On our side one man
was killed and two wounded.
