ON THE CHICKAHOMINY.
On the 16th of May the whole army, with the exception of Hooker's
division, which remained at Williamsburg, was at the White House on the
Pamunkey, where a permanent depot was established. The cavalry under
General Stoneman, and the infantry pickets, were on the banks of the
Chickahominy.
General McClellan called for reinforcements. In response, the President
informed him, on the 18th, that General McDowell had been ordered to
march from Fredericksburg to join him by the shortest route, but was
also ordered to keep himself in position to cover Washington, and
General McClellan was instructed to open communication with him.
"This order," says General McClellan, "rendered it impossible for
me to use the James River as a line of operations, and forced me to
establish our depots on the Pamunkey, and to approach Richmond from
the north. It frustrated the plan of the campaign."
It will be for the future historian to determine whether the order to
General McDowell to move overland compelled General McClellan to take
the Chickahominy route, and frustrated the plan of the campaign, or
whether, on the other hand, he had not chosen the route, by moving from
Williamsburg on the 10th, and establishing his head-quarters and depots
at White House, and throwing out his cavalry and pickets to Bottom's
Bridge on the Chickahominy on the 16th, two days before the orders were
issued.
The Chickahominy River runs north of Richmond, flows southeast, and
becomes an affluent of the James above Williamsburg. It is fringed
with forests and bordered by marshy lands, which at high water become
impassable swamps, but at low water the stream is fordable in many
places. The Rebels destroyed all the bridges as they retreated to
Richmond.
The army came to the river at Bottom's Bridge. The Eleventh Maine was
in the advance. They were brave, hardy men, from the lumber-swamps of
the Pine-Tree State. The Rebel pickets saw them, set the bridge on
fire, and fled. The Maine men gave them a volley, rushed forward, used
their caps for fire-buckets, and extinguished the flames, and with
their axes soon had it repaired for the use of the army.
Heintzelman's and Keyes's corps crossed to the southern bank, while
the other corps pushed up the northern bank, towards Coal Harbor and
Mechanicsville.
THE AFFAIR AT HANOVER COURT-HOUSE.
Fourteen miles north of Richmond is Hanover Court-House. A Rebel
force was stationed there, commanded by General Branch. On the 27th
of May, General Fitz-John Porter, with Emory's brigade of cavalry,
and Martindale's, Butterfield's, McQuade's, and Warren's brigades of
infantry, proceeded to drive the Rebels from the place, and make a
junction with McDowell. At noon General Emory, with the cavalry, came
upon the enemy about two miles east of the Court-House, where the road
forks,--the right hand road leading to the Court-House, the left hand
to Ashland.
Berdan's sharpshooters and Martindale's brigade were near by, and
General Porter formed in line of battle. The sharpshooters were thrown
forward as skirmishers. Benson's battery came into position in a field
on the right-hand side of the road, and commenced throwing shells over
the heads of the sharpshooters.
The Rebels were posted on a hill near a farm-house,--their line
reaching across both roads. General Martindale went up the Ashland
road, driving in the skirmishers. The soldiers heard the whistle of
a locomotive, and saw a train of cars upon the Virginia Central road
bringing reinforcements to the Rebels. Captain Griffin's batteries
were brought up, and a vigorous fire opened upon the railroad. The
Twenty-second Massachusetts and Second Maine were thrown forward to the
railroad. They tore up the track, and cut the telegraph-wire, under
cover of the heavy fire of the artillery.
While this was transpiring on the Ashland road, there was a sharp
contest on the road leading to Hanover. The Rebel infantry, concealed
in the woods, opened a rapid fire upon the Twenty-fifth New York, which
killed Lieutenant Fisk and wounded Lieutenant-Colonel Savage, and a
number of the men. The Rebels sprang from the woods upon the regiment,
and captured several prisoners. Colonel Johnson, commanding the
regiment, fell back upon the reserve, which was coming into position
in the rear, composed of the Seventeenth New York, Eighty-third
Pennsylvania in the front line, and the Twelfth New York and Sixteenth
Michigan in the second. They charged over the field, through the
hollow, up the slope beyond, and came upon the Rebel batteries by
the farm-house so rapidly, and with such force, that they captured a
twelve-pound gun, which the enemy had not time to remove. The Rebels
retreated towards the Court-House, followed by the cavalry, and all the
artillery and infantry except Martindale's brigade. General Martindale
sent two of his regiments up the railroad to join the main force at the
Court-House, while he remained with the Second Maine, Twenty-fifth New
York, a portion of the Forty-fourth New York, and two guns of Martin's
battery.
While waiting and resting with this small force, after the exciting
encounter of the afternoon, he was suddenly attacked by the Rebels, who
greatly outnumbered him, and who by a surprise hoped to rout and defeat
him, and cut off General Porter from the main command. But for more
than an hour he held his ground, till the column which had gone to the
Court-House turned back and rejoined him.
As soon as General Porter heard the firing, he moved the Thirteenth
and Fourteenth New York and Griffin's batteries down the road upon the
double-quick. The Ninth Massachusetts and Sixty-second Pennsylvania
were sent through the woods, across the angle between the Hanover
and Ashland roads, while the Eighty-third Pennsylvania and Sixteenth
Michigan pushed down the railroad. The troops last named moved with
great rapidity. They came suddenly upon the left flank of the enemy.
The Rebels evidently were not expecting to be attacked from that
quarter. They fled through the woods in great confusion. The cavalry
rode among them, and hundreds threw down their arms and gave themselves
up as prisoners.
General McClellan, in his Report, thus speaks of this gallant affair:
"Some two hundred of the enemy's dead were buried by our troops,
seven hundred and thirty prisoners sent to the rear, one twelve-pound
howitzer, one caisson, a large number of small arms, and two railroad
trains captured." The Union loss amounted to fifty-three killed and
three hundred and forty-four wounded and missing.
The force encountered was General Branch's division of North Carolina
and Georgia troops, numbering about nine thousand. Their camp at
Hanover Court-House was taken and destroyed.
General Porter fell back to Coal Harbor. The engineers made a survey of
the Chickahominy and of the approaches to Richmond, and began to build
bridges across the stream and throw up earthworks.
The days were hot and sultry. There were heavy thunder-storms,
succeeded by intense heat. The soldiers were provided with axes and
shovels, and were set to work in the dark, miry swamps, working all day
up to their waists in the muddy water. Disease in all its frightful
forms of fever and dysentery made its appearance. The air was full of
malaria. Hundreds died and thousands were sent to the hospitals.
One day a fine youth, who with ardor and enthusiasm had enlisted as a
soldier, was brought into the hospital. He had been taken violently and
suddenly with fever while in the marshes. The nurses laid him on a cot,
gave him cold water, bathed his hot brows. He had a likeness of his
mother, who had gone into the better land, and of his sister, who was
far away in his pleasant home, in a gold locket on his neck. He dreamed
and talked of home, and said, "I have a sister on my heart,--a sister
on my heart,--a sister,--a sister."
The disease made rapid progress. The fever burned within,--a consuming
flame which, before sunrise, had devoured all his young life. He was
buried in the afternoon beneath the forest trees.
It was wearing work, the bridge-building, the construction of roads,
and throwing up of intrenchments. Besides, there was the necessity of
keeping close watch upon the enemy. If there were sad scenes, there
were also amusing incidents.
A party of Maine boys, on picket, one day, saw a pair of wagon-wheels.
Not far off were the Rebel pickets, in an open field. The Down-East
Yankees thought they would have some fun. They mounted a log upon the
wheels, brought the mock cannon into position. One of them pretended
to sponge it, another put in the cartridge, a third primed, a fourth
sighted it, while a fifth stood ready to fire. The Rebels watched the
operation a moment, and then scampered for the woods to get under
cover! The Maine boys did not fire, but had a merry chuckle among
themselves, and a hearty laugh with their comrades when they told the
story in camp.