On the 3d of June the two armies were brought face to face at Cold
Harbor, where but two years before "Little Mc" had struggled in vain
for the mastery.
On the night of the 2d our brigade was placed in line on the extreme
left, with our regiment upon what is known as Pharr's farm. As soon as
we were halted we began to fortify, and by early dawn had constructed
good temporary works. Owing to the dense, heavy body of woods the enemy
were enabled to make near approaches in our front, and previous to
their advance, on the following morning, we could hear distinctly the
orders given by their officers. After some little firing by their
sharpshooters, about 8 o'clock, they began to attack, and kept up their
assaults until late in the evening. Brigade after brigade was hurled
against us, until the ground in our front was literally covered with
their dead and wounded. Their assaults were repulsed along the whole
line. Finally, when the order was given to renew the attack, their men
sullenly and emphatically refused to move forward under our withering
fire. The prisoners we captured denounced and cursed Grant for this
slaughter, and dubbed him the "champion butcher."
In the evening a battery of artillery was sent to our aid. They came up
at a gallop and endeavored to take position on a slight elevation, in
the skirt of pines, immediately in rear of our regiment. Before they
had time to unlimber, every horse in the battery was shot down. The men
then endeavored to run the guns forward by hand, when nearly all the
men were killed or wounded. One gun only was gotten in position, and it
rendered but little service before it was dismantled. Having been under
constant fire, and firing rapidly all day ourselves--each man averaging
two hundred rounds of cartridges--it became necessary to replenish our
ammunition. An attempt to go to the rear, or to leave our works in any
direction, was almost certain death. Lieut.-Col. Whitfield, who was now
in command of our regiment, disliked to force a detail to go to the
wagons for ammunition, and therefore called for volunteers. A
sufficient number came forward at once, and set out on their perilous
expedition; among the number was private R. F. Hampton, of the Grays.
In due time they all returned, each bringing a supply of cartridges,
but waited some distance back of us for a lull in the firing so as to
run the gauntlet of the sharpshooters to the lines. Several were badly
wounded in making the trip, among the number private R. F. Hampton, who
had almost reached the lines when he was shot down by a sharpshooter,
mortally wounded, and afterwards died of his wounds. During the battle,
private W. J. Hunt was killed, and Dan'l. B. Coltrain and Benjamin
Burnsides severely wounded. Private Hunt, when shot, was standing near
me. We were trying to locate a sharpshooter in our front, who had
become very troublesome by the accuracy of his aim. We had been exposed
in our position but a few moments, when a minie-ball pierced his head,
scattering his brains in my face, and he sunk down lifeless at my feet.
Lieutenant-Colonel Whitfield was severely wounded in the head, and was
carried from the field. The command now devolved upon Capt. Herring,
the senior officer, who acted as Colonel, and Captain Sloan, next in
rank, as Major.
On the following morning, we found that the enemy, under cover of
darkness, had left our front; and we were moved to the right, and
placed in position immediately at Cold Harbor, with our respective
lines so near as to be able to converse with each other. We remained
here in line of battle, under constant fire; happily, our immediate
command had no serious casualties. Grant used every expedient to break
through our lines, but he had so mercilessly slaughtered and cowed his
men in his first charges at Cold Harbor, that his men refused to charge
a second time. So determined was he to clean us up, at all hazards,
that he remarked he would do so, "if it took him all summer." The
sequel proved that he did not overestimate the time, but the process
cost considerable bloodshed.
Stanton (Secretary of War) says, officially, that Grant's force, on the
1st of May, was over one hundred and twenty thousand men. Shortly
afterwards, the 9th army corps was sent to him. This army, then
aggregating over one hundred and forty thousand men, with a reserve to
draw from of one hundred and thirty thousand more, in round numbers,
was ruthlessly hurled against Lee's less than fifty thousand men. Lee
had no reserve--the cradle and the grave had long since mustered, and
our ports were closed to mercenary hirelings. Their own historians
prove and show that their "butcher" slaughtered nearly one hundred
thousand men in his "On to Richmond," from the wilds of the
"Wilderness" to the desolated fields of Cold Harbor. In other words, he
sacrificed about twice as many men as Lee had, in order to take a
position he could have taken at first without firing a gun or losing a
man.
On the 3d of June, Lieut. Frank A. Hanner, who had been for some weeks
confined by disease in the hospital at Richmond, died. He served as
private until April, 1862; at the reorganization of the twelve-months'
troops, he was elected 2d Lieutenant; was promoted to Senior 2d,
September 17th, 1862, and again on the 15th of October, 1863, to 1st
Lieutenant. On the 1st of June, private Joel J. Thorn was appointed
corporal.