Benjamnin F. Butler, Butler's Book: Autobiography and Personal Reminiscences of Major-General Benjamin Butler

“ [735] rebels.” I said: “You told me it was evacuated when you came by.” He said: “So it was, but they have reoccupied it.” The word was scarcely out of his mouth when an artillery shot came over, and we found ourselves in this dilemma: We must either return,--and we had got so far down that that was a pretty hazardous operation,--or we must ride on. We could not abandon our horses because the turnpike was laid over a morass, and the rebels would have only to send out a party to pick us up. So I said: “My boy, we must ride for it,” and we did. Then they opened upon us with musketry by battalion, and the singing of the minie balls as they passed over our heads was inspiriting but not pleasant music. I confess that I put my horse to his quickest pace; and under it all, I could not help smiling to see DeKay, who rode a fine hunter, trying to manage, as she was going at her best gait, to keep his thread-paper body between me and the fire, which continued during our ride, quite three quarters of a mile.

When we got in sight of Fort Harrison the firing ceased. No damage had been done except that a horse of one of the orderlies got a pretty sharp wound, and when I got to the fort I found the crupper strap of my saddle cut off, by what means I know not. I found also that a tuft of cotton under my shoulder strap, which the tailor had been kind enough to put there, was torn out. As I had not been that day where anything of the kind could have happened before, I attributed both to the shots of the enemy.

At Fort Harrison I found General Grant. He had made a hasty examination of the premises, and found that the gorge of the fort was open towards the river and the enemy's gunboats had opened upon that gorge, and, not knowing the great success we had had on the right, he had come to the conclusion that the line of fortifications extending into the country from the river could not be held, and had better be abandoned as soon as the fort could be dismantled. He had already sent off two very heavy guns across the bridge at Varina. In a few minutes' consultation I assured him that, in my judgment, a line could certainly be held against any force that was now on the north side of the James, the numbers of which I knew. It would take quite twelve hours for Lee to get any sufficient number of his troops from Petersburg there to attempt to dislodge us. In the meantime we could so far protect ourselves by filling up the