[43]
Hooker was now upon the extreme left, and about one P. M. commenced a general assault upon the works immediately in front.
With dauntless bravery his men advanced to the attack, and Ward's brigade, of Butterfield's division, stormed a small fort, and captured four pieces of artillery.
A tremendous fire from a long line of rebel rifle-pits, behind and around the fort, compelled the greater portion to retire; but enough remained to hold the cannon and prevent the rebels from recapturing the works.
In this fight, Colonel Harrison, of the Seventieth Indiana, who assumed command of Ward's brigade upon the latter being wounded, particularly distinguished himself.
Our plan of battle for the coming day was to mass the bulk of our forces upon the wings of our army, assailing the rebels on both flanks at once, while our centre was held by a single line.
Had this design been known to the enemy, he might have attempted to break our centre during the night.
Consequently, the utmost vigilance was exercised after dark, and some rapid firing which took place in front of Johnson's division about midnight, caused the whole army to stand to its guns.
But at that very hour the rear guard of the rebel forces was evacuating Resacca.
The firing precipitated its movements, because the rebels in the town supposed we had discovered the retreat and were about attacking in force in the middle of the night.
When morning dawned, not a rebel, save some stragglers, was in or around Resacca.
McPherson immediately started in pursuit.
Ere this, his advance must have reached Calhoun; and while I am warned that the sixteenth of May has passed away, and the seventeenth is about to dawn, I see the Army of the Cumberland filing out from Resacca to join in the chase.
Kingston, Ga., May 20.
General Sherman's advance occupied this place yesterday, before noon. The rebel rear guard had left after daylight.
The day before, eleven engines with trains, lay here, and moved south before the rear of the army; this morning, before daylight, a Yankee engineer pulled the whistle that sounded the arrival of the first engine under Federal direction.
As the roar of the whistle resounded through these mountains, it received an answering echo from the thousands of Union soldiers who literally swarm all over the ground.
The “boys” facetiously remark that General Johnston is on the train just in advance of Sherman, and keeps his train flagged in order to avoid being run into.
Now (ten A. M.) it is reported that the train is eight miles further down, the next two bridges below being uninjured.
The pursuit was so close that no attempt was made to burn the first bridge.
At the second, our cavalry arrived in time to capture the squad which was attempting to fire the bridge, and with the prisoners' greasy haversacks, put the fire out.
The Etowah River is fourteen miles from Kingston.
There a stand will certainly be male, or it may be that a gap in the Altoona Mountains, at Altoona, six miles from the Etowah, may be chosen.
The Etowah —— improperly called the Hightower and Highflower — unites with the Oostenaula at Rome, forming the Coosa.
A railroad unites Kingston with Rome, the distance being about thirty miles in a western direction.
My last letter gave an account of operations in McPherson's command on the right, up to saturday night, the fourteenth.
That day and evening, heavy fighting near Resacca was going on, in part of which one brigade of dodge's command participated--Colonel Sprague's, of General Veatch's division.
General Fuller's brigade was held in reserve.
I regret being unable, on account of the steady moving of troops, to obtain particulars of their engagement.
The Sixty-third and Forty-third Ohio are in Colonel Sprague's brigade.
Their loss is not great.
I am informed that this brigade had the honor of first entering Resacca.
Resacca being evacuated, and the enemy in full retreat, early Sunday morning General Dodge's second division was ordered to lay a pontoon bridge, and cross the Oostenaula at Lay's Ferry, in order to throw a column on the Rome road below Calhoun, and thus harass the enemy as much as possible.
The first brigade, colonel rice, advanced a line of skirmishers, supported by artillery and infantry, and in a short time cleared the opposite bank of the force stationed there.
The Sixty-sixth indiana lost a number in killed and wounded, by supposing the enemy to be gone, and by marching by flank into range, where a volley taught them to form in line of battle in short order.
Under cover of artillery, the pontoon wagons were brought to the river bank, and by ten o'clock the first brigade of infantry was over the river.
The remainder of the troops were immediately forwarded, and all the infantry of two brigades — the first and second--thrown across.
A skirmish line was thrown out, which soon developed a considerable force in plain view.
The Seventh iowa, of the first brigade, and the Sixty-sixth indiana, were thrown forward on the right of the road, under cover of the woods towards a brick house, behind which the main rebel force was formed.
The artillery got excellent range, and literally perforated the house and outhouses with round shot and shell.
The skirmish line was all that was visible in the open field, and when all was ready, a staff officer rode forward with the order for it to advance.
away went the blue line like so many moving dots, exploding into puffs of smoke at intervals, and again collecting into their original form.
They had proceeded but a little way, until from the woods beyond emerged a dirty gray and brown line of big monsters bearing bright guns at a “right shoulder shift,” and threatening to swallow up the little sprinkling of Yankees before them.
alas i they could not see the compact line of blue waiting to fall upon their left and crush it. Like sheep to the slaughter, they came 