Tue Derence or Fort FISHER. 227

the ordeal through which, by Brage’s neglect, they had been
forced to pass. I sent them to an old commissary bomb-
FRONT OF WILMINGTON N.C., proof to recover breath.

in February,1865.. f” My headquarters during the fight were the pulpit battery
LMINGTON — Uni on the sea face, one hundred yards from the northeast salient
fame Confederate and adjoining the hospital bomb-proof, commanding the best
0 view of the approaches to the land face. At 2 :30, as I was
returning from another battery, Private Arthur Muldoon, one
of my lookouts, called to me, “Colonel, the enemy are about
to charge.” I informed General Whiting, who was near,
and at my request he immediately telegraphed General Bragg,

at “Sugar Loaf”:

“The enemy are about to assault; they outnumber us heay-
ily. We are just manning our parapets. Fleet have ex-
tended down the sea front outside and are firing very heavily.
Enemy on the beach in front of us in very heavy force, not
more than seven hundred yards from us. Nearly all land
guns disabled. Attack! Attack! It is all I can say and
all you can do.”*

I then passed hurriedly down in rear of the land face and
through the galleries, and although the fire of the fleet was
terrific, I knew it must soon cease, and I ordered additional
sharpshooters to the gun-chambers with instructions to pick
off the officers in the assaulting columns, and directed the
battery commanders to form their detachments and rush to
the top of the parapets when the firing stopped and drive the
assailants back. As I returned, I instructed the squads that
were forming under cover to rally to the parapets as soon as
the order should be given, to which they responded with en-
thusiasm. I had determined to allow the assailants to reach
the berme of the work before exploding a line of torpedoes, be-
lieving it would enable us to kill or capture the first line,
while destroying or demoralizing their supporting lines of as-
sault. I had not quite reached my headquarters when the
roar of artillery suddenly ceased, and instantly the steam-
whistles of the vast fleet sounded a charge. It was a soul-
stirring signal both to besiegers and besieged.

pilot tac es

*The original, in Whiting’s handwriting, is in possession of Dr. Geo.
L. Porter, Bridgeport, Conn.—W. L.