248 NortH .CaARoLina Troops, 1861-65.

earth for protection from sharpshooters, aud occupied by my
soldiers, varying in distance from one hundred and fifty to
three hundred yards in front of our main breastworks. I
took measures immediately to re-establish this line, which
was successfully accomplished, and our pits re-occupied,
About daylight of the 2d the enemy again drove in our pick-
ets and charged Rune’s salient at the point where Battle’s
Brigade was posted, carrying the works for a few hundred
yards on each side of that point, doubling and throwing
Cook’s Brigade back a short distance. I hurried the com-
mands of Colonels Cowand and Archer to the point of attack
as rapidly as possible, charging the enemy, who were in pos-
session of and protected by our traverses and bomb-proofs
(which were erected to prevent our line being enfiladed, and
also as a place of refuge from their perpendicular mortar
fire), and continued gradually to gain traverse after traverse
of our captured works.

I then secured four pieces of artillery, which were placed
in our second line of works, and were invaluable in checking
the advance of the enemy, thus confining them by grape and
canister to this particular point at the salient, preventing
their advancing to attack our lines in flank or rear; Cook and
Battle holding them in check on the left, and Cowand and
Archer on the right of the captured works, their only point
of egress being exposed to the fire of the artillery.

T regret my inability to recall the names and thus give hon-
orable mention to those gallant artillerists who rendered me
such effective service.

During the forenoon a brigade, under command of Colo-
ne] —_—————., reported to me for duty, and was placed

near the artillery in this second line of earth works (which-

had been constructed to fall back upon in case of disaster to
our first line). My dispositions were soon made to attack
the enemy simultaneously at all points—Cowand and Archer
on the right, Cook and Battle on the left, who were to drive
them from the protection of their traverses. Colonel

commanded in front with a heavy line of skirmishers, con-
necting his left with Cook and his right with Cowand. My
four pieces of artillery poured grape and canister into the

Fp ea sce tinh een beget eee gon ne

SURRENDER AT APPOMATTOX. 249

enemy, and I gave the signal.for the infantry to advance,
when a general charge was made, but through a direct viola-
tion of orders on the part of Colonel —————,, this attack
only partially succeeded, capturing that portion of the line
alone upon which the skirmishers advanced, Colonel

having changed the direction of attack, and charged the point
assigned to the skirmishers on the right, thereby leaving a
space of three hundred yards unassailed. There is no doubt
in my mind that if Colonel had attacked with vigor
at that time, we could have driven the enemy entirely from
our works. After the lapse of an hour, during which time
the enemy were heavily reinforced, I ordered another attack
from the second line in which Colonel —-———— participa-
ted, but by again diverting the brigade in the direction of
Cowand’s Brigade, instead of towards the salient, the enemy
were dislodged from only a small portion of the lines.

Subsequently sixty men of Johnston’s North Carolina Bri-
gade, under command of Captain Plato Durham, recaptured
Fort Mahone, which for an hour had been so covered by our
fire as to forbid its occupants showing themselves. In taking
this fort a large number of prisoners were captured ; so many,
in fact, that when I first saw them skulking behind the earth-
works for protection against the fire of their own men, I
feared it was a ruse on the part of the enemy to surprise us.
They had secreted themselves for safety in this work, and
we, in our charge, had taken the only outlet.

‘After this no general attack was made, though we contin-
ued slowly but gradually to drive them from traverse to
traverse.

About nightfall the enemy occupied some two hundred
yards of our breastworks. Through no inefficiency or neg-
ligenee on the part of the officers and men were the works
carried, but owing to the weakness of the line, its extreme
length, and the want of sufficient force to defend it, for they
acted most heroically on this trying oceasion. Only one un-
wounded man (an officer) did I see seeking the rear, and he
one whom I had the previous day ordered under arrest for
trafficking with the enemy (exchanging tobacco for coffee).
Him I hailed and inquired where he was going, when he re-