112 



AKMY OPERATIONS: 



at a loss how to proceed. The road to the 

 right was followed, and Jarrett's station reach- 

 ed at 5 P. M. The track of the railroad was 

 again torn up, and the troops marched to Free- 

 man's bridge, arriving about midnight. Thence 

 they moved to Belcher's Mills, Heart's station, 

 and City Point. 



The naval part of the forces had been 

 chiefly employed in keeping the river open to 

 navigation, and in removing the obstruction 

 and torpedoes. In order to remove torpedoes, 

 the shore near where they were placed was 

 first shelled by the gunboats, to drive away 

 any body of the enemy. A boat with a com- 

 plement of men was then sent ashore to do 

 the work. At the first place of landing, oppo- 

 site Turkey Bend, they captured one large tor- 

 pedo. The next landing was made under the 

 bluff above which stands the mansion of Gen. 

 Pickctt, where they captured six more of the 

 same size, making seven in all. There was 

 great difficulty in cutting the strings of the tor- 

 pedoes, as they led up the bluff, where the 

 person exploding them is generally stationed. 

 Great coolness and discretion had to be used in 

 handling them. The officers waded up to their 

 armpits in the water to get at them, which was 

 very dangerous, as they knew not but that at 

 any moment the string might be pulled from 

 above and the torpedo exploded. All they had 

 to depend upon to prevent this was the boat's 

 crew, stationed on the bluff as sharpshooters. 

 Each of the torpedoes contained about seventy- 

 five pounds of powder. They were taken out 

 of the stream, and, after considerable difficulty, 

 successfully emptied of their contents. 



On the 6th one of the smaller gunboats, Com. 

 Jones, was destroyed by a torpedo. About 

 fifty of the crew were killed and wounded. 

 This was an instance of the most complete de- 

 struction by a submarine battery to which any 

 vessel has been subjected, her annihilation be- 

 ing utter and instantaneous. The torpedo was 

 fired amidships and directly under her, uprais- 

 ing the centre of the ship, which burst asunder 

 as the explosion rent the air ; and then, amid a 

 cloud of smoke and steam, the body of her hull 

 and upper works, rent into a thousand pieces, 

 and, worst of all, numbers of her unfortunate 

 crew, were propelled into the air, and fell like a 

 shower of missiles from the crater of a volcano. 

 When the smoke drifted from the scene the 

 sunken framework and ribs of the destroyed 

 vessel were all that remained, except innumer- 

 able splintered relics of the wreck, which covered 

 the waters around the fatal spot. Two other 

 boats, the Sheshonee and the Brewster, were 

 destroyed by an explosion, not, however, of a 

 torpedo. 



The forces of Gen. Butler reached their in- 

 trenchments on Monday night, the 16th. On 

 the next day scouts reported that two heavy 

 columns of the enemy, with large trains, were 

 passing down the turnpike to Petersburg. It 

 was supposed that the trains were either car- 

 rying supplies for the moving column, or were 



sent to Petersburg to be loaded with supplies 

 for Gen. Lee's army, or the forces at Richmond. 

 The capture or destruction of any portion of 

 them, therefore, appeared to be desirable. Ac- 

 cordingly, about 9 P. M. Gen. Foster, chief of 

 Gen. Gillm ore's staff, with a body of cavalry and 

 infantry, moved quietly out to the picket lines, 

 and a few hundred yards beyond. There he 

 stationed pickets on different roads to guard 

 against an attempt to cut him off, and began 

 to move up the road leading to the turnpike. 

 In a moment or two lie encountered the pickets 

 of the enemy, and attempting to capture them 

 received a heavy fire from the pickets and a 

 force of the enemy behind them. Finding they 

 were in too great force he made an attack on 

 another portion of the line, but with the same 

 result. He then returned to camp. This exist- 

 ence of the enemy in so large a force in his 

 front caused Gen. Butler to make extraordinary 

 exertions to complete other works on his de- 

 fences. On the river he was covered by tho 

 gunboats under Rear- Admiral S. P. Lee. 



At daylight on the 18th the enemy appeared 

 and drove back the picket line within a few 

 hundred yards of the breastworks. But their 

 advance was checked after a heavy skirmish. 

 They then commenced throwing up works di- 

 rectly in front of Gen. Butler's lines, either for 

 the purpose of laying siege to his position, or 

 to prevent him from reaching again the rail- 

 road to destroy it. On Thursday, the 19th, 

 they put two or three light batteries in posi- 

 tion and commenced vigorously shelling the 

 lines. No assault was made, and their guns 

 finally became silent during the remainder of 

 the day. At midnight, however, they advanced 

 in force on the pickets along nearly the entire 

 line. The sharp fire of the pickets retarded 

 their advance, but they crowded forward and 

 the reserves were ordered up by Gen. Butler. 

 A sharp fight ensued which lasted nearly an 

 hour, when the enemy retired with consider- 

 able loss. At daylight on the 20th they began 

 to shell the lines and camps, and to push the 

 pickets strongly. The pickets of Gen. Ames 

 were driven back from the rifle-pits thrown up 

 on the picket line, and Gen. Terry's line was 

 forced back under a heavy fire. The position 

 thus obtained by the enemy was too important 

 to be given up. A brigade,' under Col. Howell, 

 was therefore sent to retake the rifle-pits and 

 establish a firm line there. This was accom- 

 plished after heavy fighting, with considerable 

 loss on both sides. The attack was renewed 

 again on the next day, but no advantage was 

 gained by the enemy. Meantime the work on 

 the fortifications of Gen. Butler was continued 

 night and day, and all cover for the enemy's 

 sharpshooters cleared away. Thus the failure 

 of the expedition on the west to destroy the 

 Virginia and Tennessee Railroad, and occupy 

 Lynchburg, and the failure of Gen. Butler to 

 capture and occupy Petersburg, enabled tLo 

 enemy to concentrate against Gen. Grant, The 

 forces of Gen. Breckinridge were immediately 



