52 



BALL'S BLUFF. 



York battery. The pickets will be replaced by the 

 companies of the Nineteenth Massachusetts there. 

 Very respectfully, your obedient servant, 



CHARLES P. STONE, Brigadier-General. 

 Col. CHARLBS DEVENS, Commanding Fifteenth Regi- 

 ment Mass. Vols. 



\Vn. R. HYSLOP, Lieut, and A. D. C. 



HEAD-QUARTERS CORPS OP OBSERVATION, ) 



POOLBSVILLE, Oct. 20, 1861 10i P. M. j 



SPECIAL ORDERS, No. . Colonel Devens will land 

 opposite Harrison's Island with four companies of his 

 reoiment, and proceed to surprise the camp of the 

 enemy discovered by Captain Philbrick in the direc- 

 tion of Leesburg. The landing and march will be 

 effected with silence and rapidity. 



Colonel Lee, Twentieth Massachusetts Volunteers, 

 will immediately after Colonel Devens' departure oc- 

 cupy Harrison's Island with four companies of his 

 regiment, and will cause the four-oared boat to be 

 taken across the island to the point of departure of 

 Colonel Devens. 



One company will be thrown across to occupy the 

 heights on the Virginia shore, after Colonel Devens' 

 departure to cover his return. 



Two mountain howitzers will be taken silently up the 

 tow-path, and carried to the opposite side of the island, 

 under the orders of Colonel Lee. 



Colonel Devens will attack the camp of the enemy 

 at daybreak, and having routed, will pursue as far as 

 he deems prudent, and will destroy the camp, if prac- 

 ticable, before returning. 



He will make all the observations possible on the 

 country, will under all circumstances keep his com- 

 mand well in hand, and not sacrifice this to any sup- 

 posed advantage of rapid pursuit. 



Having accomplished this duty, Colonel Devens will 

 return to his present position, unless he shall see one 

 on the Virginia side, near the river, which he can un- 

 doubtedly hold until reinforced, and one which can be 

 successfully held against largely superior numbers. 

 In such case he will hold on and report. 



CHARLES P. STONE, Brigadier-General. 



Great care will be used by Colonel Devens to pre- 

 vent any unnecessary injury of private property, and 

 any officer or soldier straggling from the command for 

 curiosity or plunder will be instantly shot. 



CHARLES ft STONE, Brigadier-General. 

 A true copy. 



WM. R. "HYSLOP, Lieut, and A. D. C. 



The following is given as the last order to 

 Col. Baker. It could never have reached him. 

 It shows what report he sent to Gen Stone, and 

 indicates under what orders he was acting : 



HEAD-QUARTERS CORPS OF OBSERVATION, ) 

 EDWARDS' FERKY, Oct. 21 3.45 p. M. j" 

 Colonel E. D. Baker, Commanding RigTit Wing : 



COLONEL : Yours of 2.30 is received. I am glad you 

 find your position tenable. If satisfied with it, hold 

 on, and don't let the troops get fatigued or starved 

 while waiting. 



Please detail plenty of officers to attend to the food 

 of the men. Do you need more artillery than the 

 eight pieces now at your disposition ? 



Respectfully, your obedient servant, 



C1IAS. P. STONE, Brig. -Gen. Com'g. 

 A true copy. 

 WILLIAM R. HYSLOP, Lieut, and A. D. C. 



Tn the morning a skirmish took place be- 

 tween the command of Col. Lee, of the Massa- 

 chusetts Twentieth, who had been ordered to 

 cover Col. Devens' retreat, and about one hun- 

 dred Mississippi riflemen. Col. Devens then 

 fell back in good order on Col. Lee's position. 

 Presently lie again advanced, his men behav- 

 ing admirably, fighting, retiring, and advancing 



in perfect order, and exhibiting every proof of 

 high courage and good discipline. Had the cav- 

 alry scouting party sent to him in the morning 

 been with him, then he could have had timely 

 warning of the approach of the superior force 

 which afterward overwhelmed his regiment. 



Between twelve and one P. M. the enemy ap- 

 peared in force in front of Col. Devens, and a 

 sharp skirmish ensued, and was maintained for 

 some time by the Fifteenth Massachusetts, un- 

 supported ; and finding he would be outflanked, 

 Col. Devens retired a short distance, and took 

 up a position near the wood, half a mile in 

 front of Col. Lee, where he remained until two 

 o'clock, when he again fell back, with the ap- 

 proval of Col. Baker, and took his place with 

 the portions of the Twentieth Massachusetts 

 and First California which had arrived. 



The movement of troops now to the Virginia 

 side was constant until 700 of the Fifteenth 

 and three companies of the Twentieth Massa- 

 chusetts, the First California battalion, and 

 some companies of the Tammany Eegiment 

 had crossed, and four pieces of artillery. 



At one o'clock the order had been given to 

 the right battery detached from the New York 

 Ninth to report to Gen. Baker at the Maryland 

 side of the Potomac, opposite Harrison's Island. 

 In half an hour the four pieces arrived at the 

 spot, in command of Lieut. Bramhall. At this 

 time but little firing was heard upon the oppo- 

 site shore, and that only desultory. 



At about half-past two P. M., however, the 

 firing of musketry suddenly became very brisk, 

 accompanied by occasional discharges of artil- 

 lery. At this time Col. Baker, who had been 

 actively engaged in superintending the despatch 

 of reinforcements, crossed himself, accompanied 

 by but one officer, Major Young, of his com- 

 mand, leaving word to forward the artillery 

 with all despatch. The means provided for this 

 purpose consisted of two scows, manned by 

 poles, and which, owing to the swiftness of the 

 current, consumed a great deal of time in the 

 trip from the mainland to the island. 



Lieut. Bramhall thus describes the crossing in 

 his report: " I took command, and ordered the 

 immediate embarkation of the pieces. I crossed 

 with the first piece, (which happened to be a 

 Rhode Island piece,) accompanied by Col. 

 Coggswell, of the Tammany Regiment, arriving 

 upon the island after a half hour's hard labor to 

 keep the boat from floating down the stream. 

 We ascended the steep bank, made soft and 

 sloppy by the passage of the troops, and at a 

 rapid gait crossed the island to the second 

 crossing. At this point we found only a scow, 

 on which we did not dare to cross the piece and 

 the horses together, and thus lost further time 

 by being obliged to make two crossings. Upon 

 arriving on the Virginia shore we were com- 

 pelled to dismount the piece and carriage, and 

 haul the former up by the prolonge, the infantry 

 assisting in carrying the parts of the latter to a 

 point about thirty feet up a precipitous ascent, 

 rendered almost impassable with soft mud, 



