233 
AMERICAN AGRICULTURIST. 
[Auguw, 
ture of the conflict, only made the scene more thrilling. 
Presently all was as quiet and calm as death. I have 
only learned that with all this din, and the firing of tens 
of thousands of bullets, there were but few casualties on 
our side.—Day and night, cannons and mortars are “ ex¬ 
changing” compliments frequently. 
I have spolren only of the front line of w-orks. Back of 
these is another line, where many of the troops re¬ 
main, except when called into action. In front of the 
advanced line, pickets, or skirmishers are thrown out sev¬ 
eral rods, or hundreds of feet where the nature of the 
ground prevents the opposing lines from coming very 
near each other. These men lie crouched behind little 
banks of earth, or in holes dug in the ground (called 
“ gopher holes,”) and they remain here to give warning of 
the approach of any considerable force of the enemy. 
They must keep carefully concealed, especially Dy day, 
easting only stealthy but watchful glances at the enemy, 
though the pickets frequently agree not to fire upon each 
other, and then they sometimes chat freely, and trade to¬ 
bacco, coffee, etc., by throwing these articles over into 
each other’s holes. The whole country for 4 miles around 
Petersburg, is literally full of fortifications or lines of 
earthworks, built by the enemy prior to our arrival. Two 
strong lines of these are outside of where I now sit. It 
is yet a marvel to me, how our troops advanced so far 
toward the city. It would seem as if a few thousand men 
behind these embankments, all of which have a clear 
sweep of open ground before them, could have resisted 
the approach of an immense army. I have seen no other 
spot in my life, in this country or Europe, which will so 
well repay a visit immediately after the war is over, as 
the region a mile or two north and east, and four or five 
miles south of this point—including the ground within 
and up to the city. 
This hill affords the finest view imaginable, night or 
day, for one who has the curiosity to see the actual work 
of investing a city, and whose nerves are not too weak 
to allow him to listen to bullets, shells and cannon balls 
flying in front of and around him, and sometime in pretty 
close proximity. One, however, soon gets used to these 
things. I have been forward in the trenches several days, 
distributing pickles, pickled onions, lemons, canned to¬ 
matoes, fresh potatoes and onions, etc., which the Sani- 
(tary Commission is now sending forward in ^arge quan¬ 
tities to the exposed fighting men—and with a delight 
and health-giving comfort 
to the soldiers worth a 
thousand times the cost— 
and I can appreciate how 
men become inured to 
danger. At first, the 
whistling of bullets just 
over my head, the shee-e- 
e-ooe, shee-e-ooe-shee-e- 
e-e of a rifled cannon 
shell through the air, 
would cause a start, but 
the coolness of the men 
around me—I may say 
their perfect indifference 
—was soon catching, and 
the frequent remark that 
in actual battle not one 
bullet in 500 hits, and that 
here the chances of being 
hit were much less, have 
led me to feel almost in¬ 
different to the fact that 
any one of the long rows 
of the enemy’s cannon 
just over the river could 
send a shell right here or 
even two miles beyond 
me. (1 send for the Ag¬ 
riculturist table a solid 
“ Whitworth ” cannon 
bolt, that struck in the 
corn field just west of 
here, ricocheted (ree-co- 
shay'-ed )—or glanced 
from the ground—two or 
three times, and dropped 
near my feet. Also with 
it is a lu-pound rifle-shell, 
sent from over the river— 
pei haps by one of my old 
subscribers—which came 
quite near me while giv¬ 
ing out some Sanitary 
stores to our sick men in 
Battery No. 5, just north 
of this. It didn’t explode, 
and I wilt keep it for the 
owner to call for, minus 
the powder which is 
washed out. No special thanks to the sender, if he 
meant it for me—I prefer softer compliments, as a rule.) 
Tlie reader will please come in imagination and sit with 
me at this point, and let us glance over the surrounding 
scenery on this 4th of July afternoon. Yonder, in the 
southwest, is Petersbuig, which appears quite near, as 
we look over the lower iand intervening. The Appo- 
matox coming out from the town, runs by us on the west. 
Its banks are wooded, but on the high ground on the oili¬ 
er side are plenty of the enemy's cannon pointing out 
towards us, through embrasures in earth-works. Many 
of these are partly hidden by woods, but others are readi¬ 
ly seen. (They are indicated on tlje ma,..) Away up, 
apparently near the city, heavy eiBbankm-xits stretch 
across the plain before us. We see some oi our men 
moving about, but most of them are down in hoie- in the 
embankment, and in ditches cut out; otherwise they 
would be picked off by sharp-shooters who occupy the 
woody opposite bank of the narrow river, and they are 
also exposed to an enfilading fire from those frowning 
batteries on yonder bank, just described. Just beyond 
our front line we see a parallel line of bushes, which 
cover the enemy’s advanced works. Back this way is 
our second line on lower ground. The only way to reach 
these lines safely, is to go up tlirough the deep railroad 
cut, or by a round-about way from the left, along a brook. 
The relieving of the men, the carrying in of provisions, 
etc., is mainly done during the darkness of night. 
Looking to the left of Petersburg, we see little but 
woods into and through which our lines extend, coming 
up toward us, on the ieft, and then bending south. In a 
hollow just about south of us, a hundred rods off, is an 
encampment of our men in reserve. The 2,000 or 3,000 
seen here, is the largest portion of our great army to be 
observed at any one point. A new comer here was quite 
disappointed in not seeing the two great armies arrayed 
tn full view. Farther around to our left, southeast, is 
high land, partly wooded, and cut up with the enemy’s 
original lines, from which they were driven June 16 and 17. 
Turning to the west we see our own batteries (fronted 
by banks of earth,) beginning where our front line touches 
the river and scattering along up the bank northward for 
two miles or more, and mostly on lower ground than our 
, point of observation, so that we look down into them and 
see all their operations, as well as those of the enemy 
on the higher opposite bank. Just against us, on the riv¬ 
er, is a mortar battery sunk quite below the surface in a 
large pit, to be out of the reach of sharp-shooters. Every 
now and then a bomb shell rises outof this, goes far up into 
tlie air, curves over to the southwest, and falls explod¬ 
ing near the enemy’s railway station, opposite to and down 
the river a little from Petersburg.—The places of some 
of these batteries are indicated by B, B. B, on tlie sketch. 
[In copying the sketch the engraver has placed these tot¬ 
ters, also Battery No. 5, and Mr. Judd’s place of obsero# 
tion, all too far toward City Point. Battery 5 is one-third 
the direct distance from Petersburg to City Point.] 
Several batteries about north of us, are on high plots 
of ground, nearly on a level both with Petersburg, and 
with tlie batteries across the river. Twice I have chanced 
to see nearly all these batteries in full play. First the 
enemy over the river opened upon the rear of our men 
in the trenches. In a moment all the batteries, B, B, B, 
etc., began hurling shells upon them. The firing was, 
to me, marvelous. Almost every shell, a dozen or twenty 
a minute, appeared to burst right in or over the offending 
batteries. They turned their guns upon us, but in less 
than an hour every one sunk into silence, and not a man 
was to be seen around them. Few better opportunities 
ever occur to witness, close at hand, an actual duel be¬ 
tween a large number of heavy guns. 
At night, the view from this point is sometimes mag¬ 
nificent. Over the plain may be seen shells from mortars 
and cannon cutting the air in all directions. Now one 
seems coming directly to\uu, but it passes to the right 
or left toward some of our works, and bursts with a 
loud crash apparently behind you. Sometimes there is 
almost total silence for several hours, save the picket 
firing southward, when as if by concert a thunder ana 
crash of cannon and exploding shells, and the meteor-like 
trail of fuse-shell through tlie air, fairly light up the 
whole scene. An hour afterward all is quiet again. 
There are comparatively few shells thrown into the 
city, though, if so disposed, our numerous batteries 
around it could tear it in pieces, or burn it to the ground 
at any hour. I believe, tlie orders are to fire frequently 
at the Railroad Station and bridge, and to drop an occa¬ 
sional shell or ball here and there, just to prevent the 
city being used as a too convenient military encampment 
by the enemy. This is done from three or four points, and 
especially by Battery No. 5, just north of us, which is 
called the “Petersburg Express,” from the fact that it 
sends regularly into the city, every quarter hour, night 
and day, an express dispatch in the form of a 30-pound 
Parrot percussion shell. (I noticed that to fire this dis¬ 
tance, 4,SOO yards, they elevate the cannon 15>£ 0 , as the 
ball goes in a curve, and use 3J£ lbs. of powder for the 30 
lb. shell. It takes 20 seconds to reach the city. The re 
port of the explosion is heard in twelve seconds after Its 
light is seen.) At noon to-day, the “National Salute” 
consisted of 34 of these missiles sent in rapid succession 
to the Petersburg Railroad office. 
Before closing, I must say one word for our men. I 
have been much among them for a week past, visited 
them in their camps, trenches, forts, and in their “ holes ” 
in the ground, and a more cheerful, courageous, hopeful 
set of men never existed. They have all confidence and 
patience. They expect to win, and intend to—and there 
are a great many more of them, than is generally sup¬ 
posed, as I happen to know from having helped distribute 
hundreds of barrels of pickles, fresh vegetables, etc., and 
estimate how they were to be supplied. Some idea of 
the vastness of our army may be gathered from a re¬ 
mark of Gen. Grant, when we stated that we had 800 
barrels of pickles ready at one time, which would given 
large supply to each man. Said he: “ This little family 
of ours will carry the 800 barrels all off in their pockets,” 
and on a calculation, we found this was no joke, but a fact. 
I may add here, that I see our losses greatly magnified 
in some of the Northern papers. I hnve been with 
all the wounded who have been sent to the rear since the 
army crossed the Rapidan two months ago. During all 
that time our loss in men actually killed, and those 
maimed for life, will not exceed the loss of the allied 
armies in a single day at the battle of Waterloo. 
The Map, in addition to what is above described, 
gives an outline of the surrounding country. There is 
Cold Harbor on the northeast, from which the army 
swung around by the way of Long Bridge, and crossed the 
James near Fort Powhnttan. At City Point is the great 
base of supplies. The James river is nearly a mile wide 
here. The landing for Bermuda Hundreds is just oppo¬ 
site. I hnve often counted over 200 steamboats and 
barges strung along the river at and insightof City Point, 
above and below. Monitors and other gunboats in large 
numbers lie all along the James river, clear tip to Dutch 
Gap, and up the Appomatox river, nearly to Fort Clifton. 
Bermuda Hundreds in which I include a large peninsula, 
inclosed by two bends of the James river, is occupied by 
our forces out to the lines of the fortifications draws 
across from river to river. A high signal station at Point 
of Rocks gave me a splendid view of all the surrounding 
country for a great distance. O. J. 
