PERSONAL EXPERIENCE As a Staff Officer at Mine Run, and in Albemarle County Raid; and as Commander of the Forty -Third Regiment United States Colored Troops through the Wilderness Campaign, and at the Mine before Petersburg, Virginia, from, Nmmnber 7th, 1863, to July 30th, 186Jf. KANSAS COMMANDERY —OF THE- Militaij Order of the Loyal Legion .teOoited States. WAR PAPER. PERSONAL EXPERIENCE ^ OF A STAFF OFFICER AT i^ Mine Run and Albemarle County Raid, — : AND AS :— CoiiiiuaudCT of the 43r(l RegiineDt 11. S. Colored Troops, ■m: THROUGH THE :!^ ^\^ILDERNESS CAMPAIGN, AND AT THE ■• • • Mine - Delore - PetersDurg, - Virpia. From November 7, 1863 to July 30, 1864. A. HAPKR Prepared and Read Before the KANSAS COMMAND ERY ^== OP THE ^~ Military Order of \k Loyal Lofioii t United States. October 3, 1894. By Companion, h!'seymour hall, Brigadier General U- S. Vols., by Brevet. "^Ih^^l (N BXCH^NOi K^v>. Stft.- Vlisc. ^oo !2[ily'06 PERSONAL EXPERIENCE As a Staff Offcer at Mine Bim, and in Albemarle County Raid; and as Commander of the Forty -Third Regiment United States Colored Troops through the Wilderness Campaign^ and at the Mine hefore Peterslmrg^ Ya.^ from November 1^ 1863^ to July 30, 186^. From the brilliant victory at Rappahannock Station, Va.,* where I was servino; on the staff of General Emory Upton, then Colonel commanding- the Second Brigade, First Division, Sixth Army Corps, to March 27th, 1864, I was on duty with the grand old Brigade in which I had seen nearly three years active service. General Grant was with us in the field as commander-in-chief of all the Armies of the United States, March 26th. General Meade was commander of the Army of the Potomac. November 8th, in obedience to verbal orders from General Upton, the duties of Assistant Adjutant General of the brigade were discharged by me in addition to those of my former staff office of Assistant Inspector General, our As.sistant Adjutant General hav- ing been disabled in the battle of the previous night, and sent to the hospital. The work in the two staff departments all devolved on me for over four months, till my promotion by the President, and order of March 19, 1864, took me to Philadelphia, to organize the 43rd Regiment U. S. Colored Troops. On the 11th of November, General Upton with four officers *Tliis is one of the battles, the name and date of which, the War Department caused to be engraved on the Medal of Honor from Congress, which was awarded to General Hall for gallantry in action. — 4 — ^vho had distinguished themselves in the assault, w^s detailed to take the EiGHT^stands of colors that we had captured rem the en- emy on the 7th, and deliver them formally to General Meade a his He;dquarters of the Army. 1 had the honor to be one of the four who accompanied General Upton, and with him were recei^^d by General Meade, and Generals Humphreys, Warren and W ilhams in General Meade's tent, in the most courteous and complimentary manner as we performed the pleasant duty of delivering- our tro- phies. Havino- discharged that duty, we were entertained for half an hour, or more, socially, in a very pleasant way by the Com- manding General, and the Generals of his stafl whose names i have mentioned. . 4^- ^^-u The routine of camp duty went on without mterruptioii till the 2()th, when we were visited by a party of distinguished otiicers of the Eno-lish army, consisting of Lieutenant Colonel Larle, his Adjutant, Lord Castleculf , of the Scots Fusileer Guai-cls and Captains Russell and Stevens of th(> Grenadier Guards both of those fine regiments belonging to the Queen's Household Troops, whose special duty it was to attend their sovereign. After the re- view of the Sixth Corps, which was given for the entertamnient of those officers, by invitation I attended a reception given to them at General Sedgwick's Headquarters, where a tine collation was serv- ed and we had a very pleasant social gathering. At daylight on the morning of the 26th, we moved out of camp, past Brandy Station and Mountain "Run Mills, to Jacobs Ford on the Rapidan, bivcniaced toward morning on the nor h bank of the ri^er, crossed it at sunrisa on the mornin? of the 27th, and pushed out, following the Third Corps. At 3 p. m. our brigade was detached from the Sixth Corps, sent to the e t of (xeneral Neal's command, to support a portion of the Third Corps, where we participated with them in the hotly contested !>attle of Locust drove At midnight we changed position again, and after a night march took position on the right of the second corps, near Robert- son's Tavern, which was our position during that battle and the op- erations of the latter part of the night and early morning of the 28th, when the enemy having fallen l)ack, we pushed on in the ram till ^e came upon his new and strongly fortified lines at Mine Run, where we took our place in the lire of assault on the right of he Second Corps. We held this place all night and through Sunday the 2ville,13 miles from each ; moved to White House June 12th ; to Kent Court House the 13th ; toward Williamsburg as far as SlatersN'ille the 14th ; and to Wind- sor (or Window) Shades on the Chickahominy, the 18th where we crossed to make our final trial of the James river. After midnight of the 17th, everything else having crossed the river, the bridges had all lieen taken up, my regiment was the last body of troops to cross from the north l)ank of the James, which we did on a New York steam ftu-ry boat, and debarking on the other side, marched to near City Point, where we joined the Ninth Corps, of which we had l)een nominally a division, but were detached the entire time since May 8th, and received our orders di- — 15 — rect from General Grant, who complimented us for the repulses that we had given the enemy, and after the Ninth Corps was made a part of the Army of the Potomac, we received our orders direct from General Meade till we joined the corps after crossing the James river. During this time the Army of which we were a part, fought some of the most desperate and bloody Ijattles of the war, and in the six weeks since the opening of the campaign tif ty-tive thousand men had Ijeen lost by it in the casualties of battle ; six thousand men more than one half of the number present for duty equipped when the campaign was entered upon. The loss of the enemy is only given in part, and as we were generally the attacking party, and they were behind strong for- titications, their loss was probably considerably less, but only 24,100 are reported. Failing to capture Petersburg by rapidity of movement, its seige was undertaken, in which we participated, both as builders and defenders of our fortifications till the 5th of July, when I went with our Ijrigade commander, under the guidance of General J. F. Hartranft, the General Officer of the trenches, to examine the ground in our front under which a mine was projected, that it would be familiar to me in the assault whith was to be made when our mine had l)een extended under the enemy's works and exploded as contemplated. Soon after this, my regiment then consisting of seven com- panies, was honored by being selected to lead the assaulting col- umn, and I am able to sulistantiate that declaration, by quoting from a letter from my brigade commander, in answer to my in- quiry if there was a written order for me to lead with my regi- ment, and he also states why the 1:3rd was given the dangerous post of honor. He says "There was no order from Corps head- quarters as to any specific regiment taking the lead and no writ- ten order as to which of the two brigades was to take the lead, but it was a verbal order from Burnside to General Ferrero, command- ing the l:th Division, that my brigade was to lead. I gave you the order to take the lead of the brigade, for while I do not wish to disparage either of the other Colonels or their regiments, I knew that I could rely on you in any emergency. You had full control of all your men, the discipline in your regiment was high up, your — 16 — officers and men bad implicit confidence in you as their Colonel." The work that was expected of me was fully explained, and to do as ordered, my command was to take position, just before the mine was to be fired, as near our front line as possible, in double column by division closed in mass, at the head of the divi- sion, and when the mine exploded was to move quickly forward, pass throu2:h the breach in the enemy's works made by the explo- sion, then turn to our right Ijchind his works, take him in the flank and roll up his line with the bayonet, by taking Jialf distance, rigid comjxmieH right into line icheel, left companies on the right into line and from the time of my assignment to the day before the assault, I practised these movements till they could have been executed as perfectly in the dark as in the light, and the flank be- ing cleared of the enemy by my bayonets, the entire army could advance through the interval, to the crest two or three hundred yards beyond, when Petersburg through which one of the rail- roads largely supplying Richmond ran, and that portion of Gen- eral Lee's army on our right, lietween us and the Appomattox • river, would have been at our mercy. The evening of July 29th, our division moved down to the left of the entrance to the covered way leading out to our most advanced line in front of the mined salient of the enemy, and with my regiment in advance, formed double column closed in mass in readiness to lead the assault. No hint of change of plans had reached me and General Ferrero does not state when he was first informed of it, but he writes me that he had been absent in Washington, hence was not present at the conference between Generals Grant, Meade, Burnside and the oth- er three division commanders of the Ninth Corps when the change of plans was discussed and agreed upon, and probably did not know of the change, as he writes me that he returned barely in time to take command for the action after we were in place for assault as first j)lanned. The commander of our other brigade, says that he was not informed of any change till near midnight of July 29th, and as his line officers were apparently in quiet sleep, they were not aroused to lie informed of what would do them no service. I did not know of any change till the morning of July 30, when our brigade commander, accompanied by two or three of his staff, came to me and in person gave me this order: "Be ready to advance when I order you forward, with muskets — 17 — lotidetl, but not capped, bayonets fixed, and when the order is giv- en, move your regiment by the flank, through the covered way over our outer works, directly to, and througli the breach made })y the mine, form line beyond, and strike for the cemetery." I ordered the regiment to "load," "fix bayonets," and while waiting for the order to advance. Lieutenant A. A. Shedd, of our brigade commander's statt', came to me and gave again the orders that his chief had already given me, and with an unusual care, knowing that the Forty-Third was leading the division, called my attention to them liy a second repetition of them before he left me. He states that he went with General Sigfried into the crater, and was sent out several times by him with orders to the brigade. We entered the covered way, moved part way through it, when our progress was delayed for quite a time by white troops tilling up the passage in front of me. About half past seven o'clock, General Sigfried ordered me to move past the troops of Humphrey's brigade. He wrote later to the Philadelphia Press that he called up Colonel Hall, and that I might know whereto go, pointed out the direction that I was to lead my regiment as the leading regiment of the division, to jn-event the accident of getting led in the wrong direction. With considerable difliculty, I crowd- ed my regiment along, passing by those troops of Humphrey's tjrigade, to our outer line, where I saw General Ferrero, our Di- vision commander, with his stall', to whom he said, "Here comes the Forty-Third, let's give them three cheers", took otf his hat, waved it above his head, and led in the cheering. I call attention to this as this was his position while his division went out over our outer intrenchments, and he knows exactly which regiment was first to go forward, and saw every regiment of his division as each went over our works, saw here the numl>er of prisoners sent in by the Forty-Third, and it was at this point that the colors cap- tured by that regiment were delivered to him, in spite of the ef- fort made by one of the conunanders of another regiment to take them from their captor. No preparation had been made to facili- tate our passing our line, and my men climbed out over the em bankment, which was nearly as high as their heads, with difliculty, and the delay caused thereby, elongated the column, and the effort to close up between our line and the crater, impaired the momen- tum. — IS — My adjutant, afterwards Captain James O'Brien, was with mo at the right of the reo;iment, and at the double quick, under a most deadly cross fire of artillery and musketry, I led the regi- ment up the slope directly to the plainly visible mass of earth and deln-is, thrown out of the crater l)y the explosion of the mine, some of which covered the abbatis and facilitated the passage of my connnand as well as of almost the t hree divisions of white troops of the Ninth Corps that had preceeded me, they accomp- lishing nothing, l)ut crowding into the crater for shelter from the shot and shell of the enemy, who had now reoccupied their origin- al line on l>{)th flanks of the crater, pouring their fire into it, mak- ing it a trap in which to hold our helpless men and destroy them at leisure. As soon as I reached and mounted the rim of the cra- ter, I saw all this, reali-^ed that to pass through the crater as or- dered would be impossible, the attempt to do so would render my conunand as helpless as the others, and add to the horrors of their situation. To our right of the crater th3 ensmy held their line fully manned, those of them nearest the crater, directing their fire on the troops within. The impenetrable a])l)atis was behind a line of chevaux de friese fastened together with strong wires, rendering an assault on their front hopeless, l)ut from my position on the crest of the crater's rim I saw ;i narrow space at the foot of the outer slope of their intrenchments, beyond which their abbati-j was staked down, and determined to lead my regiment that way, carry that ])art of their line, thereby op3a a gateway to tha near- est and best route to the cemetery, which was the desired point of vantage. Ordering my adjutant to remain at the crater, to close up the companies and direct them after me, I led the head of the regi- ment to our right, still at a dou1)le quick, along the foot of the en- emy's intrenchments, so close that some of my officers and men were w^ounded by the Ixiyonets, others burned by the powder flames of the foe, and when the left of my regiment had cleared the right of the crater sufficiently, commanded: "By tiik lkvt FLANK, March." As we faced the enemy, I gave the command: "Charge." In that instant, with resistless valor, officers and men threw themselves over his works upon the enemy, using sa- ber, pistol and l)ayonet with the most t(^rrif)le deadly effect, the men killed numbers of the enemy in si)ite of the efforts of their — 19 — otiicers to restrain them, and we took prisoners in those intrench- nients 200 South Carolina soldiers, and with them their colors, and retook from them a stand of National Colors that they had that mornino- captured from a reg-iment of w^hite troops. These were tlie only colors or prisoners captured by any regiment of our (Hvision that day, as no others are reported by our brigade com- mander, nor l)y the commander of the other Ijrigade of our divis- ion. After a short time taken to send these to the rear, as was acknowledged by our division cjmmtnider, I planted my colors and reformed my rejjiinont iaside the captured entrenchments, fac- ing the ridge and cemetery, intending to lead to, carry and hold that objective position, though my command had just lost nearly one half its num])er in killed and wounded. The fire directed up- on us at this moment, and to which we were entirely exposed, was terril)le, and as I stood ui)on the crest of the parapet, to examine and select the route over which to charge to the ridge in front with my command, a musket Itall from the enemy went through the bone of my right arm, near my shoulder, and turning over the command of the regiment to the relial)le and gallant (^aptain Wil- kinson, securing ni\' sal)er, which had fallen from my hand, was soon assisted from the Held. It is stated t)y both (xoneraU Meade and Humphreys, that the total number of prisoners captured l)y the army of the Potomac that day was 246. The Forty-Third Regiment U. S. Colored Troops, is entitled to be credited with the capture of two hun- dred of them, and with one stand of colors of the two reported by General Meade, Ijesides the recapture of one stand of National Colors, all achieved as the result of my leading the regiment to the right and charging the enemy in his intrenchments contrary to the instructions of my brigade commander, and in direct viola- tion of orders given him, a fact of which I had no knowledge at the time. The great loss of blood and my shattered and useless right arm, made me sutfer from pain and weakness, and a stalwart sol- dier supporting me with his arm, held my handkerchief twisted around above the wound as we returned by the same route over which we had charged. Near the crater, between the enemy's line and our own, I saw at this time, the Colonel whom Captain Wright and other officers charge with attempting to deprive the — 20 — Captain of the reljel stand of colors, which he captured in hiv>^ charge with his reo-iment, the Forty-Third. Here also I saw the other troops of Si2:frie(rs ])rio;ude, which was my tirst sight of an}- of them since my advance with the For- ty-Third to the assault, and I call })articular attention to the fact that General Sigfried says in his ofHcial report, that the balance of his brigade was halted at this place al)out an hour, and that it was impossible to advance them to the works carried and held by the Forty-Third regiment, United States Colored Troops. These regiments of the brigade to which we belonged lost their connection with mine ))y reason of Humphrey's men closing in, after mine had forced their way to his front, so that I had no sup- port or assistance whatever, in the operations that have })een de- scril^ed, and which constituted the chief successes of the day. Af- ter my charge had cleared the enemy from the right of the mine, a large num))er of the troops of the other divisions of the Ninth Corps came out of the crater and took position on my left, so that when the balance of our own division came up they could not get forward to the advanced position which we had carried and now occupied. Having a long ago written account of the facts, when the}^ wer(; fresh in mind, it is a satisfaction to find so perfect a con- iirmation as there is in the Official Records, and in the reports of my officers neither of which had been seen by me till recently, and a few of them are cited. General J. K. Sig^fried, thou Colonel of the 48th Pa. Vols., commanding our brigade ; on 81st of July, 1864, next day after the battle, when everything was fresh in his mind, made his official report from which I have cited. It says also that his l)rigade moving down the covered way was stopped by the halting of Humphrev's 'Drigade some time, he moved his troops J>y IlniiipJireyx at a flank as directed. TheCt)lonel who at- tempted to wrest the re])el colors that Captain ^^'right liad cap- tured from the enemy, from Wriglit, writes me that \ic follouied Humphrey's l>rigade. My regiment being in the lead of our l)riga(le, did "move by that brigade at a flank," on over our outer works, to the crater, then, as I have related, and as Genc^'al Sigfried says, ''The Forty- Third regiment U. 8. Colored Troops moved o\ er the crest of the crater toward the right, charged the enem3^'s intrenchments and took them, capturing a nundier of [)risoners, a rel)el stand of col- — 21 — ors, and recapturing a stand of National colors. This line was part of the continuous line connecting with the crater. The bal- ance of my brigade was prevented from advancing into this line by the numl^er of troops of the First, Second and Third divisions in front of them.'' As I have stated, these troops of those three di^■isions came out of the crater, and formed on the left and rear of my regiment, after our charge had routed the enemy, before the other colored regiments of our division had reached the crater. Continuing his report, Sigfried further says, the balance of his brigade was halted by the rebel line of intrenchments, which was tilled with the troops of the First, Second and Third divisions ; behind this line it formed in good order. Here it was very much exposed for at least an hour, and owing to the crowded lines of troops of the stated divisions immediately in front it was impossi- ble to get my brigade on, (to where the 43rd was advanced). Just as the troops in front were about to make a charge, a white color-bearer with his colors, crossed the works in retreat. My ))rigade held its position, until pushed back by the mass of troops, black and white who rushed back upon it, and until the enemy occupied the works to its left and front when it fell back to the line where it originally started from. In this same report General Sigfried further says ""Lieutenant Colonel H. Seymour Hall, commanding Forty -Third Regiment, U. S. Colored Troops, lost his right arm bravely leading his regiment. His adjutant. First Lieutenant James O'Brien, deserves honorable mention, hav- ing displayed the most heroic courage and daring, standing on the summit of the crater cheering the men on amidst a terrific lire of shot and shell. He received a severe wound through the breast. Captain A. D. Wright, Forty-Third, in charging the rebel line with his men, ))ersonally captured a stand of rebel colors and five prisoners, bringing all safely to the rear, although receiving a wound through the right arm. I regret that it was not possible for me to see every officer and man, well enough to describe the gallant conduct of each, for they were heroes every one, and those who passed unnoticed through that fiery trial, won imperishable fame could their deeds be known. I have made efforts to perfect the record of their achievements, and will supply what is possible, which is very little, in a brief summary of the evidence that I have been able to obtain. Adjutant O'Brien was carrying out my or- 22 ders to close up and direct the regiment to follow me when he so conspicuoiTsly displayed his gallantry spoken of by the brigade commander. He mounted an elevated mass of debris, and with voice and sword sent them after to charge with us in front, while himself was a shining mark for the bullets of the enemy. He la- ter received a shot through the left breast, that went entirely through his liody, a frightful wound, from which he never fully recovered, and which dou])tless hastened his death some fifteen years since in San Francisco. Before he came to my regiment he had served in the 61st N. Y. Vols., when General N. A. Miles, U. S. Army, was its Colonel. While he was still in the hospital, he was at my request promoted to Captain, and ordered by the War . Depai'tment to report to me at Camp Casey, Washington, D. C, for duty as Adjutant of that Post, rejoined the regiment with me in March, 1865, in front of Richmond, entered that city with the command on the 3rd of April, served with it in Texas till its mus- ter out of service. In giving brief mention of the gallant company officers, I shall follow the order of companies from right to left. Following my adjutant and myself, came my senior Captain, Jesse Wilkinson, a most brave and reliable officer, who says, "We went over our works by the flank to the crater. Colonel Hall called my attention to a stand of rebel colors, on the rebel works al)out fifty yards to our right, and ordered me to move in that direction. We passed down along the rebel works, within reach of their bayonets, their shots carrying otf one boot heel, my sword scabbard, and some of my hair, some going through my hat. In getting over their works with my company, I received a slight bayonet wound in the neck and left arm. Six or eight men in one group surrendered to me, and another squad, one with a white towel on his bayonet gave themselves up, and I at once sent them all to the rear. Cap- tain Wright went over the works in rear of my company, and got one of the flags. I then went to the angle of the works, opposite the woods to try to cut off a cross fire, and cleared the angle. Ijieutenant Hayman was killed, Lieutenant James Scully wounded in the leg and lamed for life, a squad of rebel prisoners carried him to our lines. While in the rebel works, I was inform- ed that our Colonel had been shot and notified to form the regi- ment, for a charge on the Cemetery ridge, with General Thomas' — 23 — brigjule, which would form on my left, and to guide on his col- ors, we had advanced l)ut a few steps in a rather broken line, when the rebels poured over the hill from a ravine in our front, in solid column, tiring with deliberate aim ; advancing to within a few feet of us, the}^ started on a double quick, with a yell, in such numbers as to drive us back to the trenches, where standing on the works above us, they clubbed their muskets, and eventu- all}'^ drove us out of the works the Forty-Third had captured, back to our own works. They being on higher ground, their constant tire kept us under cover, and they directed their fire on the help- less wounded between the lines who showed any signs of life. On the morning of August 2nd, a truce was had, and with a detail of 3U0 men I ])articipated in the burial of the dead."" Lieutenant James Scully, who bravely led his company, after Lieutenant James T. Hayman was killed, and Captain Wilkinson had a higher command, relates that we w^ere at the extreme right of the lu'igade, he heard the order to advance, and that we went with alacrity directly to the crater, '''where huddled the remnants of the forces that preceded us. We at once changed direction to the right, along the foot of the enemy's front line, which we charg- ed headlong upon, capturing a number of prisoners. Lieutenant Hayman was killed. Lieutenant Scully had his sword broken in his hand, and some tiine after, while in the works w^as shot through the right leg. While trying to get to the rear, I saw Colonel Hall who had just been shot through the right arm, but could give him no assistance. I was taken to our lines by a party of rel)el prisoners." Company E followed A, Lieutenants George R. Williams and Sherman P. Hand of that company in most gallantly endeavoring to hold the right of our line against the tlank attack, were over- whelmed and made prisoners Ijy the enemy. After enduring in- describal)le horrors. Lieutenant Williams escaped from prison, re- joined his regiment after a long series of thrilling adventures and marvelous escapes. Unfortunately his story was not obtained in his lifetime and cannot now be told here. He w^as a most gallant and accomplished officer, whose career of honorable service was terminated l)y his resignation after the surrender of General Lee. Lieutenant Hand had a most horrible experience, the details of which are so historically valuable, and so intensely interesting — 24 — that they ouo;ht to be pnplished to the world. In the limits of this paper the bare outline can scarcely be given. In the report of Lieutenant Hand, he states, "I well remem- ))er the oallantry of Colonel Hall in the fatal charge he led at the 'Mine explosion.' Our direction in the charge he ordered, was somewhat diagonal, and toward our right, along the rebel breast- works, at the double quick, till he earnestly and distinctly gave us the order to charge by the left Hank, at which we carried the line of rebel intrenchments, which we held till I was captured, I should think about 11 or 12 o'clock. This position was about 200 to 250 yards to our right of the Mine, and was the extreme right of our line of battle. The last I saw of our Colonel, he was being assisted to the rear in consequence of wounds which incapacitated him from doing more." "Nothing impeded our advance but the missiles from the enemy's line until we reached the line of their intrench- ments, where a large percentage of our men fell in less time than it takes to tell it. Finally the graybacks broke in upon us finish- ing or capturing the few left. I was pinned to earth by a bayo- net wound through the arms and ribs. My assailant withdrew his steel and rai.sed his arms to strike, Avhen an officer by his side an- grily cried out, "Unbuckle that ])elt and give up your sword, if you don't want to die." I obeyed with alacrity, and was boosted over the parapet, made my way painfully to the rebel rear, where I found Lieutenant Williams and many other prisoners both black and white. The officers were at once put under guard, and about 10 o'clock the next morning, were formed in double file, two officers between four 'niggers,' and marched through the principal streets of Petersburg, much after the style of a circus." The people gazed at us as curiosities, and we were greeted with insults and sneers all along the route, and greeted with cries of 'See the white and nigger equality soldiers.' 'How do you like it Yanks?' 'Yanks and niggers sleep in the same bed, etc., etc' We were paraded thus for two hours and more. The colored sol- diers, were confronted with the officers drawn up in line, to have them point out their officers for disgrace, but not a lisp, or hint as to identity was given. Their mouths were sealed in honor and fidelity to their friends. After being starved for three days, we were huddled into rickety box cars and started south, the only thing Williams and I had to eat in the meantime, being a loaf of — 25 — sour l^read, half the usual size, for which we paid a greenback dollar, those who had no money not getting even that. From Danville to Columbia S. C, where his quarters, like all others were in Richland jail no distinction being made between the offi- cers of colored and white troops. From this jail Lieutenant Wil- liams made his escape. His friend and companion Lieutenant Hand , being too weak from liis wounds, lack of food and medical treatment to accompany him, drained the l)itter cu}) of his prison life to the end. As cold weathei of Decem])er set in he was trans- ferred to the A.sylum yard, wtnmded, sick, starving, nearly naked, ahiiost dying, with nt) shelter l)ut the cold pitiless sky, no food but coarse corn meal, ground col) and all, this without salt, or ves- sel to cook it in. That he survived theunspeakal)le horrors, priva- tions, and sutferings of that winter is most wonderful. But he says thei'e were scmie slight gleams of hope even in the darkest days, and that one of his comrades in this place of horrors, Lieu- tenant S. M, H. Byers, wrote both the words and music of 'Sher- man's March to the Sea,' at the time that l)oth were enduring the miseries of the frightful place. He was hastily removed from CoUim1)ia to Charlotte, a few days ])efore General Sherman's army occupied the former city, was paroled in a few days, and tinally rejoined his regiment at City Point, Va. The writer has urged iiim to publish his wonderfully interesting experience in full. Next came Company C, my color company. Lieutenant W. F. Silverwood in connnand. Lieutenant Daniel J. Hogan also serv- ing with that company. Lieutenant Silverwood was so severely wounded in defense of the colors, a most heroically gallant deed, lliat he was never able to return to duty with the regiment. His opinion diti'ers sojiiewhat from that of all the other, and more ex- perienced officers of the connnand, and he thinks there were two or three other regiments in front of ours, and that they stopped at the crater, but he is positive that no other charged to the right except the 48rd. He says, just as he reached the right of his com- pany. Colonel Hall gave the command, 'right face, charge,' or 'by the rear rank, charge.' 'T forced my way through my men, and took a course to strike the line of w^orks at the angle to our right l)y those trees. The tirini>- was so heavy that I sat down in an out })icket post. The coh^rs and some men gathered around me, a doz- en muskets were shoved over the breastworks by the enemyand tired. 26 — «om my fl.ink.s. I ordered the colors to the reir Mnd tent tl>„ ene„>y ,„ check with my sm„|dn. revolver I ^ i,it . T ' over the works, my sword knocT- J tv V , '"* ^ **l'™"g part of a third cut'oli' ef st T l ," ', Z^T' '""n"'^' ™' ..++ ^ 1 . (3i»^n-. i vvaiKoa hack to a small rqvino ■^ttemp ed o stop and orjrunize my men, l,„t when I'e'rt!; A-fit uibiicuu at tiiat time wa^ with (^ i-u ^ i ,«..veth.the.rd,h.d;e:St^,:::^;t^-:-^ could reach „s with their „u,skets,. and C^aptains Wilkinson a, 1 Bnn™ were wounded by rebel bayonet. We .ot the on e. charge from the Colonel, dashe,l „p„n the enen,,''^ works ca^ie them, oaptur nj prisoners and ,.nl„,.. ti ' ""^i»; can led o-allant -Ks-inlt Tf °""*''"" ''"'o'^- The enemy resisted the Car.' d„ Wr hf "".'■ '■'!"""'" ""''' "" '"■'^' determined courao-e. Captam Wr.glit captured a rebel color, an,l Lieutenant Armstronle cjuick, by the right flank, company A leading, Colonel Hall at the head of the Regiment. We were under a hot tire as we left our lines and our men liegan to fall as we moved direct to the crater, which was lit- (H-ally })acked with white troops who had preceded us. The 43rd l)ushed on to our right, still by the right flank, along the enemy's front works, under a hot fire, at close quarters, till the regiment was fairly clear of the crater, and ]>eyond, when Colonel Hall gave the order to march ])y the left flank, and charge. He was at the center and in front of the regiment, as he gave the command, and led in the execution. Adjutant O'Brien was near ^him and as we faced to the left, I saw the Adjutant spring forward, then drop. Our regiment went over the works at the command, so quickly that a great number of the enemy were unable to escape, and we cai)tured certiiinly not less than one hundred. One squad of about ten gave up their arms to me, and I saw groups of them scattered along the regiment and going to our rear. The Colonel next re- formed the regiment, in the intrenchments we had captured, some 250 yards or more to our right of the crater, and there were none of our troops in front or to the right of our regiment in those lines that day. I am very sure that the right of the 43rd might have shaken hands with the rel)s in tha work-^ beyond, had the proper frame of mind existed on both sides. Word was soon l^assed along that the Colonel was wounded and taken to the rear, his final order being for the regiment to keep steady. We were in those works an hour or more, exposed to a destri ctive fire of artillery from our right, and a most spitefull and galling fusilade of musketry on our front and flanks. The line was first broken on the left of our i)osition, and it was there the retreat commenc- ed, our falling back not being all at once, but successively as our flank was uncovered. I am positive that the 43rd was the first to occupy the rebel lines to our right of the crater, and equally sure that it was the last to leave them." After reading it, he writes: — 28 — "The ColoneFs letter published in the Century Company's War Book 'Battles and Leaders of the Civil War', is admirable, and my recollection is (|uite in accordance therewith/' The well deserved praise which Lieutenant M. L. Warson,has received from his brother officers, o;ives added value to the brief extracts submitted from his report: "The 43rd had the honor of being selected to lead the division, and did lead it in the charg-e, for which we had been especially drilled, the object of this drill being well known to every officer of the command, all of whom felt proud of the honor of our being chosen for the dangerous dis- tinction. We took our place on the night of July 29th, massed near the entrance to the covered way, into which we moved next morning, to tind our way obstructed by white troops, whom we fi- nally pushed and crowded by, went to their front, where and when the line officers of the regiment tirst knew that a change of plan, had put our division in the i-ear of the white troops of the yth Corps. My view of the explosion was unobstructed, and was pre- ceded ])y one or two slight motions of the earth, somethirg like a heavy swell at sea, a duU rumbling sound (not loud) like distant thunder, then the uplifting of earth like an island which seemed suspended in the air and held as by invisible hands, supported as it were by gigantic columns of smoke and Hame, all this but for a moment then, like the vomiting of a volcano, it burst into innu- merable fragments and fell a confused inextrical)le mass of earth, muskets, cannon, men; an awful debris. Nearer we moved and awaited orders, my breakfast was brought In' my servent, (other officers state the same fact), after eating, the Colonel called the offi- cers to the right of the regiment, and quietly said: "Gentlemen we have a little work to do this morning. 1 hoi)e e\ erv man will do his duty. Good morning, gentlemen.' Modest words, modest as the man who spake them, for a braver and more gallant officer never led soldiers into action than C/olonel H. 8e3aiK)ur Hall. He lost his right arm in that charge." "Over our works, up the slope swept l)y the tire of the eneniN' to the crater, to its right the Colonel led the regiment, along the front of the enemy's works, so close that both officers and men were wounded by bayonet thrusts, and their clothing burned by powder flashes from the guns of the enemy, faced us by the left flank, and charged; the regiment Avent- ov(!r the intrenchments, capturing — 29 — nore prisoners than we numbered men. Was this achievement 3ver surpassed or even equalled^ Later a confused mass of troops vere to our left, near the crater, white and black ming.led, seven lao-s were in close proximity there. Some of the 43rd remained ill the tinal charg-e of the enemy, aljout 2 p. m. , and think it was the .AST TO LEAVE THE enemy's WORKS.'" He concludes by saying hat he was proud of the regiment, and felt that it had done its luty, capturing the only prisoners and only flags, and achieving he only sem])lance of success in that disastrous battle. The lifth company from the right, had only been with us a few days when we crossed from the north side of the James, and ts Captain, Albert D, Wright, has the proud distinction of hav- ing captured and brought oti' a stand of rel)el colors, which I am informed he delivered to General Ferrero, our division command- er, in person. It is reported that he worked his way throvigh a picket passage in the ul)])attis, and went over the ene- my's works toward the right of the regiment, followed by about ten men, some of G and some of F company, saw a rebel color sticking above a rifle pit in rear of the line we charged, jumped on the mound of earth, aimed his empty pistol down at the color sjuard, and demanded their surrender. He says that at the same time, some of the men with him came in at the entrance from the breastworks, and the color guard of about six at once surrender- ed, praying him to protect them from the "niggers", and were sent to our lines. We then went to our right to a curve in the rebel works, and in throwing sandbags across to protect us from their Are, I was wounded in the right arm, and started liack taking my captured flag with me, passing Captain Wilkinson, and as I kept on back along the works saw the most of our ofiicers who were not killed or wounded. At a point indicated near the crater, ^vhere Gen. Sigf ried says the l^alance of his brigade halted, I met Colonel with his regiment, and as soon as he saw the flag in my hands, he asked me for it, and when I refused him, went so far as to take hold of it and try to w^rest it from me. A number of men from our regiment shouted at him to "drop it", and I ordered him to do so, he did it but very relunctantly. 1 then went into the crater, and back to our line, where General Ferrero received the flag from me. When I flrst reached the rebel works they were fully manned, and the tire from them was the most terribly murderous ever encoun- — 30 — tered \)y me. Nearly every man who went over the works with me struck down one of the enemy with the bayonet, and thrust every man they could overtake. It is a satisfaction to the writer of this paper to state that he collected additional evidence of the fact of the capture of this stand of colors liy Captain Wright, as stated in the report of our brig-ade commander, and he recom- mended to the War Department that a Medal of Honor be award- ed to Ca})tain Wrio-ht, which was done. Lieutenant Robert W. Armstrono-, w^as the only other officer with Caj)tain Wrio-ht's company that day, and lie distinjj-uished himself 1)}^ the recapture of a stand of National Colors, taken from some other of our troops, that morninor. I did not see this, and as the Lieutenant was killed a few days later, no report was ever had from him, nor have I been able to g-et any further information from eye witnesses. He was a very brig-ht and promisins^ • chris- tian young man, whom wo all res[)ected and were coming to love in so short a time as he was with us, but I do not know where was his home, or the name and address of any of his relatives. To the left of G, war company D, led tliat day by its Captain, Benjamin B. lllackman, who died after a few years of exceptional success in the practice of law. No report of his has been found by me, and I can say nothing of his experience, but his bravery is admitted by all who knew him, and his memory is deserving of honor. His Lieutenant, Ezra S. Dean, the only other officer on the field Avith the company in that l)attle, has left a brief account. He has failed to give much of his experience, and his coolness and ))rave devotion to duty, entitle hi n t)m'ieh higher praise than his brief story shows. It does show that he was doing his duty, when it says: ''We started forward as the command was given, but the left of the company had to rush to close up, some of my men fell out i)et^veen the lines, I went after them, and brought them up to the company just as it turned by the left flank to take the intrenchments. After we carried the works and our Colonel reformed th(; regiment, our loss ^vas so great, that our line was very short; it did not appear to be more than a, few yards from me to Colonel Hall when he was hit. A short time after he was tak- en from the field, an officer started up to give the command "for- ward," which was the last efi'ort, so far as I know to move for- \vard. Later the rebel line came steadily forward at trail arms. — 31 — aiiie up on ns, and as we fell back, o;ave us a tremendously se- 'ere cross lire. " This is all that I can lind from a most gallant (fficer and estimable o-entleman. The extreme left of my regiment was Compary B, whose able, ifficient, and brave Captain, John D. Brown, rose from a sick bed ind voluntarilv took his place with his company, when utterly un- it for duty, and was compelled to take to his bed again as soon as he battle was over. He has left me no record of what he saw and vhat he did, greatly to ni}^ regret. Some papers written by his lieutenants have come into my possession that will have to supply he dehciency. Lieutenant James W. Steele, was with the right of his com- )any, and his statement shows that the enemy did hold his works lown to the crater when the 43rd charged to our right and took [hem. This accomplished officer, who was subsequently a ("aptain of the U. S. Army and is a celebrated author, says "I know some- hing about the prisoners, for there was a half determination on he part of a good many of the black soldiers to kill them as fast IS they came to them. They were thinking of Fort Pillow and qnall l)hun<^ to them. The first l)atch I saw had been driven to- gether just in front of the line of earthworks we had taken and )ccupied, I climl)ed over and rushed out there to save them from :he group of men of my own company who in two minutes would [lave bayoneted the last poor devil of them. It was a queer place for an argument, but I was met by cries that 'they would kill us, md had killed us wherever they could find us, and we were going to change the game.' I put up the pieces with my hands, argued and cursed alternately, until the scared little crowd had ])een got over the earthwork and had scurried off to our rear. For one rea- son or another I crossed that enfiladed space between the lines four times ; also I was spattered with the brains of a soldier who was running lieside me. I have since been in some warm regions, but that 30th of July was the hottest day I ever felt in any land. The funniest thing was that old Remington revolver of mine. It would shoot the side off' of a tree at a hundred yards, and I had it with me. When I saw that the game was up, I reluctantly and with a feeling of despair began to get ready to cross the. enfilade for the last time. There was one man among the rebels who were coming who seemed to have a personal feeling in the matter. He — 32 — would stop to load, and while doino- so would g-rin diabolically, and shake his head. I th',)u«-ht that he thought he was on a nigger hunt, and it made me mad. So I climbed to the top of the earth- works, turned round and deliberately fired four times at that par- ticuhir soldier.-' ''Just at the close of this somewhat boyish proceeding, I, my- self got a little slice taken out of the shoulder. I looked back just as I started to go, amid cries of 'come in heah Yank, or we gwine to killyeh,'to see if I could again discover my man aiuongst the ranks of the ch.irgaiN. I do not afi3rall this time to think about it, know whether 1 am glad or sorry that ho was not there. I remember the scene as the mine exploded, how it appeared after all that it had contained was about a hundred and twenty feet in the air, and before they came down again, I met Colonel Hall on his way out, his arm dangling and spoke to him. In reply to my recent request that he would write up the story, he says, "as leisure permits I am at your service to tell my own story of that day in my own way. But I should like first to go again and see the place. I have always wished to. To many living men the Mine at Petersl)urg is the most vivid memory of their lives, and for them more than for the establishment of any military fact should the story be told. I was then a lioy ; I am no^v middle aged. To me the story must be told with its personalities to l)e of interest and value, I am like others.'' The writer awaits with in- terest Captain Steele's volume. It will be classic and enduring. The positive statements of personal experience of the cool, clear headed, clear sighted, intrepid olficer, First Lieutenant L. H. Parkhurst, fittingly close up the story on the left of the com- mand. He states that Captain Brown was on the sick list, but took command of his company when it was ordered forward, this placing Parkhurst as he says, "with the rear of the regiment mov- ing l)y the right fiank ; a few of our men took shelter in the cra- ter whom I drove out, and know that there were no colored troops in the crater, Avhen our left had jiassed to the right of it, exce})t some wounded of the 43rd." "As I reached the left of the regiment, it had faced by the left flank, and was charging over the rebel works, I did the same. It was some time after this, before other colored troops connected with our left, which Avas some considerable distance beyond the — 33 — crater, where we remained a long time, when I saw the line of rebels coming a few rods otf, saw that I was nearly alone, and re- turned to our own line, which had opened tire on the enemy, mi- raculously escaping unhurt the terrific tire to which I was exposed from both lines. Captain Wilkinson commanded the regiment from the time Colonel Hall was wounded, till the arrival of Major Horace Bumstead, two or three days after. I think there were only 7 officers left for duty, Captain Wilkinson took one for ad- jutant, leaving 5 line officers to command T companies. Captain Brown was still sick, and I had command of two companies. Be- fore the battle, I was in charge of the detail that hnished the cov- ered way through which we advanced, and on the 3rd of August, in conunand of a l)urial party, laid away our dead, in a wide and deep trench, between the lines, as the rebs delivered them to me at the truce line. How many I cannot say. Quite a numl)er were blown to pieces, by bursting shells, and I could not tell where the fragments l^elonged ; they were liuried with the others. After three days the bodies were so black and l^loated, as to be beyond recognition, and colored could only be told from white by the hair. I buried them all side l)y side, regardless of color or rank, and leveled the ground as smooth as possible." The report of General Meade, as well as his testimony before the commission of which General Hancock was President, shows a strong feeling against the colored troops, but space prevents lit- tle more than reference to his report and other documents. He has no good word to say for them, although the evidence of the records proves conclu-iiv3ly, that my seven companies of colored soldiers c.iptirel more thin four fifths of the 218 prisoners, and one of the two stands of colors that ho reports were taken l)y his entire army that day, he gives us no credit whatever, but blames the colored division for the failure, though his own orders kept us out of the fight till his other troops had given it i p as a lost bat- tle, refused to allow us whom General Burnside selected, and whom after an inspection an officer of his own stafl' had pronounced l^est fitted to lead the assault as Burnside proposed and urged, and which General Grant subsequently stated on oath, he believed we would have made a success, though he did hold with General Meade before the action. General Meade admits while testifying before the investigatins: commission, with some show of reluc- — 34 — lance, ''From the report-; transmitted I cannot perceive that the colored troops were more to Ijhime than the others." General A. A. Humphreys, Meade's chief of staff, in his ''Campaio;n of '64 and '65", says of our, (Ferroro's) Division: "A part of them were led oft' to the rio^ht, and 2:ot oft' into the en- trenchments there, where they had some ftghting, capturing 200 prisoners and a- color". I repeat that no res^iment of our said di- vision is reported as having;' captured any prisoners or colors, or being- in any position where such captures were possible on that day, except the Forty-Third. No other regiment went to the right at that time when it charged and carried the enemy's intrenchments and captured those prisoners and colors. General Burnside, our Corps commander, says: "a part of the column was deflected to the right, and charged and captured a por- tion of the enemy's line with a stand of colors and some prisoners. Of the enemy's tirst counter charge and its result, he states, "But not all of the colored troops retired, some held the pit?, severely checking the enemy till they were nearly all killed, and this cor- roborates those officers of the 43rd, who state that it was the last to leave the captured works. Captain Sanders, of General Meade's staft" was with General Burnside, and at 8:45 a. m., sent a dispatch to Meade, "One set of colors just sent in captured by the negroes." As I have before stated, no official report shows any colors or prisoners captured by any colored regiment l>ut the 43rd that fixes the hour of our charge at about eight o'clock in the morning. General Edward Ferrero, our division commander, was sworn thirty days after the battle, and testified that his leading brigade engaged the enemy a short distance in rear of the crater, where they captured some 200-od(l prisoners, and a stand of colors, and re- captured a stand of colors ])elonging to a white regiment of our corps. In a letter to me he says that it is correct in all particu- lars, that he went to our first line of works, and there remained to see his command go through. The 48rd was the first over, then Colonel Humphreys' brigade, followed in on the left of Colonel Hall's regiment, cutting of the rest of my division from its leading regiment, the 43rd, for some little time; it went on charged and carried the re1)el works at the right of the Mine, before the bal- ance of my division could get up to the assistance of the Forty- — 35 — Third, and it alone, unaided and unsupported, captured a stand of rebel colors, recaptured a stand of National colors, and took and sent to our lines two hundred prisoners belonging mostly to a South Carolina regiment, the only prisoners and colors captured by my division that day. General Ferrero is referred to in what General Burnside says about the originator of the first plan of as- sault, and General Ferrero states General Grant said he be- lieved that it would have given us success, had it been carried out. General Joshua K. Sigfried, then Colonel 48th Fenna. Vols., who did the mining, was our brigade commander, and I use him freely as heretofore, as undoubted authority, and to show how the conduct oi the regiment \\'as regarded by others at the time. He writes that, ''in the evening before, after we had marched down in- to the woods Ijack of my bomlj-proof. General Meade ordered a council of war, o1)]'ect(Kl to the colored troops making the charge, on account of want of experience, as he put it, but really, as I think, because he was opposed to the colored troops anywhere, and General Burnside finally agreed to leave it to General Grant, who sided with General Meade, and we were kept until the last. Had the original plan been adhered to, I am perfectly satisfied Peters- burg would haN e l)een in our possession before 10 o'clock that day. Generals Grant and Meade both admitted that to me afterwards. The Forty-Third went farther, did Ijetter under the most destruc- ive fire from the artillery and infantry of the enem}-, after giving them some three hours time for -concentration than could l)e ex- pected." A further recognition of the conspicuously gallant services of those officers and men of tha 43rd on this bloody field, was the subsequent promotion by the President, by and with the advice and consent at the Senate, of its commander on that field, Lieutenant Colonel H. Seymour Hall to be Brigadier General U. 8. Volun- teers, l)y Brevet, "for gallant and meritorious services in the as- sault on th(; enenn^'s works at the Mine before Peterslmrg, Virgin- ia," as is stated in his commission. General Sigfried writes, after making his oflicial report that: "iV>man ever led a regiment under such a severe fire through several divisions of other troops who had preceded them, and who had squatted in a place of shelter, as did General Hall the 43rd U. S. C. T. , that 30th day of July, 1864. When the order came for — 36 — us to go in, I asked permission to charge on the line direct, with- out o'oino- through the crater, and I said, I will take it now, and I am confident, had I been permitted to do so, with General Hall in the lead, we would have ])een successful. I can see him yet brought l)ack to the crater, as he made the remark 'I tot)k the rifle l)it, but I am done, my arm is all shattered.' Major Frank Hol- singer, then a Captain in the 19th Regiment U. S. C. T., states that his regiment was still inside our own works, when General Hall was taken past them wounded, that he raised his left hand toward the enemy, and said, 'go in l)oys there is plenty there for all of you.' This further proves that the 4P)rd, must have l)een far in advance of the rest of the division, as it had already charged the works, captured the colors, and taken the prisoners, which as Harper's History of the rebellion says, 'was the only semblance of success on that fatal day.' A few weeks after the battle, be- fore he could have forgotten, General Grant was testifying un- der oath, before the committee of Congress on the conduct of the war, and in answer to a tpiestion said, •General Burnside wanted to put his colored troops in the lead, and I believe if he had done so we would have been successful." "The re[)orts of the enemy are few and ])rief, and are silent about any surrender of works, colors, or })risoners to the negroes, l)ut General B. R. Johnson, commanding the division that we as- saulted, reports that Elliott's brigade, occu})ied the mine and to our right and left, its loss being 698, 3.51 of wliom are reported missing. All the Infantry of this brigade, were South C-arolina regiments, connnanded by Colonel McMaster, after General Elli- ott was wounded. The 200 prisoners taken by the 43rd were doubtless some of the missing." Our accomi)lished and efhcient Assistant Surgeon, Dr. A. I>. Lowe, had no assistance till three days after this ))attle, when Surgeon A. Waterhous(^ joined for duty as did the other three com])anies, under the scholarly gentleman, and gallant soldier. Major Bumstead, then late graduate of Yale, now the Rev. Horace Bumstead, D. D., President of Atlanta University. The Major served with honor in the field till the regiment was mustered out in the fall of 1865. He has l)een solicited by General Hall to write the balance of the record of service of the -tSrd, a task for which he is preeminently qualified. — 37 — Captain Joseph Forbes was sick, Lieutenant J. C. Hankey, in charge of the ambulance train, Lieutenant M. W. Sawyer, acting regimental quartermaster, many enlisted men were on de- tached service. The 43rd Regiment went into action with only 18 commissioned officers, and 328 enlisted men. Of these 1 officer and 40 men were killed, 10 officers and 94 men wounded, 2 officers wounded and captured, a total of 147, or 42 1-2 per cent. Our colors were cut in tatters, the lance shot off by musket balls, and the staff of our regimental color partly cut off by the fire of the enemy, less than 200 of these brave officers and men retired at the last moment, safely l^ringing off' the bullet riddled remnants of their colors, before an overwhelming force of the enemy, led against our right by Generals B. R. Johnson and Ransom, and against the crater and our left by General William Mahone, leaders and men whose bravery had been tried on many fields, and in its contest with these worthy representatives of southern valor, it can- not be said that the Forty-Third regiment United States Colored Troops disgraced the military service, but in truth it must be stat- ed that it won imperishable renown. APPENDIX. The following letter was written by the writer of the forego- ing paper, before he had the Official Records, or the reports of his officers. It was not intended as a criticism on General Thomas, whose warm friend the writer is, but to set right some things of which the General had no personal knowledge, his article as pub- lished in the book was changed from the magazine paper in the mattery referred to l)y me, and part of my letter inserted there- with in "Battles and Leaders," as is referred to by Captain Burr. I quote it from my retained copy in full: "MoNTHALL Farm, Carroll Co., Missouri, Bogard Post Office, January 11, 1888. To The Century Co.^ New York: Petersburg Mine — Battle of July 30, 1864. In his article on the colored troops at Petersburg in the last September Century Magazine, General Henry Goddard Thomas states that, 'The First Brigade, (Fourth Division, 9th Corps,) worked its way through the crater and was halted behind the hon- eycomb of bomb proofs." I can give no account of the move- — 38 — iiients of the reur reo;iiiients of the First Brio:a(ie, but as to the ad- vance, this is erroneous. The Forty-Third Resfiment U. S. C. T. havino- the advance of the 1st Brigade, was leadino- the division, and l)esides having only seven companies present, was the newest regiment in the Division. After an inspection of the Division by an othcer of General Biirnside's stati', tlie Forty-Third was selected to lead the assault which was to follow the explosion of the Mine, in the/zV.s/ }ilan of attack, and it still had the advance when the Division /z'y/'///?/ went into action. In command of, and the only held otlicer }U'esent with the Forty-Third Regiment at any time, in compliance with special orders, I drilled the conunand and care- fully inspected the ground over which we were to advance, for this latter purpose accompanying General J. F. Hartranft in his rounds when he was General Officer of the Trenches. When the order to lead out from the covered way was given me, we marched by the flank, scraml)led, climbed, or ju]U})ed, as l)est we could, over our outer works, dou1)le quick swept up the slope, already the center of a tornado of shot and shell, through which leading my command directly to the crater, mounting the L-iX'A of the (Irhi'ls^ I saw at once the utter ho[)clessness of passing the enemy's lines through and over the mass of soldiers in the yawning gulf. Without an instants pause the Forty- Third fol- lowed my lead to our right around on the crest of the crater's rim till near the enemy's main line of intrenchments on our right, which was at that time fully manned l)y the rebel forces, who were concentrating on us a deadly tire of musketry, v.nd flaunting their colors defiantly almost in our very faces. Still at the double quick, changing direction to the right, leading the conunand in front of and parallel to the intrenchments held by the enemy, as soon as sufficient distance was taken, I gave the conunand to march ))y the left flank, and as the line thus formed faced the enemy, gave the order to '"WJiargc''^ Officers and men swept resistlessly on, over the enemy's intrenchments, without an instants pause or wav- er, capturing nearly all the force in ou^ inuuediate front, proba- bly over 100 prisoners, the stand of rebel colors mentioned, and recapturing a stand of National Colors. All this occupied seem- ingly few minutes from the time we left the covered way, but we were exposed to the most terriflc concentration of musketry and artillery tire it had ever been mv lot to encounter, serving from Bull Run July 21st 1861, to this 30th day of July, 1864, and our losses were fearful. We had opened a gateway, but the crest of the ridge beyond the crater, our objective point, was not yet gained. Galhuitly the survivors closed up their ranks, and ner\'ed themselves for the struggle as I reformed them inside the captured intrenchments. Probably the halt mentioned ])y General Thomas, was when — 39 — the balance of the biro-ade was halted l^ehind the line on the left of my reo-inient as is stated by General Sig-f ried. Just as I was about to o-ive the order to my regiment to advance and charge Ceme- tery ridge, my right arm fell useless to my side, pierced and shat- tered near my shoulder by a musket ball. Recovering my saber, which had dropped from my hand, I retired from the field of bat- tle to an ambulance, thence to the amputating table. This ended my campaigning till my return to the Forty Third in the field in front of Richmond, March 2.3th, 1^6.3, in time to make the entry into Richmond on the morning of April ord, with General Thom- as' Brigade, then in the t.^5th Corps,and ))y his order I was Prcjvost Marshal of Manchester District. At the battle of the Mine before Petersl)urg, Va., the Forty- Third Regiment United States Colored Troops had not more than 19 otiicers and 330 enlisted men in line; 1 officer and 28 men were killed, 10 ofiicers and 94 men were wounded, 2 ofiicers and 12 men were missing — total 147. The colors were tattered, and the color lance splintered and shivered into a dozen })ieces l)y mus- ket l)alls. No report was made l)y me of the operations of the regiment, l>y reason of the loss of my right arm, my transfer to the North, and my subsequent detail' by \he War De[)artment to command Camp Casey, and as Chief Mastering Ofiicer of the Dis- trict of Columbia, till my ami)utation healed. This extract from the Oflicial Report of Colonel Sigfried, our In'igade commander, was sent me in October l