Page:Southern Historical Society Papers volume 14.djvu/335

 Fortification and Siege of Fort Hudson. 329

works was blue with their uniforms, and the weeds and bushes still further forward were strewn with them. At one point in our ditches fourteen dead bodies were counted in a single group. Two atteuipts were made at different points in that quarter to storm our works, both of which completely failed. Across the road leading to Troth's Landing, and in front of our extreme right, the enemy formed in line of battle in the open field extending from the woods on our extreme right to the " gin house" on the left and came charging on with four regimental colors streaming in the wind. When their line reached the deep and tangled ravine, some three hundred yards in our front, they obliqued to their left so as to rush down the road in column to the creek below. No sooner had they reached this point than a heavy fire of artillery was opened upon them from our ad- vanced work and the batteries to the left, which scattered them in ever)'^ direction. Simultaneous with this attack another line of bat- tle was formed in front of the left of the right wing, stretching across the lower part of Gibbons' s field. Here they made a feeble attempt to charge our works, but did not succeed in approaching within three hundred yards before they, too, were driven back by the fire of our artillery.

After this, our ammunition being scarce, the men were not allowed to fire at their inclination, but a few of the best shots in each com- mand were selected to fire at intervals, when good opportunity offered, to the incessant fire we were receiving.

Under the direction of the Chief of Artillery, Colonel Marshall J. Smith, the Columbiads were so arranged as to shell the enemy on the land line over the heads of our own troops, and for several nights we dropped our eight and ten-inch shells among them, until reliable fuses became exhausted. Two weeks of this kind of work passed away without rest to our men, either by night or by day, on account of the nightly shelling of the land and water forces; and the continued exposure to the sun, rain, and night dews brought on much sick- ness, materially reducing our effective strength. Our stock of medicines proved to be even shorter than our stock of provisions, and with a large and constantly increasing list of chills and fever cases the quinine was exhausted. Ipecac was resorted to in its place, but that also came to an end, and finally there was nothing to be had to check fever except a decoction of indigenous barks, which did not effect any wonderful cures so far as heard from.

Several batteries were built by the enemy right in the face of our works, enfilading portions of our line. An 8-inch gun, which had

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