mish ensued, in which Col. Jones, the leader of the expedition, was killed.

From June until December, the Twenty-seventh served as provost-guard, supported cavalry on the Warsaw and Rocky-Mountain raids, joined Gen. Heckman's brigade at Newport News, and were on provost-duty at Norfolk and Portsmouth. Up to Dec. 22, two hundred men had re-enlisted as veteran volunteers. During this year, the regiment was commanded by Lieut.-Col. Wyman and Major Bartholomew.

Jan. 8, 1865, the regiment was ordered to proceed immediately to Newbern, and reached that place on the 11th. Six companies were then stationed at Rocky Run, under command of Lieut.-Col. Bartholomew; and the other four companies at Red House, under Capt. M'Kay.

Early in March, the regiment was brigaded with the Fifteenth Connecticut, to form the second brigade, second division, of the district of Beaufort, under the command of Col. Upham, and ordered to report to Gen. Cox at Cove Creek, where it arrived in the afternoon of March 4.

From this point, on the 6th, Gen. Cox's entire force effected a movement, the regiment leading the advance. The advance was extremely tedious, and by night it had only reached Gum Swamp, a distance of eight miles from Cove Creek.

March 7, the regiment marched from Gum Swamp to South-west Creek, where the enemy were found to be strongly intrenched on the opposite side of the creek; and had some skirmishing, but no casualties in the regiment. During the night, our skirmishers were advanced to within seventy-five yards of the creek, and rifle-pits thrown up.

The brigade to which the regiment was attached, numbering about one thousand men, was at this time about two miles in advance of any support.

On the morning of the 8th, information was received that the enemy were making a movement on the left; and the regiment was ordered to the left, forming a line at right angles with the Fifteenth Connecticut Volunteers. Skirmishers were immediately deployed, and discovered the enemy in the thick underbrush; they having, through the negligence of the cavalry vedette, completely outflanked our position, and formed directly in the rear of our original line. Immediately upon being discovered, they opened with a heavy fire of musketry, which was kept up on both sides for about a quarter of an hour, considerably reducing the strength of our command. At this time, by a well-directed charge, the enemy forced us back on to a line with the rest of our brigade, which immediately broke. We continued to fall back in good order for about one hundred yards more; when we discovered that we were entirely surrounded, and were obliged to surrender.

The entire brigade actively engaged, with the exception of a few enlisted men who escaped after the regiments broke, were thus captured, after withstanding (as it was afterwards ascertained by officers captured at this time, - from Surgeon Mathus, Twenty-eighth Regiment Georgia Volunteers, A. M. D.) for nearly an hour the whole of Hoke's division, eight thousand strong. Our loss in the engagement was five officers wounded, seven enlisted men killed, and thirty-six enlisted men wounded.

Among the captured and most severely wounded was Lieut.-Col. W. G. Bartholomew, commanding the regiment.

From this date until the close of its term of enlistment, the regiment, reduced to a mere fragment, was employed chiefly on guard-duty. It however participated in the advance under Gen. Grant during the last week in May and first in June. In a forward movement on the enemy's works at Cold Harbor, June 3, the remaining fragment of the regiment, under command of Major William A. Walker, a faithful, competent, and brave officer, led the column. As they approached a rifle-pit in front of the works, the major was struck in the neck by a rifle-shot, and instantly killed. Capt. Wilcox, and several men of this regiment, fell in the same bloody encounter. These were the final disasters of this eminently working regiment, which was mustered out of service June 26, and, July 1, started for Readville, Mass., arriving there on the 7th, numbering only seven commissioned officers and a hundred and thirty-two enlisted men. On the 19th, the regiment was paid off and disbanded.

CHAPTER XVI.

TWENTY-EIGHTH AND TWENTY-NINTH REGIMENTS.

The Twenty-eighth an Irish Regiment.

From Camp Cameron to Hilton Head. Antietam. In the Wilderness. Before Petersburg. - An Honorable History. The Twenty-ninth. Its varied Experience. - Vicksburg. — Services in Virginia. — Returns to the Old Commonwealth.

TH

THE TWENTY-EIGHTH REGIMENT.

HIS regiment was composed mainly of men of Irish birth. It left Camp Cameron Jan. 11, 1862, and proceeded to Fort Columbus, New-York Harbor; whence it sailed, Feb. 14, for Hilton Head, S.C.

Arriving at Hilton Head on the 23d, the Twenty-eighth remained there until the 7th of April, when it sailed for Fort Pulaski. After service at Jones, Bird, and Tybee Islands, it returned to Hilton Head May 28. Col. Montieth was placed under arrest by Gen. Hunter, and did not again take command, resigning in August following. The regiment sailed from Hilton Head in transports for James Island, under command of Lieut.-Col. Moore. After skirmishing, and a fruitless assault on Fort Johnson, it evacuated the island on the 6th of July, and returned to Hilton Head. On the 3d of August, it sailed northward to join the Army of the Potomac.

At Newport News, Lieut.-Col. Moore resigned, and Major Cartwright took command. Arrived at Acquia Creek, the regiment proceeded immediately to Fredericksburg, and joined the Potomac

Army. During the remainder of the month, it was almost constantly on the march.

On the 30th, it was engaged in the battle at Bull Run, supporting a battery until night; when its position was changed to a piece of woods, where, next day, it was under heavy fire nearly an hour. When ordered to retreat, it retired in good order, and went to the support of a battery, sustaining a severe fire from the enemy's guns. The same evening, it moved with the retreating forces of Gen. Pope to Centreville, having lost in that battle eighteen men killed, and a hundred and nine wounded; and, in the engagement at Chantilly the next day, its loss was ninety-four in killed and wounded.

The Twenty-eighth left camp on the battle-field, Sept. 2. On the 5th, it was at Meridian Hill; on the 14th, at South Mountain; and, on the 17th, it was engaged in the great fight at Antietam. At eleven o'clock, A.M., of the memorable 17th, the men advanced under a murderous fire; the enemy's artillery having perfect range, and the shot falling with fearful precision within their ranks. They were ordered to lie down, and, for more than an hour, were in a position more trying to a soldier's nerves than the shock of battle.

They afterwards drove the rebels before them, encamping at night on the side of Antietam Creek nearest the enemy, having lost in killed and wounded forty-eight men.

On the 19th, the regiment again took up its line of march, and was in motion, with very brief intervals, until the 18th of November; Col. Byrnes, one of the best and bravest officers, having assumed command at Nolan's Ferry on the 16th of October. Leaving camp, near Waterloo, Va., the Twenty-eighth encamped near Fredericksburg on the 23d of November, where it became a part of the second brigade, first division, Second Army Corps. It remained here, erecting winter-quarters, until the 11th of December, when it removed to a position opposite the city, which it entered next morning. Advancing with the division, it became engaged with the enemy on St. Mary's Heights on the 13th. Its loss in killed, wounded, and missing, was a hundred and ten men. After changing position in the vicinity of Fredericksburg for the next three days, the regiment went on picket-duty for the rest of the winter on the banks of the Rappahannock.

April 27, the camp was again abandoned for the march; and, through the remainder of the spring and the first months of summer, the Twenty-eighth was engaged on picket, and was crossing

the enemy's path, or pursued by him; stopping at Falmouth, Thoroughfare Gap, Monocacy River, Uniontown, and Havana, within three miles of Gettysburg, reaching this point on the 2d of July.

Of the part the regiment took in these important and decisive battles, an officer writes:

July 2, at seven o'clock, A.M., resumed the march towards Gettysburg, passing by the Cemetery-hill Road, and took up a position with the brigade, on the left of Cemetery Hill, in which position the line of battle was formed; and remained so until four o'clock, P.M., when the regiment moved forward, and became engaged with the enemy, who was strongly posted in an advantageous position on the crest of a rugged, rocky hill. We forced him to retire from this eminence, and advanced over the top, and almost to the bottom of the other side, being the whole time exposed to a heavy fire of musketry, losing many men from the concentrated fire of the enemy, who was on both our flanks, causing us to retire a short distance to reach our support. During this engagement and the following one next day, the regiment lost a hundred and one men in killed, wounded, and missing.

On the 5th, the regiment commenced another series of marches, including in its encampments, up to Dec. 7, old battle-grounds, and points of interest, along the Rappahannock and Rapidan.

The regiment remained in winter-quarters at Stevensburg, Va., performing picket-guard and other duties, from the 1st of January to the 3d of May, the evening of which day it broke camp, and marched with twenty commissioned officers and four hundred and eighty-five enlisted men, under command of Lieut.-Col. George W. Cartwright, crossing the Rapidan River, and reaching the Chancellorsville House the afternoon of May 4, passing over the old battle-field; thence to Todd's Tavern, the regiment acting as flankers, with extremely arduous duties to perform in this capacity, and, towards night, working on breastworks, and skirmishing. May 5, the regiment was again deployed as skirmishers. In the battle of this day, the Wilderness, the regiment lost sixteen killed, sixty-seven wounded, and fifteen missing. Here fell, while nobly performing his duty, the brave Capt. James A. M'Intire, and here also the gallant and efficient Capt. Charles V. Smith received his death-wound.

In the subsequent fights and skirmishes of the next six days, the regiment lost in killed seven, and in wounded and missing twentyseven. At daylight of the 12th, near Spottsylvania, it made a desperate charge on the enemy's works, assisting in the capture