CHAPLAIN WOODWORTH RESIGNS.

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hurst, and Fifty-Fifth (Penn.), Capt. Hill, have so unflinchingly, during the 15th, 16th and 18th of June pressed the enemy home to the last earthworks, will remain forever engraved on my heart. To whatever sphere of duty I may hereafter be called, I shall always carry with me the proud recollection of the deeds of the "First Brigade," and the calm reflection that they will never dis grace the laurels which they have nobly won by their blood.

By command of Brig. Gen'l STannard,

WM. L. KENT, Capt. and A. A. A. General.

The Fifth Maryland Regiment was here added to the Star Brigade, so that it now consisted of seven regiments, with Col. Fry of the Fifth Maryland in command. The TwentySeventh Mass. Regt. was now under command of Capt. P. S. Bailey, and contained four line officers and one hundred and fourteen men present for duty. Our wounded and sick were scattered in hospitals, from that of the corps near the scene of action, to those at Fortress Monroe, Washingington, Philadelphia, New York, and those within our native State. The public spirit and resources of loyal homes were taxed to the utmost to provide for the increasing number of patients within these hospitals, and no history of the war would be complete without a generous acknowledgment of the invaluable aid rendered by patriotic women of the North in relieving the sufferings incident to its prosecution.

At this time the Twenty-Seventh Mass. Regt. sustained a loss it could ill afford, in the resignation of Chaplain C. L. Woodworth. He had followed all our varying fortunes, ready to minister to our spiritual and physical comforts. He was kind and sympathetic, cheerful and familiar, yet ever maintaining a consistent walk and an elevating influence. His special work was never forgotten, nor neglected with lame apologies; but in all his duties he was persevering, efficient, and popular. Without belittling himself, or his office, Chaplain Woodworth placed himself in contact with

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all, obtaining a warm place in our esteem. The terrible desolation which had befallen his men" was too much for his sympathetic heart to endure. Seven hundred and fortyfour men had left Norfolk with him, six weeks before, in the vigor and prime of life. The privilege of performing the last sad rites of earth over his honored dead had often been denied him by the exigencies of service; but many others had been committed to the dust under his faithful care, and little mementoes secured and forwarded to loved ones by his hand. He had aided in binding up wounds, and staying the ebbing tide of life, and had received the last words of farewell and remembrance, and penned them to the bereaved at home, until, as he said, "My men are all gone. The service and exposure to which the few remaining are called puts them beyond my reach, even if I could bear the mental agony their presence revives." On the 20th of June he bade us farewell and returned to Amherst, where he had been settled previous to the war. It is fitting to say that though we lost his presence, he has always maintained an active interest in all that pertained to us. Chaplain Woodworth is at present engaged with the American Home Missionary Society, with headquarters at the Congregational House, Boston, Mass. The remainder of our army experience was passed without a chaplain.

Our withdrawal from the front was of short duration, as the extended Union lines required the entire army for defence and active operations. We reached the front again at eleven P.M. June 21st, and relieved the Vermont Brigade, some distance to the left of our former position, and within two hundred yards of the enemy. The various assaults along the line since the 15th inst., had resulted in a loss of fifteen thousand men, and it was clear, with the time the enemy had now gained, that whatever we did must be through systematic approaches, rather than by a coup de main. Growing in strength from day to day, the Confeder

DEFENCES OF THE ENEMY.

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ate lines of defences had become so formidable that to take them by assault was impracticable. Their lines consisted of heavy forts and a chain of redans, connected by infantry parapets of powerful profile; while the approaches were completely obstructed by abatis, stakes and entanglements. Beginning at the Appomattox in front of our position, they enveloped Petersburg east and south, stretching westward beyond the farthest reach of the Union arms. A continuation of works on the north of the Appomattox, protected the city and the Richmond and Petersburg Railroad, via Walthall and Drewry's Bluff to the James River, then north of the James encircled Richmond, the whole constituting the most formidable series of defences engineering could devise. The whole system extended in an almost continuous line of upwards of sixty miles.

The cities of Richmond and Petersburg, although twentytwo miles apart, were within the arc of a circle, against any threatened point of which, the enemy, with their railroad, could throw a preponderating force with great celerity. A surprise was fairly out of question, because, working on the periphery of the circle, Gen'l Grant required days for a movement which the enemy could provide against in as many hours. Although assailed, Richmond and Petersburg were at no time strictly under siege, as the western roads were open, and tenaciously held by the enemy. Through this section passed the Lynchburg and Southside railroads, connecting at Danville with a southern network of railways furnishing uninterrupted communication through the Confederacy. These roads, though poorly equipped, by running day and night, were able to furnish the enemy with needed supplies.

The Union army held the investing lines of Petersburg, under the eye of Lieut. Gen'l Grant, but with Maj. Gen'l Meade as the immediate commander. Gen'l Butler's forces still occupied the entrenchments at Bermuda Hundreds. An entrenched camp was held north of the James River at Deep

Bottom, and was connected with Bermuda Hundreds by pontons. The enemy's force consisted of Hill's, Ewell's and Longstreet's Corps within Petersburg, with detachments under Beauregard, advanced close to our lines near Point of Rocks. The enemy had about sixty-five thousand available infantry, besides artillery and cavalry, around Petersburg and Bermuda Hundreds.

BEFORE PETERSBURG.

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CHAPTER XVII.

A SUMMER BEFORE PETERSBURG.

To follow the varying fortunes of the next two months would be but to recount the details of our duty at the front as pickets and sharpshooters, or within the trenches, suffering by exposure, wounds and death. When temporarily relieved and at the rear, we were endangered by shells and bombs which were incessantly falling around us. No description can convey an adequate idea of our surroundings. It was a continuous battle from the 15th of June until we re-arrived at Point of Rocks, August 25th. The battle varied in intensity and carnage, now enveloping us with the smoke and din of conflict, and then receding to the distant left. Night or day, rain or shine, the roar of cannon, groan of bombs, rattle of musketry, and tz-z-p of bullets were heard continuously.

The experience of fighting the enemy from behind fortifications was a new one to us, since in all our previous contests we had been in the open field, while the rebels had been safely ensconced behind strong earthworks. Our lines were built with the utmost care, and each day grew in strength under accomplished engineers. The intrenchments were constructed with "port-holes" for the use of sharpshooters; gopher-holes and bombproofs were made for the protection of those within the trenches; while front, flanks and salients were protected by entanglements and rifle-pits. Within the last our sharpshooters picked off the enemy's gunners, or as pickets, watched the movements of their army.