Civil War Times Illustrated, October 1965 has an article called 'Each Man His Own Engineer' A first person account by Lieut. Henry O. Dwight who was Adjutant of the 20th Ohio Vol. Infantry. I quote one small part of this article.
The average civilian, when he reads in the papers an account of an assault on earthworks, really does not know the full meaning of the expression 'assault repulsed' Here is what happens during such an operation: You make up your mind, for example, to assault an enemy work. You have formed a line of battle, with a second and third line behind you for support. You march forth with determination to accomplish the object, yet aware of the magnitude of the undertaking. An advance of two hundred yards brings you to the hostile picket line, and here the opposition begins. You dash across the space between the two lines; you lose a few men; and the hostile pickets, after making as much noise as possible, run back to their main works. By this time the enemy are sure that you are really coming, and open on you with artillery and a heavy fire of musketry. A shell screams through your ranks, producing more moral than physical effect, or throws shrapnel, which, bursting in front, scatters myriads of small bullets across your front. You commence to lose men rapidly. the 'ball' is opened.
'Forward, double-quick' is the command. And while the whole enemy line fires from behind their works, your men, heedless of this--of death intensified, the bullets, the shells--dash on with wild cheers. The abatis with its tangled intricacy of sharpened branches snare your line. Tripping, falling, rising again, the men struggle through. Though the minutes drag interminably, and though at each forward step there are left fallen many brave men who have paid for the ground, you do get through with a part of your force.
You rush on. The firing grows more fierce, the men more desperate. Your three lines have almost been reduced to one, and you strike another abatis. In this are the palisades, which must be uprooted by force before a man can pass. You stumble, fall, tear your flesh on those stakes. You must stop to pull them up--you are gasping for breath. Masked batteries open, pouring canister into your writhing, struggling, bleeding mass, so close that the flame scorches and the smoke blinds. Is it any wonder that your three lines are torn to pieces, and have to give back from the redoubled fire of an enemy as yet comparatively uninjured.
And then the slaughter of a retreat under fire! Often it is better to lie down and take this fire rather than lose all by falling back under such circumstances.
It has been demonstrated in this war that earth-works can be rendered nearly impregnable on either side against a direct assault. An attack on fortified lines costs a fearful price. Before making one you should consider carefully whether the cost exceeds the gain. An assault means a slaughter pen, a charnel house, and an army of weeping wives, mothers, and sisters at home. This is inevitable.
The average civilian, when he reads in the papers an account of an assault on earthworks, really does not know the full meaning of the expression 'assault repulsed' Here is what happens during such an operation: You make up your mind, for example, to assault an enemy work. You have formed a line of battle, with a second and third line behind you for support. You march forth with determination to accomplish the object, yet aware of the magnitude of the undertaking. An advance of two hundred yards brings you to the hostile picket line, and here the opposition begins. You dash across the space between the two lines; you lose a few men; and the hostile pickets, after making as much noise as possible, run back to their main works. By this time the enemy are sure that you are really coming, and open on you with artillery and a heavy fire of musketry. A shell screams through your ranks, producing more moral than physical effect, or throws shrapnel, which, bursting in front, scatters myriads of small bullets across your front. You commence to lose men rapidly. the 'ball' is opened.
'Forward, double-quick' is the command. And while the whole enemy line fires from behind their works, your men, heedless of this--of death intensified, the bullets, the shells--dash on with wild cheers. The abatis with its tangled intricacy of sharpened branches snare your line. Tripping, falling, rising again, the men struggle through. Though the minutes drag interminably, and though at each forward step there are left fallen many brave men who have paid for the ground, you do get through with a part of your force.
You rush on. The firing grows more fierce, the men more desperate. Your three lines have almost been reduced to one, and you strike another abatis. In this are the palisades, which must be uprooted by force before a man can pass. You stumble, fall, tear your flesh on those stakes. You must stop to pull them up--you are gasping for breath. Masked batteries open, pouring canister into your writhing, struggling, bleeding mass, so close that the flame scorches and the smoke blinds. Is it any wonder that your three lines are torn to pieces, and have to give back from the redoubled fire of an enemy as yet comparatively uninjured.
And then the slaughter of a retreat under fire! Often it is better to lie down and take this fire rather than lose all by falling back under such circumstances.
It has been demonstrated in this war that earth-works can be rendered nearly impregnable on either side against a direct assault. An attack on fortified lines costs a fearful price. Before making one you should consider carefully whether the cost exceeds the gain. An assault means a slaughter pen, a charnel house, and an army of weeping wives, mothers, and sisters at home. This is inevitable.
Bringing the