The Siege Of Yorktown

Siim.íu! ". "i ■■ -■ on lence '( tito Argua. CaMI' WlNFKtí SfOTT, } May Itb, 1 302 $ I ■::.:: BllOTHJïK : All is excitcment in ninp this mnrni'ig. The rebels have taken leg bail for Becurity, that is thcy evacuated Yorktowu last 1 1 ï izl t , and every minuto we are i ■ tnnroli into their in mts. The " Star SpanglecLBanner" was raised on Uie fortifications early this mor n ing. 'J e vtr thuir reirtat thoy kepüip a continuo! fire all last night. 1 believe that tbej lcft 75 large cannou, spikod, aud desiroyod all tho provjsions that thcy could not take away. The fortiiioations in front of thein were fast ap proacliing completion, and we would have oponed lire in a few days, Our fortificatioua extended frotn York to James river, and niounted an immense nuraber of heavy picccs of artil'.ery. Last Thursday tlns regiment went out again to Work on tho intrenehmont. Tho part of tho intrenchments wc worked on coinmanded Gloueester. Thcre were to have boen four piceos of artillery mounted boro which would threw a bail of 100 pounds wciglit; a very good pill for the secesh. The rebels kept up avery heavy fire during tho day, and also the whole night. Whilfl out, onc of Co. . C.'s men dropped froin a log that he was sitting on, dead. He had been laughing and joking but a moment beforo. Ilcdied of tho lieni't discase. On Suturday we went out to work on tho tronches agaia; I thüik that we were in the most dangerous place that we liave yet worked in. Shells were continually bursting around us. The ground was completly covered with unexploded shells, pieoes of thells. and solid shot. - Twoof the solid balls we brought tocamp; they weighed .2 pounda eaoh. The firet accident tr a:iy of (he inombers of this regiment sincc we have been hero. h;:.pened on Snturday. One of the men of Co. D. was slightly wounded by a piecfi of shell. Thero were a number of narrow escapes. A cannon ball passed with in a few inclies of Lieut, Prentiss' head and had lie not paid it the aoraplimeut o bowing, it would havo paid hún the compliment of taking bis hond ofT. Last cvening a balloon went up noar Ottï camp. Hardly had t ascended to tho tons of the trees, before the enemy begir to send shot and shcll at it. In this op eratioD they made our camp rather hot Piceos of shot and shell camo down in va rious places. Onc pieee went ihrough : te:if, strik ing and cutting a bayonot ii two, whicli hung in its way. Luckilyni o;ic was in t!;e tont, Anotherpieccpass ed over our camp and went into tho ten of onc of the drummers of the N. Y. 12th knocking bis drum to picccs. Yesterday wc were atworkon intrench inents ruiling tlirough a peach oroh ard whieli bas 2,200 trees in it, They are the most beautiful trees that I ever saw. They hang vcr}r full of ifruit, now the sií'.c oí' a pea. The MichigJD regiments herc havo the □ame of buing the hearticst and toughea men in tliis army. Thoycan stand mo everything. On a march piek up what other regimentó throw away, an somo of the boys in tliis regiment have been known to carry the koapsaobsof the boys of othor rcgin.cnts. They also have the name of being very cool und, i fire of the eneiny, and makirig fun of tbi danger tliat has passod and gono. Foi the trutb of tliis I copy the following : The c.mnonading on the right of oui lints, 'which I alluded to in the closing o my letter at noon yesterday as having the:i just OOlUmeooed, was kept up with a good deal of vigor all the aftêrnoon - Nearly all tho íiiing carne from the rebel üide, ouly a fow shots being sent in by thogunboats. Why thcro was no more shbo.ting on our side was probably from a desire uut to ioterrupt tho rebols in a practico that is cudentlys:) pleasing to ibera, and, foriauately, só harralessto us. As in most of the shooting for days past. the euemy directed their gans and shells at our working partios, doubtless intending to itopress our white soldierswith the uiibecouiingness uf manual employniení, and t 'ie danger of dirt digging under the scorching rays of a moridian sun. Major Colé, i I Q Michigan regiment, and a large dctachinent ofnieu ander bira. found ik i.v'.ves the priocipal target for a wliile of' tlio enemy'a projeoffles. But t!iu men had their work to do, and they did it, despite tho flyiug fragmenta of noattering sbells and the torn up dirt :ibout them, that at times seemed suffcrí;l:' (he agitation of the sands of Sahara under a simoouivisitation. One man was coinpletely buried up to the neck in the dirt. llishead visible above the ground. and tlie rotary motion hegave to it, look ed üke a pantomime. '; Wliy dido't you hide your hoad,too?" eallcd out Major Cole, jocosoiy. " Bacaoae I wanted to seo the sport as vc!l as you aud the rest," responded the man in like appreeiative vcin. They also have the name of being tho best and l'astest workers in the army. - Yesterday tho superintendent of the works laid out a piece of work for cach i!i;ui as a day's ivork, at the same tiiuercmarking th:it if wc went ïight to work, and worked .steadily, vo wouldgct it done about 2 o'cloek. Our boys laid down tlioir guns, strippod tbemselves, and wcat to workj and at 10 o'clock the work was dono, and we werc ready to start for camp ; and only waited tlio appearanee of tbe superintendent to dismiss us. lic cauic, and dismisscd us with the remar k tliat wc had dono moro work iufliattirao t!i;m otlier men had done in all day. Thore is altogether too mnch excitement in camp lor moto ïtrite. N mr .shas just arrived, that Gou. Keys has got iü the rear of the retreating rebels, and taken 9,000 of them prisoners; d(?) and that they left Glouccster in such a hurry that thcy did not destrey a thing. Henrt (ïr.r.AND is in the hospital, sick with the fevor, but not dangcrous, and I think that he will be up in a few days. Orders havo just been issued for two day's rations to bo furnished to the men. This loóles liko a movement.