Upon reaching the city, shortly before four o’clock, the Confederates placed a 32 Pr. gun at the cotton press near McKinney’s Wharf, to engage the Harriet Lane. This point was the left of the Confederate battle line. A 42 Pr. gun was placed at the head of Kuhn’s Wharf, near Social Hall, and a section of Wilson’s battery was near Hendleir’s Wharf. Why they did not attempt to place guns upon ends of the wharves on each side of Kuhn’s Wharf, where an enfilading fire upon the soldiers of the Forty-Second could have been obtained, is a mystery, unless they feared the positions too much exposed.
Of the navy, the Sachem was first to open fire, followed by the Corypheus and the Harriet Lane. For an hour did shot and shell fly all around the troops upon the wharf, accompanied with musket balls, causing them to think they were to get “h—ll” sure, as Magruder said, and to hug the planks and huddle close to the breastwork in such a manner that the original position planned for them to take at that work was lost. After a few rounds had been fired at them with no wholesale slaughter occurring, many of the men began to gain that confidence old soldiers possess, and to note progress of the action.
The navy fired high and made hot work in the city, but did not for some time do any execution among the enemy’s guns. Seeing this, Captain Sherive shouted to them: “Fire lower, and not so high,” In spite of the distance, sailors of the Sachem, who were afterwards taken prisoners at Sabine Pass, said they distinctly heard the warning, and then depressed their guns as much as possible. The Confederates admitted that the firing from heavy guns on the naval vessels was hard to stand. The crashing of walls and falling timbers, and a constant rain of bricks, mortar and roofing, as the shot and shell plunged through buildings, added to the crash of many hundreds of window panes, assisted to make the night hideous.
At the first shot from the enemy Colonel Burrell ordered every man to lie down. During the first hour the colonel walked the wharf, taking careful notice of all that occurred. Many shells would drop upon the wharf and explode, or burst overhead, pieces flying forward and overboard, yet he did not receive a scratch. A shell exploded in the storehouse and, seeing flame and smoke, he ran in, but a wooden partition prevented his reaching the fire. He shouted: “Is any one in there?” Private Hersey, with a few others, was lying down close to one of the rain-water hogsheads in the building when the fire started among the tents stored there, and at once endeavored to put it out. Hersey answered that HE was and that the tents were on fire, when Colonel Burrell ordered them thrown into the water by a back door, that could be easily reached. Part of the burning tents were soon floating in the harbor; but finding an empty pail, and drawing water from the hogshead, Hersey soon extinguished the fire. The ammunition that lay in dangerous proximity to the tents was at once attended to. A call for men to “come in here and rout out this ammunition” was promptly obeyed by a squad of men, who soon placed the boxes near the end of the wharf where they could easily be pitched overboard in case of necessity.
It was still dark at five o’clock when the enemy suddenly ceased their artillery fire. This was ominous; everybody felt an assault was premeditated. Not a shot had been fired from the wharf, which must have deceived the enemy as to the condition the Forty-Second detachment was in to repel an assault. They supposed many were killed or wounded. A sharp lookout from the breastwork was ordered. Somebody sung out that they were coming in boats to the left of the wharf. Colonel Burrell called for men, and ran to where the storehouse abuts the wharf-edge, but could not see or hear anything. Leaving the men to watch, he rapidly passed back to the breastwork to see that the men there took position ready to open fire, and again ran back to the left. He was there when the first fire was opened to repel the assault.
The assaulting column (about five hundred men) under Colonel Cook, said to have been composed of two small regiments, could be heard splashing in the water as they waded out. The understanding among the officers was, in case of an assault they were to wait until the enemy came within easy range before firing.
Adjutant Davis, Captains Proctor and Sherive, and Lieutenant Newcomb, were anxiously looking over the breastwork into the darkness to catch a glimpse of where the enemy were. Captain Proctor sang out that he could see moving objects in the water, when Adjutant Davis gave the order to fire. A volley was given, followed up by some rapid firing at will, as fast as the men could load. Those in the front ranks had to look out, for in the excitement men from the rear would crowd up and blaze away regardless of friend or foe. As the line of fire was mostly straight away from the shoulder, very few firing downwards into the water, the casualties to the attacking force was not heavy. Some of them attempted to come out upon the wharf, by placing planks over the openings where they had been torn up. They did get to the first breastwork, and showed their heads above it, as the musketry flashes lit up the scene, but no further.
The Sachem and Corypheus, attracted by this fight, sent shot and shells toward the head of the wharf among the enemy in such a manner that they were glad to fall back, with such scaling ladders as they carried, taking most of the dead and wounded ashore. A few bodies were floating in the water during the morning hours.
After this repulse the enemy retired behind the protection of buildings and side streets, out of musket range. The combined fire of the three gunboats, who continued to send their compliments among the enemy’s artillery placed to cover Kuhn’s Wharf, prevented the Confederates from anything more than random artillery firing after this assault. Some of their batteries they had previously found great difficulty in keeping manned; the gunners were forced to return to their pieces many times by cavalry patrols stationed in the rear.
As daylight dawned, a scattered musketry-fire was opened on both sides. The Confederate riflemen took positions in windows, and upon the flat roofs of such warehouses as overlooked the wharf within range. The small field-gun, stationed at the Star Foundry, was sending some shells which exploded underneath the wharf, making it a question whether the piling would not eventually be severed and destroy the wharf. The gunners had also got the range where the men lay, and by a little elevation they could sweep them. Hastily calling for some good rifle shots, Colonel Burrell posted them near the flanking raft, with orders to prevent that gun from being served. This detail did the duty well, effectually putting a stop to the Confederates dodging from around the street corner to load and fire. Major Dickinson, General Magruder’s assistant adjutant-general, lost an eye while gallantry trying to attach a drag-rope to the gun in order to draw it away, when they found it dangerous to keep at work; a nephew of the general, Lieutenant George A. Magruder, aide-de-camp, also made the attempt after Dickinson was wounded—all of no avail, the gun had to be abandoned by them.