May 15, 1862, The Charleston Mercury
(FROM OUR OWN CORRESPONDENCE.)
RICHMOND, Monday, May 12.
On the street you are told that the great fight which is to decide the fate of Richmond, will certainly come off today, and some go so far as to declare that they can hear the cannonading now (11 a.m.) going on. It may be so, if JOHNSTON has made the attack. McCLELLAN is cautious, and now that Norfolk is given up, his plan would be to advance in the direction of Petersburg before giving battle on the Peninsula, so as to divide our forces. Two of Johnston’s divisions had crossed the Chickahominy Swamp and the others were crossing, when McClellan pressed the rear so hard that he was compelled to recall the two that had crossed, and make a stand with the swamp in his rear, with only two narrow bridges to facilitate his passage. I learn that he protested against going to the Peninsula, but Davis forced him to it. Instead of attacking McClellan at once, as the whole army desired, he began to dig dirt, and now we see the end of it. The retreat from Yorktown would have added fresh laurels to his reputation, if he had succeeded in crossing the swamp.
The Enquirer notifies the Confederacy that the attack on Grant at Shiloh was made under the instructions of the President. This proves Davis’ unapproachable wisdom, according to the Enquirer. The idea of fighting one army in preference to two, of course, would not have occurred to anybody else. Soldiers from Beauregard’s army complain that his hands are tied; and it is in everybody’s mouth that Jackson’s last despatch to the War Department was, ‘Send me more men and no more orders.’ Administration organs may grind out flattery as much as they please; but the day will come when military men will have an opportunity to vindicate themselves and the truth.
I have nothing in regard to the victories of Jackson and Heth which will not reach you in the papers. You may be sure that whole of Millroy’s army is not and will not be […..], for the simple reason that most Yankees have as many legs as a centipede. Among the missiles used by the enemy at Williamsburg were miniature bombs, about the size of a man’s thumb, and filled with shot. They explode on striking an object, are intended to blow up caissons, and are shot from a peculiar rifled gun. We had an invention of this sort at Manassas, but it failed. A captain came up yesterday, and declared that in the fight on Friday evening we captured 300 prisoners. Nobody else ever heard of the fight. Whole trains of stragglers have been sent back to Johnston, but still the hotels, streets and the streets leading to the city, are filled with them. The resident population of Richmond is estimated at 75,000 or 80,000, and provisions are so dear and high that we have to send away on parole all the Yankee prisoners, to keep from feeding them. Two soldiers were murdered last week by Baltimore Plugs. It is said the President has gone down to the big fight. Hope it is true.
HERMES.