THE BATTLE OF THE PETERSBURG CRATER.

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almost perpendicular sides. If a man was shot onthe crest he fell and rolled to the bottom of the pit-

From the actions of the enemy, even at thistime, as could be seen by his moving columns mfront, he was not exactly certain as to the inten-tions of the Union commander; he appeared tothink that possibly the mine explosion was but afeint and that the main attack would come fromsome other quarter. However, he massed someof his troops in a hollow in front of the crater,and held them in that position.

Meantime General Potter, who was in rear ofthe Union line of intrenchments, being convincedthat something ought to be done to create a diver-sion and distract the enemy’s attention from thispoint, ordered Colonel Zenas R. Bliss, command-ing his First Brigade, to send two of his regimentsto support General Griffin, and with the remainderto make an attack on the right. Subsequently ifwas arranged that the two regiments going f°the support of General Griffin should pass intothe crater, turn to the right, and sweep down theenemy’s lines. Colonel Bliss was partly success-ful, and obtained possession of some 200 or 300yards of the line, and one of the regiments ad-vanced to within 20 or 30 yards of the batterywhose fire was so severe on the troops; but ifcould make no further headway for lack of sup-port— its progress being impeded by slashedtimber, while an unceasing fire of canister waspoured into the men. They therefore fell back tothe enemy’s traverses and intrenchments.

At the time of ordering forward Colonel Bliss’scommand General Potter wrote a dispatch to Gen-eral Burnside, stating that it was his opinion,from what he had seen, and from the reports hehad received from subordinate officers, that t°°many men were being forced in at this one point?that the troops there were in confusion, and itwas absolutely necessary that an attack should bemade from some other point of the line, in ordeito divert the enemy’s attention and give time t°straighten out our line. To that dispatch he neverreceived an answer. Orders were, however, bem»constantly sent to the three division commandersof the white troops to push the men forward aS