Colonel Smiley was first to give orders to fire from Fernando's part of
the work, and there rang out a volley all along the line. The brass
pieces on their right began blazing away with the heavy iron cannon down
toward the river, which with the rattling of small arms almost made the
ground quake under their feet. Directly after the firing began, Captain
Patterson, from Knox County, Kentucky, came running along. He leaped on
the breastwork, and, stooping a moment to look through the darkness, as
well as he could, shouted:
"Shoot low, boys! shoot low! rake them! rake them! They're comin' on
their all-fours!"
It was so dark that little could be seen, until just about the time the
battle ceased. The morning had dawned, but the dense fog and thick smoke
obscured the sun. The Kentuckians did not seem to appreciate their
danger, but loaded and fired, and swore, laughed and joked as though it
were a frolic. All ranks and sections were soon broken and after the
first volley every man loaded and fired at will. Sukey did not fire as
often as some of the others, but at every shot he went up to the
breastwork, looked over until he could see a redcoat, and then taking
aim blazed away. After each shot he paused to write in his book.
Lieutenant Ashby, who had had a brother killed at the River Raisin,
seemed frantic with rage and fiendish glee. He ran up and down the
line yelling:
"We'll pay you now for the River Raisin! We'll give you something to
remember the River Raisin!" When the British came up on the opposite
side of the breastwork, having no gun, he picked up a rifle barrel which
had been broken from the stock and threw it over at them.
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