1850 American Gold Tycoon.

Chapter 695: Strengthening McClellan

There is a huge gap in equipment between the Maine Brigade and the European mercenary regiment. The standard weapons of the Maine Brigade are mainly old M1841 and M1842 rifles, while the standard weapons of the First Mercenary Regiment are mainly M1851 and British Enfield rifles.

Influenced by weapon performance and commanders' tactical concepts, there are relatively large differences in the formations between the two forces.

The Maine Brigade's formation was dense, while the First Mercenary Regiment's formation was even more sparse than that of the arquebus era.

Therefore, although both were advancing under the hail of bullets from the Western Army, the Maine Brigade suffered much higher casualties than the First Mercenary Regiment.

"My God! What kind of weapons do the Westerners use? They can have such a high hit rate at a distance of 500 yards (457 meters)!"

Ames was shocked to see his own soldiers being knocked down one after another.

The effective range of the mainstream standard rifles currently equipped by the Northern Federal Army is generally around 200 yards (about 183 meters), and the effective range of rifled guns can reach 300 yards.

It seemed incredible to Ames that the Western Army's rifles could achieve such a high hit rate at a distance of about 500 yards.

Judging from the gunshots, the Western Army’s rifles not only had a long range and high accuracy, but also had an incredibly fast firing rate.

Just as Ames was impressed by the advanced rifles of the Western Army, Zhang Zhaoyu was very dissatisfied with the performance of these soldiers from western Mexico.

It is indeed too bullying to compare them with the regular army of the Spanish Army, but compared with the Jinshan Militia Brigade, Sacramento Militia Brigade, and Los Angeles Militia Brigade, which are also militias, the Mexican Militia Brigade's marksmanship is not a little bit worse, and its firing rate is much slower.

The enemy was worthy of being the elite of the Northern Federal Army. They were able to push the formation forward more than 200 meters without collapsing despite suffering considerable casualties.

"Skip line! Spread out!"

Seeing that the casualties were too heavy, the Northern Army commander ordered the soldiers to keep a larger distance from each other in order to reduce casualties.

The Union infantry of the First Mercenary Regiment raised their guns and opened fire when they were about 250 meters away from the Western Army's position, while the infantry of the Maine Brigade continued to advance to the beat of drums.

As the Union infantry began to fight back, the Western Army began to suffer casualties.

Fortunately, as the defending side, most of the Western troops had cover to protect themselves. Those without cover had to shoot in a squatting or prone position, leaving a small area of ​​their bodies exposed to bullets.

Therefore, although there were casualties, they were within an acceptable range.

Even so, the formation of the Mexican militia brigade began to loosen. A few veteran soldiers from the former Mexican government army had even made plans to escape in the face of the enemy. They would occasionally glance at the officers closest to them to observe their expressions.

Soon, the Union Army of the Maine Brigade also began to fire at the Western Army positions, and the infantry casualties of the Mexican militia brigade increased sharply.

Looking at the Northern Army columns getting closer and closer behind the white smoke and the growing sense of oppression, some soldiers finally had a mental breakdown and subconsciously fled to the rear.

The officers who realized that something was wrong shot dozens of deserters before they could stabilize the situation.

Looking at the Yankee infantry getting closer and closer to their positions, Hawke and Zhang Zhaoyu both knew that it was impossible to rely on these Mexican militiamen to fight with bayonets to repel the elite Yankee infantry.

In desperation, both of them thought of the artillery battalion. The artillery battalion was a regular army and its ability to withstand pressure was much stronger than those Mexican militia.

The two men asked the artillery battalion to push up the field guns to fire shotguns. The 6-pound Sacramento gun was not very heavy, with a total weight of only 1100 kilograms including the frame and the gun body. In addition, the artillery position was right behind the infantry, so soon the 21 usable guns were pushed up by the artillerymen.

By the time the artillerymen pushed their guns up, the Northern Army at the front was only thirty or forty meters away from the Western Army's position.

At this distance, soldiers with good eyesight could even see the ferocious and vicious faces of the Yankee soldiers.

"Charge! Charge!"

In the last thirty or forty meters, the Union infantrymen ran forward like crazy, holding their gleaming bayonets and howling.

This charge directly broke the courage of the ordinary infantry. For a moment, more than a quarter of the Western Army's infantry retreated uncontrollably, and more and more soldiers retreated. The Western Army's defense line was already on the verge of collapse.

If only a small number of soldiers fled, the Western Army officers would still be able to deter and control the situation by shooting the deserters.

But this measure was of no avail as more than a quarter of the infantry fled.

At the critical moment, it was the artillerymen from the regular army who kept their composure and were able to withstand the pressure.

The artillery battalion's logistics personnel leaned against the stone wall and fired methodically at the nearby Yankee infantry. Every time they pulled the trigger, a blue-clad Yankee fell.

"put!"

The Western Army's gunners waited until the Union soldiers were almost close before they pulled the fuse.

Accompanied by 21 loud bangs, countless tiny metal balls and iron sand poured towards the Northern Army like raindrops, directly knocking down a large number of Northern Army soldiers who were rushing in the front.

The casualties of the Union Army in the front row were already heavy. This round of shotgun fire from the artillery battalion directly destroyed the morale of the Union Army in the front row. The Union Army in the front row also fled backwards uncontrollably. Some panicked Union soldiers even disrupted the ranks of friendly troops in the rear that had not yet collapsed.

Seeing the Northern Army's disintegration, the Western Army's morale improved, and the infantry still in the position continued to fire to cover the artillery reloading. Some of the scattered soldiers also returned to the position in twos and threes.

The Northern Army gradually retreated, and the tense Hawke and Zhang Zhaoyu finally felt relieved and breathed a sigh of relief.

Although the process was extremely dangerous, the artillery battalion finally managed to withstand the Yankee attack thanks to its outstanding performance, and the result was still good.

The Western Army that survived the disaster cheered like boiling water, and the infantry looked at the artillery with eyes full of gratitude and admiration.

The Northern Army, which had wanted to defeat the Western Army in one fell swoop, became furious and humiliated. In a fit of rage, it pulled out its artillery and bombarded the Western Army's positions to vent its anger.

The Northern Army deployed more than two regiments of troops in the first charge, suffering at least three to four hundred casualties. It would definitely take some time to organize the next round of attack.

Taking advantage of this gap, the Western Army soldiers carried the wounded to the field hospital in the rear and handed them over to military doctors for treatment. Although it was called a field hospital, it was actually just five medical tents.

On the night of arriving in Norton Town, Zhang Zhaoyu asked the signalman to quickly report the situation in the area to Pratt. Liang Shaoyu, who was stationed in Pratt, soon received the news.

The Union Army and the New Mexico Militia Brigade arrived at Norton Town very close to each other. Liang Shaoyu judged that the two armies were very likely to have encountered each other.

If this Northern Army detachment only had one brigade, Liang Shaoyu believed that the Mexican militia brigade plus an artillery battalion could still cope with it.

But the intelligence sent back clearly showed that this Union detachment had at least two brigades, accompanied by a large number of cavalry artillery, which was not something Hawke and his men could handle.

This matter was of great importance, Liang Shaoyu did not dare to make the decision on his own. He immediately called Liang Yao and asked Liang Yao to make the decision.

Liang Yao attached great importance to this Union Army detachment in northern Kansas, so he ordered the 103nd and 2rd Regiments of the 3rd Brigade to quickly move closer to the Mexican Militia Brigade and join up with them as soon as possible. At the same time, he ordered Liang Shaoyu to send two Guangxi regiments from Pratt's camp on horseback to support the Mexican Brigade.

The main force of the Western Army made relatively smooth progress in the Omaha direction. In the past few days, 23 Union Army strongholds and artillery positions in the western suburbs of Omaha were eliminated, further compressing the Union Army's space for activities.

South of Omaha, under the cover of the heavy artillery battalion, the Western Army quickly cleared the Platte Channel, and the Platte Fleet drove straight in and controlled the Missouri Channel. The 101nd Infantry Regiment of the 2st Brigade immediately crossed the Missouri River and quickly occupied Glenwood, the largest town southeast of Omaha, successfully gaining a foothold on the east bank of the Missouri River.

The Western Army hoped to have a large-scale field battle with the main force of the Union Army in Omaha to quickly decide the outcome.

McClellan also saw through the Western Army's intentions. No matter how the Western Army provoked and humiliated the Union Army and himself, McClellan remained like a turtle, hiding in the city of Omaha and refusing to come out.

Faced with the unmovable McClellan, the Western Army's tactic was to destroy the logistics and transportation lines of the main force of the Northern Army in Omaha, forcing McClellan to leave the city for a decisive battle.

After gaining a firm foothold on the east bank of the Missouri River, the 1st Cavalry crossed the river to destroy the Des Moines to Omaha railroad.

The move has achieved quite significant results. For a whole week, no train loaded with fresh food has entered the Omaha train station.

Before the railway was destroyed, Union soldiers in Omaha could eat fresh food every now and then and had a stable supply of fresh fruits and vegetables.

Now only officers could enjoy luxurious fresh food, while ordinary soldiers could only survive on inferior canned food, pickles, and bread and potatoes.

Union soldiers in Omaha complained about the increasingly poor food.

If they were the Qing soldiers on the other side of the ocean, they would be given enough refined flour every day, two cans of meat, salt and sugar, and a fixed amount of coffee, tea and tobacco. They would treat the officials above them as their own fathers and fight to the death with the Taiping rebels in Tianjing City without hesitation.

But this is America, and the living standards of small rural landlords in the Qing Dynasty during this period were not necessarily higher than those of ordinary Americans.

American soldiers, especially those of the Northern Army, have a low tolerance for logistics, even though their logistics standards on paper and in actual implementation are higher and better than those of most European countries.

"I think Hawke, Zhang Zhaoyu and others have already come into contact with this detachment of the Northerners." Elvis had a bad feeling.

"We didn't pay enough attention to this Union detachment before the war," Kruger was very upset. "Even if we had sent out the California militia brigade, the situation would have been better than it is now."

"Two brigades, more than 7,000 people, accompanied by organized cavalry and artillery units. Such troops are no longer a small division." Sartre frowned, and at the same time he did not forget to blame the intelligence agencies and reconnaissance units.

"Are our intelligence units and scouts blind? They let an entire brigade of enemy troops slip through!"

Pinkerton remained silent. He had to admit his mistakes and was scolded. He had nothing to say. It was indeed his dereliction of duty.

At the same time, he could also understand Sartre's feelings. Sartre was the military chief of the artillery brigade, and Hawke had to take away an artillery battalion before leaving.

If the Mexican militia brigade had now encountered two brigades of elite Northern Army troops, the artillery battalion that was providing fire support would be in great danger.

"Should we send more troops? I'm afraid these troops can't deal with the two elite brigades of the Yankees."

Evans was somewhat worried, and at the same time he could not trust the two Guangxi regiments that had never participated in the North American war.

Kruger, who personally participated in the training of Guangxi soldiers, has more confidence in the two Guangxi regiments.

Kruger believes that Guangxi may not be comparable to regular troops, but its level should be comparable to that of the California militia. As for the true level, it can only be tested through actual combat.

"The two federal brigades in northern Kansas do not have a safe and stable logistical channel. They are marching on foot, and they can still replenish their food, clothing and daily necessities by looting villages and towns, but the amount of ammunition they can carry is limited. I think their ammunition can only support a short-term large-scale battle at most."

Although this unexpected bad news made Liang Yao feel a little nervous, he quickly calmed down and made a judgment after analysis.

"We don't need to annihilate or defeat them. As long as our large forces encounter them and use up their ammunition, even if they enter the Pratt area, they won't be able to cause much trouble."

Although Liang Yao said this, he still hoped in his heart that his troops could defeat or even annihilate this Northern Army force that had bypassed the rear of the main force of the Western Army.

Everyone thought about it and felt that what Liang Yao said made sense, and they gradually let go of their worries.

Moreover, suddenly dividing troops during wartime is a taboo in military strategy, so the idea of ​​sending additional troops to northern Kansas was no longer mentioned.

They did not have high expectations for the Mexican militia brigade, and it was normal that they could not defeat two elite volunteer brigades from the north.

But if the Mexican militia brigade, the two Guangxi regiments, and the two infantry regiments of the 103rd Brigade could unite their forces, they would still have a relatively good chance of winning.

"Although we have cut off the railway from Des Moines to Omaha, the supplies stored in Omaha are enough to sustain the garrison for four to five months. Given McClellan's character, he will not move unless these supplies are used up."

After discussing the issue of the Northern Army's detachment, Kruger shifted the topic to the most critical Omaha battlefield.

"Four or five months is too long. We can't wait."

Elvis and Kruger had differences in other aspects, but on this issue, his views were consistent with Kruger's. Both advocated a decisive battle with the Northern Army to decide the outcome quickly.

The longer the time goes, the more unfavorable the war situation will be for them.

"Can we put pressure on McClellan from other aspects to force him to send troops to fight us?"

Sartre held his chin and spoke thoughtfully.

"There are only two forces that can make McClellan abandon his carefully constructed fortifications in Omaha and take the initiative to crawl out of the trenches to fight us."

"Lincoln and Congress?" Elvis quickly guessed the two forces.

"Lincoln has a clearer understanding of the situation. McClellan has not yet sent troops to fight us, and he must have Lincoln's support behind him. The only force we can use is the Northern Federal Congress. We must find a way to let the Northern Federal Congress strengthen McClellan." Elvis analyzed.

"We can bribe the representatives of the Northern Federation Congress, but it is difficult to bribe the senators. Senators are not short of money, and they have higher pursuits." Sartre frowned.

"But the weight of the congressmen is not enough. Lincoln is not Fillmore. He is a very strong president with a very clear position. He can control the House of Representatives and will not compromise with the House of Representatives. Lincoln may not be able to control the Senate, but we cannot buy off the senators."

"We might as well use this money to support our friends in the south." Liang Yao said, pointing to Bull Creek on the map.

"The Confederate and Union armies are fighting fiercely at Bull Run. According to intelligence reports, the Confederate army is currently in the upper hand and the Union army is already losing. The worse the Union army loses at Bull Run, the greater the pressure from Congress and Lincoln will be, and their pressure will eventually be transmitted to McClellan."

The countdown to the Union Army's complete defeat at Bull Run has begun. He cannot afford to wait four or five months, but he can still wait for half a month.

As long as the Northern Army on the Eastern Front collapses, Liang Yao is not worried that McClellan, this turtle, will not move.

What he is more concerned about now is whether Robert Lee can directly enter Washington this time. If the Confederate Army can enter Washington, it will be a good show to watch.

If Robert Lee could capture Washington, throwing the Lincoln government and the Northern Army into chaos, not to mention Omaha, he would dare to fight all the way to Illinois, Lincoln's birthplace.

On the contrary, if Robert Lee was not strong enough and failed to capture Washington, his strategy would have to be more conservative accordingly.

(End of this chapter)