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took up his pontoons behind him, so that the laggards, who were toddling leisurely behind, as well as those who really had no intention of catching up till their rations were out, were all caught on the north side.
General Warren sent back about 100 cavalry to sweep the whole road and bring the. men back to the lines: and after dark, they arrived, looking, in the dusk, like a large brigade.
Schuyler, the Provost-Marshal, put them in ranks, had them sorted and counted, and there proved to be 856!
Their way was not made soft to them.
They were marched three miles more, making twenty in all, and were then put out on picket in a right frosty night.
This seems a large number, and it is more than it ought to be, a great deal; but, in reality it only made four and a half men out of every 100 in Warren's force.
That they were able to go on is proved by the fact that they were able to come back, though some did limp merrily, and others were so stiff that, when once down, they could scarcely get up. A force of a few hundred cavalry was sent in the afternoon down the Vaughan road to reconnoitre, and see if they could see that any troops were moving against our rear, or against Warren.
They got at dusk to Hatcher's Run, where the opposite bank was held by the enemy in a breastwork; and, after losing half a dozen men, our cavalry came back.
December 9, 1864
Miles's division of the 2d Corps was sent to aid the cavalry in forcing Hatcher's Run.
They marched out early and found several regiments holding the crossing; a severe skirmish followed; our poor men went into the icy water up to their armpits and drove off the Rebels, though not without some loss to us. I know the cavalry Lieutenant, whom I saw bringing in all those stragglers last night, 