Rebellion Record: a Diary of American Events: Documents and Narratives, Volume 5.
Frank Moore, Ed.

General Pope's heavy batteries opened upon the enemy's intrenchments yesterday about ten o'clock A. M., and soon drove the rebels from their advanced batteries.

Major-Gen. W. S. Sherman established another heavy battery yesterday afternoon within one thousand yards of their works, and skirmishing parties advanced at day-break this morning.

Three of our divisions are already in the enemy's advance works, about three fourths of a mile from Corinth, which is in flames.

sir: On the nineteenth instant, I reported the operations of this division in taking from the enemy the position at Russell's. After driving the enemy away, we found it one of great natural strength, and proceeded to fortify it. Lines were laid off by the engineers, Captain Kossak, and a very excellent parapet was constructed by the men in a style that elicited the approval of Gen. Halleck. Men worked day and night, and as soon as it was done and the dense trees and undergrowth cleared away in front, to give range to our batteries, I directed our pickets to drive the enemy further back behind a large open field to our front and right. This was handsomely executed by the regular detail of picket-guard under the direction of the field-officer of the day, Lieut.-Col. Loudon, of the Seventieth Ohio.

We remained in that intrenched camp at Russell's until the night of the twenty-seventh, when I received from Major-Gen. Halleck an order by telegraph “to send a force the next day to drive the rebels from the house in our front on the Corinth road, to drive in their pickets as far as possible, and to make strong demonstration on Corinth itself,” authorizing me to call on any adjacent divisions for assistance; I asked General McClernand for one brigade and General Hurlbut for another to cooperate with two brigades of my own division. Col. John A. Logan's brigade of Gen. Judah's division of McClernand's reserve corps, and General Veatch's brigade of Hurlbut's division were placed subject to my orders, and took part with my own division in the operations of the two following days, and I now thank the officers and men of these brigades for the zeal and enthusiasm they manifested, and the alacrity they displayed in the execution of every order given.

The house referred to by Gen. Halleck was a double log building, standing on a high ridge on the upper or southern end of the large field before referred to as the one to which we had ad/un>vanced our pickets. The enemy had taken out the chinks and removed the roof, making it an excellent block-house from which, with perfect security, he could annoy our pickets. The large field was perfectly overlooked by this house, as well as by the ridge along its southern line of defence, which was covered by a dense grove of heavy oaks and underbrush. The main Corinth road runs along the eastern fence, whilst the field itself, about three hundred yards wide by about five hundred yards long, extended far to the right into the low land of Phillips's Creek, so densely wooded as to be impassable to troops or artillery. On the eastern side of the field the woods were more open. The enemy could be seen at all times in and about the house and the ridge beyond, and our pickets could not show themselves on our side of the field without attracting a shot.

The problem was to clear the house and ridge of the enemy with as little loss as possible. To accomplish this, I ordered General J. W. Denver, with his brigade (Third) and the Morton battery of four guns to march in perfect silence from our lines at eight A. M., keeping well under cover as he approached the field; Gen. Morgan L. Smith's brigade, (First,) with Barrett's and Waterhouse's batteries, to move along the main road, keeping his force well masked in the woods to the left; Brig.-Gen. Veatch's brigade to move from Gen. Hurlbut's lines through the woods on the left of and connecting with General M. L. Smith's, and Gen. John A. Logan's brigade to move down to Bowie Hill Cut of the Mobile and Ohio Railroad, and thence forward to the left, so as to connect with Gen. Denver's brigade on the extreme right; all to march at eight A. M., with skirmishers well to the front, to keep well concealed, and, at a signal, to rush quickly on to the ridge, thus avoiding as much as possible the danger of crossing the open field exposed to the fire of a concealed enemy. It was impossible for me before-hand to ascertain the force of the enemy, and nothing is more embarrassing than to make dispositions against a concealed foe, occupying, as this was, a strong natural position. I then supposed and still think, this position was held by a small brigade of the enemy.

My preliminary arrangements having thus been made, two twenty-pound Parrot rifle-guns of Silfversparre's battery, under the immediate supervision of Major Taylor, Chief of Artillery, were moved silently through the forest to a point behind a hill, from the top of which could be seen the house and ground to be contested. The guns were unlimbered, loaded with shell and moved by hand to the crest. At the proper time I gave the order to Major Taylor to commence firing and demolish the house, or render it decidedly uncomfortable to its occupants. About a dozen shells well directed soon accomplished this ; then designating a single shot of the twenty-pound Parrott gun of Silfversparre as a signal for the brigades to advance, I waited till all were in position, and ordered the signal, when the troops