Rebellion Record: a Diary of American Events: Documents and Narratives, Volume 10.
Frank Moore, Ed.

[418] of September, three days after the battle. Upon arriving at the terminus of the railroad, Catoosa (wood station), on the morning of the nineteenth, I rode forward to Ringgold for orders and to obtain wagons for my reserve ammunition, my own train being left with the division upon my departure for Rome. In a few hours I received orders from the General commanding to guard and convoy to the army a large ordnance train that would be formed and reported to me. This train was not reported until near ten o'clock P. M. With the train in charge, having procured a reliable guide in the person of Dr. Evans, of Ringgold, I reached Alexander's Bridge, at which point I was directed to cross Chickamauga Creek, if possible, about sunrise upon the morning of the twentieth, after a most fatiguing march during the entire night. I reported my arrival with the train to army headquarters, and, being relieved of further charge of it, was directed to march forward to a point about a mile distant from the bridge and there await further orders. After remaining at this position some twenty minutes, I was ordered, by a staff officer of the General commanding, to move forward, reporting to Lieutenant-General Polk, and join Major-General Walker's corps, being at the same time placed under the guidance of a staff officer of General Polk; he turned over the direction of my command to a second officer of the same staff, and he to a third officer. With considerable difficulty, and after marching for some time; I reached the division to which I was attached. Upon reporting my command, at this time numbering only nine hundred and eighty, aggregate, I was ordered by Major-General Walker to at once assume command of the division, consisting of Brigadier-General Ector's, Colonel Wilson's and my own brigade — the brigades of Ector and Wilson numbering about five hundred each, having suffered heavy losses in the engagement on the previous day. Lieutenant-General D. H. Hill was present when I reported to Generals Polk and Walker, and, as I was turning off to assume command of the division, requested Major-General Walker to send a brigade to the support of Major-General Breckinridge's division that was hotly engaged in our front and upon our left. Major-General Walker indicated one of General Liddell's brigades near by. General Hill asked for Gist's brigade, saying he had heard of that brigade. General Walker remarked that Gist's brigade is just coming up, and directed me to report to General Hill. I did so; the brigade being now under command of Colonel P. H. Colquitt, of the Fourth Georgia volunteers, he at once reported and received his instructions from General Hill. General Walker then directed me to report the other two brigades also to General Hill, which was promptly done. Colonel Colquitt having his instructions from General Hill, advanced his command in the direction indicated, being cautioned that he was to support General Breckinridge, two of whose brigades was reported in his immediate front. I was afterwards directed by General Hill to follow up and support the advance of the first brigade with the brigades of Ector and Wilson. Colonel Colquitt, upon advancing a few hundred yards in the woods before him, found himself in the presence of the enemy, strongly posted and massed behind a breastwork of logs, the troops reported in his front having retired before the galling fire of the enemy. The direction taken by Colquitt was also too far to the right, and the left regiment (Twenty-fourth South Carolina volunteers) only came directly upon the enemy's lines, which were so disposed by a salient as to rake the entire front of the brigade as it came forward, with a severe and destructive enfilading fire. The brigade could not have changed direction, as the position of the enemy was not discovered by Colonel Colquitt until the left was within a short distance of the breastworks; the right, however, changed front sufficiently to become directly engaged. Colonel Colquitt did not reconnoitre the position, as he was instructed that our troops were in his front. The enemy now poured forth a most destructive and well-aimed fire upon the entire line, and though it wavered and recoiled under the shock, yet by the exertions of the gallant Colquitt, nobly seconded by Colonels Stevens, Capers, and other brave and true officers, order was promptly restored, and for some twenty-five minutes the terrific fire was withstood and returned with marked effect by the gallant little band.

It was here that the lamented Colquitt was mortally wounded whilst cheering on his command; and, in quick succession, the iron-nerved Stevens and the intrepid Capers were seriously wounded and, among others who deserve to live in their country's memory, yielded up their life-blood. One third of the gallant command was either killed or wounded. Reeling under the storm of bullets, having lost all but two of their field officers, the brigade fell back, fighting, to the position from which they advanced. The brigade of Ector and Wilson kept up their fire from the-------. The enemy did not venture beyond their works, so severely had they suffered, until I was directed by General Hill to withdraw my men to the position they occupied before advancing, and reform my whole line in rear of the batteries, some few hundred yards distant from the enemy's position. This order was gallantly extended under a heavy fire, by Captain M. P. King, my Assistant Adjutant-General. Our lines being re-established, we remained in position until about four o'clock P. M., when a general advance was ordered.

Major A. M. Speer, with seven companies of the Fourth Georgia volunteers, having come up, my own brigade, now under command of Lieutenant-Colonel Napier, was increased to some one thousand four hundred men and officers. I was directed by Major-General Walker to support the advance of General Liddell's division. Upon reaching the Chattanooga road, General Liddell found his command exposed to a heavy fire on both flanks and fell back to my rear. The gallant