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the fifth strongly-intrenched position evacuated.
Monday, June sixth, my division, with the rest of the corps, moved eastward to the neighborhood of Mount Morris Church. June seventh, eighth and ninth, the division remained in camp.
June tenth, the division moved with the corps southward, and took position in front of Pine-Top Knob.
June eleventh, twelfth, thirteenth and fourteenth, remained in this position, constantly skirmishing, with a few casualties daily.
Tuesday night, June fourteenth, the enemy evacuated Pine-Top Knob, returning to his intrenched lines half a mile south of it. Wednesday, June fifteenth, the Second division of the corps was ordered to assault the enemy's works, and my division was ordered to support it. However, the assault was not made, and the corps remained in the position of Wednesday afternoon throughout Thursday, June sixteenth, carrying on the usual skirmishing with the enemy.
Thursday night the enemy evacuated his lines, crossed Muddy creek, and swung back toward Kenesaw Mountain.
Thus was he forced from his sixth strongly-intrenched position.
Early on Friday morning the Fourth corps followed up the enemy, my division leading.
The day was spent in driving the enemy's skirmishers and outposts across Muddy creek. Saturday, June eighteenth, was spent in heavy skirmishing.
Saturday night the enemy evacuated his seventh intrenched position, and retired to his works around Kenesaw Mountain. Sunday morning the pursuit was renewed, and the enemy pressed in on his works.
Here the division remained from Sunday, June nineteenth, to Sunday, July third.
Sharp skirmishing was kept up during the whole of this time, and the period was also enlivened with some brilliant affairs and other more serious operations.
Some of these affairs are worthy of special mention.
Late Monday afternoon, June twentieth, a portion of the First brigade, First division, lost an important position which it had gained earlier in the day. At noon on the following day the corps commander arranged an attack, embracing a part of the First brigade (the Fifteenth and Forty-ninth Ohio), of my division, and a part of the First brigade of the First division.
The Fifteenth Ohio dashed gallantly forward, carried the hill which had been lost, and intrenched itself on it under a heavy fire of the enemy; while the Forty-ninth Ohio, moving further to the right, carried and intrenched another position of importance still further in advance.
This brilliant success cost the regiments quite heavily; but it was useful in enabling us to swing up our lines to the right, and circumscribing the enemy to a narrower limit of action.
The remainder of the week was passed in pressing the enemy's outposts on his main lines; affairs which, estimated by their casualties, rose to the dignity of battles.
On the twenty-seventh of June, the Second division of the Fourth corps was ordered to assault the enemy's intrenchments, and two brigades of my division were ordered to be in readiness to support the assaulting column, and follow up any success that might be gained.
Unfortunately the attack was not successful, and as a consequence no part of my division was engaged.
Constant skirmishing wore away the second week in front of Kenesaw Mountain, and brought us to Saturday night, July second.
On that night the enemy evacuated his position around Kenesaw Mountain, being the eighth strong line of works abandoned, and retreated south of Marietta.
Sunday morning, July third, saw a renewal of the pursuit.
Passing through Marietta, the enemy was found again strongly intrenched some five miles south of. the town.
July fourth was passed in the usual skirmishing with the enemy, and in driving his pickets with our skirmishers.
During the night of the fourth, the enemy abandoned his ninth line of works, and retreated toward the Chattahoochee river.
Pursuit was made early in the morning of the fifth, my division leading the Fourth corps, and such was the vigor of the pursuit on the road we followed, that the portion of the enemy retreating by this road was driven across the river, and so closely followed that he was unable to take up or destroy his pontoon-bridge.
He had cut it loose from its moorings on the north side, but was unable to cut it loose on the southern side.
Being under the guns of our skirmishers, the enemy was not able subsequently to get possession of the bridge.
Although the enemy had been driven across the river in front of the Fourth corps on the fifth of July, he remained strongly intrenched lower down the river, on the north side, in front of other portions of our troops, till Saturday night, July ninth.
Yielding that night his tenth intrenched position, the remainder of his force passed to the south side of the river.
Tuesday, July twelfth, my division crossed the river at Pace's Ferry.
Having reached the south side of the river, it remained quietly in camp, enjoying much-needed rest, till Sunday, July seventeenth.
On that day it performed a critical and dangerous movement, in marching down the river three miles from its supports (with a heavy force of the enemy within two and a half miles of it, having good roads to travel on), to cover the laying down of a bridge and the passage of the Fourteenth corps.
Happily the whole operation was a success.
Late in the afternoon the division returned to its camp, three miles up the river.
Monday, July eighteenth, the advance was resumed, and my division encamped for the night with the corps at Buckhead.
Tuesday, July nineteenth, I was ordered to make a reconnoissance with two brigades of my division to Peach-tree creek.
Taking the First and Third brigades, I pushed rapidly to the creek, driving in the light parties of the enemy.
The opposition was inconsiderable and on approaching the stream it was found the enemy had previously burned the bridge, which must have <*>n a considerable structure.
The enemy was
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