Gladden mortally wounded. The brigade took position, intrenching on the west of the city, and was engaged in continual skirmishing during the remainder of the siege. An attack was made upon them August 5th, and General Lee reported that the skirmishers of Gibson's brigade permitted half of their number to be killed, wounded or captured before the others would leave their position.

Finally Sherman secretly withdrew from his lines and was at Jonesboro, essential to the railroad communication of Atlanta, before Hood was fully persuaded of his intentions. Gibson's brigade, sent to Jonesboro with Lee, put his men in line of battle August 31st, and was ordered to the attack upon the enemy who had had time to intrench. My line, said Gibson, moved forward with great enthusiasm and went beyond the fence into the thicket in which the enemy's rife-pits were, when a few men, halting at the fence and lodging in the skirmish pits, began to fire, and soon the whole line fired, halted and finally gave way. A few of the men got up to the works of the enemy and some inside of them, when they found the enemy being reinforced while their own commands were retiring, and they had consequently to abandon the posts they had won. I never saw a more gallant charge or one that so fully promised success. The officers and men all behaved with great intrepidity in charging through an open field under a very heavy and well-directed fire. With noble spirit the men reformed, and advanced again to the hopeless slaughter. In fifteen minutes, in the second charge, half the command that was left fell killed or wounded. Conspicuous was Col. J. C. Lewis, who fell mortally wounded at the head of his regiment, within a few paces of the enemy. Others who fell within arm's reach of the trenches were Capt. S. Aycock, Capt. R. P. Oliver, Lieut. T. J. Scott and Lieut. Morgan Edwards. The Fourth, under Colonel Hunter, made a gallant assault, striking the most important part of the line, but they had not the strength alone to break it.