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

[422] on the hill in the neighborhood of Cloud's house; another within three hundred yards of the right of my line, concealed in a clump of bushes (both these on the right): and one to the left of Govan, near the Chattanooga road. Some of our pieces were turned upon the batteries to the right, and used to the best advantage under the circumstances, but neither was silenced. After enduring a very heavy fire for ten or fifteen minutes from these three batteries, with no enemy to be seen in front, the brigade to my left gave way, and my own soon followed, falling back in confusion under a furious cannonade. The enemy, from the woods to the right, soon appeared and occupied the road in time to cut off and capture most of the skirmishers, with several of their officers, who covered my front in the field. Colonel J. J. Scales, commanding Thirtieth Mississippi regiment, was captured here, and Lieutenant-Colonel Jones, Twenty-seventh Mississippi regiment, then acting as field officer of the day, was wounded. He, however, returned to duty next morning. With the three remaining field officers (and one of them slightly wounded, but still on duty) out of the ten with whom I had gone into action on Saturday morning, my broken line was promptly re-formed and moved forward. The enemy had withdrawn before I again reached the Chattanooga road, and I was ordered by the Brigadier-General commanding, soon after, to take position in a field to the right of Govan's brigade, which was posted near McDonald's house and east of the Chattanooga read, and to construct such temporary protections for the men as could be made of rails, etc., in front of my lines. Just after I got into the field with my command, I was directed by the Brigadier-General commanding to move it back into the woods, in rear of Colonel Govan; two shells, to which the enemy replied from a battery in front, having been thrown directly over my line from some battery in my rear, the first one exploding just over the Twenty-fourth Mississippi regiment and severely wounding a man of that command.

The next day the whole corps moved toward Chattanooga by the main road, it having been ascertained that the enemy had retired during the night. In this battle, out of ten field officers, one hundred and thirty-four company officers, and sixteen hundred and eighty-three enlisted men, which I carried in, I lost seven hundred and five, of whom sixty-nine were killed and twelve have since died from their wounds. A full report of casualties is herewith submitted.

To all of my regimental commanders, and to Captain Fowler, of Fowler's battery, I am indebted for their cordial support, and a gallant, faithful, and skilful discharge of duty at all times during the battle, as I am to the officers and men of their commands, for the coolness, daring and persistence (except in a very few instances) which marked their action throughout all the engagements. For individual instances of gallantry, etc., for a more perfect understanding of details, I respectfully refer to the reports of regimental and battery commanders, herewith submitted. To the several members of my staff my thanks are due for the valuable aid I received at their hands, by means of their prompt attention to all their duties, and their gallant bearing under all circumstances.

Very respectfully, your obedient servant,

Major: I have the honor to submit this, my report of the part taken by this brigade in the late battle of Chickamauga and on the two days preceding it:

On the morning of the eighteenth September (having left our encapment near Lafayette the previous evening), when about a mile and a half from Lee and Gordon's Mill, on Chickamauga Creek — the enemy opening upon our column whilst on the march, from a battery on the opposite side — we were ordered to form a line of battle fronting the enemy's position ,which threw my command, the right resting on the road, obliquely across an open field, our front being covered by skirmishers deployed from each regiment under the command of Major Butler, of the Twenty-eighth Alabama regiment. Here the men were ordered to lie down, in order to avoid the fire of the enemy's artillery, which had begun to open upon our lines, causing a loss of six men in the Tenth and Nineteenth South Carolina regiments. This position was afterwards changed, in order to bring our right nearer to General Deas' left, whose brigade extended beyond me to the right. Bivouacking near the road that night, we again occupied a position near the same place, but with the lines advanced and the left thrown forward some three or four hundred yards on the following morning, the enemy's artillery occasionally throwing a few shots in our neighborhood, but without effect. Our skirmishers kept up a steady fire with those of the enemy opposing them, suffering a small loss on their own part.

In the afternoon of this day (September nineteenth) we received orders, through the division commander, to move with the division to join the main body of the army, a portion of which had become engaged, the battle having commenced. Moving by the right flank, and following the brigade of General Deas, we crossed the Chickamauga at Hunt's Ford, wading to the west bank. Continuing to move on for a distance of about two miles, we arrived upon the ground in the neighborhood of which Hood's division had been engaged during the afternoon. It was understood that we were to support this division. The brigade was then formed in line, with that of General Deas upon the