Comte de Paris, History of the Civil War in America. Vol. 3.
Henry Coppee , LL.D., Ed.

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[387] garrison, which was not expecting such an attack, and drove off the Federal gunboats guarding the river, which at this point separates the two towns. During the night three regiments of dismounted Texan cavalry crossed the Atchafalaya in boats they had found in the Bayou Teche, and posted themselves in the vicinity of the Federal works behind a canal which had protected their landing. In the mean time, three hundred more mounted Texans got into small boats, whose oars were muffled that their strokes might not be heard on board any Federal vessels that should happen to be on the lake. Launching boldly upon its waters in these frail boats, they traversed it for a distance of nearly thirteen miles to go to the relief of Major, east of Brashear City. In the morning they landed in the midst of marshes filled with dwarfish palm trees, inhabited by alligators, and considered by the Federals as impassable. A few hours later they suddenly debouched upon the mainland, and their appearance threw the defenders of Brashear City into great confusion. The other troops of Taylor, who had crossed the Atchafalaya the day before, had only to enter the place to take possession of it. It was at this moment that Major, whose cannon had been the signal of attack across the marshes, opened fire upon the fort of Bayou Boeuf. This work immediately surrendered, and in the evening Taylor's small army was united in Brashear City. It was the mistress of the whole of West Louisiana. The key of this province had fallen into its hands, with storehouses whose value was estimated at more than two millions of dollars. During this brief campaign it had captured about twenty pieces of artillery, nearly eighteen hundred soldiers of the enemy—most of whom, it is true, were either sick or convalescent—and more than five thousand negroes, who were remanded into slavery.

Stickney had fallen back upon New Orleans, the garrison of which did not number more than seven hundred men. Taylor did not venture to follow him: he knew that he would find Farragut's fleet alongside of the levees of this great city. But, encouraged by his success, he sent out Green's and Major's brigades to attack Donaldsonville, which the latter had not dared to approach a few days previously with his scanty troops. These two brigades of cavalry numbered nearly three thousand men.