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there repairing the railway between New Berne and Goldsboroa, and to establish a depot of supplies at
Kinston.
Ruger's division of the Twenty-third Corps was sent from
Fort Fisher to re-enforce him.
Palmer was not ready to advance so soon as desired, and
General Cox was sent from
Wilmington to take the command, leaving his own division in charge of
Brigadier-General Reilly.
He arrived at New Berne on the 6th of March,
and immediately moved the troops, reaching Wise's Forks, a mile and a half below
Southwest Creek, on the 8th, where he was joined by
General Schofield the same day.
1 Meanwhile,
Couch's division had arrived at
Wilmington, and, with
Cox's, was ordered to march across the country from that city to
Kinston.
Lack of transportation delayed their departure until the 6th,
when they proceeded parallel with March.
the coast to avoid
Holly Shelter Swamp, and then by way of
Onslow and Richlands.
Behind
Southwest Creek lay
Hoke's division, with a small body of reserves, ready to dispute the passage of
Schofield's troops.
The march in that direction, through swamps made miry by recent rains, had been very fatiguing, but the troops were in good spirits; and when the Fifteenth Connecticut and Twenty-seventh Massachusetts were ordered forward, under
Colonel Upham, to seize the crossing of the creek on the
Dover road, they marched with alacrity.
Hoke watched the movement keenly.
He had just been re-enforced by a remnant of
Hood's army, under
Cheatham, and feeling strong, he sent a force, under cover of the tangled swamp, around
Upham's flank, to fall upon his rear and surprise him. This was done, and the Nationals were routed, with a loss of seven hundred men made prisoners.
Elated by this success,
Hoke advanced a larger force, and attempted to wedge it in between, and separate, the divisions of
Generals Palmer and
Carter, respectively, holding the railway and the
Dover road.
The
Nationals were pressed back, but the timely arrival of
Ruger's division interfered with
Hoke's operations.
The result was a moderate battle, with slight loss — a conflict not much more severe than
Savage's Twelfth New York Cavalry had engaged in on their march out from New Berne on the
Trent road.
Schofield perceived that
Hoke's force was fully equal to his own, and he ordered
Cox to form an intrenched line, stand on the defensive, and wait for the arrival of
Couch with his own and
Cox's division, then moving on from Richlands.
Cox's line was heavily pressed by
Hoke, and on the 10th,
being advised of the approach of
Couch, and having been further re-enforced, he struck its left and center a severe blow, the chief weight of it falling upon
Ruger's division.
The assailed struck back with such force, that the
Confederates were repulsed with severe loss.
Schofield reported his own loss at three hundred men, and that of
Hoke at fifteen hundred.
