stoutly held at the time by Hampton with his Legion, which had made a stand there after having previously been as far forward as the turnpike, where Lieutenant-Colonel Johnson, an officer of brilliant promise, was killed, and other severe losses were sustained.

Before our arrival upon the scene General Jackson had moved forward with his brigade of five Virginia regiments from his position in reserve, and had judiciously taken post below the brim of the plateau, nearly east of the Henry house, and to the left of the ravine and woods occupied by the mingled remnants of Bee's Bartow's, and Evans' commands, with Imboden's battery and two of Stanard's pieces placed so as to play upon the on-coming enemy, supported in the immediate rear by Colonel J. F. Preston's and Lieutenant-Colonel Echols' regiments, on the right by Harper's, and on the left by Allen's and Cummings' regiments.

As soon as General Johnston and myself reached the field we were occupied with the reorganization of the heroic troops, whose previous stand, with scarce a parallel, has nothing more valiant in all the pages of history, and whose losses fitly tell why at length their ranks had lost their cohesion.

It was now that General Johnston impressively and gallantly charged to the front, with the colors of the Fourth Alabama Regiment by his side, all the field officers of the regiment having been previously disabled. Shortly afterwards I placed S. R. Gist, adjutant and inspector general of South Carolina, a volunteer aide of General Bee, in command of this regiment, and who led it again to the front as became its previous behavior, and remained with it for the rest of the day.

As soon as we had thus rallied and disposed our forces, I urged General Johnston to leave the immediate conduct of the field to me, while he, repairing to Portici, the Lewis house, should urge re-enforcements forward. At first he was unwilling, but reminded that one of us must do so, and that properly it was his place, he reluctantly, but fortunately, complied; fortunately, because from that position, by his energy and sagacity, his keen perception and anticipation of my needs, he so directed the reserves as to insure the success of the day.

As General Johnston departed for Portici, Colonel Bartow reported to me with the remains of the Seventh Georgia Volunteers, Gartrell's which I ordered him to post on the left of Jackson's line in the edge of the belt of pines bordering the southeastern rim of the plateau, on which the battle was now to rage so long and so fiercely.

Colonel William Smith's battalion of the Forty-ninth Virginia Volunteers, having also come up by my orders, I placed it on the left of Gartrell's, as my extreme left at the time. Repairing then to the right, I placed Hampton's Legion, which had suffered greatly, on that flank somewhat to the rear of Harper's regiment, and also the seven companies of the Eighth (Huton's) Virginia Regiment, which, detached from Cocke's brigade by my orders and those of General Johnston, had opportunely reached the ground. These, with Harper's regiment, constituted a reserve to protect our right flank from an advance of the enemy from the quarter of the stone bridge, and served as a support for the line of battle, which was formed on the right by Bee's and Evans' commands, in the center by four regiments of Jackson's brigade, with Imboden's four 6-pounders, Walton's five guns (two rifled), two guns (one piece rifled) of Stanard's, and two 6-pounders of Rogers' batteries, the latter under Lieutenant Heaton, and on the left by Gartrell's reduced ranks and Colonel Smith's battalion, subsequently re-enforced, Falkner's Second Mississippi Regiment, and by another regiment of the Army of the