went to the piece, under the enemy's fire, cut the traces of the dead horse, ordered two men near by to assist him, and drove it away, preventing its capture by the enemy.

Lieutenant. William A. Patton, Company C, while at his post and encouraging his men to their duty, fell, facing the foe. His untimely fate is deeply deplored.

Respectfully,

J. W. HARRIS,

Lieutenant. Col., Commanding Sixteenth Regiment Alabama Vols.

No. 217 Report of Col. W. K. Patterson, Eighth Arkansas Infantry.

HDQRS. EIGHTH REGIMENT ARKANSAS VOLUNTEERS, Near Corinth, Miss., April 9, 1862.

SIR: I have the honor to submit the following report of the action of the regiment under my command in the battles of the 6th and 7th instant:

The line of battle was formed and we moved forward toward the enemy, already engaged in a sharp skirmish with our pickets, in the direction of his camps. Having advanced a short distance, in obedience to an order from Brigadier-General Hindman my regiment, in connection with a battalion of the Ninth Arkansas Regiment, under command of Major Kelly, went forward and deployed as skirmishers, covering our brigade, relieved another regiment, and drove in the enemy's skirmishers to his main line, near his camps. We continued to move in the line of the brigade against the main body of the enemy, who gave way after a spirited resistance, giving us a retreating fie as we advanced rapidly through the first encampment. Our lines, having been broken by the tents of the enemy, were soon reformed in order in the first open woods beyond the camp, and continued to advance under a constantly retreating fire for three-quarters of a mile.

Having pursued and driven the enemy from the fences and woods beyond the field, we changed front in the direction of a large body of the enemy well posted on a hill about half a mile to our left, supported by a battery, from which we received a heavy and well-directed fire during our advance to dislodge them. As we marched up the hill under a heavy fire of the enemy we received a most deadly fire from the rear from a regiment of our friends, killing and wounding a number of officers gallantly leading the charge. At my command the officers and men fell down and sought protection by trees, stumps, and logs on the side of the enemy, preferring, as we did, to fall by the shots of the enemy rather than to fall by our own guns.

Here Lieutenant Thomas B. Bateman fell at the head of his column.

The order to charge was given as soon as the fire from the rear ceased, and we passed and carried the guns of the enemy, and drove the supporting force from their position and pursued them through the camp. In this last move we changed front farther to the left in pursuit of the enemy before us, and were separated from our brigade.

The brigadier-general commanding having been thrown from his horse [of which at this time I was not advised], we were left to our own judgment of what was proper to be done. I ordered the men to