largely its superior in numbers. We bivouacked that night about 300 yards to the right of the Chattanooga road.

Early on the morning of the 20th instant, by your order, I took a position with the remnant of my brigade in rear of the Third Brigade, forming the second line.

Shortly afterward I received an order to move to my left, when I found that I was detached from the division-General Baird's division, of the Fourteenth Army Corps, being between the right of my line and the left of the rest of this division and one brigade on my left, forming the extreme left of our line. About 9 o'clock the enemy made an attack on our front, which was repulsed after a severe fight. From that time until about 5 p.m. we were under a constant fire, at times one of great intensity, but every attack was repulsed, and some of them were attended with great slaughter to the enemy.

At about 5 o'clock., during a very severe attack, and which we were repulsing with our usual success, I received an order from General Johnson in person to withdraw my command, fighting the best way I could, as our whole line was to do the same. I immediately moved my command by the left flank, in rear of the brigade that had been on my left, toward the Chattanooga road, and then across the hills in the direction of Rossville. Some little confusion took place in this movement, owing to the terrific fire we received from infantry and artillery on our flank and rear while crossing a corn-field; but with the assistance of Colonel Buckner, of the Seventy-ninth Illinois Volunteers, I succeeded in getting into good order again, and retired in that manner to near Rossville, where we bivouacked for the night. During this terrible engagement I am proud to say that all, men and officers alike, behaved in such a manner as to make distinctions between them invidious; but a will pardon me for mentioning in an especial manner Colonel Allen Buckner, of the Seventy-ninth Illinois Volunteers, for coolness and bravery under the heaviest fire. Major Collins, of the Twenty-ninth Indiana Volunteers, is among the missing. He was with his regiment when it commenced to move to the rear, and I fear that he is either killed or severely wounded. He behaved in a very gallant manner.

The loss of my brigade is shown by the following table.* It will be seen that out of an aggregate of 1,130 who went into the engagement there remain but 598 effective men.

The list of missing, as will be seen, is quite large. A large majority of those reported in that manner I am satisfied, are either killed or wounded, as much of the heaviest loss, I suppose, was during the attack of the night of the 19th. As we received a very heavy crossfire from the enemy, there must have been a great many struck down by the enemy's balls. Very nearly all that were lost at that time are reported as missing, and will have to stand that way until we receive more definite information. Lieutenant C. P. Butler, Twenty-ninth Indiana Volunteers, provost-marshal of the brigade, was wounded in the leg at the commencement of the attack in the evening, and was taken prisoner. Lieutenants McGowan, Twenty-ninth Indiana Volunteers, topographical engineer, and Culbertson, of the Thirtieth Indiana Volunteers, acting aide-de-camp on my staff, were both captured also while gallantly assisting me in the discharge of my duties. It is impossible to tell whether they were wounded or not.

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*Omitted; embodied in revised statement, p. 174.

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