Today in History:

402 Series I Volume XVII-I Serial 24 - Corinth Part I

Page 402 WEST TENN AND NORTHERN MISS. Chapter XXIX.

exposed to from a battery of the enemy on the south side of the Mobile and Ohio Railroad. I placed my brigade on the side of a hill, protecting them as much as possible from this furious discharge of grape, canister, and shell that was kept up without a moment's cessation, sufficient to demoralize any troops except such as the troops which composed my brigade. This was within less than 700 yards of the breastworks and the town of Corinth, where the First Missouri Brigade, under Colonel Gates, was hotly engaged.

About 11 a. m. 1 received an order from General Maury, delivered by Captain Flowerree, adjutant-general, to move rapidly to the support of Colonel Gates, who had entered the enemy's breastwork and could not hold it for the want of ammunition. This order was received with a shortly by the whole brigade, who had stood his terrible cannonading for more than an hour. I immediately, after receiving the order moved by the left flank at double-quick until I crossed the Mobile and Ohio Railroad. After crossing the railroad through a terrible fire of artillery I faced to the front and moved on the enemy's works, the left in the open field and the right and center through a skirt of woods, about 50 yards wide, expecting to find the Missouri Brigade. This brigade had however, fallen back taking a road on my extreme right. Instead of meeting the Missouri Brigade, as I had been informed I would, I found the enemy in line of battle just outside of the timber and about 300 yards in front of their breastworks. My left became engaged at once after facing to the front and the whole line in a few minutes afterward, when I gave the command charge. As soon as the command was given the whole line moved at double-quick almost as one man, shouting "Butler" and driving the enemy before them until they reached the crest of the enemy's breastworks, where a greater force than I had driven in sprang up, delivering a tremendous volley in the very faces of a greater part of my whole line, which was at that time subject to fire from the left front of the bastion near the college, as well as to the artillery fire from the battery on the should side of the railroad and on the left of the word charged. A part of the Twentieth Arkansas Regiment, under Colonel Johnson, went over the works inside of Corinth, the numbers of the enemy being so great in front, at the same time being exposed to such a dreadful cross-fire of musketry and artillery on my flank and rear, that my men were compelled to fall back with a very heavy loss of killed and wounded officers and men.

The courage and daring of my men, who shot the enemy down in their trenches, is beyond all praise. The ground in front of the breastworks was literally covered with the dead and wounded of both friend and foe, the killed and wounded of the enemy being nearly if not fully two to our once. Those left present the appearance of men nearly whipped, and convinced me that it was nothing but their re-enforcement and superior numbers that kept them from a total rout.

My loss, especially in officers, at this time, I regret to say, was very great. A great many, both officers and privates, were wounded and taken prisoners. I lost here 3 brave and valuable field officers killed- Colonel H. P. Johnson and Maj Daniel W. Jones, Twentieth Arkansas Regiment, and Major Dowdell, Twenty-first Arkansas, and Colonel Daly, Eighteenth Arkansas, mortally wounded (since dead); Lieutenant-Colonel Matheny, Twenty-first Arkansas, wounded. Captain Lynch, Eighteenth Arkansas, and Captain Atkins, Rapley's battalion, two gallant officers, were killed. A list of the killed and wounded has been furnished.*

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*Embodied in Numbers 106,p. 383

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Page 402 WEST TENN AND NORTHERN MISS. Chapter XXIX.