Corps, on the right with those of the First Brigade, this division. When I arrived on the ground my pickets had regained the posts, those on the right were returning to theirs, a portion of those on the left across the pike were in the act of advancing to the brick house in rear of where their reserve pickets had been. The rebels at this time had possession of the sentinel line to my front an left. Colonel Rose, commanding Seventy-seventh, states that the line gave way to his right and left before his regiment fell back. Lieutenant-Colonel Lasselle, Ninth Indiana, division officer of the day, corroborates this statement as to the right. Shortly after I got to the line the enemy was driven from the sentinel line to my front, and I presume also to my right, and all repossessed by our sentinels. The enemy was also driven from the former sentinel line at and to the left of the pike for some distance, but when I came in our former sentinel line to the left of the pike was not yet reoccupied by the Twenty-third Corps. From the best information I can obtain a skirmish line only of the enemy advanced upon our pickets, but that a battle line came out of the rebel trenches as for as the creek in our front on the pike. I think there were no good reasons for our lines falling back. I will take the liberty of stating here, as I have to division officers of the day and others, that taking our division picket-line together, it is not well posted.

I have the honor to be, your obedient servant,

W. GROSE,

Brigadier-General, Commanding.

Captain E. D. MASON,

Assistant Adjutant-General.

HDQRS. THIRD Brigadier, FIRST DIV., FOURTH ARMY CORPS,
Huntsville, Ala., January 6, 1865.

SIR: I have the honor to report the part taken by my command in the battles at Nashville, Tenn., on the 15th and 16th of December 1864.

Pursuant to orders from division commander, I moved my brigade from its position in front of Nashville, near the Franklin pike to the right of the Hillsborough pike. Six regiments marched with me at daylight on the morning of the 15th. The Seventy-seventh Pennsylvania being on picket, followed as soon as relieved. My effective force, 2,190. The order of battle was to be by divisions in echelon forward on the right. My brigade was formed on the right of the Hillsborough pike, and in front of our fortifications surrounding the city, the Second Division of the Fourth Corps on my right, the First Brigade of our division on my left. Of my command the Eighty-fourth and Eightieth Illinois and Ninth Indiana were in the front line from right ot left, in the order named; the Seventy-fifth Illinois, Thirtieth and Eighty-fourth Indiana in the second line. The Seventy-seventh Pennsylvania, when relieved from picket, came up in reserve. The lines of the enemy ran at right angles with the Franklin and Granny White pikes, and continued in the same direction on to a hill near to the left of the Hillsborough pike, where it made an angel obliquely to the rear, fronting the Hillsborough pike, and covering well his left flank of main line. My position was immediately in front of the angle, as above described, of the enemy's line. The Sixteenth Corps, on the right of our corps, which was to move forward in echelon to us, had much further to move, and skirmish over more ground than we, before reaching the enemy's main