was much at a loss to know what the wave meant. It seemed to me, however, to be in the direction of a ridge that rant trough the woods toward the ground from which McLaw's troops had been withdrawn, and I concluded that the object of the order was to cause me to occupy that ground. Consequently, I immediately gave Colonel DuBose orders to take his regiment along the crest to that ground, his regiment being most convenient, at the beginning of the crest. He moved off at once. In a few minutes afterward, I received what was the same order from General Law, but this time clearly and in a very different sense. It was to move back immediately to the crest of the hill from which we had advanced the day before. I gave the necessary orders, and the three regiments remaining in position commenced moving out. A little afterward, I heard a heavy infantry fire on the left, in the direction in which Colonel Du Bose had gone. Subsequently I learned from him that, after following the ridge for 500 or 600 yards, he suddenly found himself in the immediate presence of two long lines of the enemy, one almost at right angles to the other, with his own line between the two, the head of it being not far from the angle they made with each other. They opened fire on him, which returned, so as to check their advance a little. He then fell back, and, availing himself of a stone fence, fought his way out, not however, without a heavy loss in prisoners and some loss in killed and wounded. He was fortunate to escape at all. His escape is high evidence both of his skill and comrade. I. did not go to his assistance, because, when I heard the fire, it seemed to be (and was, indeed) so far on my left that I thought some of General McLaws' men had been sent forward to check an advance of the enemy, and that it came from a collision between them and the enemy. The other three regiment got out with slight loss. The whole loss of the brigade in the movement to the rear was about 100, of which about 80 or 90 belonged to the Fifteenth Georgia. A report of the killed, wounded, and missing for the two days has been sent up. The total was 509. The loss on the first day was about 400. The next day (the 4th), the division was formed in line of battle, facing down the Emmitsburg road, and was ordered to erect breast-works, which it did. My brigade was on the left, its left resting on that road. About 12 o'clock at night the division commenced moving back toward Hagerstown, by Fairfield, my brigade bringing up the rear. Nothing more of much interest happened to the brigade until the division had crossed the Shenandoah. It crossed that river at Berry's Ford by wading, and found the water deep and swift. At dawn the next day [23d], the division took the road from Front Royal to Linden, by Manassas Captain It found the Gap occupied by the enemy's cavalry and artillery, with pickets some distance in their front, and some regiments of cavalry between these and the Gap. My brigade was stretched across the road (relieving a portion of General Corse's brigade), on a ridge parallel with the Gap, and such dispositions were made by General Law on my flanks with the other brigades that the enemy's pickets soon fell back a mile or more, and his reserve regiments quite to the Gap. Toward night, General Law informed me that would soon move

27 R R-VOL XXVII< PT II