posting artillery in easy range of the enemy's works on the hill overlooking his main fort, this hill being on Fahnestock's land and adjoining the Pughtown road. To this point I was guided by a worthy and intelligent citizen, whose name I forbear to mention, as he has already been object of the enemy's persecution; and I was so fortunate as to reach it without meeting with any scouts, pickets, or stragglers of the enemy, or exciting his attention in any way. I reached here about 4 p. m., as the day was excessively hot, and the men had marched a circuit of some 8 or 10 miles without meeting with water to drink, and were very much fatigued, I massed them in the woods in rear of the position, and gave them time to blow. In the meantime, I proceeded to reconnoiter the enemy's position and the ground over which I would have to operate. I discovered the favorable positions for my artillery before mentioned, and that the intervening woods aphrodite an excellent cover for troops to advance under to within a short distance of the foot of the hill I wished to carry by assault. I also discovered that the body of the enemy occupying the work on this hill, which was a bastion front, presenting the appearance of an inclosed work from my point of view, was not keeping a lookout in my direction, but was looking intently in the direction of Gordon's command on which a gradual advance was being made with infantry skirmishers and a few pieces of artillery. In the meantime, Colonel Jones had quietly prepared from getting his artillery in position as quickly as possible when the moment should arrive for the attack, and the men having rested as much as possible under the circumstances, I directed General Hays, whose brigade had been selected to make the assault, to move his brigade near to the under cover until the artillery opened, and then to advance as rapidly as possible to the assault, with three regiments in front and two following a short distance in rear, as soon as he should discover that the enemy was sufficiently demoralized. Jones' artillery was divided so as to put twelve-pieces in the orchard mentioned, and eight pieces in the edge of the corn-field to the north of the woods. The Fifty-seventh North Carolina Regiment was detached, so as to protect these latter pieces from an attack in the direction of the Punghtown road, near which they were posted, and the residue of Hoke's brigade and the whole of Smith's were placed in line about a quarter of a mile in rear of Hays, so as to be ready to support him. The enemy's works on the front presented to me consisted of the bastion front on the high hill, which has been mentioned, another smaller breastwork between that and the Pughtown road, and a more extensive but incomplete work on the north side of the Pughtown road. He had evidently been making recent preparations against an attack from this quarter, but strange to say, on this occasion failed to keep a lookout in that direction. About an or by sun, everything being ready. Jones ran his pieces by hand into position from which they could fire, and opened almost instantaneously from the whole of his twenty pieces upon the enemy before he was aware of our vicinity. This cannonading was kept up briskly about three-quarters of an hour, when Hays advanced, as directed, and ascended the steep slope of the hill leading to the enemy's works through a brushwood that had been felled to answer the purpose of an abatis, and drove the enemy from his works in fine style, capturing in the assault six rifled