brigades were reformed on the line previously occupied by them, and on the right and left of Gordon, respectively. In this attack. Colonel Avery, of the Sixth North Carolina Regiment, commanding Hoke's brigade, was mortally wounded. With this affair the fighting on Ju-

ly 2 terminated. After night, I was ordered by General Ewell to send Smith's brigade to report to General Johnson, on the left, by daylight, and General Smith, was ordered to do so, and did report to General Johnson, and his tree regiments were engaged on the 3rd on the extreme left, under General Johnon's directions. As the operations of this brigade on this day were under the immediate orders of General Johnson, I will merely refer to the report of Colonel[John S] Hoffman, the present brigade commander, herewith forwarded. Before light on the morning of the 3d, I ordered Hays' and Hoke's brigades (the latter now under the command of Colonel [A. C.]Godwin, of the Fifty-seventh North Carolina Regiment) to the rear, and subsequently formed them in line in the town on the same street formerly occupied by Hays, Gordon being left to occupy the position which was occupied by these brigades on the previous day. In these positions these three remained during the day, and did not again participate in the attack, but they were exposed during the time, to the fire of sharpshooters and an occasional fire from the enemy's artillery on the hills. At 2 o'clock on the morning of the 4th, my brigades were quietly withdrawn from their positions, and moved back on the Cashtown, road, and formed in line on both sides of that road, in rear of Rodes' and Johnson's division, which occupied the front line, ramming along the crest of the ridge on the west of the town. My loss in the three days fighting at Gettysburg was 158 killed, 796 wounded, and 227 missing, a large proportion of the missing being, in all probability, killed or wounded. The enemy's loss at the points where the three brigades of Gordon, Hays, and Hoke were engaged far exceeded my loss, and a very large number of prisoners were secured.

THE MARCH BACK FROM GETTYSBURG, AND RECROSSING OF THE POTOMAC.

At 2 o'clock on the morning of the 5th, under orders from General Ewell, my division moved back on the road toward Fairfield, following in the rear of the corps, and constituting the rear guard of the whole army. While waiting at the junction of the road on which I had moved with the direct road from Gettysburg to Fairfield for the passage of all the troops and trains, a few pieces of artillery were opened by the enemy at long range, but without doing any damage. The whole force having gotten on the road in front of me, I moved on slowly in the rear, Gordon's brigade bringing up my rear, followed by White's cavalry battalion, and low plain surrounded by hills, I found the wagon trains in front blocked up. While waiting here for the road to be cleared, Colonel White sent forward to inform me that a force of the enemy was advancing in the rear, and I sent forward to hasten up the trains, but as they did not move off, I was preparing to fire a blank cartridge or two for the purpose of quickening their pace, when the advance of the enemy appeared on a hill in my rear, and