Numbers 554. Report of Lieutenant Colonel John J. Garnett, C. S. Army, commanding Artillery Battalion.

CAMP NEAR GORDONSVILLE, VA., August 2, 1863.

COLONEL: In obedience to your circular, dated July 29, directing me to "make and forward to these (your) headquarters as soon as possible an official report of the operations of your (my) battalion of artillery, from the time it left Fredericksburg to the present time, " I have the honor to report as follows: On the morning of June 15, in obedience to your orders, I withdrew my command from the position it had occupied on Lee's Hill since the 6th instant [June], to the rear, immediately on the Telegraph road, and reported to Major-General Heth for duty with his division. At 2 p. m. I moved with Heth's division from Fredericksburg, and accompanied this command on its daily marches through the Maryland and Pennsylvania campaign until the morning of July 1, when I was relieved, and became directly subject to your orders. The commencement of the battle around Gettysburg found my battalion at Cashtown, Pa., where it had arrived the previous evening from near Fayetteville, Pa. About 11 a. m. on the morning of July 1, I received orders to bring up my command to within supporting distance on the Gettysburg pike, which I reached after the battle had been in progress for several hours. On reaching the scene of action, as directed, I halted my battalion in column on the side of the road, and awaited further orders. After a delay of about an hour, I received a message from Major Pegram, requesting that I relieve one of his batteries, whose ammunition had become exhausted. I accordingly sent him Captain V. Maurin, of the Donaldsonville Battery, with sic of my rifled pieces, which almost immediately opened upon the enemy and with apparent effect. These pieces kept up a slow and steady fire for about an hour, when, the enemy having been forced back out of range to the position held by them on the second and third days, together with the other pieces of the command, they were advanced to the front, in the rear of the line of battle nearly opposite Cemetery Hill, where they remained in park until the following morning, protected from the enemy's fire by a high hill. On the morning of the second day, having received an order to send all of my rifles to the position immediately opposite Cemetery Hill, and to the right of the Fairfield turnpike, I accordingly dispatched Major Richardson with the nine rifled pieces of the battalion to the hill indicated, where they remained in position until the following morning. At 3 p. m., when the engagement became general, these pieces opened fire upon the enemy's batteries opposite, which they kept up without cessation until about thirty minutes before sunset. Just as the sun had disappeared behind the horizon, the enemy's guns were observed to be turned upon a portion of General Ewell's forces, which had attacked them in the rear, when Major Richardson, by opening upon them with his nine rifles, succeeded in diverting their fire. On the third day, Major Richardson was ordered to the position held by Major-General Anderson's division, and to the right of Major Pegram's battalion. Toward the close of the day, in obedi-