and moved on into the general engagement. They fought with the brigade during the day, except when the brigade was to the rear procuring ammunition. The sharpshooters remained with some pieces of artillery, commanded by Major [Capt. T. R.] Hotchkiss, amusing themselves by firing at some Yankee cannoneers.

Both officers and men fought bravely throughout the day. Not one commissioned officer was absent from his post, and most of the command, both officers and men, deserve marked attention for their bravery throughout the fight.

On Thursday morning, January 1, 1863, this command was thrown out as skirmishers on the left of General Liddell's skirmishers, and with them succeeded in driving back the enemy's pickets about a mile, leaving us in fire view of the enemy's movements on the Nashville pike, about 4 or 5 miles above Murfreesborough. In this engagement we had no one killed or wounded.

The following is a list* of killed and wounded in the fight on Wednesday:

Killed. Wounded. Missing. Total.

Company A:

Officers --- --- --- ---

Non-commissioned --- 4 --- 4

officers

Privates 1 11 2 14

Total 1 15 2 18

Company B:

Officers 1 --- --- 1

Non-commissioned 1 --- --- 1

officers

Privates --- 9 3 12

Total 2 9 3 14

Aggregate 3 24 5 32

A. T. HAWKINS,

Captain, Commanding Sharpshooters, Wood's Brigade.

No. 279. Report of Capt. Henry C. Semple, Alabama Battery,

JANUARY-, 1863.

SIR: I have the honor to report that my battery of six Napoleon guns was ordered on the 30th [ultimo] to report to General Breckinridge, on the right; that we were put in position on an eminence near the river, commanding the points on the opposite side of the river near the enemy's left. An earth work had been constructed the night before in which the guns were placed, and shortly after the commencement of the action fire was opened on us by a battery of rifled guns on the opposite side of the river, to which we did not reply, and late in the day, after firing a few rounds at the lines of the enemy, which seemed to be retiring before our men, we were ordered to another position, in which Cobb's battery and a part of Lumsden's were already in position. From this point we were frequently engaged with the enemy's infantry; on several occasions at

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*Nominal list omitted.

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