disastrous retreat of the night, except so far as to conclude that my irregular cavalry would have no business to charge such a line of battle, when Major-General Green arrived on the field and took command. By his order I accompanies him in a close reconnaissance of the enemy's line, with the result that no move was made by our cavalry until after the battle opened in the afternoon.

At 4 p. m. Churchill's division of Arkansas and Missouri troops engaged the enemy's extreme left, and so soon as his guns were heard the artillery of the cavalry corps (sixteen pieces, commanded by Major Semmes, most of which had been captured the day before at Mansfield) was ordered by General Green to open fire, the distance being about 800 yards. The rapidity and vigor evinced in the reply of forty pieces from the Federal line was conclusive proof that we were about to attack an army other than the one encountered the day before. At 4.30 o'clock I was ordered in person by General Green to charge with all of the cavalry the enemy, who were in the same position as they had been all day, but were supposed by him to be wheeling in retreat. I at once moved with Debray's and Buchel's regiments that were formed in the road, ordering the other cavalry regiments to follow, and in column of fours moved rapidly across the space intervening between the two armies, but before reaching nearer than 200 yards from the enemy's line of battle, and before the order was given to deploy and charge, the command was literally swept away by a cross-fire at close range froma an enemy concealed behind a string of fence perpendicular to the enemy's line of battle. This fire was as unexpected as disastrous. Fortunately there were ravines of young pines on our right which furnished somewhat of shelter until the shock could be recovered from, but the empty saddles, the men shot and falling in all directions, the confusion, produced a scene imperishable on my memory. Although the fire was now opened from the front as well as the ambuscade, what was left of Debray's gallant regiment succeeded in returning to our lines, whit a loss of one-third of their number. I had 2 horses shot under me. Colonel Debray was injured by the fall of his horse, which was killed.

Colonel Buchel, commanding the rear regiment in this move on the enemy's line, drew back in time to avoid the fire of the ambuscade, passed to the left, dismounted his men, attacked the Federals in their ambuscade, and drove them back to their line. This gallant and soldierly act, showing the discipline and valor of his men, was made at the sacrifice of his life, for he fell mortally wounded on the field. It is proper to state here that Colonel Buchel while wounded was in possession for a short time of the enemy, who took his name and rank, and will doubtless be published in their returns as mortally wounded and a prisoner, when in fact his prostrate body was retaken by his men, and the brave colonel died at my headquarters camp two days after the battle, a brilliant soldier of Prussia and an irreparable loss to our cause and his adopted country. I then passed to the left and joined the cavalry command, which dismounted, and with Polignas' division of infantry, in dear the immediate command of General Green, were hotly engaged with the enemy on their right center and right, which contest continued until after dark. After returning to my camp in company with General Taylor, at about 8 o'clock General Kirby Smith, the commander-in-chief, came up, just from Shreveport. I was present at the interview of these distinguished soldiers.