war, although visible, were not so legibly written on this portion of the country as on that through which we had passed. After a few days' rest and waiting to effect a junction with General Thayer, who ought to have joined the expedition here with this frontier division from Fort Smith, we left Arkadelphia April 1, camping that night at Spoonville, 12 miles distant. The main road leads from Arkadelphia direct to Washington, but one branches off at a point about 9 miles from Spoonville. The enemy, not doubting but that the expedition would, with its large trains, have to keep the main road, had occupied the crossing of the Little Missouri in great force.

General Steele, having arrived at the forks of the road on the 2nd, sent part of the cavalry forward on the main road as if he intended to keep on this with his whole army, which, however, turned in at the by-road, part of the forces pushing rapidly forward so as to secure the crossing of the Little Missouri at Elkin's Ferry, in which they succeeded completely. The enemy found out his mistake too late, and although he tried to dispute our crossing at this point he was, after a short engagement, dislodged. General rice's brigade, having the rear and the large train in its charge, had (since we left Spoonville, the 2nd) an almost continuous skirmish with Shelby's brigade, inflicting a severe loss on the enemy. We had but just arrived, at about 3 o'clock in the afternoon, at Okolona, a small village of only few houses, when we were attacked by the enemy. Companies E, F, H, and K were deployed as skirmishers, but the enemy quickly retired, Company K alone coming up with his skirmishers, exchanging several hundred shots with him without any casualties on our side. General Steele had determined to send Colonel Engelmann's brigade, to which the Forty-third Illinois belongs, the next day back to Spoonville to gather, if possible, some information about General Thayer, while the main army was to move forward for the purpose of crossing the Little Missouri.

The enemy hovered around our lines, skirmishing commencing on the morning of the 3rd. Company D had been sent forward as skirmishers. Company B was sent next, and these had soon a brisk skirmish with the enemy. Here Corpl. John Rauth, Company B, was slightly wounded. At about 3 o'clock in the afternoon we had got in march toward Spoonville again, where we arrived the next day. We remained till the 5th, when no intelligence whatever having been gathered respecting General Thayer, the brigade moved back to rejoin the main army, which it reached the same evening after a fatiguing march of 22 miles. The enemy had been severely punished in the several skirmishes, for we found all along the road to Spoonville new-made graves, and in the houses his wounded and dying. Another noticeable feature was that when we had first come over the road but rarely a man had been seen in any of the houses, while when going back to Spoonville any number of young men were seen loitering about. This was noticed and commented upon by all. The day after rejoining the army, the 6th, we crossed the Little Missouri,a nd after having passed through bottomless bottom for about 3 miles, and this only with great difficulty, we camped on the rising highland, where the enemy had felled trees and where some resistance had been made.

On the 9th, General Thayer came up, and on the 10th, the regiment, the brigade having the advance, left for Prairie D'Ane. Marching 4 miles in a due southern direction through a pine forest we approached the northern edge of Prairie D'Ane at 3 p. m. Like