forces had been concentrating, that two or three days previously they had moved toward Jacksonport, that they had returned, and that the principal camp was at Antony's, said to be 7 miles distant on the Jacksonport road. I then ordered my small command to land, leaving a guard on board the transport, and proceeded up the Jacksonport road. It was about 6 o'clock when we moved from Augusta. We had scarcely got 1 1/2 miles out of town when our advanced guard encountered a small party of the enemy, and pursued and charged them 2 miles, and captured 2 prisoners. Coming then to the forks of two roads the cavalry waited for the infantry to come up. It was at this point that we met Rutherford's company, and drove it into the woods on a road leading to the right. We then continued the march on the Jacksonport road, keeping our for some distance flankers and patrols.

At the bayou, some 6 miles from Augusta, our advanced guard came upon a small party of mounted men, who, after one shot being fired at them, turned and fled. At the next farm-house we reached, we learned that General McRae was one of the party. This fact I discovered very soon, and immediately ordered the cavalry detachment to pursue at their utmost speed, which was done. It appeared that he turned off the Jacksonport road toward McCoy's, one of his places of resort, to which place Captain Matthews pursued him. He, however, escaped.

Beyond Fitzhugh's we came upon one of their camps, which appeared to have been suddenly abandoned, and where, also, we found and appropriated, as far as we needed, a wagon-load of hams. We also gained some information at almost every farm-house concerning the movements and locality of McRae's forces. I had heard his forces estimated variously at from 500 to 1,500, many of them, however, being poorly armed; and I had learned at Augusta that he had from 400 to 600 men near Antony's. The farther, however, I advanced, the more his force in any one body appeared to diminish, and the less appeared to be the chance for a fair fight with them. After, therefore, reaching a point 12 miles above Augusta, and meeting no force, I determined to return to the transport.

After a rest, it being 12.30 o'clock, we started back. At 1.30 o'clock, as we passed the road leading to McCoy's, a party of men showed themselves in the road, and being, as I had reason to believe, a decoy to draw us into an ambuscade, I ordered that they should not be pursued. We arrived at Fitzhugh's, less than a mile from that road, and were resting when the enemy made his appearance from the direction of McCoy's, advancing in line in a field on our left, and commenced charging on us. I had a part of our infantry quickly moved against them, which checked them, and by a volley fire killed and dismounted a number of them. The same infantry force then charged on them, and, amid the loud shouts and cheers of our men, drove them back into the woods out of sight. I then increased our rear guard, resumed the march, and proceeded about 2 miles, when the enemy came upon us in much larger force, our first notice being his attack on our rear guard. The place can perhaps be best designated as Fitzhugh's woods, and was almost 500 yards north of a well-known bayou or swamp. On the east side of the road was a field of cultivated land on which there was a thin body of dead timber. West of the road was heavy timber with more or less dead logs lying about, but not much underbrush.

It was immediately apparent that the enemy had collected all his