menced the work for its reduction. During the day my front was strongly intrenched and my skirmish line were advanced well out toward the hill. Under the supervision of Captain Wheeler, my chief of artillery. McGill's battery of 3-inch rifled guns was posted in our works, and the guns were trained upon the summit. June 14, early this morning my First and Second Brigades were brought up and massed respectively in rear of Ireland's right and left; McGill's battery opened upon the enemy's position on the summit of Pine Hill and kept up an accurate and effective firing by battery during the day, with occasional replies from the enemy. I noticed a group of rebel officers collected near some tents near the summit; calling Captain McGill's attention to it, I directed him to bring his battery to bear on the spot. The shells struck in the midst of and around the group, causing evident consternation among them and their immediate retreat. Prisoners afterward taken pointed out that as the spot where Lieutenant-General Polk was killed. June 15, it was discovered that Pine Hill had been evacuated during the night; our skirmish line facing southward was immediately pushed forward across open field to a stream in the woods running westward from the hill, while troops from General Stanley's division, on my left, occupied the summit, and reversing the works, planted batteries there. Generals Sherman, Thomas, Hooker, Howard, Stanley, and others, myself among them, were soon assembled at that point, from which the relative positions held by the two armies were readily determined. A lively artillery engagement was then progressing several miles to our left, along the railroad in front of Kenesaw, also far to the right in the direction of Lost Mountain. At noon, in pursuance of orders from Major-General Hooker, I advanced my division (Candy's brigade leading) from our line of works in a south-easterly direction one mile, crossing two streams, until we reached a position in the woods to the right of and not far from Pine Hill. Here my command was halted and formed, each brigade in two lines-Ireland's on the right, Candy's on the left, and Jones' in the center. This advance was covered by the One hundred and forty-seventh Pennsylvania Volunteers deployed as skirmishers. The skirmish line drove in that of the enemy, and took possession of a line of works on the flank of Pine Hill which the enemy had not yet quite completed.

The ground on which my division was now placed was entirely in the woods, and formed a series of steep ridges with narrow ravines between, their general inclination being east and west, with frequent deviations by way of irregular spurs and small hills; no troops connected with me on either right or left. The One hundred and thirty-fourth New York Volunteers was immediately deployed in skirmish line to my left, and formed connection with the Fourth Corps skirmishers at the base of Pine Hill, three-quarters of a mile distant from my left flank. The One hundred and eleventh Pennsylvania Volunteers was deployed in like manner in front of Ireland and to his right, but could make no connection with any troops in that direction. While making these dispositions, I received orders from the major-general commanding the corps to push forward at once in assault upon the enemy. The orders were brought to me verbally by Lieutenant-Colonel Perkins, assistant adjutant-general, and Colonel Fessenden, aide-de-camp, who added that at the same time the Fourth Corps would assault to my left and Butterfield's division to my right, 2 p.m. being the hour for the concerted move-