directed and murderous volley from the Twentieth Connecticut poured into this column threw it into confusion, and it broke and fled. As there seemed to be some indication that the troops of the Fourth Corps, on our immediate left, were being driven by the enemy, I held the Fifty-fifth Ohio and Seventy-third Ohio Volunteer Infantry in reserve to protect my left flank, in case it should be exposed. Happily, the brigade on my left held its ground and repulsed the enemy. As soon as I became satisfied that my flank would not be turned, I ordered forward the Seventy-third Ohio Volunteers to relieve the Twenty-sixth Wisconsin, which was nearly exhausted by the extreme heat of the day and the severe fighting. The men had expended all their ammunition and supplied themselves from the cartridge-boxes of the dead and wounded rebels. On being relieved, the regiment fell back about fifty yards to the rear, where it took position in line of battle, ready to spring to their guns in case of necessity. I ordered the Fifty-fifth Ohio to re-enforce the line on the left, as there was a gap on the left of the Twentieth Connecticut, between it and the right of the Fourth Corps. The commanding officer of the Fifty-fifth Ohio very properly and judiciously with his regiment filled that gap. On the top of the ridge now occupied by the brigade line of battle was a well-traveled highway, on the south side of which was an ordinary fence of rails, partly standing and partly thrown down. The men took position behind this fence and kept a constant and continuous fire upon the enemy. The enemy made one or two ineffectual attempts to renew the attack, but his troops would not or could not withstand the destructive fire which ours kept up upon them form our line, and he gave up the contest and retreated behind his strong and well-protected line of earth-works. This ended this severely contested engagement. To us it was a brilliant feat of arms. We encountered the enemy in superior numbers in the open field. We met his offensive attack with an offensive return; his charge with a countercharge. The victory was complete and decisive. He left his dead and wounded on the field and in our possession. The Twenty-sixth Wisconsin captured a stand of colors, and the skirmishers of the One hundred and thirty-sixth New York a battle-flag. This brigade buried the bodies of 38 dead rebels found behind and near our advanced line of battle, among whom was 1 colonel (Drake, of Thirty-third Mississippi); 5 line officers captured, as many more severely wounded, 6 works, and many stand of small-arms, of which no account was kept, denote the captures made by this and other brigades of this division. Of course such a victory could not be obtained without the sacrifice of valuable lives and the shedding of precious blood, although our loss is slight in comparison with the loss and havoc that were inflicted on the rebels. The men and officers of the brigade sustained their well-earned reputation for bravery and gallantry. Though the attack came upon them unexpectedly, they met it with cool determination and unflinching courage. Where all behaved well it may be regarded as invidious to call attention to individuals, yet it seems to me that I cannot discharge my whole duty in this respect without pointing out for special commendation the conduct of the Twenty-sixth Wisconsin Volunteer Infantry and its brave and able commander. The position of this regiment in the line was such that the brunt of the attack on this brigade fell upon it. The brave, skillful, and determined manner in which it meet this attack, rolled back the onset, pressed forward in a countercharge, and drove back