things of the town, about 12 m. the enemy sent in a flag of truce in charge of Mr. Little field and Rev. T. Clellan, citizens of Lebanon, with the express promise that the flag should be respected, with a message to me, that unless I surrendered in ten minutes the town would be burned and no quarter shown. These messengers approaching Captain Wolcott, he ordered his men to cease firing, and came with the flag in the direction of the depot. On discovering them, I ordered the firing to cease, supposing the enemy would regard the flag of truce, but in a few minutes I discovered that they were taking advantage of it by moving up their men and occupying houses immediately around the houses where my forces were, and also moving their artillery to within 300 yards of the depot. I ordered my men to commence firing again, and the bearers of the flag returned without delivering their message.

The battle raged with increased fury until 1.20 o'clock, when my forces being very much fatigued and scarce of ammunition, having fire over 125 rounds to the man, the guns being so foul as to be almost useless, and the enemy by base deception having gotten into a position where further resistance would be unavailing, and having despaired of being re-enforced, I reluctantly surrendered to save my gallant command and the further destruction of the town, a considerable portion of which was then in flames, including the depot building. After the surrender, the officers and men were grossly mistreated, some with personal violence and indignity, and nearly all were robbed of their money, clothing, and other property. Captain Charlton [H.] Morgan, a brother of the general, seized Captains McLeod and Parrish, of the Twentieth Kentucky, and attempted to shoot them, and was with difficulty prevented. Upon my interposition in behalf of those officers, he seized me by the beard, denouncing and abusing me, but was prevented from doing me any bodily injury. For the offense to myself he afterward apologized. After these and similar gallant exploits to a surrendered and disarmed, but gallant, foe, order was partially restored, and they commenced paroling the prisoners.

Twenty buildings, public and private, were destroyed by the enemy's torch and not one by his shell.

Between 3 and 4 o'clock the most of the prisoners were started on the double-quick to Springfield, a distance of 9 miles, and were required to move so rapidly that but for the generous showers of rain which fell a great number of them would have died from exhaustion. Sergt. Joseph Slaughter, of Company B, gave out on the way, and was brutally knocked on the head and killed by the enemy. Private Samuel Ferguson, of Company I, was knocked down and recklessly run over by their artillery, and so injured that he died in a few hours. Private Martin W. Cure, of Company A, was also severely injured by the enemy's caissons running over him, but is now recovering.

The enemy's force consisted of ten regiments of cavalry and mounted infantry, amounting to about 3,500 men and six pieces of artillery.

My loss in the action was 3 killed and 16 wounded, one of whom has since died.

It is impossible to give the exact loss of the enemy, their superior force enabling them to remove or otherwise dispose of many of their killed and wounded; 29 of their dead were found upon the field, and the citizens gave information of 22 others, who were removed. Their wounded could not have been less than 120, thirty of whom were left in the hospitals. The remainder were sent to their homes or left at the houses of Southern sympathizers, in the adjoining counties, many of whom have since been found.

I do not feel at liberty to close this report without some allusion to