Page:Confederate Military History - 1899 - Volume 7.djvu/575

94 and we fell back nine miles that night. Our division did not number 800 men. Next morning we fell back, intending to retreat by the same route by which we had approached, but found the passage of the Hatchie river disputed by Hurlbut’s corps, 12,000 strong, which had marched across from Bolivar and reached Pocahontas before us. The bridge was about two miles from Pocahontas. Moore’s and Phifer’s remnants of brigades crossed and were again gobbled up, and we lost one battery. The rest of the division got up and, though greatly exhausted, managed to hold the enemy in check for two hours, the other fragments of brigades and regiments composing Hébert’s division coming up feebly and supporting. We gave up the attempt to cross and fell back again and marched by another route to the south. The enemy had burned the bridge by which we now hoped to get out, but Frank Armstrong, who proved our salvation, had, with great foresight and energy, rebuilt it. The enemy did not pursue with any great vigor, and we saved everything but our wounded, and some of them. Bowen lost part of his train. We brought off two captured guns and lost five, and brought along 300 prisoners. I do not know the loss of the army. Price is reduced from 10,000 to between 5,000 and 6,000. Lovell has not suffered a great deal. The enemy’s force I do not know. When we got into Corinth he swallowed up seven brigades of as good fighting men as I ever saw in about twenty minutes. He had abundance of artillery of heavy caliber. I saw 10-inch shot in the field. More than half of the line officers of Price’s army are killed, wounded and missing. After all that has happened, I am happy to say that the morale of the army, or what is left of it, is astonishingly good."

The official report of casualties at Corinth and on the Hatchie shows that Hébert’s division lost 182 killed, 1,033 wounded and 526 missing; Maury’s division, 246 killed, 832 wounded and 1,449 missing; Lovell's