Page:Confederate Military History - 1899 - Volume 7.djvu/666

Rh enemy's accounts, many of this noble little band resisted to the death with clubbed guns, even after his vast hordes had swept over and around the walls." The brigade lost, in killed and wounded, 226.

While Barksdale was left to defend Fredericksburg, Posey’s brigade was fighting brilliantly at Chancellorsville. Posey and Mahone had been stationed at United States ford, and were among the first to confront the enemy on his crossing the river. One of Mahone's regiments and five companies of the Nineteenth Mississippi were left to hold the ford, while the remainder of Posey's brigade fell back to Chancellorsville and thence, after withdrawing the guard at the ford, to a point midway between Chancellorsville and Fredericksburg, where they intrenched. This was the extreme right of Lee's army up to Jackson's flank movement. Thence, on May 1st, Posey's men marched on the plank road, leading Jackson's advance, and sending out the Twelfth regiment as skirmishers developed the enemy's line on the Furnace road. This was broken by the vigorous onslaught of the skirmishers, but Colonel Harris fell severely wounded. Posey then pushed on to the enemy's line of works. The skirmish line was engaged all day on Saturday, defeating the enemy’s attempts to advance; and on Sunday, the Federals having disappeared from his front on account of Jackson's success on the left, Posey advanced, capturing many prisoners and arms, to a point on the extreme right, where he formed line of battle and charged through a dense wood, over a wide abatis and into the trenches of the enemy, capturing many prisoners. Colonel Baker attacking on the extreme left, then Colonel Jayne, Major Thomas and Colonel Harris on the right, simultaneously swept the enemy from their front. Jayne was wounded in the charge. Chaplain T. L. Duke, of the Nineteenth, fought in front with his musket during the series of engagements and mainly directed the skirmishers of his regiment. Lieut.-Col. Thomas B. Manlove