Page:Southern Historical Society Papers volume 04.djvu/213

Rh direction of the enemy's next line. Their musket balls soon gave me the proper direction, and I changed front, and sending out skirmishers, soon found their line on the thickly wooded hill in the rear of their breastworks, and to their right of the field in front of Chancellor's. I ordered a charge, and the enemy, after one or two rounds, broke in the utmost confusion, throwing down arms, knapsacks, &c., great numbers of them running into our lines.

No sooner had the enemy's lines vanished, than their batteries poured a most terrific fire of grape and canister into my lines. The men lying down, and being partially protected by a slight ridge, the fire was not as fatal as I had reason to fear. Upon going to the front, I found no infantry in my front between me and the Turnpike road, and that I could not lead my men against the enemy's battery without encountering the range of our own battery on the left of the rear of my line, which was then clearing out the enemy in double-quick time.

While making this change portions of two other brigades, which were lying down in the woods, and which a portion of my line had charged over, rushed back from the sudden and terrific fire poured into us before the enemy gave way, and the Eighth Florida regiment, which had not then passed over them, mistaking them for the left of their own brigade, allowed themselves to be swept back a short distance by them. They were not, however, at all panic-stricken, but were rallied at once, their morale and spirit in no manner impaired. I cannot think any blame should be attached to either the officers or the men of the regiment. I remained in that position until the rest of the division was marched up by General Anderson, and moved by the right flank with them to the turnpike road, where the division halted. Soon after I was directed by order from General Anderson to occupy the works on the right of the pike road to prevent the enemy from throwing a force into them. I remained in those works until ordered to follow the division towards U. S. Ford.

That night I halted with the division-being on its left-put out strong pickets, and rested until about two hours before daylight of May 4th, when I received orders to throw one regiment forward upon each of two roads running towards the ridge occupied by the enemy, in the rear of Chancellorsville. I sent