Page:Southern Historical Society Papers volume 12.djvu/286

 "276 Southern Historical Society Papers.

■enemy. General Hagood was ordered to move in front, with John- son's brigade in support. The head of the column had not advanced more than a mile, when General Hill, who had gone to the front to make a personal examination, returned and reported the enemy's cavalry advancing immediately upon us, at about 300 yards' dis- tance from our column. General Hagood was directed to bring his leading regiment into line and advance its skirmishers. Subse- quently another regiment was advanced and formed on a line with the first. These regiments were for nearly an hour engaged in a sharp skirmish with the enemy.

The movements of the enemy's infantry seeming to indicate a pur- pose to flank these regiments on their left, they were retfred to our line of battle on the railroad.

In the meantime the enemy had shown in considerable force in two lines — four regiments of infantry and a battery of artillery — in front of our right, near the house of Mrs. Dunn. Skirmishers from Colonel Graham's regiment were advanced to attract the attention of this force, and a section of Hankins's battery, supported by two regiments of Johnson's brigade, was advanced under cover of the woods on the right of Port Walthall railroad to fire on the enemy's infantry. A few rounds from the artillery drove the infantry under cover of adjacent grounds. The fire of the artillery appearing no longer eflective, and the movement of the enemy indicating a pur- pose to make a general attack, I thought it best to procure a com- pact line; consequently our artillery and infantry were withdrawn to the line of the railroad. The enemy soon appeared in two lines on the open grounds and skirting the woods on the high grounds east of the junction and of Ashton Creek, fronting Hagood' s brigade, stationed on my left. At the same time they also reappeared in their original force in the Vicinity of Mrs. Dunn's house, threatening John- son's brigade, on my right. Aided by General Hill, I placed two pieces of artillery on the left of Craig House to open on the enemy in the vicinity of Mrs. Dunn's, and four pieces behind the railroad, or west of it, near the water-tank, to play upon the enemy's infantry east of Ashton Creek. Subsequently one of these latter pieces was removed to a piece of high ground further north, on the south side of the railroad, affording a more direct fire on the enemy. Two other guns which came to the junction were manned with unin- structed convalescents and men on, furlough picked up in Peters- burg, who deserted their pieces before they fired a shot. These I caused to be manned by men from the Tennessee brigade and placed