Page:Southern Historical Society Papers volume 14.djvu/557

 Campaign of 1864 and 1865. 551

TO the north side, Lieutenant- General Anderson, with Kershaw's and Heth's divisions, were there, but, the enemy withdrawing the niost of his force to the south side during the night, on the following day Lieutenant-General Anderson and the two divisions last men- tioned did the same, leaving my division, and the permanent force I have before mentioned, on the north side to watch the enemy. At this time General Anderson, with Kershaw's division, marched to join Early in the Valley. I believe it was proposed for me to follow in a few days, but at daylight on the 14th of August the enemy, having thrown a heavy force to the north side during the previous night, attacked my lines. He made three assaults at different times during the day, which were handsomely repulsed, with loss to him; and, finding that he could not succeed by direct assault, he deter- mined to effect his purpose by turning my left flank.

The great superiority of his troops in numbers gave him bright prospects of doing tliis. Up to this time my lines extended from Chafifin's Bluff on the right to New Market Heights on the left, my extreme left resting at this latter place. Covering so great a line, it was of course, with the comparatively few troops at my disposal, weak everywhere, the men being in extended single rank, and in many places there being none at all. I omitted to include a small brigade of cavalry, under Brigadier General Gary, as a part of the perma- nent force on the north side, and which force rendered me very important service on this occasion.

About a mile to the left of New Market Heights, where the left of my infantry rested, the New Market and Darbytown roads united at Fussell's mill. The line of works behind which I was, continued to to this point, but was, as I said before, not manned. The enemy rightly judged that by getting possession of these abandoned, or rather unoccupied, works at this point, he could, with his large force, probably sweep us bpfore him into the lines surrounding Richmond, as the line upon which we then were was perpendicular to this last line, and the enemy arriving on our left flank would roll us up before we could form line of battle facing him, because our right was at Chaffin's, several miles distant. Accordingly, under cover of a forest, the enemy dashed at this point, Fussell's mill, but Gary quickly dismounting two of his three regiments threw them behind the works and received the Yankees with a galling fire. For- tunately, I was at the moment at my extreme left, and learning the enemy's intention, had a few minutes before started with Anderson's Georgia brigade and two pieces of artillery at a double-quick to the