Page:Southern Historical Society Papers volume 33.djvu/332

 328 Southern Historical Society Papers.

tion. Clark and Ricketts moved down to works on extreme right. Edgell already there with Birneys's division."

General G. K. Warren, page 542 of Records, says: "May 18, 1864, whole army had moved off to our right to make an assault, on the enemy, and I commenced to cannonade at daylight with 26 guns, as a diversion. This occasioned a brisk artillery duel between myself and Hill's Corps. Our forces found the enemy prepared and strongly posted on the right, and made no serious attack."

Colonel Charles S. Wainwright, Chief Artillery, Warren's Corps, page 644 of Records, says: "May 18, 1864, Second and Sixth Corps having returned to the right of the general line, and so uncovered the left, Hart's, Bigelow's and Walcott's batteries of light 12 pound- ers were posted in the neighborhood of the Anderson house to pro- tect that flank, should the enemy attack there. Before daylight Rittenhouse's battery was pushed forward on the pike to our ad- vanced works, about 1,400 yards from the court-house, and was joined by Taft's (Fifth New York Independent) battery of six 20 pounder Parrott's, which had temporarily joined the brigade the night before, and Sheldon's battery, making 14 guns, under com- mand of Major Fitzhugh. At the same time Captain Cooper, with his own, Breck's and Phillips' batteries, making 12 three-inch guns, was posted on a sharp knoll to the front, and some 400 yards to the left of Major Fitzhugh' s line, making an angle of about 60 degrees with it. The position of all these batteries was excellent. The first was protected by fair works, and the rapid descent of the knoll from the rear to Cooper's afforded excellent shelter for the limbers. The enemy had 20 pieces behind their lines, in front and to their right of the courthouse. At the time the Second Corps advanced on the right the batteries on both sides opened. The engagement was brisk for near three-quarters of an hour, and the practice on both sides was very accurate. Fire was kept up at intervals during the day without any express object, and with no perceptible result, except the silencing of the enemy's guns."

General George W. Getty, of Wright's Corps, page 679 of Rec- ords, says: "On the night of the iyth, (May, 1864), the division moved back to the angle, and having formed in columns of brigades in the following order from front to rear, Wheaton's (First), Ed- ward's (Fourth), Bidwell's (Third), and Grant's (Second), in con- junction with the Second Corps and the remainder of the Sixth, made an attack at daylight on the enemy's position on the right