Page:Southern Historical Society Papers volume 40.djvu/214

210 enemy, with nine regiments, pierced this interval to Lane's right, while a heavy force advanced to attack in his front. Thus assaulted in front and in flank, this gallant brigade of North Carolinians nobly maintained their ground, until the two regiments, 28th and 37th, had not only exhausted their ammunition, but such as could be obtained from their dead and wounded comrades, collected and handed them by their officers; when these two regiments had ceased firing for want of ammunition, the enemy in column doubled on the center, bore down in mass upon the brigade and it was forced to fall back, but did so in good order. Gen. Thomas, with his gallant Georgia brigade, came to Lane's assistance, and with the aid of the 18th and 7th regiments of Lane's on his left drove back the enemy and chased him to his original position. It has been said that this temporary success of the enemy was induced by the giving away in Lane's brigade of a regiment of North Carolina conscripts. This is untrue. There were no conscript regiments as such, and no troops could have behaved more gallantly, under the circumstances, than those attached to these regiments. Gen. Lee recognizes their gallantry in his report, when he says that attacked in front and flank, after a brave and obstinate resistance, the brigade gave way. Gen. Lane says, of his conscripts, "I cannot refrain from making special allusion to our conscripts, many of whom were under fire for the first time. They proved themselves worthy of a brigade that had borne itself well in all the battles of the last eight months, from Fredericksburg to Petersburg." In the meantime a large force had penetrated the interval as far as Hill's reserve, and encountered Gregg's brigade. The attack was sudden and unexpected, and mistaking the enemy for our own troops, Orr's rifles of this brigade were thrown into momentary confusion, and Gen. Gregg, while attempting to rally them, fell mortally wounded.

Hon. Wm. C. Gates, 3d Alabama District, then a captain, afterwards a colonel of the 15th Alabama, which, with the 12th and 21st Georgia and 21st North Carolina, formed Trimble's brigade, then commanded by Col. Robt. F. Hoke, told me that when this brigade, the 22d and 47th Virginia regiments of Col.