upon which we were, a volley burst upon them
before which they wavered and swerved backward a few paces, as here and
there a man reeled and staggered or sank to the earth. There was no
panic--not a back turned--only that instinctive shrinking which Life
sometimes feels when Death unexpectedly thrusts out his ghastly face
through the smoke of battle. A color-bearer sprang forward with the
battle-flag. He halted beside me and rested the end of the flagstaff on
the ground. He half-faced about toward the men. His voice rang out like
a bugle blast, as he raised his arm and shouted:

"Here are your colors!"

The line responded with a yell as it sprang forward, and soon was
wrapped in the sulphurous smoke of its volleys which it thundered
against the foe.

As the line moved on, I stepped behind them and passed farther to the
right, and again went out ahead. The "left wheel" which the corps made
in this battle resulted naturally from the position of the forces
engaged. If we had moved directly forward in the direction in which we
started, only the left of the Second Division would have struck the
rebel's works; but the men posted in their front, as they were forced
back, retreated toward the north-west, and we naturally swung around in
following them.

We were now in front of the Third Division, the rebels still contesting
every foot of ground. We finally drove them across an open field about a
hundred yards wide. A road was on our left; at least all the Bucktails
in sight were on the right of the road. A house stood near the road next
to the woods, out of which we had driven the rebels, who were now
firing from the farther side of the field. We were crossing the field,
and some had reached the woods beyond, when the line of battle came up
by the house behind us and opened fire. We hurried back to escape their
bullets, which we considered more dangerous than those of the enemy. I
stood behind them near the house, watching their firing, very much
disgusted with the performance. There was a young lady in the house,
apparently the only occupant. She was almost wild with fright, and gave
vent to her feelings in screams and cries of terror.

A little lieutenant was prancing around back of the line, flourishing
his saber in gallant style. He accosted me, and demanded why I was
standing back, doing nothing. I replied that I did not belong on
his--line, and made some comments perhaps not strictly polite. This
added wrath to his