by the enemy and the army
driven back almost to the river, a very different story from the
one brought me by Captain Baxter. Captain Rowley set me right as
to the conditions of the battle, not as to the road I was
following. Colonel McPherson and Major Rawlins, the other
members of your staff, mentioned as having been sent to me, met
me after the countermarch, when my command was on the river road
moving to Pittsburg Landing.

Concerning the countermarch, I would remark that the condition
of the battle, as reported by Captain Rowley, made it prudent,
if not necessary. My column was only five thousand men, of all
arms. Reflecting upon it now, I am still of the opinion that it
did better service the next day in your new line of battle, than
it could have done, operating alone and unsupported in the rear
of the whole rebel army, where I was certainly taking it, when
"set right" by the captain.

Instead of making the change of direction, when it was resolved
on, by a countermarch, the result proved that it should have
been effected by a general right about. The former manoeuvre was
chosen, however, because I was confident of finding a cross road
to the river road long before the head of the column doubled
upon its foot. [See Colonel Ross' statement of the effort made
to accomplish that idea.]

One of the results I confidently anticipated from a reading of
the letter submitted, is, that you will be satisfied of the
wrong done me (unintentional, I believe), by Colonel Badeau,
when, in his book, he describes me as consuming seven hours in
marching five miles in the direction of the battle. The march
actually performed in that time was not less than fifteen miles,
over an execrable dirt road.

Your opinion, as advanced in your letter to the War Office,
July, 13, 1863, that General Morgan L. Smith, had he been put in
command, could have had the division in the battle by 1 o'clock
P.M., is in direct terms, based upon the condition that General
Smith received your orders as you supposed them communicated to
me. But, suppose he had not received the order as originally
given; suppose, on the contrary, the order actually received by
him had the effect to send him in another direction from
Pittsburg Landing; and suppose that, on approaching his
objective, he had found himsel