ls into the gun. It was ruined temporarily, and had to
be sent to the arsenal at Macon.

About this time, Gen. Hardee and staff rode up. He inquired: "What's
the matter here?" "Nothing," said Lumsden, "but those fellows opened on
us and I make it a point to give as good as they send." "Well, cease
firing its doing no good, and we must husband our ammunition." Old man
Lane had the front end of one foot cut off by a piece of shell. He was
bringing up an armfull of cartridges from the caissons under the hill
at the time, but did not throw down his load until he brought it to the
gun, loudly proclaiming, that he hoped these shells would pay them back
for his wound. But that was the end of his service in our army. He was
over conscript age, but came as a substitute for some one who could pay
for a man to take his place.

I believe that he was the only man struck that day in our company, but
in rear of the 3rd gun that had been put out of action, a bunch of
canteens, hanging on a forked post were all rendered useless by pieces
of shell or bullets coming through the embrasure. The Yankee three-inch
rifle was a dead shot at any distance under a mile. They could hit the
head of a flour barrel more often than miss, unless the gunner got
rattled. The shell consisted of three parts, a conical head with
smaller cylinderical base, a cap to fit, that base loosely and a ring
of lead that connected the head and base. When fired the cap at butt
was thrown forward on the cylinderical base of the cone, expanding the
lead ring into the grooves of the rifle, the cone exploding by
percussion cap on striking. It was the most accurate field piece of
that date. Our smooth bore 12 pounders were always at a disadvantage in
artillery duels, but with time fuses and at masses of men, or at a
battery in open field, 800 to 1,000 yards, they did good service, and
with canisters they could sweep the earth.

After Lovejoy's station, we were moved up to the city, and put into a
casemated fort for a short time in the outskirts of the city, whilst
evacuation was going on, and were among the last of the commands to
leave the doomed town, whence we retreated with a portion of the
infantry toward Macon, Ga. Burning stores of all kinds were located by
the soldiers, mail cars sacked, and letters and packages of all kinds
gone through at road side fires in search of money, the useless letters
feeding the fire. This was on the night of September 2, 1864. Rations