he approach by the railroad was
along the embankment.

When Custer reached the river he found that the bridge was gone. The
enemy had destroyed it. The railroad bridge alone remained. A force of
dismounted cavalry and artillery had taken a position on the other side
which commanded the crossing. Their position was not only strong but its
natural strength had been increased by breastworks. Two pieces of
artillery were posted on a slight hill less than half a mile back. In
front of the hill were the breastworks; in front of the breastworks
woods. A line of skirmishers firing from the edge of the woods kept the
pioneers from proceeding with the work.

But Custer could not be balked. His orders were imperative. He was to
make a crossing and secure a way for the entire corps to pass "at all
hazards." He ordered the Fifth and Sixth Michigan to dismount, cross by
the railroad bridge on foot and engage the enemy. The enemy's artillery
swept the bridge, and as soon as it was seen that the Michigan men were
climbing the railroad embankment to make the crossing they trained their
pieces upon it. Yet the two regiments succeeded. The Fifth led, the
Sixth followed. One man, or at most two or three, at a time, they
tip-toed from tie to tie, watching the chance to make it in the
intervals between the shells. Though these came perilously near to the
bridge none of them hit it, at least while we were crossing. They went
over and struck in the river or woods below. It looked perilous, and it
was not devoid of danger, but I do not remember that a single man was
killed or wounded while crossing. It may have been a case of poor
ammunition or poor marksmanship or both. The worst of it was the nature
of the ground was such that our artillerists could not bring their guns
to bear.

Once over, the two regiments deployed as skirmishers and advancing with
their 8-shotted Spencers, drove the confederate skirmishers back through
the woods and behind their breastworks, where we held them until a
bridge was built, which must have been for two or three hours. The
skirmishing in the woods was fierce at times, but the trees made good
cover. It was here that Lieutenant Thomas A. Edie, troop A, Sixth, was
killed by a bullet through the head. No attempt was made to assault the
breastworks. The confederates behind them, however, were kept so fully
occupied that they were unable to pay any attention to the bridge
builders, who were left unmolested to compl