he hills, the rebel horsemen
whirling and flying before our advance. As our skirmishers gained the
summit of the hills, the rebel infantry delivered their fire upon them,
but the brave boys of the Forty-third and of the Sixth Maine pushed on,
never halting or wavering for a moment, driving the enemy before them
until they had pushed the rebel skirmishers close upon their line of
battle.

The First division at once became hotly engaged, the rebels disputing
the advance with unavailing obstinacy. That noble division bore the
brunt of the battle. While the Second and Third divisions behaved with
great gallantry, doing all that was required of them, and doing it with
that fighting joy so characteristic of the whole corps, the First
division, from its position, was called upon to perform unusual feats of
valor. As General Sedgwick was that day in command of the right wing of
the army, General Wright, of the First division, commanded the corps,
and General Russell, the brave, unassuming and beloved commander of the
Third brigade, commanded the division.

The skirmishers of our Second division, the Forty-third New York, pushed
gallantly forward, their brave Colonel Baker riding rapidly from one end
of the line to the other, his white horse making a prominent mark for
the rebels. The line of battle of the whole corps followed closely upon
the skirmishers. As we reached the summit of the hills, a grand panorama
of the battle opened before us. The whole battle-field could be seen at
a single glance; a rare occurrence. On one side were the eminences
occupied by our own line of battle, and on the other, a line of hills of
equal elevation, covered with swarms of rebels. Between the two ranges
of hills, stretched a plain one-fourth of a mile wide and from one to
two miles long, which was occupied by the skirmishers of the opposing
forces.

The rebels were posted in strong positions behind extensive earthworks,
forts, redoubts and rifle pits; and their artillery was posted so as to
sweep the plain and the sloping grounds confronting them. Their gray
lines of infantry were pouring out from behind the earthworks to meet us
at the edge of the plain.

As our line of battle appeared on the crest of the hills, the rebel
batteries opened a terrific fire upon us. The air was filled with the
shriekings of these fearful projectiles, which exploded with startling
frequency above our heads and just behind us; but, fortunately, the
rebels aim