of the river. The Second
Kentucky was in advance, and as the head of the column was struggling
over a very rough place in the railroad, it was opened upon by a company
of infantry pickets, who came out from behind a small house, about sixty
yards off. I never saw men fight better than these fellows did. They
were forty or fifty strong, and had to retreat about half a mile, to
reach their lines. The timber of the ground over which they had to
retreat had been cut down to leave the way clear for the play of
artillery and we could not charge them. Few men beside those in the
advance guard got a chance at them. They turned and fought at every
step. At least eight or ten were killed, and only three captured.

I lost three of my advance guard. Conrad of the guard was riding a large
gray horse, which saved his life. He rode close upon the enemy, and one
of them, presenting his gun within a few feet of his breast, fired;
Conrad reined his horse tightly, making him rear and receive the ball in
his chest. The horse fell dead, pinning his rider to the ground. We
pressed on to within a hundred yards of the railroad embankment, in the
bottom near the river, and quite through Edgefield. Some little time was
required to get all the regiment up, and Hutchinson and I had just
formed it, and the line was advancing, when Colonel Morgan ordered us
back. He had reconnoitered, and had seen a strong force of infantry
behind the embankment; and the fire slackening on the other side,
induced him to suppose that more infantry, which we could see
double-quicking across the pontoon bridge, was the entire garrison of
that side coming to oppose him. It turned out that this force coming
over the bridge, was small; but the Sixteenth Illinois and part of
another regiment, were stationed behind the embankment, and among the
cars we wished to burn. We succeeded in burning a few--Lieutenants Drake
and Quirk (who generally hunted together) superintended the work. A good
deal of firing was kept up by the enemy upon the detail engaged in the
work of destruction, but without effect. So little attention was paid to
what Forrest was doing, that when we drew off altogether, the enemy
followed us a mile or two. As the column filed off from the by-road (by
which it had approached Edgefield) on the Gallatin pike, the enemy drove
back the pickets which had been sent down the pike.

The point at which we entered the pike is about a mile and a quarter
from Nashville