brigade" was commanded by Colonel Roger W.
Hanson, who had been only a short time before exchanged, with his
gallant regiment, the Second Kentucky infantry, which had been captured
at Donelson. One of the colonels of the brigade, was Thomas H. Hunt, a
very superior officer, who, with his regiment, the Ninth Kentucky, one
of the best in the Confederate service, had seen arduous and hazardous
service at Shiloh, Corinth and Baton Rouge. Colonel Morgan asked that
this officer (his uncle) should command the infantry regiments, which
were to form part of his force for the expedition; and Colonel Hunt
selected his own regiment and the Second Kentucky (infantry).

On the morning of the 7th of December, Colonel Morgan set out on this
expedition. The cavalry force was placed under my command, and consisted
of Gano's, Bennett's, Cluke's and Chenault's regiments, and Stoner's
battalion--in all numbering about fifteen hundred men. Hanson's brigade
was encamped at Baird's mill. Here the infantry detachment joined us,
seven hundred strong; the full strength of neither regiment was taken.
Quirk's "scouts" and other scouting parties were sent to reconnoiter in
the direction of Hartsville, to watch the enemy at Castalian Springs,
and the fords of the river, and to picket the Nashville and Lebanon
pike. The "combined forces" left Baird's mill about 11 A.M., and passed
through Lebanon about 2 P.M., taking the Lebanon and Hartsville pike.
The snow lay upon the ground and the cold was intense.

The infantry had been promised that they should ride part of the way,
and, accordingly, a few miles beyond Lebanon a portion of the cavalry
gave up the horses to them. This, however, was an injudicious measure.
The infantry had gotten their feet wet in trudging through the snow,
and, after riding a short time, were nearly frozen and clamored to
dismount. The cavalrymen had now gotten their feet saturated with
moisture, and when they remounted, suffered greatly in their turn. There
was some trouble, too, in returning the horses to the proper parties (as
this last exchange was effected after dark), and the infantrymen damned
the cavalry service with all the resources of a soldier's vocabulary.

The infantry and Cobb's battery reached the ferry where it was intended
that they should cross, about ten o'clock at night, and were put across
in two small leaky boats, a difficult and tedious job. When the cavalry
reached the ford, where Colonel Morgan had di