Mason had been disabled a few minutes before by a fall from his horse. The regiment was in line of battle behind a ditch and thicket on the extreme left of our line, and about 300 yards in advance of its bivouac the night before. in obedience to orders, received after remaining in this position about an hour, I moved forward in line of battle 200 yards, and halted, ordering my men to sit down, in order to avoid the balls which came over the crest of the hill from the enemy's skirmishers.

At the expiration of twenty or thirty minutes I moved the regiment farther to the front and a little to the right, into the open field, to support the skirmishers of the Forty-ninth New York, which were only 50 yards in front of me, on the crest of the hill intervening between my regiment and the enemy, located in the skirts of the village. Here we were much exposed, the hill not being high enough to shield us from the enemy's sharpshooters, who fired upon us from trees and housetops. The bullets fell thickly around the regiment, but fortunately one man only was wounded, and he slightly, although several had their clothing pierced.

Soon after, in obedience to orders, I detached Company G, Lieutenant Johnson commanding, to support two guns, which were posted by General Davidson in person upon the crest of the hill, thus securing so short and direct a range that the enemy was soon dislodged and forced to retreat. As soon as the enemy started to leave I was ordered to the top of the hill, when the action, so far as I saw, ceased. My men did not have an opportunity to fire a shot, but they were cool and steady under a fire which they could not return.

Respectfully submitted.

SELDEN CONNOR,

Lieutenant-Colonel, Commanding Seventh Maine Volunteers.

Lieutenant WILLIAM H. LONG,

Acting Assistant Adjutant-General, Third Brigade.

Numbers 9. Report of Lieutenant Colonel Joseph W. Corning,

Thirty-third New York Infantry.

CAMP IN THE FIELD, May 26, 1862.

GENERAL: I have to report that, in obedience to orders from you on the morning of 24th of May instant, I detached Companies B, G, and K, of the Thirty-third Regiment New York State Volunteers, and marched them a short distance in advance of the leading regiment of the brigade, and there deployed Company K, commanded by Captain Patrick McGraw, Lieutenant B. Byrne, to the right of the road running westerly to Mechanicsville, and Company B, commanded, by Lieutenant H. H. Draime, Lieutenant John W. Corning, Company G, Captain T. B. Hamilton, Lieutenant A. E. Eustaphieve, being placed near the center of the line and about 50 yards was made to the village. The march was over cleared fields, the ground gradually ascending.

Near sunrise, as the line of skirmishers arrived upon the crest of the hill, about 200 yards to the eastward of the turnpike, we discovered a body of infantry moving rapidly south down the turnpike. I ordered the skirmishers to fire upon them, when they broke and ran, filing to the left, under cover of a dwelling-house and out buildings, of which there was a continuous line, to within 50 yards of the position then oc-