At half past 6 o'clock we were ordered to Rossville, where we remained until the morning of the 21st, when we went to the support of General Wood's division, Twenty-first Army Corps.

On the morning of the 22nd, we were ordered to Chattanooga, where we have remained in the intrenchments up to this period.

An official list of the killed, wounded, and missing is herewith transmitted,* showing that more than one-third of our brave comrades are gone. This list will tell more plainly than any words of mine can the manner in which the men of this command bore themselves in the trying hour.

Every officer, and almost every single man, did his whole duty.

The splendid manner in which their several commanders handled the individual regiments, deserves your special commendation. No men could have done more than they did.

My most cordial thanks are thus publicly due the members of the brigade staff for the gallant and efficient manner in which they performed every duty assigned them: Adjt. J. K. Hamilton, Lieutenant J. T. Collins, and Captain R. M. Black.

I have the honor to remain, very respectfully, your obedient servant,

JOHN G. MITCHELL,

Colonel, Commanding.

Captain S. B. MOE,

Assistant Adjutant-General, First Division.

Numbers 204.

Report of Lieutenant Colonel Carter Van Vleck Seventy-eighth Illinois Infantry.

OFFICERS' HOSPITAL, Chattanooga, Tenn., September 22, 1863.

COLONEL: Pursuant to your request, I improve the first opportunity to make you an official statement of the part taken by my regiment in the battle of Chickamauga.

We were not engaged in the battle of Saturday, except to protect the right flank of our division lines while the First Brigade were engaging the enemy on the Rossville and Ringgold road.

Sunday morning soon after light we were posted in line with the Ninety-sixth Illinois on said road and remained thus until about 10 a.m., when we received orders to move in haste to the support of General Thomas, some 4 or 5 miles to the right, whither we went with the other regiments of the division under the command of General Steedman.

The last mile and a half of this march was made over an open plain under a continuous fire of artillery and musketry. No serious casualties occurred, but the temper of the men was well tried and proved to be of the right material.

From this open plain we passed into a dense piece of timber, where our brigade was formed in two lines, the One hundred and thirteenth and Ninety-eighth Ohio Volunteer Infantry making the front line, and the Seventy-eighth Illinois and One hundred and twenty-first Ohio Infantry making the rear line, and advanced in this order

---------------

*See revised statement, p. 178.

---------------