commanding, my regiment was moved to the front and formed in the center of the rear line in line of battle a few yards in the rear of the picket line and immediately in front of Fort Palmer. An hour later, while the brigade was advancing and driving in the enemy's pickets, I took command, in obedience to orders formerly received from General Wagner, of the rear line, consisting of the Fifteenth Indiana on the right, Twenty-sixth Ohio in the center, and

Fifty-seventh Indiana on the left, which line was advanced in line of battle and halted with brigade near the enemy's picket line, where it lay until night. During this movement the Twenty-sixth Ohio was under the immediate command of Maj. W. H. Squires.

During the night my regiment was advanced to the front line, moved with the brigade to the left about 400 yards and assigned the front center, having the Fortieth Indiana on its right and Fifty-eighth Indiana on its left. In this position rifle-pits were constructed during the night.

On the 24th, we lay in line of battle in our rifle-pits without change of position or interruption, except by an occasional harmless shell from the enemy's batteries in our front.

About 3 p.m. of the 25th, on orders from Colonel Wood, commanding the front line, to advance my regiment with the rest of the brigade, I moved to the front across an open field in view of the enemy, some 500 yards, where we lay down half and hour, receiving, but without casualty, a severe fire of shell. I here received and gave to my officers orders to "advance slowly and steadily in line until ordered to halt, as it was intended, if possible, to take all before us to the top of Missionary Ridge."

The movement to the front began as directed (about 3.45 o'clock), but the line had advanced but a few hundred a few hundred yards when the troops on my either flank without orders, so far as I understood, quickened their pace to a double-quick. After endeavoring for some time to preserve the prescribed pace, finding my men were falling to the rear and chafing under the restraint, I quickened their step, regained my place in the line, and

double-quick under a terrific fire of shot and shell for 800 to 900 yards to the enemy's line of rifle-pits at the base of the mountain, which being found empty, were immediately cleared and the charge enthusiastically continued up the mountain slope, the crest at this point being 600 to 800 yards distant. About half this latter distance was made most gallantly and without serious casualty, but the distance the men had double-quick, some, 1,200 to 1,500 yards, and the increasing angle of the acclivity had completely exhausted them. We were now, too, receiving a very hot fire of musketry from the enemy's rifle-pits on the crest in front as well as an enfilading fire of shell and solid shot from the right and left, the position of the line we were assailing being much retired and our line of march bisecting the arc of a circle whose limbs were lined with rebel batteries throwing upon us a concentrated fire.

I thereupon ordered my men to move slowly, advancing firing as skirmishers, availing themselves of every shelter available, avoiding undue exposure, but to keep up a forward movement. The latter I found extremely difficult by reason of the great exhaustion of officers and men, both behaving with the utmost gallantry, but in a number of ceases falling at my feet completely outdone. We were, however, steadily approaching a point much sheltered by the configuration of the ground and already occupied by a few men in advance, when I received an order to fall back to the ground and already occupied by a few men in advance, when I received an order to fall back to the rifle-pit at the