Today in History:

655 Series I Volume XVI-I Serial 22 - Morgan's First Kentucky Raid, Perryville Campaign Part I

Page 655 Chapter XXVIII. GENERAL REPORTS.

Question. Are you positive about that?

No, sir; I am not. My recollection fails me in regard to that division, as I never had any reports of it, and I merely remember from the order first organizing it.

Question. Were the new divisions organized with fifteen regiments?

The organization of the Tenth Division, General Jackson's, was not complete, but if I remember aright General Dumont's division was more complete in its organization. I know it was larger.

Question. How would this estimated strength of the army at the time it was at Louisville compare with its probable strength at Perryville, say about the 8th of October? If you know of any discrepancy explain the cause of it.

Fifty-eight thousand is the number which we had represented on paper on leaving Louisville. I am confident it was much larger than the number we had at Perryville, as there was a great deal of straggling from Louisville to Perryville. A great many of the regiments broke down and many men were left behind. The great number of stragglers from the new regiments, from their breaking down, was remarked upon throughout the army.

Question. Did you carry any instructions on the 8th of October for re-enforcing the left corps? If so, state when you received them, what they were, and how they were executed.

I did carry instructions to General McCook, commanding the left corps. About half past 4 in the afternoon we broke up our camp, when I received orders from Colonel Fry to prepare an orderly to carry orders to General McCook. He then told me that I had better go myself, and give the orders to General Gilbert, commanding the center corps, to send two brigades to re-enforce General McCook on the left. I rode forward and met General Gilbert about 2 miles in advance, and delivered him the order to send these re-enforcements to General McCook, when he told me that he had already sent one brigade and a battery. He told me to take any brigade I wished, and showed great willingness to send re-enforcements to General McCook. I told him I would only take one. I then went forward to General Schoepf, who was probably 300 yards his division being in reserve near General Buell's headquarters. When I met General Schoepf his troops were in motion, but moving very slowly through a corn field. He was riding along in the rear near his advance brigade. I think they were formed in two lines as they moved forward. I told him to move one of his brigades forward, and he designated General Steedman's, which was, I think, the larger of his two brigades. I then told him I would ride forward, and tell General McCook that they were coming and find the direction. There was an interval of some distance between General McCook's line and that of General Gilbert, and in this interval, though not entirely covering it, was Captain Gay's cavalry, and I tried to find from them the direction of General McCook's command, but no one knew where he was or could tell, or could tell me which direction I should take. I afterward found an ambulance train, which I followed for some distance, when we were met by an orderly, who turned them in another direction. He said he had just come from General McCook with orders to hurry them up. I told the surgeon in charge of the trains that I thought he was going in a wrong direction. At that time I heard no musketry firing. The road I was following led me to the rear of the right of General McCook's command. As I approached General McCook's line I met one of his staff officers half a mile in the rear, and I inquired where General McCook was; he said he had not seen him for two hours; he said he had been placed there to stop the stragglers. He spoke of the great numbers of stragglers there were; he also said that we had got the worst of it in the fight. As I rode up this line I met a battery about 300 yards in the rear of the line had been driven back, but by the arrival of this new brigade they had been enabled to recover the intervening ground. This was, I presume, about 5 o'clock. I met General McCook immediately in rear of his line, which was about the center of the Third Division, which was on his right. I told him that re-enforcements were coming. I also told him that the general desired me to ask him how he was doing and whether the re-enforcements coming would be sufficient. He said that he had been driven back, but that he was now recovering his ground and was doing very well. I asked him how his new troops had done, and he said splendidly. I thought, however, he replied to the question without thinking what I had asked him. He may have misunderstood me, for his Tenth Division, composed of new troops, had been driven back.


Page 655 Chapter XXVIII. GENERAL REPORTS.