mishers, under command of Major White. The line-composed of the Forty-seventh Georgia, on the right, and the troops under command of Lieutenant-Colonel Bacon, on the left-moved just in rear of the skirmishers. In a thick wood near a bend in the old Pocotaligo road the right of my skirmish line struck the enemy. The front was then changed gradually to the right until the line crossed the said road at nearly right angles, when it confronted the enemy, and became engaged throughout its entire length. At this stage of the action the command of Lieutenant-Colonel Nesbett arrived, and was posted on the left of my line of battle. Our skirmishers drove the enemy vigorously until the right of the line became engaged with the enemy's line of battle, our left at the same time overlapping, his right. The position was maintained until after Colonel Daniel's demonstration on my right, when the enemy made new dispositions on and extending beyond my left. It becoming, apparent that the enemy's force considerably outnumbered mine, which consisted largely of raw troops, it was deemed impracticable to attack him in force, without which it was impossible to drive him from his position. I therefore withdrew in good order, unpressed by the enemy, to my present position. The troops engaged, which were my skirmishers only, behaved with great gallantry.

By permission of the major-General commanding, we began on the morning of the 8th to fortify our position. The work was continued uninterruptedly until the morning of the 9th, when the enemy drove in our pickets and advanced in force to within 250 yards of our position. We opened upon him with artillery and musketry, and in a very short time drove him back, with considerable loss. On the afternoon of the same dry, in the attempt to re-establish our picket-line, the enemy was found in the wood on our right within 100 yards of the railroad. After severe fighting for about two hours, he was driven off and our line re-established.

On the next morning it was ascertained that he had fallen back to his original position, and our picket-line was advanced 400 or 500 yards beyond its former position.

The casualties amounted in all to 4 killed, 1 commissioned officer and 31 men wounded, many of them very slightly. Judging from the unburied dead, the graves, and other evidences found upon the field, the enemy must have suffered a loss of not less than 250 in the fighting of the 9th, and not less than 50 in that of the 7th, making in all a loss of not less than 300.

Respectfully submitted.

A. C. EDWARDS,

Colonel, Commanding.

Major CHARLES S. STRINGFELLOW,

Assistant Adjutant-General, Charleston, S. C.

P. S. -I omitted to mention, in enumerating the force under my command on the 7th instant, the three pieces of Captain Bachman's battery, which, owing to the character of the country, it was found impracticable to use in the action.

Respectfully,

A. C. EDWARDS,

Colonel, Commanding.