to send a messenger, with the certainty of his being captured if it was the enemy. A young man from the Forty-fourth Virginia Regiment, who volunteered for the purpose, was sent, and he soon returned with the information that the firing was from the skirmishers from Branch's and Gregg's brigades, who mistook us for the enemy. Fortunately, however, no damage was done. I was then ordered to advance to the front, and in a view minutes afterward I was ordered to move back by the right flank, the report of the movement of the enemy around our left flank having proved unfounded. I found that the other brigades had already bivouacked near where I had left them and my own did the same.

Most of the batteries of the division were engaged at different points and times during the fighting on these days, but as they were separated from their brigades on account of the difficulty of following them in the woods, I am unable to give a sufficiently accurate account of the operations, and shall therefore not attempt it.

AFFAIR AT OX HILL, NEAR CHANTILLY, AND MARCH INTO MARYLAND.

In the afternoon of Sunday, the 31st, the division was ordered to move, following Jackson's division, and it did so, crossing Bull Run at a ford below Sudley, and then turning to the left and pursuing a country road until we reached the Little River turnpike, which was followed in the direction of Germantown until we were ordered to bivouac late at night.

Early next morning (September 1) we were again put in motion, following Jackson's division, and moving in single column until we reached Chantilly, where the division was placed in two columns, one being on each side of the road, with the artillery in the road. In this arrangement Trimble's and Hays' were on the right and Lawton's and my own brigades on the left of the road, my own following Lawton's brigade. On reaching Ox Hill in the afternoon, where the Ox road crosses the turnpike, indications of the approach of the enemy on the turnpike from Centreville having been observed, Trimble's and Hays' brigades were moved to the right and placed in line of battle on the right of Jackson's division and occupying positions in the edge of a field beyond a piece of woods through which the Ox road here runs. Lawton's brigade and my own were moved across the turnpike and placed in line in the woods in rear of Trimble's and Hays' brigades, Lawton's being placed in rear of Trimble's brigade and my own in rear of Hays' brigade. As we moved into position the enemy opened with artillery, firing into the woods where we were posted, and in a short time afterward infantry firing commenced in front. After we had been in position for some time General Starke, who was commanding Jackson's division, came to me and represented that the enemy were approaching on his left in considerable force, and that there was an interval on his left between his left flank and the turnpike, his line being in form of an arc of a circle, and he requested me to move my brigade so as to occupy this interval, in the direction of which he represented the enemy to be moving. I had some hesitation about moving my brigade, but as I had received no orders and had merely followed the movement of the brigade preceding me, which brought me in the position I have indicated, and as General Starke was very urgent, representing his condition to be critical, which it in fact was if the information he received was true, I determined to move my brigade to his left, which was but a short distance, owing to the form of the line, and gave the order accordingly to move by flank, putting myself upon the leading flank. During this move