of the battery, and the majority remaining at the fort until dark, when they were relieved by a regiment of General Geary's command. The greater part of the 16th was spent in burying the dead. On the morning of the 19th my command advanced in line of battle on the Adairsville road to near Cassville, my skirmishers being thrown out in a semicircle around the front and left of the left flank of the brigade. The regiment was at this time exposed to a fire of shells from a battery of the enemy,and lost 1 man killed and 1 wounded. The balance of the day was spent in maneuvering, in which no casualties occurred. The total loss of my command during the seven days is 22 men killed, 96 men wounded, and 1 missing. Six of the wounded have since died.

I have the honor to be, general, your most obedient servant,

F. C. SMITH,

Colonel, Commanding 102nd Illinois Volunteer Infantry.

Brigadier General W. T. WARD,

Commanding First Brigadier, Third Div., 20th Army Corps.

HEADQUARTERS 102nd ILLINOIS INFANTRY, Chattahoochee River, Ga., September 15, 1864.

DEAR SIR: In obedience to your orders of September -, 1864, I have the honor to submit the following report:

On the 20th of May last I was encamped with the brigade near Cassville, Ga., and there remained until the morning of the 23rd of May, when, with the brigade, my command moved forward and crossed the Etowah River and encamped at night about one mile from the crossing. Slight skirmishing between our cavalry and the enemy in front continued from 5 p.m. until nearly dark. On the morning of the 24th of May the march was resumed at about sunrise in the direction of Dallas, Ga., and continued without obstruction until the afternoon of May 25, when the Second Division of the Twentieth Corps encountered the enemy near Burnt Hickory. At 4 p.m. the brigade moved in the direction of the enemy in line of battalions in mass until it came under the enemy's fire, when, by order of Brigadier-General Ward, we were deployed in line of battle. Soon thereafter my regiment, with the Seventieth Indiana, was ordered to halt and hold ourselves as a reserve line of the brigade. In obedience to said orders, I moved my command a short distance by the right flank, occupying a good position under the crest of a ridge fronting the enemy. Here I remained awaiting orders until nearly dark, when I was ordered by Major-General Butterfield, commanding the division, to move forward with my regiment and make a vigorous attack upon the enemy's left wing. I immediately commenced a forward movement and was soon directed by a member of the general's staff to halt until the Seventieth Indiana, under Colonel Harrison, approached, as he was also ordered forward. As Colonel Harrison's command came up I again moved in the direction of the enemy, passing over four lines of our troops lying upon the ground, until I arrived at a line of skirmishers sent forward from the Second Brigade (Colonel Coburn's), where I halted preparatory to making the attack. At this point I found that I was separated from the Seventieth Indiana, and here I was informed by Colonel Coburn that the enemy was very strong (six lines deep) in my immediate front,

23 R R-VOL XXXVIII, PT II