Here were two guns, 6 and 10 pounders, field pieces in position behind the rifle pits and partially protected by an unfinished earthworks. My right was about 200 yards from the enemy works and my left about 500 yards, while my skirmishers were about a hundred yards in front of my line of battle. Here we received the first fire from the enemy’s artillery and halted pursuant to orders. Just after we halted a few minutes an order came down from the right (by whom given I do not know), "skirmishers on the left, forward double quick," and away went my line of skirmishers toward the enemy’s works. Momentarily I waited for the order for the line to move rapidly forward to support the skirmishers, but, it did not come. Meanwhile. my skirmishers supposing the line to be right after them, closed to half distance, dashed through the enemy’s camp, which was in a ravine in front of their rifle pits, drove their skirmishers into and then out of their rifle pits into their line of battle, which also receded half way up the hill, without any more than firing a single random volley. Here my skirmishers looked back for support, and seeing it was not coming, slowly fell back to the crest of the hill in front of my line where they commenced and kept up during the entire day and night following a most destructive fire upon the enemy who had returned to complete his works and mount batteries. At the very moment when the gallant Second Michigan Regiment (my skirmishers) were entering the enemy’s lines I received an order to halt where I was as General Sherman said we had already advanced farther than he intended we should at the time, as the right of the investing army had not yet got sufficiently forward. So I rested where I was. I had no doubt then, nor have I now, that if that order had not arrived at that moment, in twenty minutes the First Division would have been in the city, or at least held the heights that command it. To all intents and purposes practical opposition to our advance was at an end at that point.

During the day and succeeding night the enemy succeeded in perfecting his rifle pits and batteries, so that by the morning of the 12th his works were formidable, indeed and about 8 o’clock on the morning of the 12th the First Division was relieved by the Second Division and I withdrew my command to the rear and in support of Edward’s battery, which was our most advanced battery on the whole line.

During the day and night of the 11th, the Second Regiment, Michigan Volunteers, sustained the hottest skirmish fire I have ever witnessed, which they returned with telling effect, as was afterwards well ascertained. Indeed, so far as that regiment was concerned it was a battle.