The prisoners, seeing that I was not in a talking mood, left me to myself. Shortly after, the Adjutant-General came out and discovered me sitting there. I heard him call the sergeant of the guard, who shortly came to the entrance and said, "Halloa, there, you long-haired fellow! you are wanted here." He took me into the head-quarters, where I received the papers that I had left there, and an order for my horse and a pass to General McPherson's head-quarters, where I arrived after an absence of three days and a half.
The information that I gathered showed that the enemy's right was the most advantageous point for us to attack; so much so, that it was thought by good judges that a single army corps could easily have entered Marietta. General Sherman, however, was not left to choose his place of attack, for the next morning the enemy made a furious assault upon our right, against General Hooker's command. The onslaught was impetuous and the pressure tremendous, but was heroically resisted. For a time it seemed as if Hooker's entire command would be swept away by the masses that were hurled against it. It was enough, however, that "Fighting Joe" was there to animate his troops by his noble bearing.
The action was sustained in all its fury, and gradually spread from right to left, until the whole line was engaged, and lasted until, overpowered by the boys in blue, the enemy broke and fled, resulting in a complete victory to the Federal arms, with the possession of Kenesaw Mountain and Marietta.
The next day, at my request, General McPherson and staff, accompanied by General Leggett, went with me to see the places that I had described in my report. After we had visited them, General McPherson said that he was convinced that I had reported correctly. I mention this because it is not uncommon for spies to go out, and, on their return, report that which they knew nothing about. It was a satisfaction for me to know that he was satisfied that I had visited the places that I had described.
General Sherman continued to press the enemy toward Atlanta, and his victory at Kenesaw Mountain was followed by an advance of his lines to within two miles of that place, and extending around three sides of it.
The 20th day of July, General Hood's supersedure of General Johnston in the command of the Confederate army was inaugurated by a furious attack upon the 4th and 14th Corps, comprising General Sherman's center. Very much to our satisfaction, General Johnston's slow-retreating process of campaign was changed to one of rapid evolutions, and bold, desperate dashes. Our greatest difficulty had been to get the enemy to fight. This we now had an opportunity of doing. The hardy veterans of the North-west received the attack with coolness and determination, and, though the enemy came in massed columns, they stood their ground, dealing out death and destruction, until Hood was glad to withdraw, leaving his dead and wounded in our hands.
On the morning of July 22d, General McPherson was informed, by a member of his staff, that he had heard, during the night, a noise like the moving of artillery, which he surmised to be the enemy evacuating Atlanta. General McPherson thought the officer was mistaken about the evacuation of the place. The noise of moving troops, he thought, was probably a body of rebel cavalry that had moved out on our left flank, which lay stretched along on the east side of the place.
To clear up the matter, General McPherson told me to take my horse and ride out to Decatur, which was four miles distant, and from there out on the Stone Mountain road, and find out whether the enemy was there. He instructed me to go as far as I could, and not get captured. If I found the enemy, I was to drop back toward our lines, and feel along, at intervals, for the enemy toward our left. This was on the supposition that the enemy might have a line extending around our left flank and along its rear.
Three-quarters of a mile out from Decatur, I came upon five rebel soldiers on picket. They challenged me to halt, but I had no intention of halting there; so I wheeled about and "lit out." The rebs might have shot me as well as not. I returned to our lines, and went out on another road, and had proceeded but about half a mile, when I came upon more rebel pickets. They did not fire at me. I tried to get out, in all, at thirteen different places, and every time encountered pickets, none of whom tried to shoot me. I was well satisfied that the noise of moving troops, heard in the night, were infantry and artillery moving round to our rear, intending to surprise us, and for that reason their pickets were forbidden to fire upon individuals or small parties.
I then hastened back and reported to General McPherson what I had seen. He wanted to know if I was sure the pickets were infantry, and I told him that I was. He seemed to doubt the possibility of their being infantry. He and his staff then rode out to our rear picket-line, on a road that I had not been out on, and, waiting there, he sent me out to see if I could find any pickets. I went about sixty rods, when I came to a dwelling-house, standing in a little opening in the woods that lined either side of the road. It was then about 11 o'clock, A. M., I had become very thirsty from constant riding in the hot sun since early in the morning; so I rode up to the door of the house, and inquired of a lady there if she would have the kindness to give me a drink of water. Said she, "I have just drawn a bucket of fresh water at the well, back there, and you can have some in welcome; but I reckon you are a Federal soldier, and if you stop to get it, you will get killed, for a Colonel and two of our soldiers have just this minute stepped away from the well." Without stopping to drink, I rode back into the road, and there, about two hundred yards further on, stood the Colonel and two soldiers. They did not fire at me, but the Colonel, who had his sword in his hand, gave it a defiant flourish, as if to say, "You'll catch it directly." I went back to General McPherson, and reported what I had found, who then rode out with me and saw for himself. He said it was about noon, and he would go back to dinner and send out a reconnoitering party.