There are some incidents during the period covered by this chapter worthy of note. During the battle of Shiloh, Lieut. Col. Phillips was wounded. It occurred late on Sabbath evening. He says the only time he had ever been scared since he has been in the army, was when they were carrying him off the battle-field wounded. The thought occurred to him, that now there was almost six feet exposed to the fire of the enemy instead of one foot, forgetting for the time, that while his body occupied an additional space horizontally, it did not occupy so much perpendicularly, as when he was on his horse.
[CHAPTER V.]
FROM THE ATTACK ON CORINTH, OCT. 3D, 1862, UNTIL REGIMENT WAS MOUNTED.
Rebels prepare to attack Corinth—Order of battle—Result of the attack on the 3d of October—New line of battle at "White House"—Line at "Battery Robinett"—Slaughter on the 4th of October—Extracts from a Rebel prisoner's journal—List of killed and wounded—Outpost duty.
The Rebel leaders were not satisfied that our forces should occupy Corinth, uninterruptedly. Hence, in the Fall of 1862 active preparations were made by them to attack that place. A heavy force, under Generals Price and VanDorn, was fitted up for this purpose. The time was drawing near when our boys must endure another of those terrible struggles, two of which they had already passed through.
As I have said, the Regiment had been doing outpost duty at Rienzi, from the 16th of August until the last of September. On the 20th of September, Col. Schaeffer's Brigade, with which our Regiment had been temporarily united, moved Northward, leaving the 9th Ill. and the 59th Indiana, to hold the place. On the 1st of October the 9th Ill. moved toward Corinth, and bivouacked for the night seven miles South of our old camp near Corinth. Moved again, on the 2d of October, and came to the old familiar camp, at noon. Here we occupied our old position again, reporting to General Oglesby, who commanded the Brigade.
On the morning of October 3d, 1862, the Regiment was marched out in its proper position for the terrible conflict, The following order will show the position it occupied during the fight. It was moved out two miles North-west of Corinth, to the old rifle-pits of the rebels. Our Brigade was on the left of the 2d Division. The 6th Division was on our left. On the right of the 6th Division, was the 3d Brigade of the 2d Division, (Col. Baldwin commanding,) which had been temporarily attached to that Division. Gen. McArthur commanded the 6th Division; Gen. Davies the 2d Division, and Gen. Hamilton the Ohio Division. This latter Division was held in reserve. Immediately on our right was the 1st Brigade of the 2d Division. Such was the position our Brigade occupied at the opening of this terrible conflict.
The enemy made their first attack upon Gen. McArthur's Division, which was placed immediately upon our left. After a short resistance, Col. Baldwin's Brigade, placed on the right of that Division, gave way and fell back in confusion. This uncovered and exposed to the enemy our left flank. Soon the enemy came through the large gap thus made, and attacked us simultaneously in the front and rear. The 81st Ohio, placed upon the left of our Brigade, gave way and moved in confusion and disorder to the right and rear, followed very soon by the 12th Ill., and then the 9th moved in the same manner.
In attempting to check the too hasty advance of the Rebels, the 9th Ill. lost Capt. Britt, killed, and the two Captains Lowe, and Lieutenants Hughes and Uleu, together with 53 enlisted men, captured.
Gen. Hackleman's Brigade covered our retreat, and we fell back and formed a new line at the "White House." The Brigades occupied the same order in this line as in the former one. Here the advance of the enemy was checked, until darkness put a stop to the conflict for this day.