“The last regiment was deployed in rear of the others so as to take in a large space of ground and pick up prisoners and trophies. You see, we were to break through the enemy, smashing them, and Long was to sweep over the ground and pick them up. This was soon determined on, for there was no time to lose. A few of our men were in front of us, dismounted, skirmishing with the enemy, and they were told to throw down the fence where they were. The enemy all this time was keeping them engaged as much as possible, while a large force of them were building rail barricades. We were formed just below the brow of the hill, skirmishers on the crest of it, the enemy’s artillery to our left and front playing over us, and bullets and shells flying thick over our heads. We drew saber, trotted until we came to the crest of the hill and then started at a gallop. Down the hill we went, the enemy turning canister upon us, while the bullets whistled fiercely, and the battery away on our right threw shells. We leaped fences, ditches, barricades, and were among them, the artillery being very hot at this time. You could almost feel the balls as they passed by. The Fourth Michigan and Seventh Pennsylvania went straight forward to the woods, the field over which they passed being at least a half a mile wide, with three fences, one partially built barricade, and a number of ditches and gullies, some very wide and deep. Of course many of the men were dismounted, and upon reaching the woods they (our men) could not move fast, and they turned to the right and joined the main column in the road about one and a half miles from the start. The Fourth Regulars (my regiment, as I joined it when the charge was ordered) could not keep parallel with the rest of the brigade on account of high fences in our front, and seeing an opening in the fence we turned to the left, and struck out on the main road, coming upon the enemy in the road near their battery, and sending them flying. We were soon among the led horses of the dismounted men in their rear and among the ambulances, and a perfect stampede took place, riderless horses and ambulances being scattered in all directions, we in the midst of them, shooting and cutting madly. A part of our regiment, with some of the Fourth Michigan and Seventh Pennsylvania, dashed at the battery, drove the men from the pieces, and captured three of the guns. Private William Bailey, a young Tennessean from near McMinnville, who belonged to Fourth Michigan Cavalry (he was associated with me at headquarters as scout), shot the captain. We brought away the guns, and the charge continued for about two miles, when we halted for the command to close up. Colonel Long’s brigade did not charge in line as it was intended, for, finding that the ground was impracticable, it formed in column and followed the Fourth Regulars. Colonel Murray’s command, instead of sweeping all to the left, as we supposed they would do, turned to the right and followed Long. Had Murray done what was expected, both sides of the road would have been cleaned out.
“Immediately after the charge and while we were pushing through the woods it commenced to rain, and poured in torrents. The command was now started for McDonough, but before the whole of it had moved off, Long’s brigade, which had been moved to cover the rear, was fiercely attacked by the infantry of the enemy. Colonel Long fought them for about two hours, when, his ammunition giving out, he was obliged to retire. (Here Long was wounded twice.) The Fourth Michigan and Seventh Pennsylvania were formed in the rear, Long behind rail barricades which had been hastily thrown up. The Fourth United States Regulars being out of ammunition were sent on to McDonough, where the Ninety-second Illinois Mounted Infantry divided ammunition with some of us near this town. One of Long’s regiments assisted the Fourth Michigan and Seventh Pennsylvania. Long passed his men through when the enemy came on us. Then we had it hot and heavy, the enemy charging several times, but were repulsed. All this fighting here was done dismounted, and was for the purpose of holding back the enemy until our main column could get out of the way. Our battery (three pieces) during this fight burst one gun and wedged another, getting a shell part way down it, so it could not be moved either way, so we had one gun only, but that was used with effect, the enemy meanwhile playing their artillery into our columns all along the road. You see our two brigades had to do all the fighting, lead the charge, and cover the retreat. As soon as our men had passed on about a mile, our rear-guard followed, and we were not molested again. We pushed slowly on to McDonough, crossed Walnut Creek, and near morning lay down in the mud for sleep. How tired we were I cannot tell, and men would tumble prone from their horses, and it was next to impossible to awaken them. Frequently two or three men would fall asleep upon their horses, who would stop, and the whole column behind them would naturally do the same, too, supposing that there was obstruction ahead. Hundreds of men were sometimes asleep in that way upon their horses in the mud for an hour or so at a time. During this time I fell asleep for about two hours, and awoke drenched to the skin, for it was raining, and fearfully dark and very disagreeable. About two o’clock we found a place to stop. I never before that knew what fatigue meant, for I had not slept a wink for the nights of the 17th, 18th, 19th, and 20th until the morning (about 2 A. M.) of the 21st, except what I had when riding along. We had had but three meals, and but little time to eat them, had fought seven pretty hard fights, besides skirmishing, etc., etc. At daybreak the next morning we started on again. At Cotton River the bridge was gone, the stream much swollen by rain, so that it could not be forded and the horses were obliged to swim it. As the current was very swift, we had a terrible time crossing it. We, our brigade, lost one man and about sixty horses drowned here, and nearly all our pack-mules also. We could not get the wagon with the two disabled guns across at all, and rumor said they were buried here, and the site marked as the graves of two soldiers of the Fourth United States Cavalry. It was terrible to see the poor wounded carried across, some fastened on horses, while others were taken over in ambulances. We all finally got over, but if the enemy had pushed us here most of the command would have been captured. We were now nearly all out of ammunition, and many an anxious glance I gave to the rear, it being a relief when all were over. We then crossed South River bridge, burning all the bridges for ten miles each side, and camped that night at Lithonia. The next day we returned to our camp at Peach Tree Creek, having made a complete circuit of the two armies of Hood and Sherman. We did not do all we hoped we could when we started, but we did all we could. Notwithstanding what we had suffered, General Sherman was much dissatisfied with us, expecting more from us than lay in our power (or his either) to accomplish.
G. A. McKee
Private Company C, Third Texas Cavalry
“In the above narrative I have drawn very largely from a letter written August 28, 1864, by Captain Burns (as stated before), printed in a work called ‘Minty and the Cavalry,’ though about all I have written occurred under my own observation. We captured three stands of colors claimed to belong to the Third Texas Cavalry,[4] Zachariah Rangers, and Benjamin’s Infantry.
“Our aggregate loss in First and Second Brigades, killed, wounded, and missing, was 14 officers, 192 men.”[5]
“Robert M. Wilson,
“Company M, Fourth United States Cavalry.”