ton, and were in motion as early as five o'clock, moving forward rapidly. Col. Marshall's battalion, composed of Companies A, B, C and D, of his own regiment, and Capt. Berryhill's company of the Second Ohio Volunteers, constituted his command, and were placed in advance of the Second, Twenty-first and Fiftyninth regiments of Ohio Volunteers. Upon our boys devolved the duty of climbing the mountains as scouts; to do which, and keep at the same time in advance of the main column, required of them the most exhausting toil. General Nelson, in order to form a junction with a force which he had moved forward in advance of us about twenty-four hours, was compelled to make a forced march. As our rout was somewhat circuitous, distance could only be overcome by speed. All our movements were rapid-sometimes advancing at the double-quick step. Our boys who scaled the mountains, often making extended detours to head the gullies, had to bound like the deer, to keep ahead of those travelling in a straight road and on a plain surface. I felt for them, as they came in from the mountains, wet with perspiration, faint, exhausted, yet determined. About twelve miles from Prestonburg we came upon about fifty of the enemy's cavalry scouts. The guard and Colonel Marshall opened fire upon them, and put them to flight. Suspecting that some of the foe were still lurking in ambush, the moral effect of a shell was tried, with what effect upon their nerves, if any were near, I cannot tell. After this little episode, we urged our way toward Piketon, the expected field of definite action; but when we had proceeded between two and three miles, and the head of Colonel Marshall's battalion was approaching the upper part of the mountains, the guide and Captains Gault and Reed, being considerably in advance, discovered that the foe, who were a thousand strong, were concealed behind rocks, trees and bushes, reserving their fire for a further advance of the column. Captain Gault, who fortunately was armed with a five-shooter Colt's revolving rifle, opened fire upon them, discharging the contents of his gun, and about the same time both the guide and Mr. Reed discharged their muskets upon the foe, which brought them into a more precipitate action than was laid down in their programme. The horse of Captain Gault was shot from under him, and the guide received two of the enemy's balls, which brought him to the ground. Reed's horse was also killed; and such was their perilous and exposed condition, that both were under the necessity of taking shelter under the cover of a shelving rock, which induced Reed to suggest to the captain, in his peculiar style, "that they were both gone up, sir!" Colonel Marshall urged on his column, which was between a quarter and a half mile in advance of the Second Ohio, when the battle commenced. Captain Gault was cut off from his command, and in order to rejoin it, with the least prospect of safety, had to swim the river, encumbered with his sword and carrying Col. Marshall's revolving rifle in his hand, and then return, and reach this side of the river at a point lower down. By this time the engagement between Col. Marshall's command, on the narrow road at the base of the mountain and immediately on the banks of the river, and the foe, who had intrenched themselves upon the top and along the brow of the mountain, became general, and three of Capt. Gault's men fell at the very commencement of the action, and a number more of them were wounded. This company, from their position, had to bear the brunt of the battle, and courageously and persistently did they do so. Captain Berryhill's company of the Second Ohio, which had been placed in Col. Marshall's command, bore themselves most gallantly, and rendered most effective service by scaling the mountains, where, under the command of their fearless and intrepid captain, they accomplished deeds of noble daring. In point of suffering the company stand second on the list, as will be seen by the more detailed account of the result of the engagement. It is copied from Major Harris' official report, prepared to be submitted to General Nelson. It soon became evident that the foe was faltering before our fire, when we were opened upon from the opposite side of the river, and thus exposed to both fires, our command maintained their ground until the artillery was brought into action, greatly to our relief. The slain of the enemy left on the battle-field on this side of the river, whom we buried, are nine, and of the three wounded prisoners who were cared for by us, two have died, making the number of their dead, so far as our personal knowledge extends, to be eleven. It is stated, however, that they acknowledge their loss in wounded, prisoners, and slain as many as sixty. The Second and Twenty-first Ohio participated in the action, doing good service. The Fifty-ninth, who came up later, by a well-directed volley, silenced the foe, who, by their fire, were trying to pick off the artillerymen from the other side of the river. In this contest our boys faced the fire, and showed a spirit of determined bravery, every way worthy of Kentucky's ancient fame. They fought-they conquered. Among the incidents not detailed in Major Harris' report, I must mention that he is among the slightly wounded. That he is alive is doubtless owing to the fact that a silver spectacle-case and a well-filled pocket obstructed the passage of the ball, so that only the point of the bullet was imbedded in the flesh. Col. Marshall's Kentucky jeans are badly riddled; both his upper and nether garments look decidedly the worse for the contest. Even his cap was ventilated, and his noble steed fell a victim to the enemy's fire. To the great gratification of all his command, he still lives unscathed and unharmed. I know that he will ever cherish with the most grateful emotions the many instances of devotion shown him by the gallant soldiers whom he led and cheered by his voice and presence during the battle. He heard the cry time and again, as he passed along the line among his soldiers: "Colonel, we are with you; Colonel, we will stand by you;" "Colonel, get out of the way, they are shooting right at you," etc. 99 66 This engagement lasted one hour and a half. After our men were brought into action, they never yielded one inch of ground, although they were exposed to the enemy's cross fire, both from their mountain ambuscade and the opposite side of the river. The advance, under Col. Marshall, including Captain Berryhill's company, was less than five hundred, while our information is that the assault was made upon us by a force of one thousand, who had chosen their ground well. We routed them, taking four prisoners, beside the three who were founded. Among the wounded was a Captain Rust, since dead, late a Senator from Greenup County. Captain May was doubtless in command. List of the killed and wounded.-Co. A, Captain Gault, Col. Marshall's regiment, four killed and ten wounded, viz.: Edward Hall, Wm. Prather, Peter Bentz, John McCarty, killed. Corporal Thomas Donaldson, Amos Stevenson, George Burton, H. D. Collins, William Hall, Martin Grimes, William N. Collins, Charles Dillin, (slightly,) and Lieut. John S. White, wounded. Company B, Captain Luman: one killed, three wounded. Killed.-William Hartley. Wounded.-William Hall, S. Browning, and Joseph Bailey. Company C, Captain Wiley: one wounded, Alfred Dougherty. Wounded of the Second Ohio, mostly belonging to Company A, Captain Berryhill: Captain Berryhill, David Hilt, Patrick Flaherty, John Elstrip, Haw. Wilson, Joseph Carter, Corporal E. B. Simpson, Corporal Fesh, Henry Giese, pioneer; Stephen A. Coleman, scout, all abed. JOHN S. BAYLESS, Chaplain Col. Marshall's Regiment Ky. Vol. GEN. NELSON'S ORDER. SECESSION REPORT. REPORT OF COLONEL WILLIAMS. CAMP NEAR POUND GAP, Nov. 13, 1861. GENERAL: Since my last report to you, I have been compelled to abandon Piketon by an overwhelming force, that advanced upon me in two columns-one directly up the river from Prestonburg, sixteen hundred strong, with a battery of six pieces; and the other from Louisa, up John's Creek, a branch of the Sandy, numbering one thousand eight hundred men, with a battery of field-pieces. Both of these columns converged upon Piketon. My whole force consisted of one thousand and ten men, including sick, teamsters, and men on extra duty. I did not believe that the advance of the enemy would be so rapid, and hoped that the artillery and reinforcements promised would arrive before they could disturb me at Piketon. Under this confident hope, I commenced gathering supplies, explored the leather resources of the country, found them abundant, organized a corps of shoemakers, and had them at work. Major Hawes had purchased a thousand fat hogs, and a number of beef cattle, and was making preparation to salt them. My men were badly clad and badly armed, with not a knapsack, haversack, or canteen; they carried their powder in horns, gourds, and bottles. This was our condition when the enemy commenced the advance upon us. Retreat was inevitable, but there was too much public property to be abandoned without an effort to save it. I at once ordered all the transportation possible to be collected, and sent the sick, the wounded, and the live stock to the rear, on the Pound Gap road, for the Tazewell route was no longer safe. I sent a small armed force immediately on the Tazewell route, with written orders to turn back the artillery and all public wagons to a point of safety in Virginia. I then sent Capt. Holliday, with a small mounted party, on the John's Creek road, and Captains Thomas and Clay on the river road to Prestonburg, to observe the movements of the enemy. This was on the night of the HEAD-QUARTERS CAMP HOPELESS CHASE, 8th. Capt. Thomas discovered the advanced PIKETON, KY., Nov. 10, 1861. guard of the enemy about fifteen miles from SOLDIERS: I thank you for what you have Piketon. I went in person with Captains done. In a campaign of twenty days you have May and Hawkins, with their companies of driven the rebels from Eastern Kentucky, and infantry, and Lieut. Van Hook with twenty given repose to that portion of the State. You mounted men, to the position of Capt. Thomas, have made continual forced marches over wretch- near Joy Creek. I found that Capt. Thomas ed roads, deep in mud; badly clad, you have had burned the bridge there. The men were bivouacked on the wet ground in the Novem- allowed to refresh themselves, and the horses ber rains without a murmur. With scarce half secured in a deep mountain cave, and the whole rations, you have pressed forward with unfail- party of two hundred and fifty men moved on ing perseverance. The only place that the ene-foot to a strong position half a mile in front of my made a stand, though ambushed and very the burnt bridge, here to await what we sup strong, you drove him from in the most brilliant posed to be the advanced guard of the enemy's style. For your constancy and courage I thank force. you, and with the qualities which you have shown that you possess, I expect great things from you in the future. W. NELSON. I returned to our camp at daylight, and met the report of Capt. Holliday, who had been fired upon by an advanced guard of the enemy of about one hundred and fifty men. He gave them a gallant fight, killed eight of them, having only one of his number wounded, and one horse killed. I despatched Capt. Shawhan, with his own and Capt. Cameron's companies, to observe the movements of the enemy on John's Creek, with instructions to engage any party not more than twice his number, but not to attack the enemy's full force. They intended to move upon the Virginia and Tennessee railroad, I think, by way of Tazewell Court House. They fortify their positions, and have a large number of wagons. The Sandy is now navigable for steamboats to a point above Piketon. we had had one thousand men more, and a battery of six pieces, we could have whipped and destroyed both columns; but with the small force I had, it was impossible to fight both at once, and to have opposed my whole force to one, would have exposed my rear to the other. Our cartridge-boxes arrived the day after the fight. We had powder and lead, and made our own cartridges and moulded our own bullets. The enemy had six thousand troops near PikeAt half-past one o'clock, on the 9th inst., the ton-one thousand of them advanced ten miles enemy moved up to Capt. May's position with a this side of that place. They have not more force of sixteen hundred men and a battery of than one thousand five hundred at Prestonburg; six pieces; and were received by two hundred what they have below as reserves I know but and fifty rifles, and shot guns, in point-blank little of, for all communication is cut off and range, every one of which took effect. Their col- the whole country is frightened out of its wits, umn wavered and fell back; but returned in good and but few men will act as scouts or guides. order, and attempted to carry the pass by as- I am satisfied that this large force was not sault under cover of their cannon, but were re-moved up the Sandy merely for the purpose pulsed again with terrible slaughter. They then of dispersing the unorganized, and half-armed, withdrew beyond the range of our shot guns; and and barefooted squad under my control. threw their infantry up the hills, soon outflanking our little band, and compelling them to fall back behind the burnt bridge. Here our force made a stand; but the enemy advanced no further. I then ordered three more companies of infantry to sustain Capt. May's command, or to cover his retreat if necessary. At twelve o'clock at night, Capt. Shawhan reported to me that the enemy were advancing in full force on the John's Creek road with great rapidity. I then ordered Capts. May and Shawhan and all the outposts in. I made a display of the forces in Piketon, sent the exhausted infantry in the direction of our retreat, and waited with the bal-to Abingdon. There is little subsistence here, ance of the command the arrival of the enemy. They came up slowly and cautiously, but were detained for an hour by Capt. Thomas' company of sharpshooters, stationed near the ford, which prevented their artillery from getting into position to rake the town. As they approached, I moved the rear guard of four hundred men off in good order. They opened upon us a tremendous fire of artillery and musketry, and were replied to by our sharpshooters. We had one killed and three wounded, while the enemy had six killed. In the Joy fight our loss was ten killed, fifteen wounded, and forty missing-some of the missing men have gone back to their homes, and others join us daily. We lost Lieut. Rust, who fell gallantly in the discharge of his duty. My first belief was that the enemy had lost but one hundred and fifty men; but from subsequent information received from spies, Union men, escaped prisoners who have joined us, and others who have examined their burial ground, I am satisfied the enemy lost over three hundred in killed, with the usual proportion of wounded. We want good rifles, clothes, great coats, knapsacks, haversacks and canteens-indeed, every thing almost, except a willingness to fight. Many of our men are barefooted, and I have seen the blood in their tracks, as they marched from Joy to this place. You know what we want. General: send such articles as we need and I fear I shall be compelled to fall back to a point where I can subsist until our organization is perfected. We have been so constantly fighting that we have not had time to complete our muster-rolls. I have now over twelve hundred men. If I could make a forward movement, the effect would be good upon the country. 16 Mr. Thomas has just received from the Governor of Florida, a commission as aide-decamp," with the rank of colonel. I cannot insist upon retaining him from such increased rank. Send somebody else. If the enemy should move by way of the Pound, I have not a sufficient force to resist them-no artilleryno intrenching tools, nor axes, spades, nor picks. If they come we will give them a fight, but this will do us no good but to destroy a few of them. I have just learned from a spy that a steamboat arrived at Piketon yesterday with supplies to the enemy. Maj. Howes wants more money; he has bought hogs, horses, wagons, &c., &c. Your obedient servant, JOHN S. WILLIAMS, Colonel C. S. A. ACCOUNT BY A "PARTICIPANT." I cannot speak in terms of commendation too high of the gallantry of Capts. May, Thomas, H. W. CHILTON, A. A.-General. Hawkins and Clay, and Lieut. Van Hook and Sam. Clay-indeed, the officers and men behaved with so much courage and coolness that to discriminate at all would be invidious. If The following description is given by a Union soldier who participated in the battle: CAMP HOPELESS CHASE," PIKESVILLE, I take the first opportunity of writing to you that I have had since I sent my last to you. I have been in an engagement; have heard the cold lead balls fly past my ears; I have seen men struck dead by my side by those same balls; and yet, by the goodness of God, have escaped unhurt. the Kentucky regiment being in the advance, the Second next to them-and now to the details. We were marching along a road cut into the solid rock-on one side a steep bank, seventyfive feet high, and on the other side a perpendicular rock from twenty to forty-five feet high, above which the hill ran up about nine hundred or one thousand feet, very steep. The rebels were posted on a kind of embankment, and had strengthened it by piling rocks in the front. They were about seventy-five or eighty yards from the road, and when the Kentucky regiments came in a good view, they let fly a volley, killing four and wounding eleven--they were thrown into confusion, when our men, the Second, came up, and now commenced the fight in earnest; our men firing up at them and they firing down at us; their balls rattled about our men's ears thick and fast. Now our artil Let me now give you a full description of the fight. We marched from Salyersville the day after I wrote ny last, and after marching one whole day and a half, we arrived at Prestonburg, fording the Big Sandy about a mile from town. We stayed there two days, and then received orders to march to this place. We were to start at twelve M., every thing being got ready, as it was to be a forced march. Norris and myself got our horses ready, brought them into the yard, and hitched them up ready, butlery came up and opened fire; they threw a near nightfall news came that we would not go till the next day. Oh, how glad we were that we could have a little sleep. We went to bed, leaving every thing ready for the march, as we did not know what might take place, or what might influence Gen. Nelson. It was well enough that we did so, for at four o'clock in the morning there came a rap at our door! "Who comes there," shouted Major McCook. Col. Harris and Adjutant Vandegrift immediately got up and opened the door. "You must all be ready to march in twenty minutes." So up we all sprang, and then began the hurrying. I kept cool, and soon had every thing ready. In less than half an hour the whole brigade, over two thousand strong, was ready to move-the Kentucky regiment in the advance. Then came the "Bully Second," and the remainder of the force brought up the rear. We took three days' rations, expecting to be back in that time. few shells into the woods and on the first ridge, but we did not yet know just where they were, and we shot over them. At this period of the fight a company of rebels, who had succeeded in getting on the other side, got position in a cornfield, and commenced dropping their balls about us, in rather too close a proximity for our wellbeing; now our men turned in in right good earnest. Col. Harris coming up, sent five companies up the hill. Up, up they went, firing and loading as they climbed. The rebels soon gave out, and retired to the first ridge, but they were soon compelled to flee from that also, and retired further up, to the second ridge, and as our men reached them, they fled in hopeless confusion. The rebels, having their position in a cornfield, were treated respectfully with a few shells and a couple of volleys or so of bullets, when they also fled, leaving the field in our complete possession. Our brigade loss is thirteen killed and mortally wounded, and about thirty-five wounded slightly and otherwise. You will perceive it was quite a battle, (although the loss was not so very great,) and we all think so. We have found fifteen of the rebels killed, and some twenty-five wounded; so as far as we know, the loss is about equal in numbers. We do not know for certain what their loss was; I only speak from what we do know. Our loss was not from their bravery, but from the wonderfully strong natural position; and the surprise is that our loss was not greater, especially when we examine the plan of the ground. On equal ground, where would they have been? Annihilated! As it is, we call it a great victory. All hail to the glorious Stars and Stripes! Long may they wave and be the ensign to lead us on to victory, and peace, and happiness. On we marched, and after having passed four or five miles of our distance, Gen. Nelson sent orders to throw out our "flankers," and now came the Second's turn. Out went two of our companies, and they scoured the woods and monntains, climbing, creeping, jumping, and leaping through the underbrush; over logs, stems of trees, over rocks and over rills, more like squirrels than men; now you could see them through the foliage, as they half walked, half crept, half ran. After two hours' duty the skirmishers were withdrawn, and on we went as brisk as larks on our march. We made a short halt about eight o'clock a. M., to give the men breakfast; after which we took up our marching again. As we were marching through some open woods our scouts caught sight of some thirty or forty cavalry. They fired and it was returned by us. Just then our cannon And now for my share in the battle. I was came up and opened on them. After three or riding along somewhat carelessly, when crack! four rounds, just as we were getting their range, crack!! crack!!! went their rifles, and down they dispersed. After examining their position, fell our men. Crack! crack!! crack!!! they we found that no harm had been done on either came. Off I jumped from my horse, when side. Now the battle. along came the major, and gave me his horse to Still on we marched, (this was about two P.M.,) hold; but I soon hitched them both to a tree down by the river, and sprang again up the bank, when whiz! went a bullet past my face, about three inches from it, and made me draw my head back in a hurry, I can assure you. I looked up the hill, but could see no one for the smoke, which was plenty, so I levelled in the direction of the enemy and fired-loaded again and fired. I got my rifle in readiness again. Ah! that ball was pretty close. Here comes another-buzz, buzz-(you can hear their whiz for fully a hundred yards as they come)-get out of the way. But where is it to go to? Whew! that was close. But, great God! it has gone through a man's shoulder within a few yards of me! He falls! some of his comrades pick him up. Now a horseman comes past in a hurry. He is right opposite me-when whiz, crack! a ball strikes his horse in the foreshoulder. Off tumbles the man; down falls the horse, stiffened out and dead. If the bullet had gone through the animal, it would doubtless have struck me. Here come a dozen or more. How they whiz as they go past! "Load and fire! "Load and fire!" is the order-and load and fire it is. My attention was especially drawn to a very fine-looking man, who stood close to me, and he truly acted like a hero-loading and firing just as if he was on parade, when whiz! whiz!! comes a bullet. My God! how close. It almost stunned me! When I looked toward my soldier, I saw his comrades lifting him up. He was shot through the breast, he died in less than half an hour. Oh! the horrors of war. Vengeance on the heads of those who initiate it. I directed my attention up the hill; a little puff of smoke was dying away: Boys," says I to the squad of his fellows, "you see that smoke, aim for it, a rebel's in its rear." I raised my Enfield, and glanced through its sights, when I for a moment caught sight of a man through the bushes and smoke there. Crack went our guns, and all was over. (We crossed to the place afterward, and found the man's body; he had four out of twelve musket balls, and one Enfield rifle ball-mine, as mine was the only rifle ball fired. They all went through him; either of which would have killed him-mine through his breast. Thank God, I had done my duty for the poor fellow who fell beside me.) Now the firing grew weak, so I went up the road and found Henry, and we, with John How, second lieutenant of Company A, with some forty skirmishers, took a little reconnoissance up the creek, (Ivy Creek.) We caught sight of six or seven rebels running up a hill; we levelled our pieces, but they got behind the trees and out of sight, and although we fired, we were not certain we killed, although we must have hit somebody, as we found blood. As I ran along to get a shot, I picked up a revolver and a double-barrelled shot-gun. The revolver will do me service, as I was lacking one. We now returned to the battle-field, and I counted eight corpses in one hundred and fifty yards, and twelve wounded, all of the Kentucky regiment. The loss of the Second was two killed and thirteen wounded; and so it was, as I said before, a considerable battle. I find that the rebels had only one hundred and fifty men well armed with Minié rifles, the remainder with squirrel rifles, shot-guns, &c. We know that they lost sixteen killed and twenty-eight wounded. Their number killed, we know, too, was much larger than ours, which is owing to our superior weapons that shatter terribly with their balls. Our entire loss in the brigade was nine killed, five mortally wounded, and thirty-four not seriously. Allowance must be made for our not making a greater destruction of the rebels, to the position of their ground, which gave a decided advantage in a battle of this kind. If they had had effective weapons, the loss would have been terrible on the part of the Kentucky regiment, and also pretty considerable in ours. If our positions had been changed, we could have wiped them out of existence. We marched, after the battle, about three miles, and encamped. The next morning we started early, in the midst of a terrible rain, which continued all day. It was one of the heaviest falls of rain I ever saw, and I had a most disagreeable ride; and to add to the discomfort, the secesh had cut down some thirty trees across the road, and we had to move them before we could proceed. It delayed us a long time. We came across two barrels of apple brandy, which Major McCook stove in for fear they were poisoned, (we are almost certain they were, as the rebels had been inquiring for arsenic along the road; so we had a pretty sure thing on them.) When we encamped at night, we were all wet through to the skin. I was completely saturated; but, for all that, slept well, and do not feel any inconvenience from it; indeed, I feel in very good health, saving a little cold. When we arrived here, we found that the detachment that had started the afternoon before us, had had a little skirmish, killing six and wounding two of the rebels, without any loss whatever on our side. We expect to follow them in a day or two, when our baggage comes from Prestonburg; and if we overtake them, I assure you we shall give them fire and death. Col. Harris is every inch a gentleman and a soldier, and much liked by all his comrades. I am sure, from what I have seen, he is qualified, and would make an excellent brigadiergeneral. Hoping time will shortly bring continued and greater victories, I close. HORATIO. -Cincinnati Times. ANOTHER ACCOUNT. The correspondent of the Cincinnati Gazette, writing from Piketon, says: On Tuesday evening, the 5th Nov., after a long march from Licking Station, our regiments |