REAR-GUARD FIGHTING DURING THE CHANGE OF BASE. 367

UNION TROOPS BUILDING THE CORDUROY APPROACHES TO GRAPEVINE BRIDGE. FROM A WAR-TIME PHOTOGRAPH.

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It was mainly by this bridge that the Union troops were withdrawn the night after the battle of Gaines’s Mill.

the five batteries of reserve artillery mentioned above. The fire was kept upfor an hour, aud as theirs slackened, so did ours, until both sides ceased firing.Two hours before the bombardment began I received orders not to do any-thing to bring on a general engagement, and after the cessation of the artilleryfire everything was quiet in our front for several hours. At 2 o’clock I wasordered again to send General Slocum’s division to report to General Porter.The division went, became engaged at once in the battle of Gaines’s Mill,where it lost very heavily, and did not return to its station until after nightfall.

During the afternoon several of the heavy guns with us were used witheffect on columns of the enemy on the north side of the Chickahominy mov-ing against General Porter, causing them to fall back and seek some otherroute of attack. The range was about two and one-half miles. About sun-down General Hancock’s brigade, which held the extreme right of GeneralSmith’s line, was attacked furiously by the enemy. It was nearly dark whenthe fight began, and the combatants were not fifty yards apart; but GeneralHancock was, as usual, equal to the occasion, and the enemy was driven back.This fight was preceded by a severe artillery fire from the enemy, which, how-ever, was soon silenced. This day’s operations of Smith’s division were knownas “ The Action at Golding’s [or Garnett’s] Farm.”

The position held by General Smith’s division was about one and one-halfmiles from the Gaines’s Mill field; and, possibly because the interval was