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THE BATTLE OF CORINTH.

and to the south of them—for the inevitable contest of the morrow. VanDorn says:

“ I had been in hopes that one day’s operations would end the contest and decide who shouldhe the victors on this bloody held; but a ten miles’ march over a parched country on dustyroads without water, getting into line of battle in forests with undergrowth, and the more thanequal activity and determined courage displayed by the enemy, commanded by one of the ablestgenerals of the United States army, who threw all possible obstacles in our way that an activemind could suggest, prolonged the battle until I saw with regret the sun sink behind the horizonas the last shot of our sharp-shooters followed the retreating foe into their innermost lines. Onehour more of daylight and victory would have soothed our grief for the loss of the gallant deadwho sleep on that lost but not dishonored field. The army slept on its arms within six hundredyards of Corinth , victorious so far.”

Alas, how uncertain are our best conclusions ! General Van Dorn , in hissubsequent report as above, bewails the lack of one hour of daylight at the

close of October 3d, 1862. I bewailedthat lack of daylight, which wouldhave brought Hamilton’s fresh andgallant division on the Confederateleft and rear. That hour of daylightwas not to be had; and while the re-gretful Confederate general lay downin his bivouac, I assembled my fourdivision commanders, McKean, Davies,Stanley, and Hamilton, at my head-quarters and arranged the dispositionsfor the fight of the next day. Mc-Kean’s division was to hold the left,the chief point being College Hill,keeping his troops well under cover.Stanley was to support the line oneither side of Battery Robinett, a lit-tle three-gun redan with a ditch fivefeet deep. Davies was to extend fromStaidey’s right north-easterly across the flat to Battery Powell, a similarredan on the ridge east of the Purdy road. Hamilton was to be on Davies’sright with a brigade, and the rest in reserve on the common east of thelow ridge and out of sight from the west. Colonel J. K. Mizner with hiscavalry was to watch and guard our flanks and rear from the enemy, andwell and effectively did his four gallant regiments perform that duty. Asthe troops had been on the move since the night of October 2d, and hadfought all day of the 3d (which was so excessively hot that we were obligedto send water around in wagons), it became my duty to visit their lines andsee that the weary troops were surely in position.

I returned to my tent at three o’clock in the morning of October 4th,after having seen everything accomplished and the new line in order. Itwas about a mile in extent and close to the edge of the north side of thetown. About 4 o’clock I lay down. At half-past 4 the enemy opened with

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BRIGADIER-GENERAL PLEASANT A. HACKLEMAN,KILLED AT CORINTH. PROM A STEEL ENGRAVING.