HAMILTON’S DIVISION AT CORINTH.
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tinguished honor, set before them by a general of their love and admiration upon the event ofan impending battle upon the same field, of the proud exclamation, 1 My brother, father, wasat the great battle of Corinth.’”\
\ Reference is doubtless made here to the address of General Albert Sidney Johnston to the soldiersof the Army of the Mississippi on the eve of the battle of Shiloh, April 3d, 1862. —Editors.
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HAMILTON’S DIVISION AT CORINTH.
BY CHARLES S. HAMILTON, MAJOR-GENERAL, U. S. V.
T he following order, issued about 0 a. m. on thefirst day of the battle of Corinth, fixed theposition of my division :
“Corintii, Oct. 3d, 1862. Brigadier-General Ham-ilton, Commanding Third Division. General: Thegeneral commanding directs that you cover with yourdivision the Purdy road, from the swamp on the rail-road to where the road runs through the rebel works.By command of Major-General Rosecrans.—God-dard, A. A. A. General.
“ P. S. You may perhaps have to move farther out, asDavies does not find good ground until he gets near theold rebel works, and he proposes to swing liis right stillfarther around. By order of Major-General Rose-crans.— Goddard, A. A. A. General.”
Again at 2 p. m. the same day the following cir-cular was sent to both Hamilton and Davies:
“ For fear of a misunderstanding in relation to my or-ders, I wish it distinctly understood that the extremeposition is not to be taken until driven to it. By orderof Major-General Rosecrans.—S. C. Lyford, ActingAide-de-Camp.”
The extreme position mentioned was not under-stood by either Davies or myself, but probablymeant an advanced position. But how we couldbe driven to it by an enemy in our front is difficultto understand. Just following the circular, thisorder was received by me :
“ The general commanding desires me to say to younot to be in a hurry to show yourself. Keep well cov-ered and conceal your strength. The enemy will doubt-less feel your position, but do not allow this to hastenyour movements.—8. C. Lyford, Acting Aide-de-Camp.”
About 3: 30 p. m. the following was received:
“ General Hamilton : Davies, it appears, lias fallenbehind the works, his left being pressed in. If this move-
ment continues until he gets well drawn in, you willmake a Hank movement, if your front is not attacked,falling to the left of Davies when the enemy gets suffi-ciently well in so as to have full sweep, holding a coupleof regiments looking well to the Purdy road. Examineand reconnoiter the ground for making this movement.By order of Major-General Rosecrans.— H. G. Ken-nett, Colonel and Chief of Staff.”
On the back of this order I indorsed the fol-lowing :
“ Respectfully returned. I cannot understand it.— C.S. Hamilton, Brigadier-General.”
Rosecrans returned it to me indorsed as follows :
“ Ducat has been sent to explain it. W. S. Rosecrans,Major-General.—8. C. Lyford, Acting Aide-de-Camp.”
Now bearing in mind that Davies’s division was*to the left and in front of mine, if this order meantanything it was that my division should abandonits position on the right of the army entirely, andpass either to the rear or front of Davies in orderto reach the place indicated, and would thereforehave destroyed every possible chance of attackingthe enemy in the flank, and would also have left theright of Davies’s exposed, and the way into Corinthopen to the enemy. Now this order, which is theone Rosecrans claims as his order to attack theenemy, was given as follows in his article on thisengagement, in “The Century” for October, 188G[see p. 746] :
“ Colonel Ducat, acting chief-of-stafi', was sent withan order to General Hamilton, to file by fours to theleft and inarch down until the head of his column wasopposite Davies’s right. He was ordered then to facehis brigade west-south-west and to move down in asouth-westerly direction.”