THE CHANCELLORSVILLE CAMPAIGN.

167

foment was favorable for Hooker to try his opponent’s strength with everyAvailable man. Moreover, the left wing might at that very time be in jeopardy,aerefore he was bound by every patriotic motive to strike hard for its relief.

he had remembered Mr. Lincoln’s injunction (“ Gentlemen, in your nextSht put in all of your men ”), the face of the day would have been changedari( l the field won for the Union arms.

N °t far from 8:30 A. m. the headquarters pennants of the Third and Twelfth^orps suddenly appeared from the right in the open field of Chaucellorsville;

etl the Third began to fall back, it was reported, for want of ammunition,Glowed by that portion of the Twelfth fighting on the same flank, and theVl sion of the Second Corps on its right. It is not known whether any efforts^ ei ' e made to supply the much-needed ammunition to the Third as well as•^ e Twelfth Corps, whose ammunition was nearly used up when it retired,y impression is that the heads of the ordnance, as well as of other impor-m; departments, were not taken into the field during this campaign, whichmost unfortunate, as the commanding general had enough on his mind>J°ut charging it with details.

’ lie open field seized by Jackson’s old corps after the Third Corps drew offs shortly dotted with guns that made splendid practice through an open-s m the wood upon the Chancellor House, and everything else, for that.ter, in that neighborhood. Hooker was still at his place on the porch,a 7lf TTmg between him and Lee’s army but Geary’s division of the Twelfth7(7 Hancock’s division and a battery of the Second Corps. But Geary’s rights now turned, and that flank was steadily being pressed back along hisinched line to the junction of the Plank road and the turnpike, when an °n-shot struck the pillar against which Hooker was leaning and knocked^ Town. A report flew around that he was killed. I was at the time butew yards to his left, and, dismounting, ran to the porch. The shatteredarwas there, but I could not find him or anyone else. Hurrying throughth • USe ’ Tmhiig no one, my search was continued through the back yard. Alle time I was thinking, “ If he is killed, what shall I do with this disjointedy*” Passing through the yard I came upon him, to my great joy, mounted,e ^’ith his staff also in their saddles. Briefly congratulating him on his0 a P e —itwas no time to blubber or use soft expressions—I went about my{.■ 71 business. This was the last I saw of my commanding general in front. The]^ e ’ I reckon, was from 9:15 to 9:30 A. m., I think nearer the former than thefile 6r * P ro hably left the field soon after his hurt, but he neither notifiedMs going nor did he give any orders to me whatever. Having somejj e bine before this seen that the last stand would be about the ChancellorI had sent to the rear for some of the Second Corps batteries, which^ bee u ordered there by the commanding general, but word came back thatCate so .i amine(i bi with other carriages that it was impossible to extri-? Tiem. General Meade , hearing of my wants, kindly sent forward the 5th}/ lrie battery belonging to his corps. It was posted in rear of the Chancellorpr e - Se ’ w bere the United States Ford road enters the thicket. With suchClSl °u did the artillery of Jackson’s old corps play upon this battery that