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Fairfield road to the railroad cut; one section of Calef’s battery A, 2d UnitedStates, near the left of his line, the other two across the Chambersburg orCashtown pike. Devin formed his disposable squadrons from Gramble’s righttoward Oak Hill, from which he had afterward to transfer them to the northof the town to meet Ewell. As Heth advanced, he threw Archer’s brigadeto the right, Davis’s to the left of the Cashtown pike, with Pettigrew’s andBrockenbrough’s brigades in support. The Confederates advanced skirmisli-
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UNION DEAD NEAR MVPIIKRSON’S WOODS. FROM A PUOTOC1RAPH.
au consisted of a corporal aiul three men, relieved0x> y two hours, with orders not to Are on any one ap-proaching from the front, hut to notify the pickets inch direction and the reserve. No one approachedthe front until daylight next morning, July 1st,Y Corporal Alphonse Hodges, of Company F, 9th N.liel Villry ’ waH ou tllis Post with three men. At day-^fent he Raw men approaching along the road, nearlyo Buie away, across Willouglihy Run. Aiding 011 hisRn i° r ^’ lle i ,||n iediatcly seut his men to notify the lineU (: V^ e reserve, while he advanced across the Run tillen!** ei,(ni ^ 1 to see that those approaching were thelir !n ly ’ wllea turned hack, and as he did so the enemy^ him. Ho retired to the Run, and from behinda ^Mtments of the bridge fired several shots hack atW> i eil0m y- These arc* supposed to he the first shotsblu r— our side on the morning of July 1 st at Gcttys-ail d occurred about 5:30 a. m., as near as Hodgestheiv iIneiIll)cr ’ When he fell hack from the bridge toa su^ l . er ground, he found Colonel Saekett had formed'polish-line of the whole of liis picket force, which,f ei , la ve said, (insisted of detachments from the dif-regiments of the (Devin’s) brigade. Hero thetip‘ ll . lCo of the enemy was first Reriously disputed bytei‘ V ft ^ rnaH h-iine, which they held till after Hall’s but-of tp 2t ^ ^oino) came up and took position ou the rightapp ^ Chambersburg road in rear of this skirmish-line(Cob* 1, ‘ * ‘ The First Brigade of Buford’s divisiontbe li!!f coming up on the left of the road,
C(p 0 | lle °* ^ lc Second Brigade, still under command ofl>i e p Sackott, moved farther to the right and oeeu-laa sh >e ^ nc ^ rom the Cliamberslmrg road to the Mum-road. That portion of the 9th Cavalry which
had remained in camp received orders to water theirhorses by squadrons in Rock Creek about 7 A. m. Assoon as they had watered, they saddled up and pro-ceeded out on the Munmiasburg road to the skirmish-lino on Oak Ridge. The first squadron, under CaptainIlanley (afterward Lieutenant-Colonel), was the firstto reach the line, and ho immediately ordered Lieu-tenant A. C. Robertson (afterward Captain) with twentymen to advance down the road into the woods, wherehe found the enemy’s line near the residence of N.Hoffman. Finding the enemy had a strong line, heretired to a position a little hack of the residence of J.Forney, from behind which some of the enemy werefiring at him. He dismounted his men and drovethe enemy from behind Forney’s buildings, then fellbaek to the stone wall on the ridge, where the balanceof the regiment were formed dismounted. Here theregiment held tlieir ground for some time while theenemy approached on their hands and knees throughthe wheat-field in front. Daniel Cornish, of CompanyF, getting sight of a rebel not far away in the field, firedand killed him. The regiment cheered, and the enemy,evidently thinking our men would charge on them,hastily withdrew out of the wheat-field. As they fellhack one man stopped behind a tree in the field near theroad, and Perry Nichols, of Company F, advanced andcaptured him. This is said to he the first prisoner cap-tured. lie was immediately taken to Buford’s head-quarters, and gave the first information we receivedfrom the enemy’s side. It was during this skirmish thatCyrus W. James, Company G, 9th N. Y. Cavalry , waskilled by a rebel bullet, and he is said to have been thefirst man killed that morniug on our side.”—EDITORS.