No. 152.-report of--Lieut. Col. O. F. Strahl, Fourth Tennessee Infantry.
Total casualties: Killed, 36; severely wounded, 91, and slightly wounded, 92; aggregate, 219.
The position occupied by this regiment on the morning of the 6th instant was on the right of the Second Brigade, First Division, First Army Corps, and moved forward in the second line of battle until about 10 a. m., when it came up with the first, which was driven back by a battery of the enemy in front, placed on the opposite side of an old field, on a hill. Here we were thrown into some confusion by the first line of battle falling back through ours; but we soon rallied, and formed in front under a very heavy fire of grape and shell from the enemy's guns, which were about 800 yards distant.
We were here separated from the rest of our brigade and lost several men. Capt. John Sutherland was killed, and Maj. J. F. Henry was wounded, and has since died.
Our men here were ordered to fall flat on their faces in order to protect themselves from the enemy's fire, and while remaining here General Stewart rode up and told me that General Bragg said that the battery must be taken, and asked me if I would do it. I told him we would try, and immediately ordered the men forward, bearing to the left, in order to avoid the open field in front, and marched through a thicket of small timber at double-quick. We continued to march at double-quick until we were within 30 paces of the enemy's guns, when we halted, fired one round, rushed forward with a yell, and the battery was ours. We took 2 prisoners at the battery, who did not have time to escape nor courage to fight.
During the whole time of this charge the battery played upon us with grape and canister, making sad havoc in our ranks, killing 31 men and wounding about 160. The battery, however, according to the report of the prisoners taken there, was supported by seven regiments of infantry-four Ohio regiments and three Illinois.
After taking the battery I found I was in advance of our lines near a quarter of a mile, and heavily pressed both on the right and left by the enemy's infantry. I immediately dispatched my adjutant for aid, and in a short time had the pleasure of seeing our troops coming up in double-quick to support me.
While remaining here we were called on to support one of our own batteries that had been placed on the same ground that the enemy's formerly occupied. While supporting this battery we were in a very heavy fire from the enemy, who made a desperate effort to take it. We had several men wounded here. The enemy were repulsed.
I then marched the regiment a short distance to the rear, had the men to wipe out their guns, many of them being so dirty they could not load, fill their cartridge boxes, and replenish their canteens with water. We then marched forward into line, and continued in line until after dark, when we fell back, in order to get out of reach of the shells from the gunboats. We slept near where we took tjie enemy's battery, in their camp, and took supper and breakfast at their expense.
On Monday morning we were placed near the left of the line, and had a great number of stragglers attached to us. The stragglers demonstrated very clearly this morning that they had strayed from their own regiments because they did not want to fight, and that they still would not fight. My men fought gallantly until the stragglers ran and left them and began firing from the rear over their heads. They were then compelled to fall to the rear. I rallied them several times and fed them forward, but was compelled to fall back. I finally left out the stragglers, rallied my own men, and placed them on the left of a [433] battery of the Washington Artillery, and supported it there until our whole line had fallen back on the hillin our rear. I then fell back just in time to save my men from our own guns, which opened and threw shell in the direction of the position we had just left.
We had some 3 or 4 killed in this day's engagement and about 30 wounded.
The company officers acted gallantly and fearlessly during both days of the fight, and rather appeared to court death than to fear it.
My men acted gallantly the whole time, enduring the fatigue and danger without a murmur.
Respectfully submitted.
