Page:Confederate Military History - 1899 - Volume 8.djvu/248

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CONFEDERATE MILITARY HISTORY.

erates were dismounted and made several brave assaults, when, seeing the enemy retiring, as he supposed, Forrest mounted his command and charged through the streets of Dover, but was repulsed and forced to retire.

Forrest, with his aide, Maj. C. W. Anderson, and a detachment of his escort, charged up to within thirty yards of the enemy's works, leading his command close enough to fire upon the enemy behind his parapets, but success could not be won—the men behind the works were as valorous as his own. Lieut.-Col. D. W. Holman, an officer of great dash and enterprise, was severely wounded. Lieutenants Summers and A. S. Chapman of Holman's battalion were killed, and Capts. D. F. Alexander, W. J. Hobson and N. J. Robinson of Napier's battalion were badly wounded and captured. Lieutenant-Colonel Haines, Fourth Tennessee, was severely wounded and permanently disabled. By a strange oversight which cannot be explained, Wheeler's command had no adequate supply of ammunition.

At 8 o'clock p. m. General Wheeler retired and moved south of Duck river. He reported a loss of 100 killed and wounded, and the capture of 80 prisoners, one field gun, a lot of horses and mules, and the destruction of a transport loaded with provisions. Colonel Harding reported his loss at 13 killed, 51 wounded, 46 captured.

On the 15th of March, 1863, the forces under Maj.-Gen. Earl Van Dorn captured the Federal troops at Thompson's Station, Col. John Coburn's brigade, numbering 1,221, including 73 commissioned officers and many arms.

The Tennesseeans engaged were the Nineteenth, Colonel Biffle; the Tenth, Lieut.-Col. Wm. E. De Moss; Col. J. H. Edmundson's regiment; the Fourth, J. W. Starnes; McCann's battalion, Maj. Richard McCann, Freeman's battery, Capt. S. L. Freeman, all under Gen. N. B. Forrest. Other troops under General Van Dorn were the division commanded by Brig.-Gen. W. H. Jackson, composed of Brig.-Gen. F. C. Armstrong's and Col. J. W