and traversed by many roads. Hence their forces had to be scattered. But the defense made by these scattered brigades against odds was persistent and heroic. On the 13th, Stuart reported that his cavalry was followed by two brigades of infantry, and asked D. H. Hill, whose forces were closest to South mountain, to send a brigade to check the Federals at the foot of the mountain. Owing to long field service and poor equipment, Southern brigades were at that time very small.[1] So instead of one brigade, Hill sent Garland’s North Carolina brigade and Colquitt’s Georgia brigade. Colquitt’s brigade was posted by General Hill across the National turnpike. The Twenty-third and Twenty- eighth Georgia were placed behind a stone wall. Garland’s North Carolina brigade took position at Fox’s gap, on the old Sharpsburg road, and to the right of Colquitt. Garland had five regiments, but the five amounted to a little less than 1,000 men. "The Fifth regiment, Colonel McRae, then Captain Garnett, was placed on the right of the road, with the Twelfth, Captain Snow, as its support. The Twenty-third, Colonel Christie, was posted behind a low stone wall on the left of the Fifth; then came the Twentieth, Colonel Iverson, and the Thirteenth, Lieutenant-Colonel Ruffin. From the nature of the ground and the duty to be performed, the regiments were not in contact, and the Thirteenth was 250 yards to the left of the Twentieth. Fifty skirmishers of the Fifth North Carolina soon encountered the Twenty-third Ohio, deployed as skirmishers under Lieut.-Col. R. B. Hayes (afterward President of the United States), and the action began at 9 a. m. between Cox s division and Garland’s brigade.[2]
Against Garland’s 1,000 men, General Cox, of Reno’s corps, led the brigades of Scammon and Crook, stated by
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