Page:Southern Historical Society Papers volume 05.pdf/193

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Southern Historical Society Papers.

Kilpatrick's, and Gregg's—the two last reaching the field after Buford left. The First corps went into battle on the 2d with 2,450 men (Bates' History of Gettysburg, page 52, and Doubleday's testimony—who commanded it after Reynolds' death—page 309, Committee on the Conduct of the War); the Second corps being put at 12,088 (return of June 30th); the Third, including the two brigades not then up, 10,000 (General Humphrey's letter to me); the Fifth at 10,136; the Eleventh at 3,200 (this corps numbered 10,177 on the 10th of June. General Hancock said he could not find but 1,200 organized on the afternoon of the 1st of July, after their little difficulty with Ewell and Hill. Wadsworth's division, of that corps, went into the fight on the 1st with 4,000 men, and on the morning of 2d but 1,600 answered to their names—Wadsworth's testimony, page 413). The Twelfth corps, by the return of the 30th of June, numbered 8,056. These six corps numbered, then, on the 2d of July, before the Sixth corps reached the field, 45,930. The cavalry and 4,000 Pennsylvania reserves are not included in this statement of the Federal force. Ewell and Hill's corps numbered together about 28,000 men on the morning of the 2d, and Longstreet says he had, without Pickett, some 13,000 men, making our strength (leaving out the cavalry, too,) 41,000. General Lee could have had his 41,000 men in hand at daybreak, whereas General Meade could not count upon all of his 45,930 until after 12 M., Crawford's division, Fifth crops, not getting up, until then. General Longstreet, by an early attack, would have undoubtedly seized Round Top, for even as late as the attack was made, General Warren, Meade's chief of artillery[1] (Warren's testimony before the Committee on the Conduct of the War, page 377), says he went by General Meade's directions to Round Top, and from that point "I could see the enemy's line of battle. I sent word to General Meade that he would at once have to occupy that place very strongly. He sent as quickly as possible a division of General Sykes' corps, (Fifth,) but before they arrived the enemy's line of battle, I should think a mile and a half long, began to advance and the battle became very heavy at once. The troops under General Sykes arrived barely in time to save Round Top, and they had a very desperate fight to hold it." An attack at that point even before 12 o'clock would have been successful, because Sykes was then in reserve behind Meade's right and could


  1. [Correction per Errata, p.255]