Burnsville, Miss., Saturday, Oct. 17. As instructed at last night’s roll call, reveille was sounded before daylight with orders to prepare to march at 8 A. M., and also to take our pay before we started. The paymaster soon arrived, and as soon as possible counted the $26. By breakfast he was through and at the due time we were on the road. We marched in center of 1st Brigade bound eastward, the column short and roads good. We had but few halts. The road lay through an uncultivated country poorly timbered with oak and pine, and hilly in latter end. Arrived at Burnsville by 12 M. marched through the town (a small village) with bands playing and colors flying. 3rd Brigade stationed here. Went into camp a mile north of R. R. on Yellow River, with tops of high hills and bluffs to be seen in the distance. Pitched tents, put up racks. Lieutenant Simpson went to Corinth.
Thursday, October 17, 2013
17th. Early breakfast and then moved. Took the Zollicoffer road, whole Brigade. Co. H went on with Shackleford. Stopped and tore up two miles of track and burned the bridges. Still in charge of Batt. Capt. Stewart sick and Lt. Bills under arrest. About 5 P. M. report came that enemy were coming. To horse. Such a run. 8th Tenn. pickets fired upon and several captured. Moved towards Jonesboro. Camped on byroad to Carter. Good camp but far from water.
17th.—Brother I. L. came with buggy for me and took me home.
October 17 — All quiet in front. We moved back about six miles this evening and camped on Broad Run, three miles northwest of Bristoe Station. Broad Run is a small miry stream traversing the western part of Prince William County. This is Saturday evening, and we drew rations to-day for the first time since we crossed the Rapidan last Sunday morning. Our company has subsisted on the spontaneous productions of the country all this week, which means that we have feasted on acorns and first-class persimmons ever since last Monday morning. The principal reason why we drew no rations all week is that we left our brigade commissary wagons behind the Rapidan when we started after the Yanks, and we have been moving so rapidly all week that the man who furnished filling for our haversacks lost sight of us entirely until to-day.
Saturday, 17th—We had regimental dress parade this evening, after which an order was read to us giving us our drilling program while stationed here. Beginning tomorrow the Eleventh and the Thirteenth are to have skirmish drill in the afternoon of every other day, and the Fifteenth and Sixteenth are to practice battalion drill on the alternating days.
by John Beauchamp Jones
OCTOBER 17TH.—We hear to-day that a battle has taken place near Manassas, and that Lee has taken some 9000 prisoners and many wagons. At 3 P.M. there was no official intelligence of this event, and it was not generally credited.
Gen. Wise writes from Charleston, that it is understood by the French and Spanish Consuls there that the city will not be bombarded.
In Eastern North Carolina the people have taken the oath of allegiance to the United States, to be binding only so long as they are within the military jurisdiction of the enemy; and they ask to be exempt from the Confederate States tithe tax, for if they pay it, the enemy will despoil them of all that remains.
October 17.—This morning a squad of guerrillas made a descent on the Alexandria Railroad at Acotink, Va., and carried off fifteen men belonging to the One Hundred and Twentieth regiment of New-York, who were posted at that point —A party of the Thirteenth New-York cavalry, stationed at Stuart’s, near Chantilly, Va., were surprised and surrounded by Mosby’s guerrillas, and six were captured. — General Buford’s division of cavalry crossed the Rapid Ann River at Germania Ford on Saturday evening, and, following the river to Hunter’s Ford, surprised the enemy in their fortifications, and captured sixty of them. General Buford occupied these works till Sunday morning, when he received orders to return, and recrossed the Rapid Ann, followed by a large force of Stuart’s cavalry and some mounted infantry, whom he gallantly fought, although greatly outnumbered, as he fell back through Stevensburgh to Brandy Station, where he joined Kilpatrick’s forces. The whole cavalry command then slowly retired across the Rappahannock. This action was one of the most gallant and brilliant in the history of the Union cavalry.—The rebel steamer Scottish Chief, and sloop Kate Dale, were destroyed in Hillsborough River, Fla., by the Union gunboats Tahoma and Adela.—(Doc. 200.)
