On the 1st day of May, the official return of the Army of the Potomac showed, present for duty, one hundred and forty-one thousand one hundred and sixty men, of all arms. General Lee had, in round numbers, sixty-four thousand men.

I give the relative strength of the two armies, in order that the reader may have a proper appreciation of the difficulties which beset our army in thwarting the designs of our wily adversary, in the campaign we were now just entering. That the brilliant genius of our immortal Lee, made amends for paucity in numbers, and proved more than a match for brutal force, the bloody field extending from the Wilderness to the James River will attest.

On the 3d of May, our army held the south bank of the Rapidan River. Its right rested near the mouth of Mine Run; its left extended as far as Liberty Mills, on the road to Gordonsville. Grant, with his main body encamped in Culpepper County, occupied the north hank of the Rapidan. On the 4th of May, Grant crossed his forces to the south side, and began his advance into the "Wilderness."

Running eastwardly to Fredericksburg, from Orange Court-House, are two parallel roads; the one nearest the river is called the "Stone Turnpike," and the other the "Plank-Road."

As soon as Grant's movements were known, our army was put in motion. On the morning of the 4th, our division (Heth's) and Wilcox's, of A. P. Hill's corps, moved eastwardly along the "Plank-Road." Simultaneously Ewell's corps moved on the stone turnpike. That night we bivouacked at Verdiersville, near where we fought the battle of Mine Run.

The "Wilderness" is an almost impenetrable thicket of undergrowth; and our sagacious Lee resolved to fight Grant in these pathless woods, where their artillery would be least available, and where their massive columns would be most embarrassed in their movements.

On the morning of the 5th, we resumed our march, with Kirkland's brigade, of our division, in front. About one o'clock, our advance-guard came upon a body of the enemy, and a spirited musketry fire was opened in our front. Kirkland's brigade at once deployed on both sides of the "Plank-Road," and Cooke's brigade was thrown into line of battle with our regiment (27th), on the left of the road. About three o'clock, our skirmishers were driven in by a massive column of the enemy, who advanced firing rapidly. Thus commenced the "Wilderness" fight; and the bloody contest continued until near sundown.

This stubborn and heroic resistance was made by the divisions of Heth's and Wilcox's, fifteen thousand strong, against the repeated assaults of four divisions of Hancock's and one division of Sedgwick's corps, numbering about forty-five thousand men. After dark, we were relieved by Kirkland's brigade. As we were retiring from our position, we got into a country-road, parallel to the "Plank-Road," and had proceeded but a short distance, when my attention was directed to a similar body of troops, marching quietly in the road with us; the night was very dark, and it was difficult to distinguish friend from foe. I felt some anxiety, as they seemed to possess uniform knapsacks and were of better appearance than our men, to know who they were. I therefore approached their column, and found to my utter astonishment that they were "blue-coats." I immediately rushed to Col. Whitfield, and informed him of our situation. He replied, "Impossible!" On close inspection, he found that they were really Federal troops. He drew his pistol, and, in a surprised and excited manner, called out: "Yes, they are Yankees! Shoot them, boys! Shoot them!" Some few guns were fired; but as the surprise was so great both upon our part and that of our "Yankee brethren," a hasty retreat was made on both sides, and each soon lost the other in the darkness. They were evidently on the wrong road "to get out of the Wilderness."

We soon reached the "Plank-Road," and were marched to the rear about one and a-half miles to a ridge, upon which our line was established. Our men began at once to fortify; and while we had no implements for the purpose, we succeeded, by the aid of our bayonets and tin-cups, to build what proved to be on the following day a great protection.

During the progress of the battle on the 5th, there came a lull in the firing and an almost deathlike stillness prevailed, as though the god of war had stopped a minute to take a long breath, and pull himself together for a fresh start. Presently, a sharp, quick report of a rifle from the other side broke the stillness. Simultaneously with the report, private Wash Williams was struck and painfully wounded. He uttered a long, loud yell, which seemed to reverberate up and down the lines for at least a mile. Almost immediately afterwards, a gun was fired from our side, and some one on the Yankee line mimicked the cry of Williams perfectly. This incident created general laughter on both sides, thus giving the opposing forces an idea of each other's position, and the contest opened in good earnest.

Our casualties in this, the first of the series of battles of this campaign, were as follows: Privates Sam'l F. McLean and Louis Lineberry were killed. Sergeant C. W. Stratford, Corporal A. W. Klutts, privates Frank G. Chilcutt, William Horney, R. B. Tate, Jas. M. Hardin, Wash. Williams, Thos. R. Greeson, Sam'l Hiatt, John R. Siler, and Jas. L. Wilson were wounded. Chilcutt lost an arm, Horney lost a leg, and R. B. Tate died of his wounds in July, 1864.