On the 3d of June the two armies were brought face to face at Cold Harbor, where but two years before "Little Mc" had struggled in vain for the mastery.

On the night of the 2d our brigade was placed in line on the extreme left, with our regiment upon what is known as Pharr's farm. As soon as we were halted we began to fortify, and by early dawn had constructed good temporary works. Owing to the dense, heavy body of woods the enemy were enabled to make near approaches in our front, and previous to their advance, on the following morning, we could hear distinctly the orders given by their officers. After some little firing by their sharpshooters, about 8 o'clock, they began to attack, and kept up their assaults until late in the evening. Brigade after brigade was hurled against us, until the ground in our front was literally covered with their dead and wounded. Their assaults were repulsed along the whole line. Finally, when the order was given to renew the attack, their men sullenly and emphatically refused to move forward under our withering fire. The prisoners we captured denounced and cursed Grant for this slaughter, and dubbed him the "champion butcher."

In the evening a battery of artillery was sent to our aid. They came up at a gallop and endeavored to take position on a slight elevation, in the skirt of pines, immediately in rear of our regiment. Before they had time to unlimber, every horse in the battery was shot down. The men then endeavored to run the guns forward by hand, when nearly all the men were killed or wounded. One gun only was gotten in position, and it rendered but little service before it was dismantled. Having been under constant fire, and firing rapidly all day ourselves—each man averaging two hundred rounds of cartridges—it became necessary to replenish our ammunition. An attempt to go to the rear, or to leave our works in any direction, was almost certain death. Lieut.-Col. Whitfield, who was now in command of our regiment, disliked to force a detail to go to the wagons for ammunition, and therefore called for volunteers. A sufficient number came forward at once, and set out on their perilous expedition; among the number was private R. F. Hampton, of the Grays. In due time they all returned, each bringing a supply of cartridges, but waited some distance back of us for a lull in the firing so as to run the gauntlet of the sharpshooters to the lines. Several were badly wounded in making the trip, among the number private R. F. Hampton, who had almost reached the lines when he was shot down by a sharpshooter, mortally wounded, and afterwards died of his wounds. During the battle, private W. J. Hunt was killed, and Dan'l. B. Coltrain and Benjamin Burnsides severely wounded. Private Hunt, when shot, was standing near me. We were trying to locate a sharpshooter in our front, who had become very troublesome by the accuracy of his aim. We had been exposed in our position but a few moments, when a minie-ball pierced his head, scattering his brains in my face, and he sunk down lifeless at my feet. Lieutenant-Colonel Whitfield was severely wounded in the head, and was carried from the field. The command now devolved upon Capt. Herring, the senior officer, who acted as Colonel, and Captain Sloan, next in rank, as Major.

On the following morning, we found that the enemy, under cover of darkness, had left our front; and we were moved to the right, and placed in position immediately at Cold Harbor, with our respective lines so near as to be able to converse with each other. We remained here in line of battle, under constant fire; happily, our immediate command had no serious casualties. Grant used every expedient to break through our lines, but he had so mercilessly slaughtered and cowed his men in his first charges at Cold Harbor, that his men refused to charge a second time. So determined was he to clean us up, at all hazards, that he remarked he would do so, "if it took him all summer." The sequel proved that he did not overestimate the time, but the process cost considerable bloodshed.

Stanton (Secretary of War) says, officially, that Grant's force, on the 1st of May, was over one hundred and twenty thousand men. Shortly afterwards, the 9th army corps was sent to him. This army, then aggregating over one hundred and forty thousand men, with a reserve to draw from of one hundred and thirty thousand more, in round numbers, was ruthlessly hurled against Lee's less than fifty thousand men. Lee had no reserve—the cradle and the grave had long since mustered, and our ports were closed to mercenary hirelings. Their own historians prove and show that their "butcher" slaughtered nearly one hundred thousand men in his "On to Richmond," from the wilds of the "Wilderness" to the desolated fields of Cold Harbor. In other words, he sacrificed about twice as many men as Lee had, in order to take a position he could have taken at first without firing a gun or losing a man.

On the 3d of June, Lieut. Frank A. Hanner, who had been for some weeks confined by disease in the hospital at Richmond, died. He served as private until April, 1862; at the reorganization of the twelve-months' troops, he was elected 2d Lieutenant; was promoted to Senior 2d, September 17th, 1862, and again on the 15th of October, 1863, to 1st Lieutenant. On the 1st of June, private Joel J. Thorn was appointed corporal.