tember 14, 1862, a beautiful, bright September
day. The enemy were in possession of the crest of the mountain, where
the old National road crossed it. The army of McClellan, with Burnside
in advance, were pressing up that mountain by the National road as its
center. General Cox's division of Burnside's corps was in advance. The
brigade to which Lieutenant-colonel Hayes was attached was in advance of
the division. His regiment was in advance of the brigade. He was ordered
to pass up a mountain path on the left of the National road and feel for
the enemy, advancing until he struck him; to push him up the mountain if
he could; in short, to open the engagement. Lieutenant-colonel Hayes
pushed into the woods, came upon the enemy's pickets, received their
fire, and drove them in. He soon saw a strong force of the enemy coming
toward the line of his advance from a neighboring hill, and went to meet
them. Hayes charged into that force with a regimental yell, and, after a
fierce fight, drove them out of the woods in which he found them, into
an open field near the summit. He then drove them across the field,
losing many men and capturing and killing many of the enemy.

Hayes, having just given the command for a third charge, felt a stunning
blow, and found that a large musket ball had struck his left arm above
the elbow, carrying away and badly fracturing the entire bone. Fearing
an artery might be severed, he asked a soldier to bandage his arm above
the elbow, and a few minutes after, through exhaustion, he fell.
Recovering from a state of unconsciousness while down, in a few moments,
and observing that his men had fallen back to the woods for shelter, he
sprang to his feet, and, with unusual vehemence, ordered them to come
forward, which they did. He continued fighting some time at the head of
his men; but falling a second time, from exhausted strength, he kept on
giving orders, while down, to fight it out.

Major Comly, the second in command, then came to him to learn the orders
under which the regiment was fighting, and deeming it best to assume
command, owing to the critical condition of Lieutenant-colonel Hayes,
gave orders that the wounded hero should be carried from the field. In
an almost illegible narrative, written with the left hand just after the
battle, we find this modest record, by the intrepid sufferer in this
event: "While I was down I had considerable talk with a wounded
Confederate lying near me. I gave him m