ot half a mile from the scene of the initial blows of the
battle. The road was a winding affair, and the several battalions
covered not only the highway, but also the hemp fields on either side.
They were kept waiting for nearly an hour, when a staff officer came
galloping up and informed Colonel Lyon that a portion of the enemy was
cutting through a woods to the northeast.

"You are to cut them off, Colonel Lyon," added the officer. "The general
leaves the details of the movement to yourself."

"How many are coming?" asked the commandant of the Riverlawns.

"Five or six hundred, at least."

Colonel Lyon said no more, but at once directed his regiment to break
into battalions. The first was to move up the road for an eighth of a
mile, the second was to cut directly across the hemp field on the left,
while the third was to follow the first, as a reserve, keeping as well
posted as possible on the movements of Deck's companies.

In less than five minutes Major Belthorpe's battalion was galloping
across the field as fast as the nature of the soil permitted, while Deck
was moving up the highway at equal speed. Soon a patch of timber cut off
the view of the first battalion by the second.

Major Deck now felt it "in his bones" that some sharp fighting was in
store for his men, and in this he was not mistaken. The position
determined upon by the colonel had hardly been gained when the
Confederate detachment, consisting of several companies of cavalry and a
like number of infantry, discovered the battalion in the hemp field, and
opened fire.

Understanding fully Colonel Lyon's scheme, Major Belthorpe now swung
around to the enemy's rear, the movement being easy on account of a
fence and a hedge at the further entrance to the enclosure. They
returned the fire, and several men fell upon both sides.

A slight rise in the centre of the hemp field cut off the view of the
road from the woods, and now the commander of the Confederate forces
thought he saw a clear opening before him, leading directly for
Rutherford Creek. He resolved to move in a semicircle also, and make for
the road, and gave his commands accordingly.

The march of the enemy's forces brought him on the road, midway between
the first battalion and the third, situated, as before stated, an eighth
of a mile apart. Owing to the winding course of the highway he did not
see either battalion until it was too late to retreat. Deck marched down
upon him, and Major Tr