_'s boats to reconnoitre. It
was midnight when, after carefully examining the ground, Fiske
returned to the gunboat and reported the road under water, and
quite impracticable for all arms. The fleet then got under way,
and proceeding about six miles farther up the lake, anchored beyond
Magee's Point.

Before daylight Dwight sent two of his staff officers, Captain
Denslow and Lieutenant Matthews, ashore, with a small detachment
from the 6th New York, to examine the plantation road leading from
this point to the Teche. The road being found practicable for all
arms, the debarkation began at daybreak.

Dwight landed first. As soon as his leading regiment, the 1st
Louisiana, reached the shore, Holcomb threw forward two companies,
under Lieutenant-Colonel Fiske, as skirmishers, and formed the
battalion in line to cover the landing.

Taylor, when he first learned that the gunboats and transports had
passed up Grand Lake, had sent Vincent, with the 2d Louisiana
cavalry and a section of Cornay's battery, to Verdun landing, about
four miles behind Camp Bisland, to observe and oppose the movement.
This was about noon on Sunday, the 12th. In the evening, hearing
of the progress of the fleet, Taylor sent a second section of
Cornay's battery to the lake, and going himself to Vincent ordered
him to follow the movement and try to prevent a landing. The next
morning Taylor sent Reily with the 4th Texas, to join Vincent and
aid him in retarding Grover's progress.

Taylor seems to have censured Vincent for letting Grover land, yet
in truth Vincent was not to blame. The line he had to watch was
too long for his numbers, and the Union flotilla could and did move
more rapidly on the lake than the Confederate troops by the roads.
When he had stationed his pickets at the probable landing-places,
and taken up a central position to support them, he had done all
that lay in his power. The range and weight of the 9-inch shells
of the navy were alone enough to put a serious opposition to the
landing out of the question, but as soon as Vincent found where
the attempt was to be made, he disposed his men and guns to retard
it. Two of Cornay's guns even tried, ineffectually of course, to
destroy the transports: Cooke quickly drove them off.

As Holcomb's skirmishers deployed they were met by a brisk fusillade
from Vincent's men strongly posted in ambush behind a high fence
in the thick wood that skirts the shore; but when Holcomb advan