th his own force, under Walker and
Mouton, Green's Texans, Churchill's Arkansas division, and Parsons's
Missouri division, Taylor now had at least sixteen thousand good
men, with whom, if permitted, he might give battle in a chosen
position, while Banks's force was stretched out the length of a
long day's march on a single narrow road in a dense pine forest,
with no elbow-room save such as was to be found in the narrow and
infrequent clearings. In such a region excess of numbers was a
hindrance rather than a help, and cavalry was worse then useless
for offence. Banks was, moreover, encumbered by twelve miles of
wagons bearing all his ammunition and stores, and was weakened by
the necessity of guarding this long train through the barren
wilderness deep in the heart of the enemy's country. Of these
conditions Kirby Smith was planning to take advantage, and it was
to guard against such an enterprise that Banks's column was closing
up in readiness to meet the enemy with its full strength, when
suddenly on both sides events took the bit in their teeth and
precipitated a battle that was in the plans of neither.

It was about eleven o'clock when Ransom set out to go to the front
with Vance's brigade. The distance to be passed over was about
five and a half miles. Riding ahead, Ransom himself arrived on
the field about half-past one in the afternoon. At this time, by
Lee's orders, Landram had pushed forward the 19th Kentucky, deployed
as skirmishers, and supporting it strongly with the rest of Emerson's
brigade, had driven Green's troopers across the open ground, over
the hill, and well into the woods beyond, and had taken position
on the crest. Here he was joined by Nims, who brought his guns
into battery across the road. On the left of Nims were placed two
of Rottaken's howitzers, detached from the 6th Missouri cavalry.
On the right and left of the horse artillery Emerson formed, and
Vance, as soon as he came up, took position on Emerson's right,
but as Banks undertook to hasten the movement through the direct
action of his own staff-officers, it resulted that the regiments
of the two brigades were sandwiched. Lucas, dismounted, extended
the line of battle to the right. With him were a section of Rawles's
battery and another of Rottaken's.

To cover the flanks in the forest Dudley deployed as skirmishers
the 8th New Hampshire on the right, and on the left the 3d and the
31st Massachusetts, supported by the 2d Ill