Meanwhile, a terrible rumor had been spreading in the ranks of the
Southern troops. The word was passed from soldier to soldier that their
commander, Johnston, whom they had believed invincible, had been killed,
and they did not trust so much Beauregard, who was left in command,
nor those who helped. Their fiery spirit abated somewhat. There was no
decrease of courage, but continuous victory did not seem so easy now.
Confusion invaded the triumphant army also. Beauregard had divided the
leadership on the field among three of his lieutenants. Hardee now
urged on the center, Bragg commanded the right, and Polk, the bishop-
general, led the left. It was Bragg's division that was about to charge
the great battery of siege guns that the alert Webster had manned so
quickly. Five minutes more and Webster would have been too late.
Here again were the fortunes of Grant brought to the very verge of the
pit. The Northern gunboats at the mouth of Lick Creek moved forward a
little, and their guns were ready to support the battery.
The Kentucky regiment was wedged in between the battery and a brigade,
and it was gasping for breath. Colonel Winchester, slightly wounded
in three places, commanded his men to lie down, and they gladly threw
themselves upon the earth.
There was a momentary lull in the battle. Wandering winds caught up the
banks of smoke and carried most of them away. Dick, as he rose a little,
saw the Southern troops massing in the forest for an attack upon their
new position.
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