It was one of the most reckless, massive, and headlong charges of the war. A little past three in the evening, and with the celerity of lightning, the bulk of Hood's army massed in enormous columns against Newton's division, came on without skirmishing, and with yells whose volume exceeded any battle-shout that had yet been heard. It was the aim of Hood to take advantage of a gap between Newton's division and another division of Palmer's corps, to strike the enemy at a vital point, and to destroy his forces on the right. The charge was gallantly led by Walker's and Bates' divisions of Hardee's corps. The column poured down an open but rocky series of fields towards Newton's left, evidently aiming at his bridges. At this point, however, the enemy succeeded, with admirable quickness, in massing their artillery, and pouring a terrible fire upon the Confederates. The Yankee gunner worked with frantic energy; the Confederate columns slack ened pace, and began to waver and lose their careful arrange ment; and in less than half an hour the attack was drawn of in good order, but having plainly and unquestionably failed to accomplish its object.

On the 22d of July, Hood's army shifted its position, forming on Peach-tree Creek, and Stewart's and Cheatham's corps formed line of battle around the city. Hardee's corps made a night march, and attacked the enemy's extreme left at one o'clock on the 22d, and drove him from his works, capturing sixteen pieces of artillery and five stands of colors. Cheatham attacked the enemy at four o'clock in the afternoon with a portion of his command, and drove the enemy, capturing six pieces of artillery. During the engagement we captured about two thousand prisoners.

After the battle of the 22d, Sherman's army was transferred from its position on the east side of Atlanta to the extreme right of Hood's army, on the west side, threatening the Macon road. He slowly and gradually drew his lines about Atlanta, feeling for the railroads which supplied Hood's army and made Atlanta a place of importance.

It remained to break the Macon road. For this purpose Stoneman was sent with five thousand cavalry, and McCook with four thousand men, to meet on the railroad near Lovejoy's and to tear it up, and also to attack and drive Wheeler. Stone

man did not go to Lovejoy's. He tore up mucl. of the railroad, and got down in front of Macon; and on his retreat was hemmed in by Iverson, and was himself captured, together with one thousand of his men and two guns, besides losing many in killed and wounded. McCook cut his way out, losing about five hundred men as prisoners. "On the whole," Sherman reported, "the cavalry raid is not deemed a success."

On the 28th of July, Hood made another grand attack on Sherman. Coming out of Atlanta by the Bell's Ferry road, he advanced in parallel lines directly against the Fifteenth Corps, expecting to catch that flank in air. Of this movement General Sherman said: "His advance was magnificent, but founded on an error that cost him sadly; for our men coolly and deliberately cut down his men, and, spite of the efforts of the rebel officers, his ranks broke and fled. But they were rallied again and again, as often as six times at some points; and a few of the rebel officers and men reached our lines of rail-piles only to be killed or hauled over as prisoners." The Yankee accounts claimed a loss on the Confederate side in this engagement of six thousand men. General Hood stated his loss at fifteen hundred killed and wounded. The excellent intrenchments of the Yankees and the skilful formation of their lines saved them from any considerable loss, and secured them the fortune of the day.

General Sherman now extended his lines southwestward towards East Point, in the hope of drawing the Confederates out, from the fear of having their communications severed; but Hood extended his fortified line accordingly, and refused to abandon his works. For several weeks Sherman continued the siege of Atlanta, bombarding it with but little effect. He had satisfied himself that to take Atlanta he must resort to new means, and had concluded to plant his armies away below on the Macon road, Hood's main line of supply. The grand movement was assigned for the 18th of August.

But at this time Hood made the fatal mistake. He sent off Wheeler and his entire cavalry to raid on Sherman's line of communications. "At last," wrote Sherman," he made the mistake we had waited for so long, and sent his cavalry to our rear, far beyond the reach of recall."

Instantly the Yankee cavalry was on the Macon road. Sherman followed quickly with his principal army. On the 31st of August, Howard, on the right, had reached Jonesboro' Thomas, in the centre, was at Couch's; and Schofield, on the left, was near Rough and Ready.

The Confederate forces were at this time in a most singular position. They had been divided into two main armies, separated by an interval of twenty-two miles. One part of the army was intrenched at Atlanta, and the other was at Jonesboro', under General Hardee, and was also intrenched. The cause of this separation of the forces arose from the fact that Hood had found out, by Kilpatrick's raid, that it was necessary he should protect his communications at that point by a large force. Sherman's army was therefore between Hood's forces, and had literally divided the Confederates in two.

On the evening of the 30th of August, the enemy made a lodgment across Flint River, near Jonesboro'. The Confederates attacked them there on the evening of the 31st, with two corps, but failed to dislodge them. Of this event, General Hood telegraphed to Richmond: "This made it necessary to abandon Atlanta, which was done on the night of the 1st of September."

On the evening of the 1st of September, General Hardee's corps, in position at Jonesboro', was assaulted by a superion force of the enemy; and being outflanked, was compelled to withdraw during the night, with the loss of eight guns.

The sum of Hood's disasters was now complete. He had remained in Atlanta to find that he was outflanked, his line of supply cut off, and the Yankee troops between him and a large portion of his army. In order to save that portion of his command then with him, he determined to evacuate the fortified city; and on the night of September 1st he blew up his maga zines, destroyed all his supplies that he could not remove, consisting of seven locomotives and eighty-one cars loaded with ammunition, small-arms, and stores, and left the place by the turnpike roads.

Sherman dispatched to Washington: "Atlanta is ours, and fairly won. Since the 5th of May we have been in one continued battle or skirmish, and need rest." The pause in military operations afforded him the opportunity of launching