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led on, notwithstanding their long and rapid march, but the enemy was allowed
to remain unmolested in his strong position, and before morning he had been
reinforced by many thousands. The first opportunity was lost. Now for
the second.

On the evening of the ist of July, after dark, Johnson's division moved on a
line parallel with the York turnpike, crossing which about a mile below Gettys-
burg it took its place in line of battle along the road leading to Hanover. That
night the troops slept upon their arms, ready to renew the conflict in the morning.

The line of battle was formed with Longstreet on the right, Hill in the centre
and Ewell on the left. Longstreet had orders to attack at 9 o'clock in the
morning, but unfortunately he did not agree with General Lee in his plan of
attack, and, in hopes of inducing or compelling him to conform to his views, he
allowed the day to pass by until near 5 o'clock, when, because of still more
peremptory orders to begin his attack, he reluctantly obeyed. His troops attacked
with great vigor, and had they done so even an hour earlier Little Round Top,
the key to the whole Federal position, would have fallen into their possession.
As it was, it was only averted by the opportune arrival of large reinforcements
of the enemy at the very moment when success seemed assured. Had the attack
been made in the morning at 9 o'clock, as Longstreet had been ordered to make
it, he would have found the position comparatively unoccupied, and the enemy,
this position once in the hands of the Confederates, would have been compelled
to make a precipitate retreat, which would have degenerated into a rout. Thus
was lost the second opportunity.

In the meantime Ewell, who was to attack at the first sounds of Longstreet's
guns, was in anxious expectancy, and when at length, after this irritating delay,
the welcome signal to move forward was heard Ewell immediately put his troops
in motion, preceded by a cloud of skirmishers.

The ground over which Johnson's Division moved was rough enough at
first, but became much rougher after it had crossed Rock Creek and struck the
wooded hill, known as Culp's Hill. Here immense rocks and bowlders were
encountered, which greatly retarded the progress of the troops, and darkness
came on, and no enemy save a few skirmishers had been encountered.

The regiments comprising Steuart's Brigade were assigned the following
positions in line: Third North Carolina on the right; Second Maryland,
Thirty-seventh Virginia, Twenty-third Virginia and Tenth Virginia, the First
North Carolina being held in reserve. Finding that he was inclining too far
to the left, General Steuart moved obliquely to the right, which movement
brought the Third North Carolina and Second Maryland face to face with the
enemy behind a line of log breastworks, and these two regiments received their
full fire at very short range, for, owing to the darkness, the breastworks could not