No sooner had these dispositions been made, than General Lee ordered an attack along the whole line.

It was now five or six o'clock, and the sun was sinking.
From that moment until night came, the battle raged with a fury unsurpassed in any subsequent engagement of the war.

The Texan troops, under General Hood, especially distinguished themselves.

These, followed by their comrades, charged the Federal left on the bluff, and, in spite of a desperate resistance, carried the position.

"The enemy were driven," says General Lee, "from the ravine to the first line of breastworks, over which one impetuous column dashed, up to the intrenchments on the crest." Here the Federal artillery was captured, their line driven from the hill, and in other parts of the field a similar success followed the attack.