The Union army skirmished with Confederate troops, beginning about 8 o'clock this morning. Both the front and rear of the retreating Union army came under attack.
This battle occurred near Monett’s Ferry. The Confederates intent was to prevent the Union army from crossing the Cane River. Even though they were outnumbered, the Confederates planned to surround the Union and give them all they could handle. The Confederates were situated on a bluff of the river, and the batteries from both sides began to fire. The shelling went on for more than an hour.
There had been a bridge here but the Confederates had destroyed it. The Union troops would have to build a pontoon so the wagons could cross.
While the shelling was in progress, the 13th Army Corps and part of the 19th Army Corps moved up the river about two miles. Here they were able to cross the river, by wading in the waist deep water. After crossing, General Weitzel's Division of the 19th Corps, took the advance. They had marched through the timber only a mile or two when they encountered the Confederate's picket. The battle quickly heated up, and soon Weitzel's column charged across an open field in the face of a galling fire. Several Union trrops fell, but the charge was a success.
Meanwhile the Southerners continued their battle with General Smith in the front. Eventually the Confederates front gave way and the Union claimed victory at the Battle of Kane River.
The Union army began moving again about midnight tonight.
