enemy's camp was fully before us. Sunrise was near at hand when
the hostile position was brought to our view. It lay, as we had
anticipated, stretched along the banks of Wilson Creek.

Until our advance drove in the pickets, a thousand yards from their
camp, the Rebels had no intimation of our approach. Many of them were
reluctant to believe we were advancing to attack them, and thought the
firing upon the pickets was the work of a scouting party. The opening
of our artillery soon undeceived them, a shell being dropped in the
middle of their camp.

A Rebel officer afterward told me about our first shell. When the
pickets gave the alarm of our approach, the Rebel commander ordered
his forces to "turn out." An Arkansas colonel was in bed when the
order reached him, and lazily asked, "Is that official?" Before the
bearer of the order could answer, our shell tore through the colonel's
tent, and exploded a few yards beyond it. The officer waited for no
explanation, but ejaculated, "That's official, anyhow," as he sprang
out of his blankets, and arrayed himself in fighting costume.

Before the Rebels could respond to our morning salutation, we heard
the booming of Sigel's cannon on the left. Colonel Sigel reached the
spot assigned him some minutes before we were able to open fire from
our position. It had been stipulated that he should wait for the sound
of our guns before making his attack. His officers said they waited
nearly fifteen minutes for our opening shot. They could look into the
Rebel camp in the valley of the stream, a few hundred yards distant.
The cooks were beginning their preparations for breakfast, and gave
our men a fine opportunity to learn the process of making Confederate
corn-bread and coffee. Some of the Rebels saw our men, and supposed