The scene was a striking one.

It was night.

Never had the Mississippi presented a more remarkable appearance.

Broad bayous, swollen beyond our powers of description, swirled to and fro in the darkness under trees garlanded with Spanish moss.

All moss other than Spanish had been swept away by the angry flood of the river.
Eggleston Lee Carey Randolph, a young Virginian, captain of the -- --th company of the -- --th regiment of -- --'s brigade--even this is more than we ought to say, and is hard to pronounce--attached to the Army of the Tennessee, struggled in vain with the swollen waters.