Elated, the Rebels halted to reform their lines, before pushing on to other successes. But while re-forming, Bates and Fitch opened wide gaps in their ranks at every discharge of grape and canister. Once more they came on, shouting and screaming, and delivering their volleys and receiving the steady fire streaming from the rifles of Naglee's line, reinforced now by a regiment from General Peck's brigade of Couch's division. Their line of march is from southwest to northeast. They come upon the left of Naglee's position, curling round his flank, and pouring a cross fire into the rifle-pits. Colonel Bailey, Major Van Valkenburg, and Adjutant Ramsey of the artillery are killed, other officers are wounded. The advancing host leap over the slight earthworks, seize the guns, and prepare to turn them upon the backs of the men on Naglee's right. It is no use to contend for the ground or the guns against the superior force, and the men fall back once more. Casey's whole line also retreats to that held by General Couch. Up to this moment, Longstreet's grand division only has been engaged; but two regiments of General Couch's division, who are moving up the railroad to support Naglee, see across the field beyond the Fair Oaks long lines of men,--some standing in battle line, and others advancing in column along the railroad. It is Whiting, who is deploying his forces from the Nine-Mile Road. General Couch is made acquainted with the fact. He sends for the other two regiments of the brigade. Whiting pours his troops into the gap between Naglee and Couch, and cuts off the four regiments from the troops at Seven Pines. The regiments thus isolated are thrown back towards Grape-Vine Bridge. While this is transpiring on the right, there is disaster in the center, and on the left. The Rebels there are pushing on. Keyes rallies his troops. He sends forward regiment after regiment from his second line, to strengthen that in front, to hold his ground if possible, but it is growing thin. It sways to and fro, and breaks at last. It crumbles, piecemeal,--the troops hastening towards the Seven Pines. He has one regiment still in reserve,--the Tenth Massachusetts. He throws it into the broken gap. It requires nerve and muscle to march in where all are fleeing,--to be a breakwater where the flood sweeps all before it. But the regiment goes in as cheerfully as to a dress-parade. They deliver their volleys with deliberate aim. They hold their ground. Three hundred yards in the rear, Heintzelman, Keyes, Casey, Naglee, and other officers are rallying the men. Fugitives are stopped, regiments which have been so stubbornly contesting the ground are induced to try it once more. "Had that regiment been two minutes later," says General Keyes, "they would have been too late to occupy that fine position, and it would have been impossible to have formed the next and last line of battle, which stemmed the tide of defeat and turned it toward a victory."[25]