“The first time I met Patsy after this was on the disastrous battlefield of Olustee, Florida, February 20, 1864. He was then a Sergeant and had charge of a section of his battery, which was temporarily attached to a four-gun Battery M of the First United States Artillery. When I was ordered to retire from the field with the remnant of the battery in which I was then serving, E, Third United States Artillery, by the late Senator Hawley, who was then Colonel of the Seventh Connecticut, and Acting Brigadier-General, we passed near to where young Egan was, with his two guns in position. “I rode up to him and exclaimed, ‘Patsy, what are you doing here?’ “His reply was, ‘We are doing the best we can.’ “Not seeing any officers present, I then said to him, ‘You had better get out of here as soon as possible, or you and your men and guns will all be captured.’ “He limbered up, withdrew a short distance and fired a few more shots of cannister which, I have no doubt, checked, at a critical moment, the advance of the enemy. “It was now dark, and I believe these were the last guns fired at the Battle of Olustee, where the Union troops under Gen. Truman Seymour lost 1,900 men in killed, wounded and missing, and five pieces of artillery, out of a force of about 4,500 men engaged. “The Confederates were supposed to have about 6,000 troops, commanded by General Finnegan, and their loss was reported to be little over 900. “This engagement seemed to be more like an ambuscade than anything else. It was so unexpected—like a thunderclap out of a clear sky. We were marching leisurely through a swampy, thickly-wooded country from early morning until 3 p. m., when we came to a clearing and found the enemy, who had been retreating for several days, posted in a very strong, well-chosen position, partly intrenched and sheltered by thick woods, while we were exposed to their deadly fire in the open field, which accounts for the great difference in the losses. “We retired in good order during the night and next day to Jacksonville, forty miles distant, with but little trouble from the ‘Johnnies.’ Here young Egan joined his own battery, turned over his section to the commanding officer and reported a loss of one man killed, six wounded and twelve horses killed or disabled. He was slightly wounded himself and had a horse shot under him. The battery to which his section was attached lost about thirty-five men in killed, wounded and missing and three out of their four guns. “I will now quote an incident of camp life taken from his narrative of the Florida campaign: