The Sun.
London, England, 1863-10-08 00:00:00

THE BATTLE OF CHATTANOOGA.

(REUTER'S EXPRESS.)
(From the New York Herald, Sept. 26.)
WASHINGTON, Sept. 26.
Telegrams up to two o'clock yesterday afternoon
from General Rosencranz give additional assurance
that his position can b 3 assailed only by regular
siege.

The purpose of General Rosencranz seems to be
to resume offensive operations as soon as the rein-
forcements, including General Burnside's troops,
now on the way, reach him.
The mass of the rebel infantry are in Chattanooga
creek valley.
A division of rebel cavalry advanced yesterday or
the day before from Stevens' Gap, threatening a
Union regiment gisarding one of our signal stations,
whereupon the regiment in question retired from
its isolated position in the extreme front before it
could be attacked.

General Itosencranz expresses the earnest wish
that General Bragg will venture a prompt attack
upon him, but is of opinion that it will not be
made.

All was quiet along the lines at two p.m. yester-
day.

A despatch from General Rosencranz, dated last
night, has been received here, stating that he had
reconnoitered tue enemy's line and found them in
heavy force, but no disposition was evinced to renew
the engagement. The object of the reconnoissance
was attained without incurring a battle.
The information received here officially confirms
in general the statement of the Herald correspon-
dent telegraphed from Cincinnatti. It is known
that the corps of Al'Cook and Crittenden, neither of
which are large, were attacked while on the march
and shamefully stampeded. The main attack, how-
ever, was sustained by the forces until Generals
Granger and Thomas, who repelled repeated assaults
With such fierceness that, according to the state-
ments of rebel prisoners taken on Monday, Bragg
was badly whipped, and the opinion is expressed
that if Granger and Thomas had been furnished
with additional ammunition and supplies, instead of
being recalled, the attack of Bragg would have been
converted into a complete rout of his whole army.

LOUISVILLE, Sept. 25.

Scraps of information from passengers just ar-
rived, lead to the be'icf that Sherman's corps, from
Grant's army, joined Rosencranz on Tuesday or
Wednesday, and that Burnside's corps has more re-
cently effected a junction at Grape Vine.
Reports prevalent to-night on the street, say that
Burnside's force has been captured; but nothing has
passed over the wires to-day indicating such an
event, and it is undoubtedly false.
CINCINNATI, Sept. 25.

PRELIMINARY MOVEMENTS.
In the course of the 17th, already unmistakable
signs indicated that the enemy had discovered the
weak points of our position, and were massing their
forces in front of our left centre and left, for the
manifest purpose of crushing those parts of our
lines, or getting between them and Chattanooga.
A corresponding movement by the left flank was
thence made by the whole army further down the
West Chickamauga, so that on Friday morning oar
extreme left rested at Gordon's Mill,
at the crossing
of the Chickamauga by the Lafayette pike, about
12 miles south of Chattanooga. On the morning of
the 18th (Friday) a portion of the expected rein-
forcements, consisting of two brigades of the reserve
corps, respectively
commanded by Colonels IVl`Cook
and Mitchell, made their appearance near Chatta-
nooga, and were immediately ordered to make a
reconnoissance towards Ringgold, and develop the
intentions of the enemy from that quarter. They
came upon the advance of Longstreet's corps,
pushed it back for some distance, took a number of
prisoners from it, and fully established the antici•
pated concentration of the enemy in front of our
left. All day Friday the cavalry, covering our
front, skirmished with different bodies of the enemy
issuing from the various
gaps of the Pigeon Moun-
tains, and advancing upon and again retiring from
our line. No serious collision, however, occurred.
It was evident the rebel generals meant to create a
false impression as to the points of our line against
Basencranx was not de-
which they proposed to strike a blow with concen-
trated power. But Gen.
ceived. The reports from the front all tended to
confirm
his previous impression that an onset in
overwhelming
numbers was contemplated upon oar
left flank, and that it had to be met by a still further
shifting line toward Chattanooga.
TUE POSITION or OUR TROOPS.
Accordingly on Friday night the division of
rals Rousseau and Reynolds, of Thomas' corps, to-
gether with:trohnson's of M'Cook's corps, moved from
Brannan and Baird, formerly commanded by Liene-
the centre to the left of Crittenden's corps. They
were in their new positions at daybreak. The two
other divisions of M'Cook's corps, Davis's, and She-
ridan's, were to move into the position of Thomas's
corps, but had not time to assume it fully before the
commencement of the action on the next morning.
On the morning of Saturday our line then appeared
as follows :—nn the extreme left Brannan, next
Baird and Reynolds, with Johnson in reserve in the
centre, Palmer on the right of Reynolds, and Van
Cleve on his left. The line, as already stated, was
to be completed by Davis's and Sheridan's divisions,
faced a little east of south.
TOPOGRAPHY OF THE BATTLE FIELD.

The scene of all the movements on the 17th and
18th was Mlamore's Cave, formerly described as