"so I volunteered once more in the fall of 1863 in Major Lesley’s Battalion of McCray’s Brigade, but we were on detached service in northwestern Arkansas and had our winter quarters in Wiley’s Cove in Searcy County, near where I had been raised.
When the company in which I volunteered this time was organized I was elected Second Lieutenant of the company...
...Early in January 1864, our battalion broke camp and the unarmed and dismounted men under Adjutant Joseph Stephenson, of the battalion, started east to join McCray’s command, while Major Lesley with part of three companies of his best armed, best mounted men, went on an expedition to Clinton, Van Buren County, and accompanied Col. Witt who commanded a regiment of recruits for the southern army, to Dover, Ark(ansas) and saw him safely across the Arkansas river at Dardanelle (Arkansas). On our return from this expedition we learned that the Union troops were occupying our winter quarters at Marshall, the county seat of our county, and that the Missouri guerillas had attacked our unarmed men and killed and wounded twenty-six defenseless Confederate soldiers and the remainder was scattered in every direction. Under these conditions our Major left the battalion in the mountains hid out from the Federals and the Missouri guerillas and went to McCray’s headquarters alone, but in his absence the commanding officer of the battalion got in communication with the Federal troops and surrendered the command and almost every man to a man volunteered and went into the Union army at Lewisburg, Ark(ansas). I think a good proportion of them was attached to the 3rd Arkansas Cavalry, but of this I am not sure."
What battalion would this be? A number of men formerly of Company F, 32nd Arkansas, had deserted and then come back to work in the mines in Searcy County, including John Leslie. His father Samuel Leslie was captain of Company F and was detached to go round the deserters up and resigned in late 1863. Is this "Leslie's Battalion" a pseudo unit of sorts made up of the mine workers? A legitimate unit? John and Saml. were neither one listed in any rosters I have access to as a major. Stephenson shows up as nothing higher than a private but is mentioned as adjutant in this battalion. Help???