Doyle, the references to "the left" in the casualty report of the 1st Arkansas Infantry referred to the soldier's relative position in the line of battle. Some of the other companies used the phrase "left of center", while some simply said "on the left." Even so, as you said, this makes the report the most detailed casualty list I've ever come across -- the date and time of the wound, the nature of the wound, in what part of the body, and where each soldier was in the line of battle. There's even an addendum to the report which states whether or not each soldier kept or lost his musket after being wounded. Several of them had their muskets "shot to pieces."

It's a remarkable document. I don't know if its thoroughness is due to the professionalism of Col. John Fleming Fagan, or to an exceptionally good adjutant -- of which the 1st Arkansas was blessed with many during the war, beginning with our old friend, Lieut. William Naylor Bronaugh, later major of the 2nd Arkansas Battalion, and one of Arkansas' unsung heroes of the Civil War.