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I "!"5r;77'`1\- q`; Ci 17 Iji a~lla "I fcn f //" r-~ LEE AND HIIS LIEUTENANTS; COMPRISING THE EARLY LIFE, PUBLIC SERVICES, AND CAMPAIGNS OF GENERAL ROBERT E. LEE AND HIS COMPANIONS IN ARMS, WITH A RECORD OF THEIR CAMPAIGNS AND HEROIC DEEDS. "Names the world will not willingly let die." BY EDWARD A. POLLARD, AUTHOR OF " THE LOST CAUSE," ETC., ETC. With numerous Steel-plate Engravings. NEW YORK: E. B. TREAT & CO., 654 BROADWAY. BALTIMORE, MD.: J. S. MORROW; LOUISVILLE, KY.: F. I. DIBBLE. ST. LOUIS, MO.: I. S. BRAINARD; NEW ORLEANS1 LA.: J. H. HUMMEL; CHICAGO, ILL.: C. W. LILLEY; SAN FRANCISCO, CAL.: E. E. SHEAR. 1867. Entered according to Act of Congress, in the year one thousand eight hundred and sixty-seven, by E. B. TREAT & CO., In the Clerk's Office of the District Court of the United States for the Southern District of New York. THE NEW YORK PRINTING COMPANY, 81, 83, and 85 Centre St., NEW YORK. INTRODUCTION. THE Author proposes in this present work to assemble the most heroic names of the South in the late war, and to give to the world biographies of her most illustrious military commanders, including memoirs of all the Army divisions of the Confederacy from Virginia to the Trans-Mississippi. The plan of the work is extensive; the collection is naturally in the shape of a galaxy; but the picture is one, in the common light of the martial glory of the South in which all the figures are grouped. Authenticity is more difficult in biography than in history; the domain of anecdote is always doubtful; and the most we can obtain of the lives of particular men comes to us through the prejudices and colours of personal narration. Sensible of the difficulties and uncertainties which beset his task, the author may yet declare that he has executed it with such care that he has admitted no statement of fact without ample authority, and mentioned not even the slightest incident without the support of credible testimony. He has been greatly assisted from the notes and memories of surviving actors of the great drama; he has drawn something from various publications contemporary with the war-among which he would especially mention the Southern Illustrated JNews, one of the most interesting literary souvenirs of the Confederacy; and he has explored for evidence every print and manuscript of the documentary history of the Richmond Government. At least, he has not been deficient in research, however he may have used his discoveries. It has been arranged that the biographies in this volume should cover the whole space of the action of the late war. iv INTRODUCTION. Including all the great commanders, they contain some name dear to each part of the former Confederacy, and thus have an interest distributed through all the States of the South. The author's design, in short, has been to assemble the most remarkable characters of the late war, and to perform a work, in which Southern youth may look for models of true greatness; the scholar recognize his fruitful themes; and those yet living on the scenes of the great conflict find many subjects of tender and ennobling interest. VIRGINIA, 1867. LIST OF BIOGRAPHIES. PAGQ General Robert Edward Lee.......................................... 33 Lieutenant-General " Stonewall" Jackson,................................. 177 General Peter G. T. Beauregard.......................................... 231 General Albert Sidney Johnston...................................... 271 Lieutenant-General Braxton Bragg..................................... 284 Major-General Sterling Price............................................. 309 General Joseph Eggleston Johnston...................................... 337 Lieutenant-General James Longstreet..................................... 411 Lieutenant-General J. E. B. Stuart................................. 421 Lieutenant-General Ambrose P. Hill...................................... 440 Lieutenant-General Daniel H. Hill...................................... 448 Lieutenant-General Richard S. Ewell.............................. 457 Lieutenant-General Jubal A Early....................................... 463 Major-General Gustavus W. Smith....................................... 482 Major-General Lafayette McLaws........................................ 487 Major-General Cadmus Wilcox........................................... 496 Major-General George E. Pickett........................................ 509 Major-General Charles W. Field..................................... 520 Major-General Robert E. Rodes......................................... 524 Major-General Arnold Elzey............................................ 627 Major-General Sam. Jones............................................... 530 Major-General John B. Gordon.......................................... 535 Major-General Fitzhugh Lee............................................ 549 Brigadier-General Henry A. Wise...................................... 559 Brigadier-General Turner Ashby......................................... 573 Lieutenant-General Leonidas Polk....................................... 587 Major-General John C. Breckinridge.................................. 601 Major-General Mansfield Lovell........................................... 621 Major-General Earl Van Dorn...................................... 627 Brigadier-General Benjamin McCulloch................................... 637 Major-General John H. Morgan......................................... 645 Lieutenant-General John B. Hood........................................ 663 Lieutenant-General Stephen D. Lee..................................... 674 Major-General Patrick Cleburne.......................................... 688 Lieutenant-General Joseph Wheeler.................................... 695 Brigadier-General Felix K. Zollicoffer..................................... 705 Vi LIST OF BIOGRAPHIES. PAGE Lieutenant-General Alexander P. Stewart.................................. 711 Major-General Benjamin F. Cheatham..................................... 718 Major-General William B. Bate..................................... 722 Lieutenant-General Wade Hampton....................................... 738 Lieutenant-General Nathaniel B. Forrest............................... 748 Lieutenant-General E. Kirby Smith....................................... 760 Lieutenant-General Simon B. Buckner..................................... 773 Major-General John B. Floyd........................................... 783 Lieutenant-General William J. Hardee................................... 808 Lieutenant-General Richard Taylor....................................... 830 Major-General Dabney H. Maury................................... 837 Major-General John B. Magruder......................................... 840 LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS. PAGE Gen. Robert E. Lee........................................... Frontispiece. The Conflagration of Richmond................................ Vignette Title. Lieutenant-General " Stonewall " Jackson.................................. 177 General P. G. T. Beauregard............?................................. 177 Lieutenant-General R. S. Ewell....................................... 177 Lieutenant-General A. P. Hill........................................... 177 Lieutenant-General J. Longstreet........................................ 177 General A. S. Johnston.................................................. 177 Lieutenant-General J. E. B. Stuart......................... 177 Major-General Sterling Price........................................ 309 Major-General Fitzhugh Lee............................................. 309 Major-General Earl Van Dorn........................................... 309 Lieutenant-General " Dick " Taylor....................................... 309 Lieutenant-General Joseph Wheeler.................................... 309 Major-General B. F. Cheatham........................................... 309 Lieutenant-General A. P. Stuart.......................................... 309 General Joe E. Johnston................................................ 337 Lieutenant-General Braxton Bragg....................................... 663 Lieutenant-General Kirby Smith.......................................... 663 Lieutenant-General N. B. Forrest........................................ 663 Lieutenant-General Leonidas Polk........................................ 663 Lieutenant-General J. B. Hood............... 663 Lieutenant-General W. J. Hardee.........................,.............. 663 Major-General John Morgan.......................................... 663 Lieutenant-General Jubal A. Early........................................ 463 Major-General J. C. Breckinridge......................................... 463 Brigadier-General Henry A. Wise......................................... 463 Lieutenant-General Wade Hampton....................................... 463 Brigadier-General Turner Ashby......................................... 463 Major-General J. B. Gordon.............................................. 463 Major-General J. B. Magruder........................................... 463 CONTENTS. CHAPTER L GENERAL ROBERT EDWARD LEE. Standards of human greatness.-Three classes of great men.-Nature and peculiarity of genius.-A second order of greatness.-General Lee, as in the third class of great men.-Key to his character,.... 33 CHAPTER II. The Lee family in Virginia.-" Light-Horse HIarry."-Early life of Robert E. Lee.-His cadetship at West Point.-His home at Arlington Heights.-Services in the Mexican war.-Commended by Gen. Scott.-Appointed Colonel in the First Cavalry. —The John Brown raid.-Colonel Lee and the outlaws.The first act of "rebellion" at Harper's Ferry. —Governor Wise arms Virginia,.. 38 CHAPTER III Abraham Lincoln elected President of the United States.-Anxiety and hesitation of Lee at the commencement of hostilities. —His sense of duty.-He debates the question of his allegiance to Virginia.-His peculiar school of politics.-A reply to a Northern newspaper.-Attitude of Virginia.-A sublime struggle in Lee's mind.-He goes to Richmond. —Appointed Commander-in-Chief of the Virginia forces.-His reception by the State Convention.-Appearance and carriage of the man. —Military preparations in Virginia.-She joins the Southern Confederacy,.48 CHAPTER IV. Gen. Lee sent to Northwestern Virginia.-Description of the theatre of the war.-Unfortunate military councils in Richmond.-Proclamation of Gov. Letcher.-A caricature of secession.-Disaster of Rich Mountain. Gen. Lee's plans thereafter.-He is foiled at Cheat Mountain.-Marches to the Kanawha Valley.-Escape of Rosecrans. —Failure of Lee's Campaign. —He is abused and twitted in Richmond.-Scoffs of the Richmond " Examiner." —He is assigned to " the coast service." —Recalled to Richmond, and made " Commanding General."-This post unimportant, and scarcely honourable, 58 - CHAPTER V. McClellan's march up the Peninsula.-Recollections of the " White House."Battle of Seven Pines. —Review of condition of the Confederacy.-An act "to disband the armies of the Confederacy."-Carnival of misrule. —Gen. Lee in command of the forces around Richmond. —Nearly two-thirds of his army raw conscripts.-His adoption of Gen. Johnston's idea of concentration.Manners of Lee as a commander.-The great battle joined.-Beaver-Dam 10 CONTENTS. Creek.-Gen. Lee resting at a farm-house.-The glory of Gaines' Mills.Brilliant audacity of Gen. Lee in delivering this battle. —Retreat of McClellan.-Frazier's Farm.-Malvern Hill.-The circuit of Lee's victories broken.His official summary of " the Seven Days' battles,"... 67 CHAPTER VI. General Lee the favourite of the populace.-He moves out to the line of the Rappahannock.-Cedar Run.-Bold and daring enterprise of General Lee, in detaching Jackson to the enemy's rear.-A peculiarity of his campaigns.How he disregarded the maxims of military science.-The battles of Second Manassas.-Gen. Lee marches for the fords of the Potomac.-His address at Frederick, Maryland.-Jackson detached again.-McClellan finds an important paper.-The Thermopylse of "South Mountain Pass." —Battle of Sharpsburg.-Gen. Lee obtains a victory, but is unable to press it.-He retires to Virginia.-An authentic statement of Gen. Lee's reasons for the Maryland campaign.-His constant and characteristic idea of defending Richmond by operations at a distance from it.-Congratulations to his troops. —Moral results of the campaign of 1862. —Testimonies to Southern heroism, 78 CHAPTER VII. General Lee's perilous situation in North Virginia. —His alarming letter to the War Office.-The happy fortune of McClellan's removal.-The Battle of Fredericksburg.-Gen. Lee's great mistake in not renewing the attack.His own confession of errour.-He detaches nearly a third of his army to cover the south side of Richmond.- He writes a severe letter to the Government.-The enemy's fifth grand attempt on Richmond.-Gen. Lee in a desperate extremity.-The Battles of Chancellorsville.-Three victories for the Confederates.-The masterpiece of Gen. Lee's military life,.. 93 CHAPTER VIII. Controversy between Gen. Lee and the War Department. —The Secretary' wince.s.-Gen. Lee's new campaign of invasion.-How it differed from that of 1862.-Reorganization of the Army of Northern Virginia.-Some remarks on its artillery service.-Gen. Lee across the Potomac.-His orders at Chambersburg, Pa. —His errours with respect to the policy of " retaliation."-His conversation with a mill-ow ner.-A letter from President Davis.-Gen. Lee misunderstood and disappointed by the Richmond authorities.-Orders to Stuart's cavalry.-The Confederate army blinded in Pennsylvania for want of cavalry.-The battle of Gettysburg has the moral effect of a surprise to Gen. Lee.-The lost opportunity of the 1st July.-Why Gen. Lee fought the next day.-Temper of his army.-He assaults the enemy's centre on the 3d July.-Recoil of the Confederates.-Gen. Lee cheering and comforting his men.-His fearful retreat, and his wonderful success in extricating his army,.101 CHAPTER IX. Decline of the fortunes of the Confederacy.-Operations in the autumn of 1863.-Gen. Lee's patriotic exhortation to his troops. —His great care for them.-Meeting of the chaplains in his army.-Relations between General Lee and his troops.-His habits on the battle-field.-Intercourse with his men.-Simplicity of his manners. —His feelings towards the public enemy.How he rebuked a Yankee-phobist.-Sufferings of the Confederate troops.Commissary Northrop.-Gen. Lee demands food for his troops. —Touching CONTENTS. 11 address to his half-starved men.- Anecdote of Gen. Lee and his cook.-Personal recollections of the great commander.-An English officer's description of his person and habits,.116 CHAPTER X. Opening of the great campaign of 1864. —Precise account of Gen. Lee's plans. -He acts with his accustomed boldness and takes the offensive.-Actions of the 5th and 6th May.-General Lee determines to lead a critical assault.Protest of the soldiers.-Grant resorts to malceuvre.-Spottsylvania CourtHouse.-General Lee again in the extreme front of his men.-A thrilling spectacle. —Ieroic action of Gordon.-" Gen. Lee to the rear! "-Account of the strategy from Spottsylvania Court-House to the vicinity of Richmond.Grant on the old battle-field of McClellan.-His army defeated in ten minutes at Cold Harbour.-His losses in one month exceed Lee's whole army.Precise statement of the odds against Gen. Lee.-Reflections on the nature and degrees of generalship.-Comparison of the two rival commanders of the North and South,.125 CHAPTER XI. Gen. Lee's private opinion of the defences of Richmond.-A serious communication to the Government, and how it was treated. —Vagaries of President Davis.-Gen. Lee decides that the safety of Richmond lies in raising the siege.-Expedition of Early across the Potomac.-Anxiety of Gen. Lee.He meditates taking command of the force in Maryland.-Retreat of Early. -Gen. Lee next proposes a diversion in the Valley of Virginia.-Failure of this operation.-Constant extension of Grant's left around Richmond.Period of despondency in the South.-A letter of Gen. Lee on the question of supplies.-He proposes bringing in two or three years' supplies from Europe.-Desertion the great evil in the Confederate armies.-Difficulties of dealing with it.-Various letters and protests from Gen. Lee on the subject of discipline.-An angry comment of President Davis.-Gen. Lee a severe disciplinarian, and yet loved by his men.-Anecdote of the General and a one-armed soldier.-Skeleton returns of the army.-The popular clamour against President Davis.-Gen. Lee's quasi acceptance of the position of Commander-in-chief.-Nature and peculiar history of this rank in the Confederate armies.-Hopeful views of Gen. Lee.-Project of arming the negroes.-Growth of new hopes for the Confederacy,... 135 CHAPTER XII. Extraordinary cheerfulness of Gen. Lee.-A psychological reflection.-The Army of Northern Virginia at a third stage in its history.-Military preparations for the evacuation of Richmond.-Protests of the Government.Gen. Lee's last and desperate resolution.-Battle of Five Forks.-Theory and results of the action.-Grant's assault in front of Petersburg.-How Gen. Lee received it.-His remark to a staff-officer,... 149 CHAPTER XIII. The la~t retreat of Gen. Lee's army. —Two notable pictures. —Gen. Lee conceives a new prospect of action.-A fatal miscarriage at Amelia CourtHouse.-No food for the army.-Terrible sufferings of the retreat.-General despair and misery.-Action at Sailor's Creek.-Condition of the army at Appomattox Court-House.-Apparition of the white flag.-Correspondence between Generals Lee and Grant.-Authentic and detailed account of their interview at McLean's House.-Contradiction of various popular reports 12 CONTENTS. of this event.-General Lee announcing the terms of surrender to his officers. —Scenes in the encampments.-Gen. Lee's last address to his troops. -His return to Richmond.-Last tokens of affection and respect for the Confederacy,.155 CHAPTER XIV. An interesting interview with Gen. Lee after the surrender.-Remarks upon the Federal rule. —Indicted for " treason."-Proceedings stayed on the protest of Gen. Grant.-Explanation of Gen. Lee's course with reference to amnesty, etc.-Elected President of Washington College.-The true spirit of his advice of "submission."-His hopes for the repose and welfare of the South,.172 CHAPTER XV. LIEUT.-GEN. STONEWALL JACKSON. Boyhood of Thomas Jonathan Jackson.-His experience at West Point. —His studies and habits.-A novel analysis of awkward manners.-Jackson's promotions in the Mexican war.-His love of fight.-Recollections of " Fool Tom Jackson" at Lexington.-A study of his face and character.-His prayers for " the Union."-A reflection on Christian influences in America.Jackson appointed a colonel in the Virginia forces.-In command at Harper's Ferry.-Constitution of the " Stonewall Brigade."-Jackson promoted to Brigadier.-His action on the field of Manassas.-He turns the enemy's flank and breaks his centre.-How much of the victory was due to him.His expedition towards the head waters of the Potomac,.. 177 CHAPTER XVI. Description of the Shenandoah Valley.-Its importance as an avenue to Washington.-Gen. Jackson retreats from Winchester, and returns and fights the battle of Kernstown.-His first and last defeat.-Analysis of the enemy's " On-to-Richmond."-Four armies to converge on the Confederate capital.-Situation of Gen. Jackson.-Reinforced by Ewell's division.-His rapid movement to McDowell, and its designs.-He falls upon the enemy at Front Royal.-He chases Banks' army through Winchester and across the Potomac.-President Lincoln " sets a trap " for him.-Gen. McDowell's remonstrance.-Battles of Cross Keys and Port Republic. —Summary of the Valley campaign.190 CHAPTER XVII. Gen. Jackson's share in the " Seven Days' battles" around Richmond. —Shifting of the scenes of war from the James River to the Rappahannock.Battle of Cedar Run.-Gen. Jackson moves a column between the enemy's rear and Washington. —Scenes of the march.-Battle of Groveton.-The two days' conflict on Manassas Plains. —Gen. Jackson strikes the enemy at Ox Hill. —Results of the campaign so far. —Extraordinary achievement of Jackson's command.-He moves against, and captures Harper's Ferry.His part in the battle of Sharpsburg,.199 CHAPTER XVIII. Battle of Fredericksburg.-Gen. Jackson conceives the desperate enterprise of driving the enemy into the river.-But he recalls the attack.-Battle of Chancellorsville.-A night council under the pines.-The flank-march.How Gen. Hooker was deceived. —Gen. Jackson's last dispatch.-Fury of CONTENTS. 13 his attack in the Wilderness. —He is shot from his horse by his own men.Particulars of his wound and sufferings.-His dying moments.-Funeral ceremonies in Richmond,.. 208 CHAPTER XIX. Review of G-en. Jackson's services and character.-True nature of his ambition.-The value of glory.-Religious element in Gen. Jackson's character.Peculiarity of his religious habits.-Anecdotes.-Want of natural amiability. -Harshness of manner towards his officers.-His severe idea of war.Destructiveness.-His readiness to forgive.-A touching personal incident. -His self-possession as a mark of " genius."-His military faculty not a partial one.-European estimates of his career.-A lesson to Northern insolence and rancour,...... 220 CHAPTER XX. GEN. PETER G. T. BEAUREGARD. Early life of P. G. T. Beauregard.-His gallantry and promotions in the Mexican War.-Life in Louisiana.-Appointment in the Confederate Army.-Defences of Charleston.-Battle of Fort Sumter.-Gen. Beauregard takes command in Virginia.-His contempt of "the Yankees."-A grotesque letter.-Popular sentiment concerning the war.-Explanation of the sudden disappearance of the Union party in the South. —Gen. Beauregard's declaration of the purposes of the war.-" Beauty and Booty."-A Northern journal on Butler vs. Beauregard.-Battle of Manassas.-Complimentary letter from President Davis.-The popularity of Gen. Beauregard alarms the vanity of the President.-A scandalous quarrel. —Gen. Beauregard's political " card" in the Richmond newspapers,.... 231 CHAPTER XXI. Gen. Beauregard transferred to command in West Tennessee. —His order about "the bells."-He concentrates the Confederate forces at Corinth.Battle of Shiloh.-A "lost opportunity."-Retreat to Tupelo.-He obtains a sick furlough.-President Davis deprives him of his command.-Official persecution of Gen. Beauregard.-Violent declarations of the President.G0en. Beauregard in retirement.-A private letter on the war,. 249 CHAPTER XXII. Gen. Beauregard in command at Charleston.-Military importance of "the City of Secession." —Gen. Beauregard's appeal to the patriotism of the Carolinians.-Naval attack on Charleston, 1863.-Gen. Beauregard's department stripped of troops.-Unavailing remonstrance to President Davis.Gen. Gillmore's attempt on Charleston.-Its impotent conclusion.-Fame of Gen. Beauregard as an engineer.-He receives the thanks of Congress. — Returns to Virginia in 1864.-" Battle of the Falchion and the Buzzard." -Gen. Beauregard's plan of campaign before the battle of Drewry's Bluff. -Remarkable interview with President Davis.-Connection of Gen. Beauregard with Hood's campaign.-He advises the evacuation of Richmond.Merits of G0en. Beauregard's military career.-Description of his person and habits,.257 CHAPTER XXIII. GEN. ALBERT SIDNEY JOHNSTON. Remarkable career of Albert Sidney Johnston.-He eludes the Federal 14 CONTENTS. authorities in California.-Declares for. the Southern Confederacy, and " annexes " Arizona.-In command of the Western armies.-Picture of a hero. -Proclamation on the occupation of Kentucky. —Foolish exaltation:of Southern hopes.-True situation of Gen. Johnston.-His noble silence in the face of clamour.-Letter on the fall of Fort Donelson.-A glance at the Western map of the war.-The Confederate line broken and the campaign transferred to the southern bank of the Tennessee river.-Battle of Shiloh. -Gen. Johnston riding on to victory.-His death-wound.-Lamentations in the South.-Tributes to his memory.-A classic inscription,. 271 CHAPTER XXIV. GEN. BRAXTON BRAGG. Equivocal reputation of Gen. Bragg in the war.-His services in Mexico.Offers his sword to Louisiana.-His command at Pensacola.-Gallant participation in the battle of Shiloh. —His reflections upon Gen. Beauregard. -In command of the Western forces.-His Kentucky campaign, as correspondent to the Virginia campaign of 1862.-Battle of Perrysville.-Gen. Bragg's retreat through Cumberland Gap.-Criticisms and recriminations touching the campaign,. 284 CHAPTER XXV. Battle of Murfreesboro.-Interval of repose.-Retreat to Chattanooga.-Gen. Bragg refuses to fight at the instance of the War Department.-Reinforced from the Army of Northern Virginia.-Battle of Chickamauga.-A commentary in the Richmond Whig.-Violent quarrel between Gens. Bragg and Longstreet.-The disaster of Missionary Ridge.-Gen. Bragg relieved from command and appointed "military adviser" of President Davis.Explanations in a Richmond journal.-Gen. Bragg's last service in the field. -Fall of Wilmington.-Gen. Bragg's military career criticised.-His ardent Southern patriotism,. 295 CHAPTER XXVI. MAJ.-GEN. STERLING PRICE. Anomaly of the Missouri Campaign.-Early life of Sterling Price.-Governor of Missouri.-His Politics.-Formation of " The Missouri State Guard."Personal appearance of the Commander.-His correspondence with Gen.;Harney.-Affair at Booneville.-Gen. Price reinforced by Gens. MoCulloch.and Pearce.-Battle of Oak Hill or Wilson's Creek. —Gen. Price's movement upon Lexington.-His success.-Designs against St. Louis.-Why,they were abandoned.-Retreat of the Patriot Army of Missouri.-The State joins the Southern Confederacy.-Gen. Price's Proclamation at Neosho,... 309 CHAPTER XXVII. Gen. Price at the head of ten thousand men. —McCulloch refuses to cooperate. — Admirable retreat of Prioe's army to Boston Mountains.-Hardihood- of his troops.-A message from Gen. Halleck.-Gen. Van Dorn appointed Confederate Commander of the Trans-Mississippi.-Battle of Elk Horn.-Its importance. —Heroism of Gen. Price on the field.-The Missouri troops cross the Mississippi River.-Gen. Price's eloquent address to " the State Guard,"..... 321 CONTENTS. 15 CHAPTER XXVIII. Career of Gen. Price as a subordinate.-Mortality reoord of the Missouri Guard. — Their participation in the battle of Corinth.-Battle of Helena.-Gen. Price's cherished idea of liberating Missouri. —His agreement with Gen. Fremont for the humanities of the war. —How the enemy violated it.-Gen. Price's last attempt to save Missouri.-His final retreat from the State.-Summary of the character of Gen. Price.-A defect in his military career.-Gen. Price as an exile,...328 CHAPTER XXIX. GEN. JOSEPH EGGLESTON JOHNSTON. Some account of " the first families " of Virginia. —Ancestry of Joseph Eggleston.-Peter Johnston in the Revolutionary War, and in the State councils of Virginia.-Early life of Joseph E. Johnston.-Military tastes of the boy.Services of Lieut. Johnston in the Florida War.-An incident of desperate oourage.-Services in the Mexican War.-Bon Mot of Gen. Scott.-Johnston appointed Quartermaster-General,.337 CHAPTER XXX. Gen. Johnston's resignation from the United States Army.-He visits Montgomery.-Appointed a full General.-Ordered to Harper's Ferry.-The place a cul de sac.-Johnston abandons it.-Reasons for destroying the property of the Baltimore and Ohio Railroad.-How Gen. Johnston amused Patterson.He asks permission to join Beauregard at Manassas Junction.-The march to Piedmont, and transportation hence to Manassas,... 344 CHAPTER XXXI. Gen. Johnston's survey of the field of Manassas. —He indicates the enemy's design to flank the Confederate left. —IHis anxiety about Patterson's movements-Plan of attack upon Centreville.-Why it failed.-Non-arrival of part of the Army of the Shenandoah. —Popular misrepresentations of the battle of Manassas.-The real plans of action on each side.-How Gen. Johnston overlapped the flanking movement of the enemy.-His orders to Gen. Bonham to attack on Centreville.-The most brilliant opportunity of the day lost.-Gen. Johnston's published reasons for not attacking Washington.-This explanation criticised.-Evidence of McClellan.-The Confederate Army demoralized by their victory.-Sequel of Manassas,. 352 CHAPTER XXXII. An early council of the Confederate Government.-Unpopularity of Gen. Johnston.-He indicates the value of concentration, and proposes an aggressive movement against the Potomac.-Overruled by President Davis.-Attempt to bring McClellan to battle.-Blockade of the Potomac River.-True theory of the battle of Leesburg, or Ball's Bluff.-Gen. Johnston meditates a retreat from North Virginia.-A notable Council of War in Richmond.-Gen. Johnston's advice overruled by President Davis and Gen. Lee.-Transfer of Johnston's Army to Yorktown.- Why he abandoned the Peninsula.-Gen. Johnston's share in Jackson's Valley Campaign.-Battle of Seven Pines.How its results were limited.-Gen. Johnston wounded.-He loses command of the Army of Northern Virginia,. 361 CHAPTER XXXIII. Gen. Johnston's designs against McClellan.-Why he considered his wound 1 6 CONTENTS. fortunate for the Confederacy.-Anecdote of a dinner-party in Richmond. — Gen. Johnston's mission to the west.-True nature of his appointment and powers.-Rather a Local Secretary of War than a Commanding-General.Interesting conference between Gen. Johnston and Secretary Randolph.He proposes to make one military department of the whole Mississippi Valley. -Gen. Johnston's visit to Bragg's Army. —The defence of Vicksburg.Antecedents of Gen. Pemberton.-Detailed account of the correspondence and relations between Gens. Johnston and Pemberton.-Gen. Johnston's orders twice disobeyed.-His last order, " Hold out," as involving the fate of the Confederacy.- Surrender of Vicksburg, and its train of consequences to the close of the war,. 372 CHAPTER XXXIV. Important supplement to the story of Vicksburg.-President Davis' part in the disaster.-Radical difference of military views of the President and of Gen. Johnston.-The disaster of Missionary Ridge. —Gen. Johnston takes command of the Army of Tennessee.-His successful reorganization of it.-Comparison of forces with the enemy.-Gen. Johnston's reasons for withdrawing from Dalton.-Sherman's plan of campaign.-The retreat towards Atlanta and its incidents.- Gen. Johnston removed from command.-" All hell followed."-A sharp dispatch to Richmond.-Injustice of the government to Gen. Johnston,.390 CHAPTER XXXV. The fall of Atlanta and what it involved.-Gen. Johnston foretells Sherman's "march to the sea."-The ice Victis. —Gen. Johnston restored to command. -The North Carolina campaign.-Sherman's stipulations for a surrender.Interference from Washington.-Qualities of Gen. Johnston as a great commander.-His military peculiarities.-Compared to George Washington.His patriotic and noble silence under censure.-His person and deportment. -Literary accomplishments.-His advice to the Southern people on their duties after the surrender,.402 CHAPTER XXXVI. LIEUT.-GEN. JAMES LONGSTREET. His early military services.-Affair of Blackburn's Ford.-Battle of Williamsburg.-G-allantry at Gaines' Mills.-Incident of march to Second Manassas. Separate command in South Virginia.-Desperate fighting at Gettysburg.-Sobriquet of " The Bull-dog."-Decisive part in the battle of Chickamauga.-Quarrel with Gen. Bragg.-Campaign in East Tennessee.-Its errours.-A sharp correspondence with the Federal General Foster.-Gen. Longstreet rebuked by President Davis.-He is wounded in the Wilderness.-Military character and aptitude of the man.-Fraternal relations with Gen. Lee.-His personal appearance,.411 CHAPTER XXXVII. LIEUT.-GEN. J. E. B. STUART. Unique figure of Stuart in the war.-His first cavalry command in the valley of Virginia.-Adventure with Capt. Perkins.-Complimented by Gen. Johnston.-The action of Dranesville.-" The Ride around McClellan."Adventure at Verdiersville.-Capture of Gen. Pope's coat and papers.-Expedition into Pennsylvania.-At Fredericksburg. —At Chancellorsville.His characteristic intercourse with Stonewall Jackson.-Splendid review at CONTENTS. 17 Brandy Station.-The scene changed into bloodiest battle.-Gen. Stuart's serious omission in the Gettysburg campaign.-Adventure in the flanking movement in North Carolina.-Hair-breadth escapes of the commander.He is shot down at Yellow Tavern.-His last moments.-Criticism of his military character,.... 421 CHAPTER XXXVIII. LIEUT.-GEN. AMBROSE P. HILL. His record in the United States A rmy. —His part in the battles around Richmond, 1862.-Conspicuous gallantry at Frazier's Farm.-He repulses six assaults in the second battle of Manassas. —Critical service at Sharpsburg. -Episode of Boteler's Ford.-Bristoe Station.-Failure of General Hill's health.-He resumes command in front of Petersburg.-Reams' Station.Tragic death of the Commander.-His virtues and gallantry,. 440 CHAPTER XXXIX. LIEUT.-GEN. DANIEL H. HILL. " Bethel " Hill a curiosity as well as celebrity of the war. —His Revolutionary ancestry.-Services in Mexico.-His adventures as a Professor and literateur.-Curiosities of "Hill's Algebra."-The affair of Bethel and its exaggeration.-Gen. Hill's account of McClellan's retreat from Richmond.-His most memorable and heroic service at South Mountain Pass.-Gen. Hill's criticism of the battle of Sharpsburg.-Heroic record of a North Carolina regiment.-Gen. Hill at Chickamauga.-Removed from command.-His literary exploits and eccentricities,...... 448 CHAPTER XL. LIEUT.-GEN. RICHARD S. EWELL. Gen. Ewell as the companion and friend of Stonewall Jackson. —His military life anteriour to 1861.-Curious apparition at Fairfax Court-House.-His share in Jackson's Valley campaign.-Cross Keys.-Port Republic.-Compliment to " the Maryland line."-Gen. Ewell wounded at Groveton.-He succeeds to Stonewall Jackson's command.-Enacts part of the old drama at Winchester.-Services in 1864.-He commands the Department of Henrico.-Burning of the city of Richmond,..... 457 CHAPTER XLI. LIEUT.-GEN. JUBAL A. EARLY. His early life as a soldier and politician.-His " Union" sentiments in the Virginia Convention.-Why he became an actor in the war.-Reflections upon the Unionists and Secessionists.-Gen. Early's services in 1862.-The disaster of Rappahannock Station.-His different commands in the last year of the war.-His independent campaign into the Valley and Maryland.-Outrages of the enemy in the Valley.-Gen. Early's advance upon Washington City.-Why he did not attack it.-His return to the Valley.Battle of Winchester. —The dramatic story of Cedar Creek-Failure of the Valley campaign.-The affair of Waynesboro.-Narrow escape of Gen. Early.-Gen. Lee's letter relieving him from command.-Review of the operations in the Valley.-Remarkable character of Gen. Early.-The " bad old man."-His jokes and peculiarities.-Anecdotes of the camp. —Escape of Gen. Early across the Mississippi River.-His choice of exile,. 463 2 18 CONTENTS. CHAPTER XLII. MAJ.-GEN. GUSTAVUS W. SMITH. His family in Kentucky.-He serves in the Mexican war.-Complimentary notices from Gen. Scott.-Appointed Street Commissioner of New York. — Resigns, visits Kentucky, and accepts a Major-Generalship in the Confederate service. —His slight record in the war.-His resignation.-Injustice of President Davis. —Volunteer services of Gen. Smith in the latter period of the war,.482 CHAPTER XLIII. MAJ.-GEN. LAFAYETTE M LAWS. Services in the United States Army.-Appointed a Brigadier-General in the Confederate States Army, September, 1861.-Promoted in front of Richmond. -His part in the capture of Harper's Ferry.-H-is glorious and bloody work at Fredericksburg. —The East Tennessee campaign, 1863.-Gen. McLaws opposes the assault on Knoxville.-Extraordinary reply of Gen. Longstreet. -Defective reconnoissances of the enemy's works.-Why the assault failedGen. McLaws court-martialed and triumphantly acquitted. —A remarkable peculiarity of his military career,.487 CHAPTER XLIV. MAJ.-GEN. CADMUS M. WILCOX. Military services in Mexico.-His gallantry at Chapultepec.-Subsequent services in the United States Army.-His first command in the Confederate States Army. —Heroic conduct of his brigade in the battles around Richmond, 1862.-At Gaines' Mills.-At Frazier's Farm.-An incident on the second field of Manassas.-Battle of Salem Church.-Important action of Wilcox's Brigade on the second day of Gettysburg.-A narrow chance of victory.Why the supp,rts failed. —Amusing anecdote of Gen. Wilcox and a chickenthief.-Promoted Major-General.-Record of services in the campaign of 1864-5.-Heroic story of Fort Gregg.-Last scenes of the surrender, 496 CHAPTER XLV. MAJ.-GEN. GEORGE E. PICRETT. His gallantry in the Mexican War.-Spirited Action of Capt. Pickett in the " San Juan Difficulty."-Position of the State of Virginia in the Sectional Controversies.-Pickett's Early Appointments in the Confederate States Service." The Game-Cock Brigade," in Longstreet's Division.-Memorable and Heroic Action of Pickett's Division at Gettysburg.-Account of it in the Richmond Enquirer.-Gen. Pickett's Expedition on the North Carolina Coast.-His Return to Petersburg.-How " The Cockade City" was narrowly Saved.-Operations around Petersburg.-Gen. Lee's Compliment to Pickett's Men.-The Battle of Five Forks.-The suppressed Official Report of Gen. Pickett.-His Last Tribute to his Troops.-Historical Glory of " The Virginia Division, 509 CHAPTER XLVI. MAJ.-GEN. CHARLES W. FIELD. Services in the United States Army and at West Point.-Commands a Brigade in the "Seven Days Battles" around Richmond.-Promoted MajorGeneral in 1864.-Field's Division restores the Battle in the Wilderness. CONTENTS. 19 An Unheralded Victory on the Richmond Lines.-Apocrypha of the Newspapers.-Remarkable and Brilliant Appearance of Field's Division at the Surrender. —What the Federal General Meade said of "the Rebels," 520 CHAPTER XLVII. MAJ.-GEN. ROBERT E. RODES. Graduates at the Virginia Military Institute.-A civil engineer in Alabama.Elected to a Professor's chair in the Virginia Military Institute.-Commands a Brigade at Seven Pines.-Gallantry at Chancellorsville.-Applauded on the field by Stonewall Jackson.-Killed at Winchester.-A touching tribute to his memory,.524 CHAPTER XLVIII. MAJ.-GEN. ARNOLD ELZEY. A captain in the United States Army.-His surrender of the Augusta Arsenal to the State of Georgia. —" The Blucher of Manassas."-Services in the Shenandoah Valley. —Wonnded at Gaines' Mills. —His successful command of the Department of Richmond,.527 CHAPTER XLIX. MAJ.-GEN. SAM JONES. Early military services in the field, at West Point and at Washington.Appointed on Gen. Beauregard's staff.-Commands Bartow's Brigade. — Ordered to Pensacola.-Various services on the Western theatre of the War.-Commands the Trans-Alleghany Department.-Relieves Gen. Beauregard at Charleston.-Defence of Tallahassee.-Breadth and variety of his military experience,.530 CHAPTER L. MAJ.-GEN. JOHN B. GORDON. Appearance of a new hero in the last year of the war.-Ancestral stock of John B. Gordon.-" The Racoon Roughs."-The 6th Alabama at Seven Pines.-Personal heroism of Col. Gordon.-At South Mountain.-His bloody and picturesque figure on the field of Sharpsburg.-Gen. Gordon as an orator.-A soldier's commentary on his eloquence.-His part in the Pennsylvania campaign.-A telling speech to Yankee women. —His counsels at Gettysburg.-His splendid action in the Wilderness.-A night attack upon the enemy.-Gen. Gordon rides through the enemy's lines.-His glorious counter-charge at Spottsylvania Court-House.-His part in the Valley campaign of 1864.-A novel and interesting version of the battle of Cedar Creek.-Gen. Gordon's plan of attack rejected or not executed by Gen. Early.-His position and figure in the last scene at Appomattox Court-House.-Review of his military services.-A representative of the "Young South."-His admirable sentiment and advice since the surrender,.535 CHAPTER LI. MAJ.-GEN. FITZHUGH LEE. A grandson of "Light Horse Harry."-A " wild " youth.-Tricks at West Point.-Desperate fights with Indians.-His early services in the Confederacy.-Chivalrous incident at the Second Manassas.-Services in the 20 CONTENTS. Maryland campaign.-Action of Kelly's Ford.-With Jackson at Chancellorsville. —Reorganization of the cavalry commands in Virginia. —A complimentary letter from Gen. Robert E. Lee.-Fitzhugh Lee's division in the campaign of 1864-5.-Spottsylvania Court-House.-Yellow Tavern.Reams' Station.-Five Forks.-Conduct of the cavalry on the retreat.Personal recollections of Fitzhugh Lee,..... 549 CHAPTER LII. BRIG.-GEN. HENRY A. WISE. An extraordinary excitement in Richmond.-The days of the Secession Convention.-Wise's idea of "fighting in the Union."-His style of eloquence in the Convention. —A remarkable conversation in his hotel.-His rhetorical bravura.-Short-sighted vanity of the South-Gen. Wise's campaign in Western Virginia.-The disaster of Roanoke Island.-Gen. Wise relieved from censure.-Death of his son.-An affecting scene.-Interview between Gen. Wise and Secretary Randolph.-His command in South Carolina.At Petersburg. -Gen. Wise's fame as a soldier.-His mental gifts.-Marks of an afflicted intellect. —His tribute to the private soldiers of the Confederacy,........... 559 CHAPTER LIII. BRIG.-GEN. TURNER ASHBY. Definition of Chivalry.-Its peculiarities and virtues.-A notable picture of chivalric courage.-Turner Ashby's family. —His early life.-He raises a regiment of cavalry.-His famous white steed.-Death of his brother.-The devotion of Ashby.-Habits and appearance of the cavalier.-Purity of his life.-Adventure with the enemy at Winchester.-Ashby on the retreat from Kernstown.-Chased by the enemy. —His horse killed. —Promoted a Brigadier.-His limited military education.-A scene around the campfires.-Dramatic death of Ashby.-Gen. Jackson's tribute to his memory.Honours to the deceased cavalier.-His place in history,.. 573 CHAPTER LIV. LIEUT.-GEN. LEONIDAS POLK. Exchange of the Bishopric of Louisiana for a military command.-Reasons why Bishop Polk resigned his holy calling for arms.-Reflections on the ethics of war. —Bishop Polk a graduate of West Point. —Adventures as a Missionary Bishop in Western wilds.-Flatboat-men and gamblers.-Gen. Polk wins the victory of Belmont.-A serious accident.-Battle of Shiloh. -The battle of Perrysville fought under Gen. Polk's direction.-His adventure with an Indiana Colonel.-Interesting incident in the battle of Murfreesboro.-0Gen. Polk's conduct at Chickamauga.-Censured by Gen. Bragg.-Transferred to command in the Southwest.-He frustrates Sherman's expedition.-Returned to the Army of Tennessee.-His death at Marietta.-Anecdotes illustrative of his character,... 587 CHAPTER LV. MAJ.-GEN. JOHN C. BRECKINRIDGE. His life anteriour to the War.-His career in Congress.-Elected Vice-President of the United States.-Democratic candidate for the Presidency, 1860.-The electoral and popular vote of that canvass.-Address to the people of Kentucky.-Last service in the United States Senate.-Bold speech there against the Administration.-Remarks upon Andrew John CONTENTS. 21 son's resolution.-Excited debate with Senator Baker.-Flight of Mr. Breckinridge from Kentucky.-His farewell counsels to her people.Appointed Brigadier-General.-Gallantry at Shiloh.-His expedition against Baton Rouge.-Causes of its failure.-At Murfreesboro. —"The Bloody Crossing of Stono River." —At Chickamauga.-Memorial of the Western commanders to the Richmond Congress.-Gen. Breckinridge's command in Southwestern Virginia.-He is made Secretary of War.Accompanies President Davis in his flight from Richmond.-Last Council of the'Confederate leaders.-Gen. Breckinridge escapes from the country.Reflections upon his services and character,.... 601 CHAPTER LVI. MAJ.-GEN. MANSFIELD LOVELL. His early life and politics.-Story of the fall of New Orleans.-Importance of its line of water-defence. —Gen. Lovell's hands tied by red tape at Richmond. —Not to blame for the disaster.-His gallant services after the loss of New Orleans. -President Davis refuses to give him a command under Johnston, 621 CHAPTER LVII. MAJ.-GEN. EARL VAN DORN. His capture of Federal troops in Texas at the beginning of the war.-Temporary command in North Virginia.-Assigned to the Trans-Mississippi.-Battle of Elk Horn.-Correspondence with Gen. Curtis on civilized warfare. —Gen. Van Dorn crosses the Mississippi River.-The Department of Louisiana.-Heroism of the first defence of Vicksburg. —Battle of Corinth.-Gen. Van Dorn removed from command.-His reflections on the sentence.-His command of calvary.-Destroys Grant's depot of supplies at Holly Springs.-Dies by the hand of private violence.-His genius as a commander,... 627 CHAPTER LVIII. BRIG.-GEN. BENJAMIN M CULLOCH. Early romance of his life.-His fame as a hunter and pioneer.-Service in the Texan war of independence.-Battle of San Jacinto. —The Mexican War.Adventure at Buena Vista.-Appointed United States Marshal for Texas.His life in Washington City.-His appearance and manners at the capital.Relations to President Buchanan.-Seizes the property and arms of the United States at San Antonio.-Surrender of Gen. Twiggs.-McCulloch's command in the Indian Territory.-His part in Price's Missouri campaign.Defects of his military character. —Killed in the battle of Elk Horn, 637 CHAPTER LIX. MAJ.-GEN. JOHN H. MORGAN. Morgan raises a' company in the Mexican war.-" The Captain." —His natural aptitude for arms.-His personal appearance. —His escape from Kentucky.A trick on the enemy.-His early services on Green River.-How he captured six Federals.-Adventure with a telegraph operator.-His first expedition into Kentucky.-A new engine of war.-Freaks of the telegraph.The affair of Hartsville.- His expedition through Kentucky, Indiana and Ohio.-Its captures and ravages.-Gen. Morgan a prisoner.-Cruelty and indignities of the enemy.-His escape from the Ohio penitentiary.-Detailed account of his escape and travel through the enemy's lines.-An ovation at Richmond.-His new command on the Virginia border.-Disfavour and 22 CONTENTS. prejudice of the Government.-Gen. Morgan's last expedition into Kentucky. -Its defeat.-Affair of Mt. Sterling.-Cruel slanders of Gen. Morgan.-Attempts an expedition to Bull Gap, East Tennessee.-Surprised and killed by the enemy.-Different versions of his death.-A brief review of his campaigns,.645 CHAPTER LX. LIEUT.-GEN. JOHN B. HOOD. Peculiar glory of the soldier-State of Texas.-Early recollections in the war of "Hood and his Texans."-Hood's cavalry command on the Peninsula.Commands the Texas brigade.-The peculiar Lewes of Gaines' Mills.-Gen. Hood in the battle of Sharpsburg.-" The two Little Giant Brigades."Gen. Lee's opinion of Texas soldiers "in tight places." —Gen. Hood wounded at Gettysburg and at Chickamauga.-Commands a corps in Johnston's army.-Remarkable letter to the War Department.-Appointed Commanding General of the Army of Tennessee.-An ascent in rank, but a fall in reputation.-A list of errours in the Georgia-Tennessee campaign.-Failure of that campaign. —Magnanimous confession of Gen. Hood. —His chivalry.His admirable military figure,.663 CHAPTER LXI. LIEUT.-GEN. STEPHEN D. LEE. His ancestry in South Carolina.-His service in the United States Army.Aide to Gen. Beauregard at Fort Sumter.-Commands Virginia Cavalry.Assigned to Artillery.-Gallant and important action of his batteries at Second Manassas.-Anecdote illustrating the spirit of that day.-Gen. Lee in command at Vicksburg.-Extraordinary compliment from President Davis.-Gen. Lee repulses Sherman at Chickasaw Bayou.-Battle of Baker's Creek.-Wonderful escape of Gen. Lee in the retreat. —Siege of Vicksburg. -Action of the 22d June, 1863.-Heroism of Texan soldiers.-Gen. Lee commands the cavalry in Mississippi.-His operations against Sherman.He commands the Southwestern Department.-Raids of the enemy.Assignment of Gen. Lee to Hood's Army.-The Tennessee campaign.Gen. Lee protects the retreat.-Reflections upon his extraordinary career,........... 674 CHAPTER LXII. MAJ.-GEN. PATRICK R. CLEBURNE. His first military experience as a private in the British Army.-Campaign, under Hardee, in Missouri.-His part in the Kentucky campaign.-Gallantry at Murfreesboro.-Splendid conduct of his division- at Chickamauga.Affairs with the enemy at Tunnel Hill and Ringgold.-Gen. Cleburne's last order in the battle of Franklin.-Effect of his death on the army.-His qualites as a commander.-His honour.-Anecdotes of the camp.-The society or order of" Comrades of the Southern Cross."-The battle-flag of Cleburne's division,.688 CHAPTER LXIII. LIEUT.-GEN. JOSEPH WHEELER. Services in the United States Army.-His command of cavalry under Gen. Bragg.-Important service at Murfreesboro.-Desperate encounter with the enemy at Shelbyville.-Personal gallantry of Gen. Wheeler.-His CONTENTS. 23 famous raid into Tennessee.-Summary of services in the Western Army. -Operations of Wheeler's cavalry on Sherman's march through Georgia.Gen. Wheeler's farewell address to his troops.-What he accomplished in the war.-His career and genius,...... 695 CHAPTER LXV. BRIG.-GEN. FELIX K. ZOLLICOFFER. His early life as a politician and member of Congress.-Appointed a BrigadierGeneral in the Confederate States Army.-His leniency to the people of East Tennessee.-At Cumberland Gap.-Letter to Governor Magoffin.The " wild-cat " stampede.-Killed in the battle of Mill Springs.-How the ehemy insulted his corpse.-His character.-Extraordinary public regret of his death,....705 CHAPTER LXVI. LIEUT.-GEN. ALEXANDER P. STEWART. Fame as a scholar and instructor.-His different Professorships.-First services in the Confederate States Army.-Various commands in the West.Memorable action of his division at New Hope Church.-A compliment from Gen. Johnston.-A review of his.character.-A tribute from one of the most distinguished scholars of the South,.711 CHAPTER LXVII. MAJ.-GEN. BENJAMIN F. CHEATHAM. His military services in Mexico.-His popularity at home.-Commands in the West.-Adventure in the battle of Belmont.-Record of his division in the Army of Tennessee.-Anecdote, illustrating his fighting qualities,. 718 CHAPTER LXVIII. MAJ.-GEN. WILLIAM B. BATE. Enlists as a private in the Mexican War. —His distinction there.-Public honours in Tennessee.-Colonel of the 2d Tennessee Regiment.-Curious plan to capture the Federal fleet in the Potomac.-His extraordinary and successful appeal to the Tennessee soldiers to re-enlist for the war.-Sent to the army of Gen. A. S. Johnston.-A compliment to his command.-In the battle of Shiloh.-Promotion of Gen. Bate.-Action of Hoover's Gap. —An admirable sentiment to a political convention.-At Chickamauga.-Reorganization of the Army of Tennessee.-Record of Bate's division.-Its part in Hood's campaign.-How its line was broken in the battle of Nashville.-Explanations of this disaster.-At Bentonville.-The surrender.Gen. Bate a wanderer.-Returns to Tennessee.-His political sentiments after the war,.722 CHAPTER LXIX. LIEUT.-GEN. WADE HAMPTON. An Englishman's remark on the military aptitude of the Southern planter.Wealth and culture of Wade Hampton.-The Hampton Legion.-Its mettle tried at Manassas.-Gen. Hampton in the campaign of 1862.-Detached enterprises against the enemy.-In the battle of Brandy Station.-Wounded 24 CONTENTS. at Gettysburg.-In the campaign of 1864.-Fights with Sheridan.-Trevillian Station.-Sappony Church.-Hampton's "beef-raid."-He joins Gen. Beauregard's command.-Operations against Sherman.-A severe commentary on the enemy's atrocities.-Peculiar compliments of the Northern Radicals to Gen. Hampton since the war. —His admirable speeches and advice to his countrymen,.738 CHAPTER LXX. LIEUT.-GEN. NATHANIEL B. FORREST. Peculiarities of the Western theatre of the war.-Forrest, "the Great Cavalryman of the West."-Nathaniel B. Forrest, his parentage and early life. -Enters the army as a private.-HIis escape from Fort Donelson. —His expedition into West Tennessee.-Pursuit and capture of Streight's command in Georgia.-The field of Chickamauga. —Gen. Forrest leaves the Army of Tennessee.-His career in Mississippi.-Victory of Okolona.-The dramatic story of Fort Pillow.-Victory of Tishamingo Creek. —Gen. Forrest rejoins the Army of Tennessee.-His last affair with the enemy at Selma.-The wonder and romance of his career.-A remarkable theory of cavalry service. —His extraordinary prowess in the war, and deeds of blood,... 748 CHAPTER LXXI. LIEUT.-GEN. EDMOND KIRBY SMITH. Early military life of E. Kirby Smith.-His first conspicuous service in the Confederate States army at Manassas. His campaign with Bragg in Kentucky.-Great success of Gen. Smith's part of the campaign.-Put in command of the Trans-Mississippi Department.-Extraordinary spirit of this part of the Confederacy.-Peculiar military difficulties of the department.The Red River campaign.-Why Gen. Smith did not pursue Banks.-Affairs with the Federal General Steele.-Judgment and prudence of Gen. Smith in deciding an alternative of campaigns.-Injustice of the popular censure on this subject.-Results and fruits of the Red River campaign.-Prejudice in Richmond against the Trans-Mississippi States.-What they accomplished in the war.- Gen. Smith's resolution to hold out after Lee's surrender.-His troops demoralized, clamourous, and excited against their commander.-Terrible scenes of disorder.-History of the surrender of the Trans-Mississippi. Review of Gen. Smith's military character. —Some explanations of unjust popular accusations,. 760 CHAPTER LXXII. LIEUT.-GEN. SIMON B. BUCKNER. Services and promotions in the United States Army.-His connection with the " State Guard" of Kentucky.-Memorandum of a conference with George B. McClellan, concerning Kentucky neutrality. —He refuses military service with either of the belligerents. —His conversion to the service of the Confederate States.-Commissioned a Brigadier-General.-Captured at Fort Donelson.-Running the gauntlet of Northern mobs.-A cutting remark to a Federal officer.-Releaised, and takes command in Hardee's corps.-His disagreement with Gen. Bragg concerning the field of Perryville.-In command at Mobile.-Transferred to East Tennessee.-Important assistance in the Chickamauga campaign.-Another disagreement between Bragg and his officers.-Gen. Buckner transferred to the Trans-Mississippi, and commands the District of Louisiana.-Included in Gen. E. Kirby Smith's surrender.A peculiarity of Gen. Buckner's character.-His high moral courage, 773 CONTENTS. 25 CHAPTER LXXIII. MAJ.-GEN. JOHN B. FLOYD. Family record of the Floyds.-Adventures of George Rogers Clarke. —John Floyd, the elder. —His services as Governor of Virginia.-Early life of young Floyd.-A planter in Arkansas.-His political career in Virginia.-A member of President Buchanan's Cabinet.-His political views and services in the Cabinet.-PRIvATE DIARY OF SECRETARY FLOYD.-Extraordinary statement of President Buchanan, justifying the secession of the Southern States, in a certain event.-Private views of Washington politicians.-How Secretary Floyd came to resign his position in the Cabinet.-Clamour and recriminations of the Republican party.-Floyd appointed a Brigadier-General in the Confederate States service.-His campaign in Western Virginia.-Battles of Fort Donelson.-He is relieved from command.-Appointed by Virginia a Major-General of State troops. —Operations on the head-waters of the Big Sandy.-His death.-A great and generous character assailed by partisan influences,.783 CHAPTER LXXIV. LIEUT.-GEN. WILLIAM J. HARDEE. His military life before the War of 1861.-His command in the Trans-Mississippi.-Ordered to Bowling Green, Kentucky.-At Shiloh.-His views and advice in the Kentucky Campaign.-Promoted to a Lieutenant-General.The first day of Murfreesboro.-Reinforcements wanting at a critical time.Gen. Hardee as an organizer of troops.-Religious incidents of his camp.He joins Johnston's army in Mississippi.-Return to the Army of Tennessee.-The battle of Missionary Ridge.-Fought against the advice of Gen. Hardee.-He takes charge of Bragg's army at Dalton. —Why he declined permanent command of it.-The Atlanta campaign.-Protest against the appointment of Gen. Hood as Commander in Chief.-Hardee's desperate fight at Jonesboro.-H-e is assigned to the command of the Department of South Carolina, Georgia and Florida.-Condition of this Department at the time of Sherman's "march to the sea."-The evacuation of Savannah.Campaign of the Carolinas.-Hardee's fight at Averysboro.-Battle of Bentonville.-The general loses a young son in the last affair of arms.-A tribute from Arkansas troops to Gen. Hardee.-Estimate of his military record.His virtues as a soldier and a citizen,.808 CHAPTER LXXV. LIEUT.-GEN. RICHARD TAYLOR. Peculiar advantages of Gen. " Dick" Taylor in the war.-His gallantry and critical service at Port Republic.-Transferred to West Louisiana.-Interest of his military life directed to New Orleans.-Operations of 1863 in the Lafourche country.-His part in the Red River campaign.-Violent quarrel with Gen. E. Kirby Smith.-The merits of this controversy canvassed.President Davis sustains Gen. Taylor, and gives him increased rank and command.-His disposition to insubordination. -Destruction of his property by the enemy.-A Vermont soldier's account of the exploit,.. 830 CHAPTER LXXVI. MAJ.-GEN. DABNEY H. MAURY. Ancestral stock of Dabney H. Maury.-Services in the Mexican War.-Accepts the cause of the Southern Confederacy.-Various services in the West 26 CONTENTS. ern armies.-His gallant defence of Mobile.-The Army of Mobile the last organized body of troops in the Confederacy,. 837 CHAPTER LXXVII. MAJ.-GEN. JOHN B. MAGRUDER. Brilliant service of Magruder's batteries in the Mexican War.-Interesting incident at Contreras.-He makes the tour of Europe.-Offers his sword to Virginia.-Battle of Bethel.-Important and critical services on the Peninsula. -How he deceived McClellan, and defied his " grand army."-Another desperate situation in front of Richmond.-Transferred to Texas.-Recapture of Galveston.-Affair of Sabine Pass.-Address to the people of Texas.-The enemy compared to "' the ravenous cat." —Gen. Magruder resists a surrender -His exile in Mexico.-The tribute of a companion-in-arms to his accomplishments and virtues,......... 840 CHAPTER LXXVIII. SOME CONCLUDING REMARKS. Reflections on the close of the war.-The true glory of history.-" The possession forever."-The duties and hopes of the South.-Two distinct grounds of faith in the future.-The people of the South to make their own history and Pantheon.-Their dead heroes,.848 GENERAL ROBERT EDWARD LEE. CtHAPTER I. Standards of human greatness.-Three classes of great men. —Nature and peculiarity of genius.-A second order of greatness.-General Lee, as in the third class of great men.-Key to his character. HUMAN greatness is neither a mystery nor an accident. There is a class of minds, envious or ignorant, which insist that the greatness of men is without reference to any well-settled orders of merit; that it is often the fruit of chance; that it is subject to no well-defined rule or analysis; and that fame is a lawless and irregular thing. We dissent from this view, and disclaim any share in its self-complacency. We believe that human greatness, as interpreted by intelligent fame among mankind, is regulated by wellknown laws, is subject to a clear analysis, and is capable of a precise definition. Especially in modern civilized society, with its multitude of concerns, its intricate organization, and its constant and characteristic multiplication of restraints and difficulties upon the self-assertion of the individual, it is impossible for a man to obtain anything like permanent fame without the possession of some substantial and well-defined merit, or some extraordinary quality. To be sure, in the experience of every people there are hasty judgments of the mob, fits of fickle admiration, short triumphs of charlatanism, ephemera of the newspaper. But equally certain it is that no man succeeds to real and lasting fame, and obtains a permanent place in the regard of his fellows, unless he has some visible mark upon him, some true excellence, and only after a severe test and a precise measure have been applied to those qualities in which he asserts an extraordinary character. That character may be one of great virtues or of brilliant vices; we do not discuss the moral question here; we only insist that the man 3 34 GENERAL ROBERT EDWARD LEE. designated for historical reputation, and the fee of fame, must have something that really distinguishes him from his fellows. Affectation and pretension can never accomplish a permanent name. There is no such thing as being great by accident, and enjoying fame without good reason therefor. Weak men may sometimes make undue noise, and occupy for a little while eminences to which they do not belong; but the sober judgment of mankind soon passes upon the pretender, and reduces him to his proper position. It is the certain and inevitable law of history. Mind, like water, will find its level. We may appear to live in a great confusion of names, amid disordered currents of popular fame, in storms of unjust and turbulent opinion; but after all, we may be sure that there is an ultimate order, that the reputations of men will be finally assigned them by exact rules, and that those only will enter the temple of History who have real titles, by extraordinary virtues or by extraordinary vices, to its places. That excellence which men entitle Greatness, so far from being any peculiar occasion of confusion of mind, may be readily subjected to analysis, and the classes of fame be separated, with reference to the qualities which obtain it. In the first place, we have a distinction among mankind, and a title to fame in the rare possession of genius. The subtile excellence of mind that bears this name is difficult of definition. But its characteristics are easily recognized and unfailing. We call him the man of genius, who, by a quality or gift superiour to reason, reaches the truth, seizes upon it without the intermediate process by which the ordinary man arrives at it; obtains conclusions by the flashes of intuition; perceives things by a subtile sense in which truth is discovered without the formula of an argument, and almost without the consciousness of a mental operation. It is for the metaphysician to attempt the definition of this rare quality of mind, and determine the relations between reason and intuition. But from what we have said of the characteristics of genius we may readily recognize it: the rapidity of its action, the brilliancy of its execution, the intellectual certainty of all its plans, the directness of its methods, and the decisive air of its manners are peculiar, and cannot escape notice. There is another peculiarity of genius. It is that its particular employment, the department in which it displays itself, is determined by accident; that it is universal in its application, GENERAL ROBERT EDWARD LEE. 35 and capable of excelling in all professions of life, in all arts and sciences, in every domain of mind. Genius contains in itself all excellences, and is bound to show itself in some direction or other. The man who is by genius a great General would also have been, had such directions been given to his life, a great poet, or a great mathematician, or a great politician-an ornament of the State, or a light of science. Genius is bound to assert itself, and circumstances will determine its direction. A certain reviewer in the pages of a British periodical has declared that the Great Napoleon was only the product of a peculiar French society, the fruit of the exceptional times in which he lived; and that had he been an Englishman, and served in the British army, he would probably never have been known but as a brilliant colonel of artillery. But this view is superficial and silly. The scholarly and cultivated historian has quite a different judgment from that of the writer in the shallow pages of a magazine. The universality of genius is illimitable, its declarations of itself irrepressible; and we are to believe that Napoleon, if he had chosen, instead of the profession of arms, the peaceful pursuits of science and philosophy, would still have been the great man, would have imprinted the age with great discoveries, and would have taken rank wiih Bacon, Newton, and other luminaries in the world of letters and pure intellect. There is a second order of greatness, lower than that of genius, but often mistaken for it in the opinions of the vulgar. It is some special excellence which comes from some faculty in excess, some inordinate development of a single power or property of mind. This is indeed the most usual type of human greatness, occurring far more frequently than that founded on genius, or that proceeding, as we shall hereafter notice, from a certain rare and full combination of virtues and powers in a single mind. The largest class of those whom the world calls great represent single ideas, are specialties and have a well-defined vocation, taken out of which they are no longer remarkable. It seems here indeed that nature has introduced a certain law of economy in its distribution of powers, giving to us special missions, and raising up for the accomplishment of every particular idea the man for the occasion. A third class of great men in history, not remarkable for genius, and not famous for any special adaptation, rest their reputation on a certain combination, a just mixture of qualities, a perfect balance 36 GENERAL ROBERT EDWARD LEE. of character at once rare and admirable. This type of greatness may not be a very brilliant one, but it is certainly not a low one. It is seldom that we perceive in one person the full, rotund development of mind, a perfect harmony of character, the precise adjustment of the virtues. We may hesitate in a certain sense in designating such a one as a great man. The very fulness and harmony of such a character precludes brilliancy; and it is remarkable that this full and well-balanced order of mind is generally wrought from a sense of duty —the only motive indeed which embraces all the powers and dispositions of the mind —and partakes but little of ambition, which usually cultivates partial developments of character, and distorts the picture. The excellence and charm of the character we describe is its nice mixture. The man who is successful and famous from a happy combination of qualities may not attract the mysteries of hero-worship; he will lack the vigorous selfishness that puts strong imprints on the pages of history; he will not realize that fierce and romantic theory of greatness which contends that the great man must be cruel, unscrupulous, monstrous, sacrificing all means to one end; he may be more the object of admiration than affection; but after all, he is the great man and not the agreeable commonplace. Apart from any charm in the moral aspects of this character, there is a steady intellectual glow in the contemplation of the man well-developed, and tempered in all his parts, deficient in nothing, with all his powers and dispositions knit in harmony, presenting a single majestic picture of human nature. The brilliant light may startle us for a while; but we shall not the less regard the full-orbed symbol of greatness. The meteor which streams across the vision, the comet which writes its red hieroglyph on the blue page of heaven, may be taken as symbols of certain human fame; but are there not others more quiet, and yet as majestic, in the full round orb of day as it shines on the meridian, or blazes through the broken storm on the horizon, amid clouds "At sunset, stranded, firing far Their dull distress-guns I " GENERAL ROBERT EDWARD LEE. 37 To the third class of great men we have no hesitation in assigning the subject of this memoir-Robert E. Lee. We shall recognize the illustrious Virginian as one of those great men who had but little to dazzle the world, and yet a strong and permanent claim on the sober admiration of mankind. We may not have to recite the brilliant story of genius; but we shall have much to record that is beautiful and admirable in a career that drew the eyes of the world, and traversed a domain of fame as broad as Christendom. In brief, we shall find in this man fruitful and peculiar studies; the almost perfect sum of the qualities of a great military commander; an excellent balance between judgment and execution; a spirit not remarkable for the creation of events, of but little originality, yet always equal to whatever events fortune might marshal; a character fairly developed in every direction, wellrounded and Washington-like; an intellect of great power, but with few gifts of learning; a circle of virtues; the store of a wellregulated life, to which there was one unfailing golden key-A SENSE OF DUTY. 38 GENERAL ROBERT EDWARD LEE. CHAPTER II. The Lee family in Virginia.-" Light-Horse Harry."-Early life of Robert E. Lee. — His cadetship at West Point.-His home at Arlington Heights.-Services in the Mexican war.-Commended by General Scott.-Appointed Colonel in the First Cavalry. —The John Brown raid.-Colonel Lee and the outlaws.-The first act of " rebellion " at Harper's Ferry.-Governor Wise arms Virginia. ROBERT EDWARD LEE belonged to a family conspicuous for two centuries, not only in the local annals of Virginia, but on the ample pages of the colonial and revolutionary periods of America. The genealogy of the Lee family in Virginia is traced to 1666. About that time Richard Lee, the early ancestor of the Confederate chieftain, made large settlements in that part of Virginia situated between the Rappahannock and the Potomac rivers, and designated as the Northern Neck. He was faithful to the loyal sentiments of those times; he acted, for some time, as secretary to Sir William Berkeley, the Governor of Virginia; and on the restoration of Charles II., he exercised no little influence in restoring the colony to its allegiance, although in Cromwell's time Virginia had taken a step towards independence, and had obtained a quasi recognition in a treaty signed by the Protector's own hand. He shared in the ceremonies of crowning the restored monarch King of England, Scotland, Ireland, and Virginia; from which came the legend on the ancient arms of the last commonwealth: En dat Virginia guartam. A grandson of this Richard Lee, Thomas Lee, was one of the first of the leading men of the colony of Virginia; was, for some time, president of the council; was known for the ardour of his enterprises in the exploration of the then wild country of the Ohio River; and, although he preceded the Revolution by a generation, he appeared to have had a foresight of that remarkable event, and is reported to have designated, with comparative accuracy, the present site of Washington City as the seat of the new government. He died in 1750. Thomas Lee left six sons, three of whom obtained historical GENERAL ROBERT EDWARD LEE. 39 distinction. Richard Henry Lee was a member of the first Continental Congress; and his was the first voice to move a resolution, on the 7th June, 1776, "that these united colonies are, and of right ought to be, free and independent states; that they are absolved from all allegiance to the British crown, and that all political connection between them and the State of Great Britain is, and ought to be, totally dissolved." His brother, Francis Lightfoot Lee, signed with him the Declaration of Independence. Arthur Lee, another brother, was distinguished as a scholar and diplomatist. The descent of Gen. R. E. Lee, of Confederate times, is traced from Henry Lee, a brother of Thomas. This ancestor married a Miss Bland; his third son, named Henry, was united to a Miss Grimes; and from this marriage came the father of Gen. Lee —the famous "Light-Horse Harry," of the period of the Revolution. The immediate ancestor of General Lee achieved, perhaps, the most brilliant name in the Lee family. He was a brave, elastic officer, referred to by all the historians of the Revolution as an excellent cavalry officer; he commanded a legion noted for its daring exploits; he distinguished himself by the capture of a British fort at Paulus Hook; and he served, with constant brilliant effects, under Greene in the Carolinas, who declared that he was "under obligations to Lee which he never could cancel," and, with his own hand, wrote to him: " No man in the progress of the campaign had equal merit with yourself." He was an especial and intimate friend of Washington; he obtained the regard of his government, a brilliant share of popular applause, a vote of thanks from Congress, and a medal on which his services were designated in the following beautiful and classical words: "Notwithstanding rivers and intrenchments, he, with a small band, conquered the foe by warlike skill and prowess, and firmly bound by his humanity those who had been conquered by his arms." It is curious that this description of glory the rigid pen of history may almost exactly repeat in epitomizing the deeds of the son. It will thus be seen that the name of Robert E. Lee comes before the country with a very abundant historical association, and a rare measure of the glory of the Revolution. Two of his grand-uncles were signers of the Declaration of Independence; one of them, Richard Henry Lee, was the orator of the Revolu 40 GENERAL ROBERT EDWARD LEE. tion, and among the most beautiful characters of his times, deeply sympathizing with Washington and Peyton, Randolph and Pendleton, and Nicholas and Henry, in their religious character and sentiments; while the immediate ancestor, glorious " Light-Horse Harry," won a brilliant reputation in arms, ahd obtained an inestimable recognition in the "love and thanks" of Washington himself. After the battle of Eutaw Springs, Henry Lee returned to Virginia, and married a daughter of Philip Ludwell Lee, of Stafford. His political career was short, but very honourable. He served two terms in Congress, and in 1791 was made Governor of Virginia. His first wife having died, he contracted a second marriage with Anne, daughter of Charles Carter, of Shirley. The second son was Robert Edward Lee, born in 1806, at the family seat of Stratford. In 1818 IHenry Lee died, while visiting a member of Gen. Greene's family, in Georgia, and his remains were committed to a grave on the lands once owned by his beloved commander and companion in arms. There is a common curiosity to discover, even in the earliest periods of the lives of great men, some indication or augury of their future greatness, some infantile anticipation of the future. This disposition of mind is often silly and absurd, and not unfrequently carried to the point of extravagance.* There is little * On one of the pages of " The Lost Cause" (the author's history of the war), a place was found for the following brief remark: "' There has been a curious Yankee affectation in the war. It is to discover in the infancy or early childhood of all their heroes something indicative of their future greatness, or of the designs of Providence towards them. Thus their famous cavalry commanders rode wild horses as soon as they could sit astraddle; and their greatest commander in the latter periods of the war-Ulysses S. Grant-when an infant desired a pistol to be fired by his ear, and exclaimed' Fick again i' thus giving a very early indication of his warlike disposition." A Northern journal questioned the authenticity of this anecdote of Grant, challenged the whole statement, and charged that the author of " The Lost Cause" had had recourse to very small and pitiful inventions to make a theme of ridicule. The author is not only able to reply to the challenge for authorities in the instances referred to above, but the subject has expanded under investigation, and he finds that he has really fallen upon a topic of large and characteristic interest in the history of the war, that has a philosophical bearing as well as a ludicrous aspect. The world is not yet done with the curiosities of Yankee conceit. It has not been content to date the fame of its heroes in the war from the events of the war, but has ascribed to them infantile phenomena, and invented a modern augury of greatness, GENERAL ROBERT EDWARD LEE. 41 indeed to reward such curiosity in the early life of Lee. He grew up in the quiet of home, without showing any uncommon characteristics of mind; and the only thing remarked about him as a boy was that he was disposed to be quiet and sedate. His associawhich would be extremely fanciful, if it was not supremely absurd and disgusting. The conceit is part of that Yankee vanity which is constantly asserting its excellence -even in the matter of babies. The genius of Grant is traced to his cradle; Sheridan was enfant terrible; and the Yankee heroes of the war, before their adult achievements, were the most remarkable children of their generation. Now, as to Grant's early pricking of the ears at warlike sounds (something after the fashion of Jupiter's sons of earth) we have the story from his father, recited as follows in a recent Yankee book, characteristically entitled " Our Great Captains: " "Grant relates that when Ulysses was but two years old, he took him in his arms and carried him through the village on some public occasion, and a young man wished to try the effect of the report of a pistol on him. Mr. Grant consented, though, as he said,' the child had never seen a gun or pistol in his life.' The hand of the baby was accordingly put on the lock, and pressed there quietly, until the pistol was discharged with a loud report. The little fellow exhibited no alarm, neither winking nor dodging, but presently pushed the pistol away, saying,'F'ick it again I Fick it again!'" In another part of his book, the biographer of Grant tells us:"A still more characteristic incident is related of him by his father. When Ulysses was twelve years of age, his father wanted several sticks of hewn timber from the forest, and sent him with the team to draw them to the village, telling him that men would be there with handspikes to help them on to the wagon. The boy went with the team, but on arriving at his destination the men were not there, and after some little delay they still did not appear. He had been sent for the timber, however, and he had no intention of going home without it. Looking about, he observed at a little distance a tree which had fallen over, and was leaning against another, its trunk forming an inclined plane. This, he reasoned, would enable him to get the timber into his wagon; accordingly he took out his horses, and hitching them to the logs, drew them up to the foot of the fallen tree, and backing his wagon to the side of the inclined plane, he pushed and drew the timber, piece after piece, up the inclined plane, and shoved it into the wagon, and with his load secured, drove home triumphantly." The writer recollects to have seen recently in an English newspaper a similar story of two wise elephants, at Ceylon, who, employed in raising logs to construct a house, hit upon the device of getting the heaviest logs to their place by pushing them up two other logs inclined to the ground. This is certainly something remarkable in the life of an elephant; but we scarcely think it so wonderful an intellectual display as to be mentioned in the biography of a modern genius and hero I Of Sheiidan we are treated to the following youthful reminiscences in the pages of " Our Great Captains," indicating his early equine proclivity:"An incident of his early childhood renders his subsequent successes as a cavalry officer less surprising. He was but five years of age when some older boys, 42 GENERAL ROBERT EDWARD LEE. tion in the first families of Virginia naturally gave him, even in the period of boyhood, a cultivated appearance, easy manners, and a prompt perception of social proprieties. In the year 1825, at the age of eighteen, Lee entered West Point as a cadet from Virginia. He completed the course of studies in the usual foul years, without a single mark of demerit against him, and standing number two in a class of forty six, and leading, among others, Joseph E. Johnston, O. McK. Mitchell, Albert G. Blanchard and Theophilus H. Holmes. At the expiration of his cadet term, he was immediately selected for service in the corps of topographical engineers, receiving his appointment as brevet second in a spirit of mischief, placed him on the back of a spirited horse grazing in a field near his father's house, and started the horse off at a run; but to their terrour, the horse becoming frightened, leaped the fences, and proceeded at a breakneck pace along the highway, the little urchin clinging fast to his back. The boys supposed that the child would inevitably be killed, but after a run of many miles the horse, completely exhausted and covered with foam, stopped at the stable of a hotel where its owner was accustomed to put up, the child still on its back. The horse was recognized, and though the child's statement that he had come so many miles on its back, without saddle or bridle, was at first doubted, it was soon confirmed, and the villagers began to question him.'Who learned you to ride?' asked one.'Nobody,' said the boy.'Did no one teach you how to sit on a horse?' inquired another.'Oh, yes l Bill Seymour told me to hold on with my knees, and I did.'' Weren't you scared?' asked the villager.' Nary a bit,' said the boy.' I wanted to go on further, but the horse wouldn't go.''Aren't you sore?' continued his questioner.'Kinder,' said little Phil;'but I'll feel better to-morrow, and then I'll ride back home.'" We might make no end of the wonders in the infantile lives of Northern generals, recorded in books, scattered through the newspapers, and handed down to tradition. But we will choose but one more extract-that from a Philadelphia journal relating a most wonderful phenomenon in the birth of the Yankee " Infant Napoleon: " "A son was born to our professor, and the event scarcely transpired before the father announced it to his delighted pupils. Scales were instantly brought from a neighbouring grocer. Into one dish he placed the babe, into the other all the weights. The beam was raised, but the child movcd not I The father emptying his pockets, threw in his watch, coin, keys, knives, and lancet, but to no purpose-the little hero could not be moved. He conquered everything And at last, while they were adding more and more weight, the cord supporting the beam gave way, and broke rather than the giant infant would yield! The father was Dr. McClellan, and the son-General McClellan I our young commander on the Potomac. The country will see a prophetic charm in this incident." So, a prophetic charm of some sort or other, appears in the early lives of all modern great Yankees-some of them so wonderful as to be recorded on a cross between biography and mythology. The augur or soothsayer attends on the birth of each. GENERAL ROBERT EDWARD LEE. 43 lieutenant in July, 1829. He was employed for several years on the coast defences; and in 1835 served as assistant astronomer for the demarcation of the boundary line between the States of Ohio and Michigan. In 1832, Lieutenant Lee married Miss Custis, the daughter and heiress of George W. Parke Custis, the adopted son of General Washington, and, through her, became proprietor of Arlington House and the White House on the banks of the Pamunkey. The former place was situated on the heights of the Potomac, overlooking Washington City, and for many years was an object of attraction to visitors, on account of its historical associations, and the Washington relics collected and jealously preserved by the patriotic father of Mrs. Lee. The house was surrounded by a grove of stately trees and underwood, except in front, where a verdant sloping ground descended into a valley, spreading away in beautiful and broad expanse to the river. To the south, north and west, the grounds were beautifully diversified into hill and valley, and richly stored with oak, willow and maple. The view from the height was a charming picture. Washington, Georgetown, and the intermediate Potomac, were all in the foreground, with mountain high and valley deep making a background of picturesque foliage. This place, so charming to the eye, and so full of historical association, was to obtain additional interest as the first camping-ground of the "Grand Army" of the North, that a generation later was to invade Virginia, and make its headquarters in the home of Washington! In 1836, Lee was promoted to a first-lieutenancy; and in 1838 he was made captain. When the Mexican War broke out, he was placed on the staff of Brig.-Gen. Wool as Chief Engineer, and he retained that post throughout the whole campaign under Gen. Scott. At the battle of Cerro Gordo, April 18, 1847, he was brevetted major for gallantry. In the August following he again won a brevet rank by his meritorious conduct at Contreras and Cherubusco. In the assault on Chapultepec, September 13, 1847, he was wounded, and received therefor the brevet promotion of lieutenant-colonel. Lee's service in Mexico is remarkable for the extraordinary attention which the young officer obtained from Gen. Scott. He appears to have been the special favourite of the veteran commander, and there is hardly a single dispatch. in which his 44 GENERAL ROBERT EDWARD LEE. name is not honourably mentioned. At Cerro Gordo, Gen. Scott wrote: "I am compelled to make special mention of Capt. R. E. Lee, Engineer. This officer greatly distinguished himself at the siege of Vera Cruz; was again indefatigable during these operations in reconnoissances, as daring as laborious, End of the utmost value. Nor was he less conspicuous in planning batteries, and in conducting columns to their stations, under the heavy fire of the enemy." At Chapultepec, he again highly compliments Capt. Lee " as distinguished for felicitous execution as for science and daring." And, furthermore, he says: "Capt. Lee, so constantly distinguished, also bore important orders from me, until he fainted from a wound and the loss of two nights' sleep at the batteries." At the close of the Mexican War, Lee was appointed a member of the Board of Engineers, and remained as such until 1850. On the 1st September, 1852, he was appointed to succeed Capt. Brewerton as Superintendent of the Military Academy at West Point. In 1855, Col. Lee having been promoted to the Cavalry arm of the service, and thereby incapacitated by law from exercising superintendence at the Military Academy, was succeeded by Maj. J. G. Barnard. The regiment to which Lee was now appointed was the Second Cavalry, a new regiment organized under the act of March 3, 1855, its Colonel being Albert Sidney Johnston, afterwards a General in the service of the Southern Confederacy. This regiment was much employed in the Indian wars on the prairies of Texas. On the 16th March, 1861, Lee obtained his last promotion in the service of the United States; being appointed Colonel in the First Cavalry. He was to hold this position but a few weeks. In the autumn of 1859 occurred the memorable raid of John Brown in Virginia; an event which placed the name of Col. Lee before the public in some very dramatic circumstances. The outlaw had already obtained considerable notoriety in the troubles in Kansas; and among all the men employed to harass and hunt down the proslavery settlers in that Territory, he was the most merciless and cold.blooded. His murderous deeds there have since been paraphrased by Northern writers as "the heroic exploits of the stern old man." His career of crime did not end with the supremacy of the Free-State party in Kansas; but having done his work there, he entered upon the monstrous design of making an irruption into Virginia to excite and to aid an insurrection of the slaves against GENERAL ROBERT EDWARD LEE. 45 their masters, and to extend the murderous and incendiary programme to the furthest limits of the South. His passion was to become the instrument of abolishing slavery, by the strong arm, throughout the slaveholding States. His plan was larger than was generally supposed. After his arrest he declared that he had been promised aid from Maryland, Virginia, Kentucky, North and South Carolina, and Canada. With an army, then, consisting of blacks and whites, he designed to make the Blue Ridge his base; and, advancing southward, extending as he went his conquests and his power, he expected to penetrate into Northern Georgia and form a junction there with a column, which was to proceed in the same triumphant manner from Beaufort, South Carolina, along a route which had been already defined. The first step of this extensive design was on the frontier of Virginia. The outlaw had purchased two hundred Sharpe's carbines, two hundred revolver pistols, and about one thousand pikes, with which to arm the slaves. These arms he had collected and deposited in the vicinity of Harper's Ferry. When the plot was ripe for execution, a little before midnight on Sunday evening, the 16th October, 1859, he, with sixteen white and five negro confederates, rushed across the Potomac to Harper's Ferry, and there seized the armory, arsenal, and rifle factory belonging to the United States. When the inhabitants awoke in the morning, they found, greatly to their terrour and surprise, that these places, with the town itself, were all in possession of John Brown's adventurous force. The slaves in the adjoining county did not rise as Brown had expected, and made no response to his signal of attack. The news spread rapidly over the country; public rumor greatly exaggerated the strength of the outlaw's force; and large numbers of volunteers from Virginia and Maryland were soon hastening to the scene of action. The action of the Government at Washington was prompt, and President Buchanan immediately sent forward a detachment of marines under Col. Robert E. Lee, who was accompanied by his aide, Lieut. J. E. B. Stuart. Col. Lee and his command arrived at the Ferry in the night of the 17th. The news was too late in reaching Richmond to enable the Governor of the State, Henry A. Wise, to reach the ground with State forces; but a large number of militiamen and volunteers had collected at the Ferry when Col. Lee arrived, and were meditating an attack 46 GENERAL ROBERT EDWARD LEE. upon Brown and his party, who had now gatheredin the engine-house, and debating the policy of storming the refuge, and running the hazard of having the prisoners massacred, whom the outlaw held in the building. This weak hesitation was terminated by Col. Lee's appearance. His manner was cool and severe. He determined that the next morningthe engine-house should be stormed by the marines, unless, before that time, the enemy surrendered. During the night, volunteer parties of the hot-blooded Virginians, jealous of the honour of their State, and ashamed of their former hesitation, besought Col. Lee to let them have the privilege of storming the engine-house. All such propositions were, however, refused. As daylight dawned, troops were stationed around the engine-house to cut off all hope of escape, and the United States marines were divided into two squads for storming purposes. At seven o'clock in the morning Brown was summoned to surrender, under a regular flag of truce, and was promised protection from violence, and a trial according to law. He replied with the absurd proposition: "That his party should be permitted to march out with their men and arms, taking their prisoners with them; that they should proceed unpursued to the second toll-gate, when they would free their prisoners, the soldiers then being permitted to pursue them, and they would fight, if they could not escape." Col. Lee ordered the attack. The marines advanced by two lines quickly on each side of the door, battered it down, and in a moment terminated the affair; but one volley being fired, which killed one of their number, while Brown was brought to the ground by a blow on the skull from Lieut. Stuart's sword. The whole band of insurgents, with the exception of two who had escaped, were either killed or captured. John Brown himself was wounded almost mortally, but was to survive for the gallows. In the meantime, however, his party had murdered five individuals, four of them unarmed citizens, and had wounded nine others. Col. Lee had terminated a threatening revolt with singular nerve and decision; and having done his duty, at once withdrew fromn the scene of excitement, turned his prisoners over to the United States District-Attorney (Mr. Robert Ould), and quietly returned to Washington to resume his cavalry command. The blood shed at Harper's Ferry was the first drops of the crimson deluge that was to overwhelm the South, and whose tides GENERAL ROBERT EDWARD LEE. 47 were to flow across the breadth of a continent. It was no accidental event. It was not the isolated act of a desperate fanatic. The Abolitionists of the North gave significance to the John Brown expedition by their enthusiastic,and permanent approbation of its object, and spread alarm and apprehension through the South by their displays of honour to his memory. After his death on the gallows, prayers were offered up for him as if he were a martyr, and even blasphemy was employed to consecrate his memory. It is curious, indeed, that the party that afterwards made war upon the South carried the memory of this man in the van of their armies, and have ever since honoured him as a saint or a martyr in a holy cause. The event of Harper's Ferry was not without its lesson to Virginia. Governor Wise was one of those who saw the impending conflict. With the ostensible design of providing against a rescue of the criminals from the Charlestown jail, he encouraged the organization of military companies throughout the State, and used every legitimate means to excite a war spirit among the people. Companies were received at Charlestown, and after a short stay there, were sent away to make room for others, in order that the war spirit might be disseminated throughout the State. The attention of the Legislature was called to the state of the Commonwealth, and initiatory steps were taken to put Virginia upon a war footing. All over the State, military organizations sprang up, and serious preparations were made for war. It was to come sooner than any man of that day expected. 48 GENERAL ROBERT EDWARD LEE. CHAPTER III. Abraham Lincoln elected President of the United States.-Anxiety and hesitation of Lee at the commencement of hostilities.-His sense of duty.-He debates the question of his allegiance to Virginia.-His peculiar school of politics.-A reply to a Northern newspaper.-Attitude of Virginia.-A sublime struggle in Lee's mind.-He goes to Richmond.-Appointed Commander-in-Chief of the Virginia forces.-His reception by the State Convention.-Appearance and carriage of the man.-Military preparations in Virginia.-She joins the Southern Confederacy. THE election of Abraham Lincoln by the votes of the Republican or Anti-Slavery party, President of the United States, alarmed the South. When he assumed office, March 4, 1861, the States of South Carolina, Mississippi, Alabama, Florida, Georgia, Louisiana, and Texas, had withdrawn from the Union; and what were loosely called the Border Slave States, were agitated by the discussion of instant and dread necessities. In the first commotions which threatened war, Robert E. Lee, as a member of the United States Army and a native Virginian, gave evidence of the most painful anxiety. His mind was torn by conflicting emotions. IHe was ardently attached to the Federal service; he had spent more than thirty years in it; he had obtained in it the best honours of his life. He was unskilled in politics, but he had a sentimental attachment to the Union and its traditions. He saw with alarm and anxiety the indications of a movement to dissolve the old Federal compact, and array against it a new league of States. He was sincerely opposed to such a movement; he saw no necessity for it; and in the doubts and anxieties of his mind, he could determine no other course than to await the action of his native State, Virginia, and to adopt in an overruling sense of duty, whatever she should decide. In the subsequent development of events, when Lee had decided to stand by his mother State, when she drew the sword, a letter from his wife referred to the terrible trials of his mind in reaching this conclusion. She wrote: "My husband has wept tears of blood over this terrible GENERAL ROBERT EDWARD LEE. 49 war; but he must, as a man of honour and a Virginian, share the destiny of his State, which has solemnly pronounced for independence." Lee's early hesitation at the commencement of hostilities was simply the doubt of duty. Ambition, the bribes of office, personal interest, did not enter into a mind pure, conscientious, introspective, anxious only to discover the line of duty, and then prompt and resolute to follow it. As long as Virginia wavered, Lee stood irresolute. While he maintained an attentive neutrality and waited for events, the Federal authorities at Washington used every effort to commit him to the service of the Union, and did not hesitate to urge his choice by the most splendid bribes. Mr. Blair, senior, has freely admitted that at this time he was deputed by President Lincoln to sound Lee, and to suggest to him his early appointment to the chief command of the Federal forces, in the event of his declaration for the Union. Those who thus approached Lee to tempt his ambition little knew the man. They did not have the key to those quiet meditations which made him reticent and kept him undecided. His only thought was duty. There is a very noble letter written several years before the war by Lee, which exhibits the man and indicates his characteristic idea of the conduct of life. He wrote to his son, who was at West Point in 1852, the following lesson: "In regard to duty, let me in conclusion of this hasty letter, inform you that nearly a hundred years ago there was a day of remarkable gloom and darkness-still known as' the dark day' -a day when the light of the sun was slowly extinguished, as if by an eclipse. The Legislature of Connecticut was in session, and as its members saw the unexpected and unaccountable darkness coming on, they shared in the general awe and terrour. It was supposed by many that the last day —the day of judgment-had come. Some one, in the consternation of the hour, moved an adjournment. Then there arose an old Puritan legislator, Devenport, of Stamford, and said, that if the last day had come, he desired to be found at his place doing his duty, and, therefore, moved that candles be brought in, so that the house could proceed with its duty. There was quietness in that man's mind, the quietness of heavenly wisdom and inflexible willingness to obey present duty. Duty, then, is the sublimest word in our language. 4 50 GENERAL ROBERT EDWARD LEE. Do your duty in all things like the old Puritan. You cannot do more, you should never wish to do less." Such was the lesson which Gen. Lee was now to observe and exemplify in his own life. Assailed by importunities, tempted by the highest military office in the gift of the Federal Government, solicited by the voices of friendship, he remained silently waiting for the call of duty. He was prompt to respond to it. On the 17th April, 1861, Virginia seceded from the Union; on the 19th Lee knew it; on the 20th he dissolved his connection with the Federal army, and sent the following letter to Gen. Scott: ARLINGTON, VA., April 20, 1861. GENERAL:-Since my interview with you on the 18th instant, I have felt that I ought not longer to retain my commission in the army. I therefore tender my resignation, which I request you will recommend for acceptance. It would have been presented at once, but for the struggle it has cost me to separate myself from a service to which I have devoted all the best years of my life and all the ability I possessed. During the whole of that time-more than a quarter of a century-I have experienced nothing but kindness from my superiours, and the most cordial friendship from my comrades. To no one, General, have I been as much indebted as to yourself for uniform kindness and consideration, and it has always been my ardent desire to merit your approbation. I shall carry to the grave the most grateful recollections of your kind consideration, and your name and fame will always be dear to me. Save in defence of my native State, I never desire to draw my sword. Be pleased to accept my most earnest wishes for the continuance of your happiness and prosperity, and believe me, most truly yours, R. E. LEE. LIEUT.-GEN. WINFIELD SCOTT, Commanding United States Army. A copy of the preceding letter was inclosed in the following letter to a relative, which more completely discovers the state of Gen. Lee's mind: GENERAL ROBERT EDWARD LEE. 51 ARLINGTON, VA., April 20, 1861. MIY DEAR SISTER:-TI am grieved at my inability to see you I have been waiting "for a more convenient season," which has brought to many before me deep and lasting regret. Now we are in a state of war which will yield to nothing. The whole South is in a state of revolution, into which Virginia, after a long struggle, has been drawn, and though I recognize no necessity for this state of things, and would have forborne and pleaded to the end for redress of grievances, real or supposed, yet in my own person I had to meet the question, whether Ishould take part against my native State. With all my devotion to the Union, and the feeling of loyalty and duty of an American citizen, I have not been able to make up my mind to raise my hand against my relatives, my children, my home. I have, therefore, resigned my commission in the army, and save in defence of my native State, with the sincere hope that my poor services may never be needed, I hope I may never be called on to draw my sword. I know you will blame me, but you must think as kindly of me as you can, and believe that I have endeavoured to do what I thought right. To show you the feeling and struggle it has cost me, I send a copy of my letter to Gen. Scott, which accompanied my letter of resignation. I have no time for more. May God guard and protect you and yours, and shower upon you every blessing, is the prayer of your devoted brother, R. E. LEE. A Northern publication has remarked on the letter quoted above, that it exhibited a narrowness of mind, and a very imperfect patriotism, in that Gen. Lee was not able to sacrifice for the good of the country his affections for Virginia, and pleaded a partiality for his State against his duty to the general government. But this commentary is as unjust as it is plausible-an instance of that shallow fallacy, the petitio principii. It begs the whole question, and proceeds on the supposition that there was no federation of the American States, that the government atWashington represented a national unit, and that any hesitation between its authority and that of the State was the hesitation between loyalty and a mere local affection. It ignores that school of politics to 52 GENERAL ROBERT EDWARD LEE. which Gen. Lee belonged, which included the whole mind of the South, and which for three generations had persistently regarded the Union as the creature of the States, representing only their convenience, and having no mission whatever apart from them. In this view of the relations between the Federal government and the State, it is clear that the latter was superiour in its claims upon the affections of the intelligent; that it was the peculiar object of patriotism; that it was the symbol of the love of country, rather than the Union which, in the estimation of the school of politics referred to, was the mere geographical designation of a league created by the States, and designed for the benefit and pleasure of each. All the accusations with which the Northern press has abounded about the "' disloyalty " or infidelity of those who left the Federal service, to take part in the war with the States to which they belonged, have been ingeniously coloured by the confusion of two schools of politics, and have no other foundation than a plausible and insolent dogma of partisan sophistry. Lee went with Virginia in the war, and to her side of the contest; for however he valued the Union, and saw no necessity for the secession of his State, he could not assume to judge for its whole population; and whatever the position of his State, he felt bound to recognize it as that political community to which, as the original and only permanent element in the American system, his allegiance belonged; as his home, around which the affections of the man naturally cling; as the abode of family and friends, where the protection of his arm and sword was due in the season of danger. Cold, indeed, would have been the heart of any son of Virginia in which welled not up affection, admiration, and sympathy, when he observed the extraordinary perils which beset her at the commencement of the war, and the heroic attitude she had assumed in the very jaws of danger. She had not seceded in any expectation of a peaceable solution of the difficulty, but in the very presence of a war that frowned upon her borders, vexed her waters, and plainly threatened to make her smiling fields the theatre of its revenge and crime. Lee had seen at Washington the mighty power Preparing to crush his State, and gathering its forces for the bound upon its prey; he knew that the enemy held Fortress Monroe, her greatest place of arms, and the gate to all the water avenues into her interiour; he was sensible that the persistent neutral GENERAL ROBERT EDWARD LEE. 53 ity of Kentucky would practically expose Virginia on three sides to her invaders; he appreciated, as a military man, the weak and dangerous situation; and when he found his noble State daring the worst, taking counsel only of her honour, stepping into the breach, and baring her bosom to the strokes of relentless war, his heart would have been hard, and his spirit dull, had they not sympathized with the touching scene, and his trained sword been drawn in defence of his native land. Whenever a man acts conscientiously, from a sincere conviction of duty, a just world gives credit for his motives, and describes his conduct as generous and noble, whatever may have been the errour of his decision. Judged even by this rule, Lee's adhesion to his native State, on her declaration of war, was a noble action, because it could not have been determined by any other consideration than that of duty, and sacrificed to that sense the meaner questions of fortune. To act as he did, was to turn his back upon the highest military office in the gift of the Washington government; to incur the most painful censures; to sacrifice his private estates, which were on the direct lines of the Federal invasion, and to put his house and fortunes at the mercy of a declared enemy. Powerful must have been the sense of duty that could have conquered such considerations, and sublime must have been the struggle of mind in which every selfish passion and thought of expediency ultimately surrendered to the conviction of right, and the voice of conscience proclaimed the victory. Almost immediately upon his arrival in Richmond, the State Convention, still assembled there, voted Lee the appointment of Major-General, in command of all the military forces in Virginia. There had been great anxiety and speculation as to what would be his choice in the war; the newspapers had variously reported his position; a value and interest had been given to his, above all other early military names of the war; it was known that Gen. Scott had indorsed him as his ablest lieutenant; and when at last it was made certain that he had abandoned the Federal service, and thrown his great name and abilities into the scale for Virginia, the joy in Richmond was extreme. There had been a hope that Gen. Scott, himself, would have espoused the cause of his native State, Virginia; but when he declared differently, the people of Virginia were more than consoled in the loss of a valetudinarian General, 54 GENERAL ROBERT EDWARD LEE. by the gain of Lee, who was popularly reported to have inspired the whole campaign in Mexico, to be superiour in mind to his aged chief, to have been designated as his early successor in command of the armies of the United States, and to have the advantage of ripe years and a vigorous body. When, on the 22d April, the name of Robert E. Lee was thus communicated by Governor Letcher to the Convention as nominee for Commander-in-Chief of the Virginia forces, there was an eager and affirmative response. The confirmation was unanimous, and without a moment's hesitation. It was made with a heartiness that attested the cordial and unbounded confidence of Virginia in the man to whom, more than all others, she now intrusted her destinies. The next day, a grand ceremony was appointed in the main hall of the Capitol. It was announced that Maj.-Gen. Lee, with a distinguished company, would be personally introduced to the Convention, and might be expected to make a remarkable speech on the occasion. The hall was crowded with an eager audience; all the members of the Convention stood, as a mark of respect; on the right of the presiding officer were Governor Letcher and Mr. Stephens, the Vice-President of the Confederacy, and on the left the members of the " Advisory Council" of Virginia, while Gen. Lee, in the immediate company of the committee appointed to receive him, advanced to the centre of the main aisle. Every spectator admired the personal appearance of the man, his dignified figure, his air of self-poised strength, and features in which shone the steady animation of a consciousness of power, purpose, and position. He was in the full and hardy flush of ripe years and vigorous health. His figure was tall, its constituents well knit together; his head, well shaped and squarely built, gave indications of a powerful intellect; a face not yet interlined by age, still remarkable for its personal beauty, was lighted up by eyes black in the shade, but brown in the full light, clear, benignant, but with a deep recess of light, a curtained fire in them that blazed in moments of excitement; a countenance, the natural expression of which was gentle and benevolent, yet struck the beholder as masking an iron will. His manners were at once grave and kindly; without gayety or abandon, he was also without the affectation of dignity. Such was the man whose stately figure, in the Capitol at Richmond, brought to mind the old race of Virginians, and who GENERAL ROBERT EDWARD LEE. 55 was thereafter to win the reputation, not only as the first commander, but also as the first gentleman of the South, the most perfect and beautiful model of manhood in the war. Gen. Lee was received with a fulsome piece of rhetoric. The presiding officer of the Convention, Mr. Janney, could not resist the temptation to make the gaudy speech common on such occasions. He conceived that the audience, in the circumstances in which they stood, might hear the echo of the voices of the statesmen, the soldiers and sages of by-gone days; he declared that Virginia, having taken a position in defiance of the Federal authority, was " animated by one impulse, governed by one desire and one determination, and that was that she should be defended, and that no spot of her soil should be polluted by the foot of an invader;" and, speaking directly to Gen. Lee, he reminded him of the historical inspirations connected with his name, remarking the singular circumstance that his native county of Westmoreland had shown peculiar productive power in having given birth to the Father of his Country, to Richard. Henry Lee, and to MIonroe. Connecting the memorv of Washington, he closed with this glowing exhortation: " When the Father of his Country made his last will and testament, he gave his swords to his favourite nephews with an injunction that they should never be drawn from their scabbards except in self-defence, or in defence of the rights and liberties of their country, and, that if drawn for the latter purpose, they should fall with them in their hands, rather than relinquish them. Yesterday your mother, Virginia, placed her sword in your hand, upon the implied condition that we know you will keep it to the letter and in spirit, that you will draw it only in defence, and that you will fall with it in your hand rather than the object for which it was placed there shall fail." Tjhe reply of Gen. Lee was very simple and short; but touchinog in its brevity, Washington-like in its modesty, and pervaded by a deep tone of solemnity that penetrated the excited and giddy assembly that had expected a fulsome harangue. He could not have spoken more appropriately. He said: "M r. President and Gentlemen of the Convention: Profoundly impressed with the solemnity of the occasion, for which I must say I was not prepared, I accept the position assigned me by your partiality. I would have much preferred, had your choice fallen 56 GENERAL ROBERT EDWARD LEE. upon an abler man. Trusting in Almighty God, an approving conscience, and the aid of my fellow-citizens, I devote myself to the service of my native State, in whose behalf alone will I ever again draw my sword." When this ceremony took place, Virginia had not formally perfected her alliance and association with the Southern Confederacy. On the 24th April, it was determined by the Convention, that pending the popular vote on the queston of secession, military operations, offensive and defensive, in'Virginia, should be under the chief control and direction of the President of the Confederate States. Confederate troops from South Carolina and the States of the Gulf were now being rapidly thrown forward into Virginia. On the 10th May, the Confederate Secretary of War invested Lee with the control of the forces in Virginia by the following order: MONTGOMERY, May 10, 1861. To MAJ.-GEN. R. E. LEE:-To prevent confusion, you will assume the control of the forces of the Confederate States in Virginia, and assign them to such duties as you may indicate, until further orders; for which this will be your authority. I. P. WALKER, Secretary of War. About this time Gen. Lee was busily engaged in organizing and equipping the military forces, hurrying from every part of Virginia, and rapidly arriving on the trains from the South. It was not a brilliant service, but one of peculiar vexation and diffi. culty. It required all his experience and skill to establish discipline and order; to subdue the excessive spirits of the volun teers; to organize quartermaster and commissary departments; and to bring out of the general excitement and confusion the substance and form of great armies. More than fifty thousand men were already, in the early days of May, 1861, under arms in Virginia; and to organize these, and to distribute them so as to enable the immediate concentration of troops upon the borders of the State, wherever the movements of the enemy might demand their presence, was the immense task imposed upon Lee. He sat almost daily in the military council with Gov. Letcher and others; he performed an amount of labor that was almost incredible, yet GENERAL ROBERT EDWARD LEE. 57 always working with ease and exactness; and he made the reputation of a skilful organizer of armies, before he commenced the career of active commander in the field. Meanwhile, the popular vote of Virginia having pronounced almost unanimously for secession,* and this formality having been accomplished, the State linked her destiny with the Southern Confederacy; and that government signified the appreciation of the accession of the great Commonwealth, by transferring its capital to Richmond, and making Virginia at once the administrative centre of the new power and the main seat of war. Early in June, Maj.Gen. Lee was created a full General in the Confederate service. But he was assigned to an obscure and difficult field of service; and the reader will be surprised and pained to find his reputation soon clouded by quick and grievous misfortunes. * The aggregate of the popular vote of Virginia, on the ordinance of secession, so far as exactly known, was as follows: For Ratification. 125,950 For Rejection....... 20,373 Majority for Ratification...... 105,577 There were irregular and conjectural returns from some of the counties, which probably reduced the majority to little less than a hundred thousand votes. 58 GENERAL ROBERT EDWARD LEE. CHAPTER IV. Gen. Lee sent to Northwestern Virginia.-Description of the theatre of the war.Unfortunate military councils in Richmond.-Proclamation of Governor Letcher.LA caricature of secession.-Disaster of Rich Mountain.-Gen. Lee's plans thereafter.-He is foiled at Cheat Mountain.-Marches to the Kanawha Valley.Escape of Rosecrans. —Failure of Lee's Campaign. —Ie is abused and twitted in Richmond.-Scoffs of the Richmond " Examiner."-He is assigned to "the coast service." —Recalled to Richmond, and made " Commanding General."-This post unimportant, and scarcely honourable. WHEAT iS known as Northwestern Virginia includes all that part of the State between the Ohio River and the Alleghany Mountains. It has sometimes been called the " highland region " of Virginia. But this comparative term is weak and insufficient to describe the mountainous character of the region and the extreme abruptness and intricacies of its features. The towering ridge of the Alleghanies separates it from the famous Valley of Virginia; and the county of Randolph, which holds the practicable lines of communication between the two, is cut by a series of lofty mountain ridges known as the Sewell, Rich, Cheat, Slaughter's, and Middle Mountains, which fill more than half of the county, and leave a belt of table, or plain lands, hardly ten miles broad, on its western border. There are passes through Cheat and Greenbrier Mountains (the latter being properly part of the Alleghany ridge); but it needed but an ordinary eye to see that the entire extent of this country was but little practicable for artillery and cavalry. It offered to the movements of light-armed infantry only narrow and rough roads, winding along the edges of chasms, through rugged valleys, over mountain-tops, and across the beds of streams and rivers. Through the ravines ran watercourses which, uniting, flowed away until they fell into the Tygart's Valley and Cheat Rivers, and ran northward and westward to find their way at last into the Ohio. In the spring and summer this whole mountain region was habitually visited by heavy rains, which saturated the forest cover, deluged the few open fields, and converted the road-beds into a GENERAL ROBERT EDWARD LEE. 59 mixture of mud and clay impassable for artillery and baggage wagons. It was undoubtedly a great military errour, but one for which Gen. Lee was not responsible, to attempt the retention and occupation by the Confederate arms of a country so rugged and intricate, and so remote in its relations to the dominant campaigns of the war. It needs only a glance at the map to indicate to the observer the important fact that the communications of Northwestern Virginia were much more easy with the enemy's country than with the remainder of Virginia. The Ohio River washed its western border; the Monongahela pierced its northern boundary; and in addition to these water facilities of the enemy, two railroads, from the Ohio eastward, united at Grafton, and enabled the Federal government to pour troops rapidly into the very heart of the country. The Confederates had no access to it except by tedious mountain roads; having neither navigable river nor railroad by which to transport their troops, to compete with equal pace in the occupation of the country, and to retreat with facility in case of disaster. The true military policy appears to have been to have left the enemy in possession of Northwestern Virginia, to tolerate his advance from that direction until he involved himself in the arduous mountain roads, to tempt him to lengthen his own lines of communication, and to have awaited his attacks on the nearer side of the wilderness, where the Confederates might have adroitly transferred to him the difficulties of transportation, and concentrated with ease to crush him. The country that was to be contested was no vital part of Virginia; it was embraced between the most populous and fanatical parts of the States of Ohio and Pennsylvania; and its resources were inconsiderable. But the considerations we have referred to did not prevail. The policy of the military council in Richmond to hold Northwestern Virginia, and drive the enemy out of this region, originated in a mistaken generosity towards the inhabitants; proceeded from an unwillingness to leave what was supposed to be a loyal population to the oppressions of a few traitors, backed by invaders; and assumed the fact that a Confederate army would obtain there the active assistance of the people, which would be a great compensation as against the superiour force of the enemy, and with respect to the topographical disadvantages of the country. It may be gene 60 GENERAL ROBERT EDWARD LEE. rally described as part of the early and much-mistaken military policy of the South, to cover everything. When the Confederate Military Department took control at Richmond, it adopted towards Northwestern Virginia the view that Governor Letcher and his advisory council had already decided. The policy and hopes of the latter are sufficiently indicated in the following proclamation of Governor Letcher, dated June 14, 1861: " To the People of Northwestern Virginia: "The sovereign people of Virginia, unbiassed, and by their own free choice, have, by a majority of nearly one hundred thousand qualified voters, severed the ties that heretofore bound them to the Government of the United States, and united this Commonwealth with the Confederate States. That our people have the right'to institute a new Government, laying its foundations on such principles, and organizing its powers in such form as to them shall seem most likely to effect their safety and happiness,' was proclaimed by our fathers, and it is a right which no freeman should ever relinquish. The State of Virginia has now, the second time in her history, asserted this right, and it is the duty of every Virginian to acknowledge her act when ratified by such a majority, and to give his willing cooperation to make good the declaration. All her people have voted. Each has taken his chance to have his personal views represented. You, as well as the rest of the State, have cast your vote fairly, and the majority is against you. It is the duty of good citizens to yield to the will of the State. The Bill of Rights has proclaimed'that the people have a right to uniform government; and, therefore, that no government separate from or independent of the government of Virginia ought to be erected or established within the limits thereof.' "The majority, thus declared, therefore have a right to govern. But notwithstanding this right, thus exercised, has been regarded by the people of all sections of the United States as undoubted and sacred, yet the Government at Washington now utterly denies it, and by the exercise of despotic power is endeavouring to coerce our people to abject submission to their authority. Virginia has asserted her independence. She will maintain it at every hazard. She is sustained by the power of ten of her sister Southern States, GENERAL ROBERT EDWARD LEE. 61 ready and willing to uphold her cause. Can any true Virginian refuse to render assistance? Men of the Northwest, I appeal to you, by all the considerations which have drawn us together as one people heretofore, to rally to the standard of the Old Dominion. By all the sacred ties of consanguinity, by the intermixtures of the blood of East and West, by common paternity, by friendships hallowed by a thousand cherished recollections and memories of the past, by the relics of the great men of other days, come to Virginia's banner, and drive the invader from your soil. There may be traitors in the midst of you, who, for selfish ends, have turned against their mother, and would permit her to be ignominiously oppressed and degraded. But I cannot, will not believe that a majority of you are not true sons, who will not give your blood and your treasure for Virginia's defence. "I have sent for your protection such troops as the emergency enabled me to collect, in charge of a competent commander. I have ordered a large force to go to your aid, but I rely with the utmost confidence upon your own strong arms to rescue your firesides and altars from the pollution of a reckless and ruthless enemy. The State is invaded at several points, but ample forces have been collected to defend her. *- * * * *X "The troops are posted at Huttonsville. Come with your own good weapons and meet them as brothers I "By the Governor: JOHN LETCHER." It may be remarked here that the people of Northwestern Virginia did not respond to this appeal, but indicated a preference for the Federal authority, proceeded to construct a new government, and thus offered to the army from Richmond that entered this region, the aspect and character of a hostile State, and shifted the perils and disadvantages attending an invading force from the Federals to the Confederates. On the 20th August, a Convention passed an ordinance creating a new State, the boundary of which included the counties of Logan, Wyoming, Raleigh, Fayette, Nicholas, Webster, Randolph, Tucker, Preston, Monongahela, Marion, Taylor, Barbour, Upshur, Harrison, Lewis, Braxton, Clay, Kanawha, Boone, Wayne, Cabell, Putnam, Mason, Jackson, Roane, Calhoun, Wirt, Gilmer, Ritchie, Wood, Pleasants, Tyler, Dodd (62 GENERAL ROBERT EDWARD LEE. ridge, Wetzel, Marshall, Ohio, Brooke, and Hancock. A provision was incorporated permitting certain adjoining counties to come in if they should desire, by expression of a majority of their people to do so. The infinite absurdity was committed at Washington, of acknowledging as the State of Virginia a band of disaffected counties; and the Federal government, although conducting its war on the theory that the withdrawal of the States from the Union was heresy and treason, did not hesitate when it suited its purposes to put itself into the most glaring and grotesque inconsistency of adopting and confirming a very caricature of secession. The defence of Northwestern Virginia was first undertaken by Gen. Lee, in dispatching Col. Porterfield to that region, for the purpose of raising there a local force. The results of the recruiting service were small, and to meet the occupation by McClellan, who in the latter part of May was throwing a force across the Ohio, reinforcements to the amount of about six thousand men were directed upon Northwestern Virginia, under command of Gen. Garnett, who had belonged to the Federal service. On the 11lth July, this little army, threatened by fourfold numbers and resources, and while imprudently divided-Gen. Garnett having detached Pegram from the main position at Laurel Hill, which commanded the turnpike from Staunton to Wheeling, to hold Rich Mountain, five miles below —was assailed by two columns of the enemy. Both parts were compelled to retreat across the Alleghanies, with the loss of their baggage and artillery, and about a thousand prisoners; and at Carrick's Ford, at the passage of the Cheat River, Gen. Garnett himself was killed, while attempting to rally the rearguard of the retreat. After this disaster, it was determined that Gen. Lee himself should take the field; and he at once proceeded to organize a campaign, with the object of obtaining possession of the Valley of the Kanawha, as well as the country to the northward, from which Gen. Garnett had been driven. HIe took immediate command of the remains of Garnett's army at Monterey, and also directed the movements of Gens. Floyd and Wise in the lower country; the latter, after the affair of Rich Mountain, having retreated to Lewisburg, on the Greenbrier River, and Floyd's force of about four thousand men having been sent to his relief. The field was one of little promise for Lee. He found himself GENERAL ROBERT EDWARD LEE. 63 in the midst of a hostile population; the wild ranges in which he was to operate, were known only to the most experienced woodsmen and hunters frequenting them; and although he endeavoured to shorten the arduous line of communication over the mountain roads, by leaving the Central Railroad at a point forty miles west of Staunton, and penetrating the northwest, through the counties of Bath and Pocahontas, at the Valley Mountain, he found that a season of unusual rains robbed him even of this success. Gen. Rosecrans was at this time commander-in-chief of the enemy's forces in Western Virginia, and had left Gen. Reynolds at Cheat Mountain to hold the passes, and the roads to Weston and Grafton. The month of August and the early part of September were consumed by a series of skirmishes, between the force under Gen. Lee and that under Gen. Reynolds, at Cheat Mountain. These actions were of but little account; Lee's main object being to dislodge the enemy by manoeuvre~, rather than by direct attack, and to get a foothold on his flanks or on his rear. At one time he had endeavoured to surround and capture the enemy's forces which occupied a block-house on one of the three summits of the Cheat Mountain, and were also strongly intrenched at a place called Elk Water, the junction of Tygart's Valley River and Elk Run. The plan was well formed; but Col. Rust, with a number of Arkansas troops, having failed to attack what was known as the Cheat Summit Fort, Gen. Lee found the whole day disconcerted, and was compelled to withdraw his troops without any results whatever. The disappointed commander now resolved to march to the relief of Gens. Floyd and Wise, and to unite the whole Confederate army in the Kanawha Valley. The movement was successfully accomplished, and Lee concentrated his forces at Sewell Mountain about the end of September, having left a detachment of about 2,500 men, under Gen. Henry A. Jackson, to guard the road leading to Staunton, and the line of the Greenbrier River. He had now in hand an army of quite 15,000 men; he undoubtedly outnumbered Rosecrans, who had followed him, and was now daily engaged in skirmishing with Wise's troops at Sewell Mountain; and it was thought that Lee might now deliver battle with effect, and bring to some sort of issue a hitherto fruitless and desultory campaign. Expectation was high, and at last became feverish. For twelve days the 64 GENERAL ROBERT EDWARD LEE. two armies remained in position, each waiting an attack from the other. Finally, one morning, it was discovered by Lee that his enemy had disappeared in the night, and reached his old position on the Gauley River, thirty-two miles distant. Gen. Lee was unable to follow. The swollen streams and the mud made anything like hopeful and effective pursuit impossible; and the advent of winter was soon to close active operations, and to leave the campaign exactly where it started-the Federals holding the country west of the Alleghanies, the Confederates occupying the mountains and the Greenbrier Valley. Even this slight tenure was to be abandoned; the Confederate troops were recalled to other fields, and in November Gen. Lee returned to Richmond with a sadly diminished reputation. The campaign west of the Alleghanies was a sorry affair, and an undoubted failure. It had accomplished nothing; it had expended much of time and troops; it had not only surrendered the country which it was to contest, but it had done so without giving to the enemy a single lesson of resolution, or dealing him one important stroke of arms; and it had sacrificed to disease alone, thousands of men who had fallen victims to pneumonia and other sickness, consequent upon exposure to cold and rain. A just explanation of Gen. Lee's failure is perhaps to be found in the circumstances against which he had to contend-the disconcert of subordinate officers; and the principal fact, which history has abundantly illustrated, that the greatest abilities often fail in small and petty work, where the field is not commensurate with the man, is not suited for the display of his characteristics, and is destitute of any great inspiration. But there were many persons in Richmond who were not inclined to a generous view of the disappointment Gen. Lee had given the public in his first campaign, and who at once fell to ridiculing and decrying him. He was twitted as "Letcher's pet." He was described as a man living on a historical name and a showy presence, with no merit of mind —one who, puffed by what his family had done, had cultivated a heavy dignity and a superiour manner, with no brains to support the display. It was remembered that on his first assumption of command, he had advised that the volunteer spirit of the country was unsteady and excessive-that it needed repression. It was said that he was tender of blood, and sought to accomplish his campaign in the mountains by strategy, GENERAL ROBERT EDWARD LEE. 65 rather than by fighting; it was assumed that he was the representative of West Point in opposition to the school of " fighting Generals; " and all these things were readily put to his discredit in the early and flushed periods of the war, when the Southern populace clamoured for bloody battles, and were carried away by the imagination that a sudden rush of raw men to arms would be sufficient to overpower the adversary and accomplish their independence. Lee's views were not generally appreciated; his failure in mountain warfare was taken by many persons as decisive of his military reputation; and at the period referred to in Richmond, he was the most unpopular commander of equal rank in the Confederate service. A rumour was circulated about this time, that the one ambition of Lee's life was to be Governor of Virginia after the war, and to manufacture reputation in the contest to recommend him for the position. The writer recollects with what derision the rumour was received in certain quarters in Richmond; how Mr. Daniel, the editor of the Examiner, hooted it, and made it part of his quarrel with John Letcher, who was supposed to be nursing Lee's conceit; and how the claim of the reputed candidate was generally put down as absurd and insolent. And yet, a few years later, and the man thus derided might have had the Dictatorship of the entire Southern Confederacy, if he had but crooked his finger to accept it! Happily the Government did not share and refused to reflect this early popular injustice towards Lee. But in view of his loss of so much of the public confidence, it was thought advisable to put him into no very active and conspicuous command; and he was accordingly sent South, and appointed to the charge of the coast defences of South Carolina and Georgia. His duties consisted in superintending the fortifications along the coast, and exercising his engineering skill to add to their security. These duties were efficiently performed; the district of South Carolina was placed in an admirable state of defence; and Gen. Lee appears to have won in this department a new accession of popularity and personal esteem. In February, 1862, there was some motion to malke him Secretary of War; but it was considered by Congress that he did not command enough of the public confidence for this important position. It was then decided by President Davis to recall him to Richmond, and to confer on him the new appointment of " Commanding General," to take charge of the military movements of the war. The 5 66 GENERAL ROBERT EDWARD LEE. title of the new office was a sonorous one; but as Mr. Davis had practically annihilated the bill creating it by requiring the miscalled generalissimo " to act under the direction of the President," it may be briefly remarked that the new position of Gen. Lee was not an important one, and was scarcely an honourable one. He was nothing more than a supernumerary in the hands of Mr. Davis. But the great man waits the proper call of events, and the occasion commensurate with his power. In this uncertain period of Lee's reputation a Southern journal ventured to declare that " the time would yet come when his superiour abilities would be vindicated both to his own renown and the glory of his country." GENERAL ROBERT EDWARD LEE. 67 CHAPTER V. McClellan's march up the Peninsula.-Recollections of the " White House."-Battle of Seven Pines.-Review of condition of the Confederacy.-An act " to disband the armies of the Confederacy." —Carnival of misrule.-Gen. Lee in command of the forces around Richmond.-Nearly two-thirds of his army raw conscripts.His adoption of Gen. Johnston's idea of concentration.-Manners of Lee as a commander.-The great battle joined.-Beaver-Dam Creek.-Gen. Lee resting at a farm-house.-The glory of Gaines' Mills.-Brilliant audacity of Gen. Lee in delivering this battle.-Retreat of McClellan.-Frazier's Farm.-Malvern Hill.T'hee circuit of Lee's victories broken.-His official summary of " the Seven Days' battles." IN the early days of May, 1862, McClellan, with his numerous and bedraggled army, was toiling up the peninsular shape of land formed by the James River and the estuary of the York, while Johnston, in command of the Confederate forces, fell back towards Richmond with admirable precision, leaving no considerable trace of disaster on his retreat. On this memorable march, the advanced guard of the Federals occupied the White House on the Pamunkey River, formerly the property and home of George Washington, and which had come into the possession of Gen. Lee when he married Miss Custis. Since the war it had been designated by Gen. Lee as his family seat, and was occupied by his wife until the enemy approached, and she fled towards Richmond for safety. It is a remarkable circumstance, and one much to the honour of McClellan, who was steadily opposed to all private spoliation in the war, that he respected the historical associations of the place, and protected the property from all ravages of the soldiery. It was here the " Father of his Country" had lived, and within a few miles stood the church in which he had been married. When Mrs. Lee departed from the house on the approach of the Federal army, she left a note on a table which read: " Northern soldiers who profess to reverence Washington, forbear to desecrate the home of his first married life, the property of his wife, now owned by her descendants." It happened that almost the first officer who entered the 68 GENERAL ROBERT EDWARD LEE. house was a cousin of the Lee family, who had continued to serve in the United States army, and commanded a regiment of cavalry. Gen. McClellan strictly complied with the request of the owners of the house, and not only forbade any of his troops to enter the premises, but even abstained from doing so himself, preferring to encamp in the adjoining field. Upon the wall of the room where Mrs. Lee's note had been found, one of the guard wrote an answer: " A Northern officer has protected your property, in sight of the enemy, and at the request of your officer." This incident is a very pleasant one; so exceptional to the usual conduct of the Federal armies, and in such honourable contrast to what afterwards ensued in the war of incendiarism, plunder, and wanton destruction. But as an illustration of the rancour at Washington, it may be mentioned that this little exhibition of leniency by McClellan, called forth many animadversions, and was even brought to the attention of Congress, where occasion was taken to accuse him of want of patriotism, and.a false sentimentalism towards those in arms against the government. The entire circumstance, slight in itself, is interesting as indicating a line of dispute in the conduct of the war, on one side of which a violent party clamoured for measures of savage revenge, and would even have obliterated all respect for the landmarks of history in a wild scene of indiscriminate ruin. Near the White House the final depot of stores was organized by McClellan, and a base of operations established for a direct advance on Richmond. By the close of May he had advanced on the Chickahominy, and made an unopposed march to within a few miles of the Confederate capital. On the 30th May Johnston made dispositions for an attack on the left wing of the Federals, which had been thrown forward to a point within six miles of Richmond, and fought the brilliant battle of " Seven Pines," severely punishing the enemy's divisions, but gaining no permanent ground. In this engagement Gen. Johnston was struck down with a severe wound. In consequence of this casualty, President Davis yielded to a common desire, and on the 3d June appointed Gen. R. E. Lee to take chief command of the Confederate forces around Richmond. At this critical period of the Confederate arms it will be well to make a brief review of the general situation, and especially of certain radical changes about this time taking place in the military GENERAL ROBERT EDWARD LEE. 69 system of the South. When Gen; Lee took command at Richmond the condition of the Confederacy was decidedly gloomy, and its military fortunes for many months had been evidently on the decline. The Border States, which had at first borne the brunt of battle, had given way; Kentucky, Missouri, and Western Virginia had gradually been occupied by the enemy's troops; and the coasts of the Confederacy, assailed by fleets to which they had but little to oppose, had yielded a footing to the Federal armies. New Orleans had been captured, and the curtain had fallen on the policy of Europe, either as regarded recognition or intervention. Richmond was threatened by an army within a few miles of her limits, the strict effective of which was 115,000 men; whilst converging on the apparently devoted city from the west and north marched the three distinct armies of Fremont, Banks and McDowell, making an aggregate of little less than 200,000 men threatening the capital of the Confederacy. In the internal condition of the South there had been yet more serious causes of alarm and anxiety; and the Confederate armies may be described as having just narrowly escaped annihilation by demagogical laws, and as passing through the severe and critical period of a new organization and morale, acquiring for the first time the substance and integrity of real armies. In December, 1861, the weak Provisional Congress at Richmond had passed an act, the true title of which would have been " to disband the armies of the Confederacy." This law, inspired by the lowest demagogism, permitted the men to change their arm of the service, to elect new officers, and to reorganize throughout the army. It was said that the soldiers claimed the letter of their contract, to leave the service at the expiration of one year; and the weak legislators at Richmond thought it necessary to indulge what was called their democratic sense of individualism, by allowing them to reduce the organization and discipline of the army to whatever standards would content them, and to convert their camps into a carnival of misrule, and into the vilest scenes of electioneering for commissions. This socalled " reorganization" had gone on in the face of an enemy, who, if he had taken timely advantage of it, would have found little else than demoralized men disgracing the uniform of soldiers, covering the most vital points of the Confederacy. Every candidate who was anxious to serve his country with braid on his shoulders plied 70 GENERAL ROBERT EDWARD LEE. the men with the lowest arts of the cross-roads politician, even to the argument of whiskey, and contributed to the general demoralization; until the men, feeling the power to dethrone their present officers, lost all respect for their authority, and became the miserable tools of every adventurer and charlatan who imposed upon their confidence. On this scene of disorder-upon which the enemy had happily not broken-followed the rigorous act of conscription, which at once dated a new military era in the Confederacy, and enabled it to recruit and reorganize its forces, at least in time to meet the tardy steps of the enemy in Virginia. But the forces which came under Lee's hands were raw; there was no time to season the new recruits; and the commander of the forces around Richmond had to contend with all the disadvantages incident upon the transition period in the military affairs of the Confederacy. The reader will doubtless be surprised by the authentic statement, that of the force gathered by Lee for the encounter before Richmond, nearly twothirds were new conscripts, who had never been under fire, and were only half instructed. This fact affords a pregnant commentary on McClellan's delays; and it indicates-what we shall presently see in the battles around Richmond-a singular want of mobility in Lee's army, that curtailed the plans of the commander, diminished his victory, and deprived him of more than half the expected fruits of his own consummate generalship. After the battle of Seven Pines both armies intrenched themselves. McClellan erected field-works, and threw up a line of breastworks, flanked with small redoubts, extending from the White Oak Swamp in a semicircle to the Chickahominy, and inclosing within the lines the railway and the several roads and bridges constructed to afford communication with his right wing, which continued to hold the country in the neighbourhood of Mechanicsville and Cold Harbour. It was now declared that the circumvallation, as far as designed, was complete, and that the echoes of McClellan's cannon bore the knell of the capital of the Confederacy. It is but just to observe here, that that theory of action to which the Southern Confederacy most owed its safety, viz.: to draw in its forces around the capital, concentrate there all its available resources, and then fall with crushing weight upon the enemy, GENERAL ROBERT EDWARD LEE. 71 had originated in Gen. Johnston's clear and masterly mind; while Lee, without a thought of rivalry, readily conceived the merit of his predecessor's plan, and determined to continue the same line of action. It is also to be observed that an unfortunate prejudice of President Davis against Johnston had embarrassed his plans, and cross-questioned all his generalship; but, that when Lee took command at Richmond, he was favoured to the utmost in the prosecution of the design that Johnston had initiated, was authorized to draw in the Confederate detachments scattered along the coast and throughout Virginia, and was by this means, and the growing results of the conscription, enabled to raise his effective to about ninety thousand men. It remained, however, for Gen. Lee to fill up the general outline of action his predecessor had traced; he had to make his own immediate plan of battle against the extended front of the enemy; and this he did, as we shall see, not only with the consummate skill of a great mind, but with an audacity that astonished his countrymen, and took the enemy completely by surprise. There was an early popular supposition that Lee was rather too much of the Fabian stamp of a commander, and disinclined to the risks of battle. For several weeks after he had assumed his important command, his quiet manners, the absence of all bustle about him, and a singular appearance of doing nothing, when in fact he was most busy, confirmed the popular impression of his slowness and unwillingness to deliver battle, and inclined the people of Richmond to believe that he was awaiting the attack of the enemy, which he would at least meet with all the resources of a prudent and skilful commander. They little imagined that he was meditating taking the initiative himself, and putting the insolent enemy on the defensive. The quiet, thoughtful commander never admitted an improper person into his confidence; he was annoyed by politicians and Congressional delegations who wanted information of his plans, but never obtained it; he was assailed by foolish clamours of demagogues, whose interests in the Confederacy appeared to be inclosed within the boundaries of their Congressional districts or counties, and who complained that particular parts of the country had been stripped of troops to defend Richmond; he was pursued by popular impatience for a battle; but to all he was the imperturbable gentleman, opposing to curiosity and clamour a placid man 72 GENERAL ROBERT EDWARD LEE. ner and a polite but supreme reticence. Each day he was seen on horseback about the lines, dressed in a plain suit of gray, with a scanty attendance of staff-officers, presenting, perhaps, not so impressively his importance and dignity, as a Federal brigadier with his couriers and orderlies at his heels. Each day his army was busy in strengthening their defensive works, and people wondered at McClellan's silence and Lee's apparent unconcern, and speculated when the great battle would be delivered. Lee waited for a precise event. That event was the junction of Jackson's forces from the Valley. His plan of battle contemplated that so soon as Jackson, by his manceuvres on the north bank of the Chickahominy, should have uncovered the passage of the stream at Meadow and Mechanicsville bridges, the divisions on the south bank should cross and join Jackson's column, when the whole force should sweep down the north side of the Chickahominy, towards the York River, laying hold of McClellan's'communications with the White House. Meanwhile, for almost every day in June, the Federal commander had sent a dispatch to Washington that he was about to bring on a general action. On the 25th June, it was said that he was preparing for a general forward movement by the Williamsburg road. But the preceding night the swift and skilful Jackson had reached Ashland, was within striking distance of the right wing of the Federal army, and the next day the storm of battle was to burst upon the hesitating McClellan and his astounded troops. In the morning of the 26th June, the only intimation that Lee gave at the War Department of the terrible work before him, was a simple brief note, addressed to the Secretary of War, stating that he might be beyond a certain designated point where couriers could find him, should there be anything of importance the Secretary might wish to communicate during the day. That was the day of battle! In the afternoon quick beats of sound told the feverish ear of Richmond that a great battle was in progress, and that the red flails of artillery were at work. The evening sky reflected the conflagration at Mechanicsville; and as the sun descended, the division of A. P. Hill, joined across the stream by those of Longstreet and D. H. Hill, swept down the north bank of the Chickahominy, driving the enemy to a further and stronger line of defence. GENERAL ROBERT EDWARD LEE. I3 At Beaver Dam Creek, a small tributary of the Chickahominy, Porter's corps arrested the progress of the Confederate divisions and held a position on the almost perpendicular bank of the creek, which seemed to defy assault. But the presence of Gen. Lee upon the field, accompanied by the President, impelled the troops to the attack; the gigantic struggle was begun here; the heroic troops pressed up to the stream, but could effect no lodgment within the hostile works; and the cannonade died away about nine o'clock in the night. Morning, however, brought a swift solution of the difficulty; for at dawn Jackson passed Beaver Dam Creek above and turned the position. It was at once evident to McClellan that the position of his right wing was no longer tenable, and he therefore determined to concentrate his forces, and withdraw Porter's command to a position near Gaines' Mills, where he could concentrate his forces, and occupy a range of heights between Cold Harbour and the Chickahominy. It was evident that the enemy designed to fix here a decisive field; and the Confederates advanced in perfect order, and with deliberate dispositions for the attack. Gen. A. P. IIill, who had the advance of Lee's column, swung round by New Cold Harbour, and advanced his division to the attack. Jackson, who was to form the left of the Confederate line, had not yet come up, and Longstreet was held back until Jackson's arrival on the left should compel an extension of the Federal line. WVhile Gen. Lee waited to get all his divisions in hand, he made his temporary headquarters at a farm-house near the battle-field, and there with perfect composure awaited the critical hour that would probably decide the fate of the city whose spires were in sight. WVhat thoughts must have been in his mind as he sat entirely alone on the rear portico of the house, while the foreground and the adjoining orchard were occupied by general officers, aides, couriers, and prisoners, making an animated scene of war! Officers, who in a few moments were to stand face to face with death, chatted as gaily as if they were going to a picnic. Some sat under the shady trees, making a hasty repast. In the brilliant day, fields flecked with sunshine and dotted with dead men stretched away; the white tents of Magruder's and Huger's troops glanced in peaceful light on the other side of the Chickahominy; in other directions were fretted landscapes of cultivated patches, and thickets, 74 GENERAL ROBERT EDWARD LEE. and marshes; then wooded hill-sides; while, just screened by a narrow zone of trees, the brow of an eminence crowned with batteries told where the demon of destruction had taken cover, and glared for a new struggle of vengeance, and a new feast of slaughter. Gen. Lee sat alone, as in a reverie; there were marks of thought on his face, but no cloud of care upon the fine open countenance; he awaited an hour on which hung mighty and untold destinies, as calmly as a signal. for the ordinary duties of the day. It was past noon when a courier rode up, and delivered some papers to him. He perused them calmly. But the next moment he was mounted, and with Gen. Longstreet by his side, was galloping to New Cold Harbour, three miles distant, where it was now understood Jackson's right wing had already arrived. Meanwhile, A. P. Hill had attacked alone, and had gained no advantage, but was losing ground, when Longstreet advanced to relieve him. Terrible was the loss of the attacking force as they marched over the open ground exposed to a fire of artillery that swept every approach to the enemy's lines. Men and officers fell by hundreds; mounted officers, who lost their horses, led their men on foot; an artillery which was the pride of McClellan's army appeared to devour the column of attack. But, as the right of the Confederate line was thus struggling in vain against the terrible fire, Jackson and D. H. Hill pressed forward on the left, and succeeded in driving back the forces opposed to them; the right renewed its efforts, and Gen. Lee, seizing the decisive moment, ordered a general advance along the whole Confederate line. It was ordered just as the sun touched the horizon. Hood's Texan troops were the first to pierce the enemy's stronghold, and seize the guns; his left was broken; what batteries he saved retired in such haste as to overrun the infantry, and throw the whole mass of fugitives into inextricable disorder; and as night fell, the Confederates were satisfied to occupy the field of their victory. It was indeed an important field gained by Lee, and one on which McClellan had lost the flower of his army. But it had been won by a boldness of tactics, a brilliant audacity, such as that in which the master of the art of war asserts his superiority over the military commonplace. To deliver an important battle, Gen. Lee had divided his army, bringing the greater portion to the left bank of the Chickahominy, and actually at a greater distance from Rich GENERAL ROBERT EDWARD LEE. 75 mond than the main body of the enemy's forces. He had left McClellan's centre and left wing on the south side of the stream, with apparently easy access to the city. Twenty-five thousand Confederates on this side of the Chickahominy-the troops of Magruder and Huger-held in check sixty thousand Federal troops; while Lee shattered the enemy's right wing, and inflicted upon him such disaster as to put him on his final retreat. He knew the character of his adversary, his caution, his methodical genius; he calculated upon the exaggerated opinions which McClellan had formed of the Confederate numbers; and having decided that it was practicable to deceive him by feints of attack on his centre and left, he quickly determined to wrest a victory from his right, and by a sudden blow put him beyond the possibility of reclaiming it. After the victory of Gaines' Mills, Gen. Lee entertained no doubt that the enemy would retreat, but by what line was as yet unknown. He therefore retained the bulk of his army on the left bank of the Chickahominy, trusting to Magruder and Huger to observe the movements of the enemy on their front. It was not until the night of the 28th, that Gen. Lee discovered that the enemy had been imperfectly watched by some of his division commanders, and having gathered his forces, was in rapid motion for James River, pursuing a line of retreat through the mass of forest and swamps known as White Oak Swamp. McClellan had gained one precious day, but he was not yet out of danger; he had a considerable stretch of country to traverse; his men were dispirited; and as the unhappy commander rode down the long lines of his army to superintend the retreat, the men of a single corps-Porter's -alone cheered as he went by; and with no other recognition, the sorrowful figure of the defeated General passed the whole army on its line of march. On the morning of the 29th, Lee put his columns in motion in pursuit. Magruder pushed forward on the Williamsburg road, expecting that Jackson, who was to make the passage at Grapevine Bridge, and sweep down the south bank of the Chickahominy, would come in to the flank and rear of Savage Station. He found himself, however, engaging only the rear-guard of the enemy, while Jackson was engaged nearly all day in rebuilding the bridge over the Chickahominy. The next morning McClellan's whole army was across White Oak Swamp. It had been the precise design of 76 GENERAL ROBERT EDWARD LEE. Gen. Lee, that as the enemy debouched into the region looking out towards the James, that Jackson, who was to press on the heels of the retreating army, should come in immediate communication with the force under Longstreet, who was to make a dttour by the roads skirting the river, thus uniting the whole Confederate army so as to envelop the enemy, or pierce his line of retreat. The Long Bridge, or New Market road, on which moved the two divisions of Longstreet and A. P. Hill, was nearly at right angles with the road pursued by the Federal army on its retreat; but as these divisions neared the point of intersection, it happened that Jackson's progress was arrested at White Oak Swamp, by the destruction of the bridges, and that McClellan was thus enabled, while Jackson was paralyzed, to turn upon the force menacing his flanks. A severe fight, known as the battle of Frazier's Farm, was maintained for several hours; and it was only by the most desperate courage that the small Confederate force held the field. During the night the forces that had checked Longstreet withdrew; and Lee, proceeding to collect his scattered divisions —awaiting the arrival of Magruder, who came up about midnight, and that of Huger, who should have come up on the right of Longstreet, but was too slow to get into action, and joined by Jackson the next morning, who had a good cause for his delay-had the Confederate army again concentrated on the morning of the 1st July. But the great opportunity had passed; and when he was next able to strike the enemy it was only after the latter had assembled all his forces on Malvern Hill, and had assured communication with the Federal gunboats in the river. The battle of Malvern Hill was a bloody attempt to take by assault an elevated plateau, on which the enemy had planted all that remained of his artillery, and instanced again the want of concert between Lee's divisions. The troops of A. P. Hill and Longstreet were held in reserve; while Jackson's divisions, on the left, and those under Magruder and Huger, on the right, were advanced to carry the heights by storm. But an attack was prematurely made by D. H. Hill, commanding one of Jackson's divisions; it was not supported by Magruder and Huger; and when the latter did finally advance, a brigade was thrown forward at a time, only to be beaten back in detail. It was unfortunate for Lee's 6clat that the circuit of victory was GENERAL ROBERT EDWARD LEE. 77 broken here, and that the last incident of the struggle threw a shadow on the succession of fields he had won. But at least the final retreat of the enemy was assured; the Confederate capital was visibly saved; and although Lee had not ascended to the climax of success he had designed, and destroyed McClellan, he had accomplished a great and admirable work with an army, the greater portion of which was raw troops, which was badly officered, and which had bungled the best combinations of the commander. Gen. Lee has since declared that " under ordinary circumstances" the Federal force which menaced Richmond should have been destroyed; but his army was not as mobile as he expected; there was an evident disarray throughout it; some of the division commanders were utterly incompetent; the scene of operations was a country of numerous intricate roads, of marshy streams, and of forests; and the wonder and admiration is that the Confederate commander accomplished what he did under circumstances so exceptional and injurious. In his official report, Gen. Lee wrote: " Regret that more was not accomplished, gives way to gratitude to the Sovereign Ruler of the universe for the results achieved. The siege of Richmond was raised; and the object of a campaign, which had been prosecuted, after months of preparation, at an enormous expenditure of men and money, completely frustrated. More than 10,000 prisoners, including officers of rank, 52 pieces of artillery, and upwards of 35,000 stand of small-arms, were captured. The stores and supplies of every description which fell into our hands were great in amount and value, but small in comparison with those destroyed by the enemy. His losses in battle exceeded our own, as attested by the thousands of dead and wounded left on every field; while his subsequent inaction shows in what condition the survivors reached the protection to which they fled." 78 GENERAL ROBERT EDWARD LEE. CHAPTER VI. General Lee the favourite of the populace.-He moves out to the line of the Rappahannock.-Cedar Run.-Bold and daring enterprise of General Lee, in detaching Jackson to the enemy's rear.-A peculiarity of his campaigns.-How he disregarded the maxims of military science.-The battles of Second Manassas.-Gen. Lee marches for the fords of the Potomac.-His address at Frederick, Maryland. -Jackson detached again.-McClellan finds an important paper.-The Thermopylse of " South Mountain Pass."-Battle of Sharpsburg.-Gen. Lee obtains a victory, but is unable to press it.-He retires to Virginia.-An authentic statement of Gen. Lee's reasons for the Maryland campaign.-His constant and characteristic idea of defending Richmond by operations at a distance from it.-Congratulations to his troops.-Moral results of the campaign of 1862.-Testimonies to Southern heroism. GEN. LEE had fought what was now the greatest battle of the war, in sight of Richmond; he had effected the deliverance of more than one hundred thousand people within sound of his guns; he became the favourite of the populace, and was cheered in the streets of the capital. But his great historical fame and the best display of his abilities was to commence when he withdrew from Richmond, moved out to the line of the Rappahannock, and for two years carried his arms along the Blue Ridge and the Potomac, and extended the blaze of war to the very foreground of Washington. The failure of McClellan to take Richmond was a great disappointment to the North, but, like all its disappointments, was followed by energetic measures for the prosecution of the war. On the 11th July, by order of President Lincoln, Gen. Halleck was appointed General-in-Chief of the whole land forces of the United States. Gen. Burnside, with a large portion of his army, was recalled from North Carolina, and dispatched to the James River to reinforce Gen. McClellan, and plans were considered for another advance on Richmond, under the guidance of Gen. Pope, whd had been appointed to the command of the forces in the vicinity of Washington, and in the Shenandoah Valley. But while these movements were in progress, Gen. Lee had GENERAL ROBERT EDWARD LEE. 79 detached Jackson to check Pope in his supposed advance on Gordonsville, which he effectually did by the battle of Cedar Run; and in a few weeks, the Confederate commander removed from James River, and massed his army between the Rappahannock and the Rapidan, directly on the flank of the new Grand Army which Pope had assembled. In his expectation, however, of a decisive battle here, he was disappointed. Gen. Pope had no intention of renewing a trial of strength with the Confederates after his experience at Cedar Run; and with a prudence which ill assorted with his insolent address to his troops, promising them that they should see nothing but the "' backs of rebels," he fell back promptly to the north bank of the Rappahannock, and, crowning every hill with his batteries, prepared to dispute the passage of the river. In this situation Gen. Lee conceived a bold and daring enterprise, which appears never to have entered even the imagination of the enemy. In the morning of the 24th August, he sent for a courier, and after asking Gen. Chilton, his Adjutant-General, if he was sure the man could be relied upon, he said to that officer: " General, make it a positive order to Gen. Jackson to march through Thoroughfare Gap, and attack the enemy in the rear, while I bring up the rest of the army;" and then turning to the courier, remarked: " Young man, if you are not well mounted, my Inspector-General will see that you are," The order was swiftly conveyed, and by night Jackson had taken up his hard and perilous march in the direction indicated. The detachment of Jackson with twenty thousand men, so as to have the whole army of Pope interposed between it and its friends, was a hazardous measure, and was in fact contrary to the maxims of the military art, as it put Lee to the risk of being beaten in detail. But there is a higher generalship than that of formal maxims, which quickly and rightly estimates the mind and temper of an adversary, and founds its plan of action on these conditions, rather than on fixed rules of military science, and often in defiance of them; and of this supreme and fine order of generalship, we shall find many instances in the career of Lee. We have already seen a display of it in the battles around Richmond, when, to obtain a great victory, he exposed an advantage to McClellan, which he calculated his mind and temper were incapable of seiz 80 GENERAL ROBERT EDWARD LEE. ing; and we now find him repeating the same experiment with Pope, and using, as a great General alWays does, knowledge of the character of his opponent as a condition of his enterprises. This peculiarity, indeed, runs through the whole of Gen. Lee's campaigns, and is most interesting in its suggestions; it exhibits what at first view seems a curious inexplicable union of great prudence on some occasions, with the most daring enterprise on others; and it offers to the military inquirer a fine study of those instances in which genius surmounts the rules of war, constructs theories on moral as well as material grounds, and wins victories in spite of the maxims of science. Had Pope been a Lee, the order which detached Jackson to the rear, would indeed have been putting the Confederate army in the jaws of death. As it was, the movement took him by the surprise which Lee had calculated, and when he heard that Jackson was in his rear at Manassas, he was so utterly unable to take into his imagination a thing so opposed to his military commonplaces, so little sensible of the extent of the enterprise, that he at first supposed it was only an incursion of cavalry upon his supplies. When at last Pope's army faced towards Washington, Lee and Longstreet at once started on the circuitous march through Thoroughfare Gap, to join Jackson. When they came up with him, along the line of the Manassas Gap Railroad, he had already fought the battle of Groveton; and on the 29th August, he sustained the shock of Pope's attack, with no assistance from Longstreet, beyond a few brigades sent to his support in the evening. The great battle occurred on the 30th August. The enemy had been reinforced, but from the experience of the two preceding days, appeared to have lost much of his confidence, and to hesitate in manceuvres for attack. For a considerable time the action was fought principally with artillery. Then followed an advance in three lines of the Federal infantry, which was repulsed with great loss by the concentrated fire of some batteries posted on a commanding position. It was now evening, and Gen. Lee perceiving that there was confusion in the enemy's lines, ordered a general advance. Jackson on the left, and Longstreet on the right, pushed forward. The advance was never checked; the result was, the enemy was driven back in confusion over the old battle-ground of Bull Run; a large number of prisoners were captured —7,000 GENERAL ROBERT EDWARD LEE. 81 paroled on the field of battle-and the remains of Pope's army, during the night of the 30th, crossed Bull Run stream, and took refuge behind the field-works at Centreville, where Sumner's and Franklin's corps, which had arrived from Alexandria and the lines around Washington, were drawn up. The next morning, the enemy was discovered in the strong position at Centreville, and Gen. Lee's army was put in motion towards the Little River turnpike, to turn his right. Upon reaching Ox Hill, on the 1st September, Gen. Lee again discovered the enemy in his front, on the heights of Germantown; and about 5 P.M. a spirited attack was made by the Federals upon the front and right of Lee's columns, with a view of apparently covering the withdrawal of their trains on the Centreville road, and masking their retreat. The position of the Confederates was maintained with but slight loss on both sides. Maj.-Gen. Kearney was left by the enemy dead on the field. During the night the enemy fell back to Fairfax Court-house, and abandoned his position at Centreville. The next day, about noon, he evacuated Fairfax Court-house, taking the roads to Alexandria and Washington. So far, the summer campaign in Virginia had been a succession of Confederate victories. Gen. Lee had already obtained an extraordinary reputation for moderation in his statements of success, and when he telegraphed to Richmond that he had obtained, on the plains of Manassas, " a signal victory," the popular joy was assured. The results were large and brilliant. Virginia was now cleared of invading armies, and there was no appearance of an enemy within her borders, save at the fortified posts along the coast, where they were protected by their overwhelming naval forces, at Alexandria, and at Harper's Ferry, and Martinsburg, in the Valley. A circuit of wonderful victories illuminated the fortunes of the Confederacy; an aggregate force of the enemy, much exceeding 200,000 men, had been defeated; an immense spoil had been gathered; and in a few weeks the war had been carried from the gates of Richmond to the foreground of the enemy's capital. But Gen. Lee was not a man to repose on laurels, when there were others yet to be won. On the 3d September his army was on the march for the fords of the Potomac! He lihad quickly resolved to turn aside from Washington, cross the Potomac, and pursue his advantage by invading the country of the enemy in return, 6 82 GENERAL ROBERT EDWARD LEE. and thus give such occupation to him as would secure to Virginia, during the remainder of the season, a respite from the devastations of war, and the burden of invading armies. It was considered, too, in some quarters, that such a movement might inspirit the people of Maryland to attempt something in the way of their own liberation; and that there might be many speculative results of an invasion of the enemy's territory, which the temper of the South had so long demanded. On the 8th September we find Gen. Lee assembling his army at Frederick, in 3Maryland, and issuing the following address to the people of that State: " HEADQUARTERS ARMY OF NORTHERN VIRGINIA, "NEAR FREDERICK, Monday, Sept. 8, 1862. "To THE PEOPLE OF MARYLAND:-It is right that you should know the purpose that has brought the army under my command within the limits of your State, so far as that purpose concerns yourselves. The people of the Confederate States have long watched with the deepest sympathy the wrongs and outrages that have been inflicted upon the citizens of a commonwealth allied to the States of the South by the strongest social, political, and commercial ties, and reduced to the condition of a conquered province. Under the pretence of supporting the Constitution, but in violation of its most valuable provisions, your citizens have been arrested and imprisoned, upon no charge, and contrary to all the forms of law. A faithful and manly protest against this outrage, made by an illustrious Marylander, to whom, in better days, no citizen appealed for right in vain, was treated with contempt and scorn. The government of your chief city has been usurped by armed strangers; your Legislature has been dissolved by the unlawful arrest of its members; freedom of speech and of the press has been suppressed; words have been declared offences by an arbitrary decree of the Federal Executive, and citizens ordered to be tried by military commissions for what they may dare to speak. "Believing that the people of Maryland possess a spirit too lofty to submit to such a Government, the people of the South have long wished to aid you in throwing off this foreign yoke, to enable you again ito enjoy the inalienable rights of freemen, and restore the independence and sovereignty of your State. In GENERAL ROBERT EDWARD LEE. 83 obedience to this wish, our army has come among you, and is prepared to assist you with the power of its arms in regaining the rights of which you have been so unjustly despoiled. This, citizens of Maryland, is our mission, so far as you are concerned. No restraint on your free will is intended; no intimidation will be allowed within the limits of this army, at least. Marylanders shall once more enjoy their ancient freedom of thought and speech. We know no enemies among you, and will protect all of you in every opinion. It is for you to decide your destiny, freely and without constraint. This army will respect your choice, whatever it may be; and while the Southern people will rejoice to welcome you to your natural position among them, they will only welcome you when you come in of your own free will. " R. E. LEE, General Commanding." Gen. Lee had supposed that his advance to Frederick would cause the evacuation of Harper's Ferry. This not having occurred, and it being necessary to open the line of communication through the Valley, Jackson's command was detached to accomplish this purpose; it being calculated by Gen. Lee that the reduction of Harper's Ferry would be accomplished, and his columns again concentrated, before he would be called upon to meet the Federal army, which, placed again under the command of McClellan, showed great hesitation in the resumption of the campaign, and was evidently bewildered as to the designs of the Confederates. But these designs were betrayed by a singular circumstance. While Gen. Lee moved to Boonsboro and Hagerstown, to await Jackson's operations, there curiously fell into the hands of the enemy a copy of the order which Gen. Lee had prepared at Frederick, detailing with exactitude the proposed movements of the several portions of his army. The paper had been conveyed to Gen. D. H. Hill, who from some cause of dissatisfaction, and in a characteristic fit of impatience, tossed it to the ground; and, lying there forgotten, it was picked up by a soldier of the Federal army, and forwarded at once to SMcClellan, who thus became possessed of the exact detail of his adversary's plan of operations. McClellan immediately ordered a rapid movement towards Harper's Ferry; and Gen. Lee, unaware of what had happened, was surprised to find the Federal army marching from its lines, with 84 GENERAL ROBERT EDWARD LEE. the intention of offering battle, and relieving Harper's Ferry. The division of D. HI. Hill was instantly ordered to guard the South Mountain pass, and Longstreet was instructed to move from Hagerstown to his support. A severe action took place here; but the object was only to delay the enemy; and when at last McClellan broke through South Mountain and was in position to relieve the beleaguered force at Harper's Ferry, he found it had already been surrendered to the rapid and indomitable Jackson. Meanwhile, the forces of Longstreet and D. H. Hill were withdrawn into the valley of the Antietam; and Gen. Lee prepared to take position to confront a united army, far larger than his own, advancing to meet him, and to fight a battle against superiour forces, not for conquest, but for safety. On the 14th and 15th September, Gen. Lee took up a position on a range of low heights near the creek of Antietam; the little town of Sharpsburg, which gave the Confederate name to the battle that was to ensue, being almost in the centre of his line. The undulations of the ground and the thick masses of wood that clothed the hill-sides enabled him to conceal the strength of his army. On the 16th, Jackson arrived from Harper's Ferry with a greater portion of his corps; but the divisions of McLaws, Anderson, Walker, and A. P. Hill, had not yet effected a junction with Gen. Lee, and on the morning of the 17th, about 33,000 Confederates were in line of battle to engage a united army which certainly exceeded 100,000 men within the limits of the field. It was an anxious situation for the Confederates. Gen. Jackson held the left of the line, extending from near the Potomac to the Sharpsburg and Boonsboro road; in the centre was D. H. Hill's division, and the right was but thinly occupied by what remained of Longstreet's corps. As the morning of the 17th of September broke, the batteries of both armies opened fire, and the battle was commenced by Hooker attacking with a corps of 18,000 men on the Confederate left. Here for several hours the action raged with varying success. The Confederates for some time held their ground, though suffering terribly. More than half the brigades forming the first line were either killed or wounded, together with nearly every regimental commander. Of this appalling loss, Gen. Early, who took command of Ewell's old division, after Gen. Lawton had been shot GENERAL ROBERT EDWARD LEE. 85 down, says: "The terrible nature of the conflict in which these brigades had been engaged, and the steadiness with which they maintained their position, is shown by the losses they sustained. They did not retire from the field until Gen. Lawton (commanding division) had been wounded and borne from the field. Col, Douglas, commanding Lawton's Brigade, had been killed, and the brigade had sustained a loss of 554 killed and wounded, out of 1,150, losing five regimental commanders out of six. Hayes, Brigade had sustained a loss of 323 out of 550, including every regimental commander and all of his staff; and Col. Walker and one of his staff had been disabled, and the brigade he was commanding had sustained a loss of 228 out of less than 700 present, including three out of four regimental commanders." But as the Confederate line at last gave way under an attack so terrible, some portions of Walker's and McLaw's divisions reached the field, and Early, converting the defence into an attack, led forward his brigades, drove back Hooker's corps, and shook the Federal line so severely that McClellan feared at one time that his centre would be broken. The retreat, however, of the enemy's infantry, unmasked the powerful artillery in the first line of woods, and the fire from these batteries checked the Confederate pursuit. While the battle slackened here, there occurred on another part of the field a yet more critical and desperate struggle, occasioned by the effort of Burnside to obtain possession of the lower bridge over the Antietam. Five attacks here at different times, were heroically repulsed by two Georgia regiments under Gen. Toombs, and the enemy was at last compelled, by crossing the fords lower down, to flank the position, Toombs withdrawing his command, and Burnside being content to hold the bridge without demonstrating further. About 3 P.M., however, there came an imperative order from McClellan that Burnside should press forward to the attack of the batteries on the heights in his front. Here again the first incident was a successful advance of the enemy; Burnside gained the crest, driving back Jones's division of 2,000 men. But at this critical moment Gen. A. P. Hill arrived on the ground from Harper's Ferry, and took up a position on the right of the Confederate line, and opposed to Burnside. This reinforcement was most opportune; it enabled the Confederates to assume the offensive, and Igurnside was driven from the heights he had carried, and with -86 GENERAL ROBERT EDWARD LEE. some difficulty maintained his hold of the bridge. It was now a desperate time with the enemy. A correspondent of a Northern newspaper thus describes what was taking place on the Federal side in the half hour of daylight that was yet left: " More infantry comes up; Burnside is outnumbered, flanked, compelled to yield the hill he took so bravely. His position is no longer one of attack; he defends himself with unfaltering firmness, but he sends to McClellan for help. McClellan's glass for the last halfhour has seldom been turned away from the left. He sees clearly enough that Burnside is pressed-needs no messenger to tell him that. His face grows darker with anxious thought. Looking down into the valley where 15,000 troops are lying, he turns a half-questioning look on Fitz-John Porter, who stands by his side, gravely scanning the field. They are Porter's troops below, are fresh, and only impatient to share in this fight. But Porter slowly shakes his head, and one may believe that the same thought is passing through the minds of both Generals.'They are the only reserves of the army; they cannot be spared.' McClellan remounts his horse, and with Porter and a dozen officers of his staff, rides away to the left in Burnside's direction. Sykes meets them on the road-a good soldier, whose opinion is worth taking. The three Generals talk briefly together. It is easy to see that the moment has come when everything may turn on one order given or withheld, when the history of the battle is only to be written in thoughts and purposes and words of the General. Burnside's messenger rides up. His message is:'I want troops and guns. If you do not send them, I cannot hold my position half an hour.' McClellan's only answer for the moment is a glance at the western sky. Then he turns and speaks very slowly:'Tell Gen. Burnside this is the battle of the war. He must hold his ground till dark at any cost. I willsend him Miller's battery. I can do nothing more. I have no infantry.' Then as the messenger was riding away he called him back.' Tell him if he cannot hold his ground, then the bridge to the last man!-always the bridge! If the bridge is lost, all is lost.'" But the Confederates did not press their advantage; they found the approaches to the Antietam swept by a heavy artillery fire; they were too much exhausted to encounter fresh troops of the enemy, and as night fell they were recalled to their former posi GENERAL ROBERT EDWARD LEE. 87 tion, satisfied to have driven Burnside under the shelter of his batteries. The next day McClellan was indisposed to renew the battle. He consulted anxiously with his officers, and finally resolved to defer attack during the 18th, with the determination, however (as he reports), to renew it on' the 19th, if reinforcements expected from Washington should arrive. The morning of the 19th came, and with it the discovery that Lee had withdrawn across the Potomac, and already stood again with his army on the soil of Virginia. Although victory had inclined to him on the field of Sharpsburg, the Confederate commander readily perceived that with his worn and diminished army he could not hope to make head against an army so superiour in numbers, and situated so as to receive constant reinforcements; that, in fact, there was an end to the invasion, although all the other objects of the campaign had been fully accomplished; and so, with a sufficient sum of glory, without loss or molestation on their retreat, the Army of Northern Virginia crossed the Potomac, remained in the vicinity of Bunker Hill and Winchester to recruit before being moved to Lee's favourite ground of combat between the Rapidan and the Rappahannock, and concluded the ever-memorable campaign of the summer and autumn of 1862. Gen. Lee always claimed Sharpsburg as a Confederate victory. His force on that field, all told, including the divisions which came up in the evening, was less than 40,000 men; with these numbers he had inflicted a loss upon the enemy of 12,500 men-nearly double his own-had gained some ground, and although too weak to assume the offensive, had awaited steadily for a whole day a renewal of the attack. But if Sharpsburg had been more than a statistical victory-one constituted by a comparison of casualty lists-if Gen. Lee had routed McClellan and broken the only array of force between him and Washington, he would then have had at his mercy the capital, and all the principal cities of the North, and would probably have been able to continue his invasion to the successful issue of peace and independence; and it was only with respect to such a result, pictured by the lively popular imagination of the South, that his campaign fell short, and produced a feeling of disappointment. How fearful was the situation was well described in McClellan's 88 GENERAL ROBERT EDWARD LEE. own words, when, speaking of what depended on the field of Sharpsburg, he declared: "At that moment, Virginia lost, Washington menaced, Maryland invaded, the national cause could afford no risks of defeat. One battle lost, and almost all would have been lost. Lee's army might then have marched as it pleased on Washington, Baltimore, Philadelphia, or New York. It could have levied its supplies from a fertile and undevastated country, extorted tribute from wealthy and populous cities; and nowhere east of the Alleghanies was there another organized force able to arrest its march." These almost mortal apprehensions of the enemy were not realized. The idea of an invasion reaching to the vitals of the North had to be abandoned; the prospects of a popular rising in Maryland proved illusory; but although these expectations of the campaign, which were popular and speculative, and really subordinate in Gen. Lee's plan of action, were not fulfilled, the result actually accomplished was a real and considerable success, and answered the reasonable expectations of the commander. This success consisted in the facts that Virginia was relieved of invading armies; that a respite was obtained for the revival of her industry and the collection of her resources; that important time was secured for recruiting and reorganizing the army; and that " the line of the Rappahannock " was cleared, and made the proper defence of Richmond. So many various reasons have been ascribed to Gen. Lee for his movement into Maryland, and that campaign has been estimated on so many different hypotheses, that it will be well here to give the authentic version of it, and with it the key to all of Gen. Lee's campaigns in the war. When he first took command before Richmond he had conceived the idea that the proper line of defence for the capital was at the greatest possible distance from it, and that any investment of the city by the enemy's forces, unless it could be speedily broken, would ultimately and surely prove fatal to the defenders. The situation of Richmond he regarded as peculiar, and as plainly justifying this view of defence. It was an inland city, fed by seven different railroads and one canal, and was entirely dependent on its communications; and as Gen. Lee properly assumed, what the war subsequently proved, that railroads could not be protected against cavalry, he concluded that Richmond could not be held as a defensive point, and was to be protected by GENERAL ROBERT EDWARD LEE. 89 an army operating at some distance from it, with its lines of supply drawn through the city. His great anxiety was to keep the war as far as possible from Richmond, and especially to get it on the enemy's frontier, so as to relieve the country he protected, and make himself sure of supplies. This idea ran through all his campaigns. It urged him to cross the Potomac whenever he could, and at any rate to keep the war on the line of the Rappahannock. The persistent effort of all his campaigns was to make the theatre of operations as far as possible from Richmond; and in the last periods of the war, when the army holding that city and its outposts was almost palsied, we shall find him making the last, desperate, characteristic effort to relieve the capital by a campaign in the Valley and on the Potomac. But we must not anticipate the events of the war, and we return to consider the results of the Maryland campaign. The account of the operations of the summer and autumn of 1862 is appropriately concluded with Gen. Lee's address to his troops on their return to Virginia: HEADQUARTERS A.RMy OF NORTHERN VIRGINIA, October 2, 1862. In reviewing the achievements of the army during the present campaign, the Commanding General cannot withhold the expression of his admiration of the indomitable courage it has displayed in battle, and its cheerful endurance of privation and hardship on the march. Since your great victories around Richmond, you have defeated the enemy at Cedar Mountain, expelled him from the Rappahannock, and, after a conflict of' three days, utterly repulsed him on the plains of Mlanassas, and forced him to take shelter within the fortifications around his capital. Writhout halting for repose you crossed the Potomac, stormed the heights of Harper's Ferry, made prisoners of more than eleven thousand men, and captured upwards of seventy pieces of artillery, all their small-arms, and other munitions of war. While one corps of the army was thus engaged, the other insured its success by arresting, at Boonsboro, the combined armies of the enemy, advancing under their favourite General to the relief of their beleaguered comrades. 90 GENERAL ROBERT EDWARD LEE. On the field of Sharpsburg, with less than one-third his numbers, you resisted, from daylight until dark, the whole army of the enemy, and repulsed every attack along his entire front, of more than four miles in extent. The whole of the following day you stood prepared to resume the conflict on the same ground, and retired next morning, without molestation, across the Potomac. Two attempts, subsequently made by the enemy, to follow you across the river, have resulted in his complete discomfiture and being driven back with loss. Achievements such as these demanded much valour and patriotism. History records few examples of greater fortitude and endurance than this army has exhibited; and I am commissioned by the President to thank you in the name of the Confederate States for the undying fame you have won for their arms. Mluch as you have done, much more remains to be accomplished. The enemy again threatens us with invasion, and to your tried valour and patriotism the country looks with confidence for deliverance and safety. Your past exploits give assurance that this confidence is not misplaced. R. E. LEE, General Commanding. The moral effect of the campaign which Gen. Lee bad now concluded is too large and brilliant to be omitted from any estimate of results. To the world it was a chapter of wonders. It had accomplished a sum of victories unequalled in the same space of time by anything in the previous or subsequent experience of the war; it had made a record of toils, hardships, and glories famous in history; it had accumulated a brilliant spoil; and the wonderful statement is derived from the books of the provost-marshal in Richmond, that in twelve or fifteen weeks the Confederates had taken and paroled no less than forty-odd thousand prisoners! If " the opinion of foreign nations may be taken as an anticipation of the judgment of posterity," the Confederates had already for these achievements an assurance of historical memory that nothing could defeat. Of the events we have narrated, the leading journal of Europe-the London Times-declared: " The people of the Confederate States have made themselves famous. If the renown of brilliant courage, stern devotion to a cause, and military achieve GENERAL ROBERT EDWARD LEE. 91 ments almost without a parallel, can compensate men for the toil and privations of the hour, then the countrymen of Lee and Jackson may be consoled amid their sufferings. From all parts of Europe, from their enemies as well as their friends, from those who condemn their acts as well as those who sympathize with them, comes the tribute of admiration. When the history of this war is written, the admiration will doubtless become deeper and stronger, for the veil which has covered the South will be drawn away, and disclose a picture of patriotism, of unanimous self-sacrifice, of wise and firm administration, which we can now only see indistinctly. The details of extraordinary national effort which has led to the repulse and almost to the destruction of an invading force of more than half a million of men, will then become known to the world; and, whatever may be the fate of the new nationality, or its subsequent claims to the respect of mankind, it will assuredly begin its career with a reputation for genius and valour which the most famous nations may envy." Even the enemy was forced to tributes of admiration. "It was not," writes a historian* of the events, "without mixed feelings that the better classes in the North heard of the exploits of their former fellow-countrymen. They could not but admire the military qualities and personal character of the leaders of the Confederate armies; and although feeling the reproach that their own well-equipped troops had been beaten by men who possessed few of their advantages, yet they received some comfort from the fact that their opponents were Americans. Even if a portion of the Democratic party could scarce refrain from the opinion that a Union under President Davis and Gen. Lee would be preferable to discord under President Lincoln and Mr. Stanton, few can blame them." Indeed, this admiration of the Confederates went so far that popular orators in New York freely and abundantly declared that the war had increased the respect felt by the North for the South. For once, without the fear of Federal authorities before their eyes, they pointed to what appeared to them the miraculous resources of the "rebel " government, the bravery of its troops, their patience under hardships, their unshrinking firmness in the * Fletcher: History of the American War. BENTLEY, London. 92 GENERAL ROBERT EDWARD LEE. desperate position they had assumed, the wonderful success with which they had extemporized manufactures and munitions of war, and kept themselves in communication with the world in spite of a magnificent blockade; the elasticity with which they had risen from defeat, and the courage they had shown in threatening again and again the capital of the North, and even its interiour. It will be recollected that such a eulogy of the Confederates was publicly pronounced by Dr. Bellows, one of the most popular preachers of New York. He concluded: "' Well is Gen. McClellan reported to have said (privately), as he watched their obstinate fighting at Antietam, and saw them retiring in perfect order in the midst of the most frightful carnage,'What terrible neighbours these would Be! We must conquer them, or they will conquer us!'" These testimonies to Confederate heroism are not idly repeated here. Each year of the war had some characteristic by which it is easily remembered; and that of 1862 may be taken as the period of the greatest lustre of the Confederate arms. Whatever its sequel, what is testified of it here remains, cannot be recalled from the memory of the world, and constitutes a secure monument of history, which no after-thought of envy, no modification of opinions on the part of an enemy ultimately successful, can possibly destroy or diminish. GENERAL ROBERT EDWARD LEE. 93 CHAPTER VII. General Lee's perilous situation in North Virginia.-His alarming letter to the War Office.-The happy fortune of McClellan's removal.-The Battle of Fredericksburg.-Gen. Lee's great mistake in not renewing the attack.-His own confession of errour.-He detaches nearly a third of his army to cover the south side of Richmond. —He writes a severe letter to the Government.-The enemy's fifth grand attempt on Richmond.-Gen. Lee in a desperate extremity.-The Battles of Chancellorsville.-Three victories for the Confederates.-The masterpiece of Geu. Lee's military life. AFTER the battle of Sharpsburg, Gen. Lee did not indicate an immediate purpose to retire from the Potomac, but remained in the neighbourhood of Winchester, anxiously waiting for the development of McClellan's designs. There was serious reason to apprehend that the enemy would again press him to battle. But the extreme moral timidity of McClellan again gave opportunities to the Confederates; and while with an army already triple that of Lee, he was yet entreating and importuning the government at Washington for reinforcements, the latter was recruiting his strength so terribly diminished by the hardships of the Gordonsville and Maryland campaign, and making necessary preparations for the renewal of operations. In not pressing Lee after his retirement into Virginia, McClellan made the great mistake of his military career. Of the reality and extent of his opportunity at this time, we have in evidence a letter of Gen. Lee himself. In the first days of November, 1862, he wrote to the War Department that he had not hayf men enough to resist McClellan's advance with his mighty army, and that he would have to resort to manoeuvring in preference to risking his army in battle. He added that threefourths of the cavalry horses were sick with sore-tongue, and their hoofs were falling off; he complained that his soldiers were not fed and clad as they should be; and he expressed the greatest anxiety as to any movement of McClellan threatening battle. But most happily for the Confederates, the uncertainty of McClellan's designs terminated in his removal from command, and 94 GENERAL ROBERT EDWARD LEE. the appointment of Gen. Burnside to succeed him; event which gave occasion to a new meditation and plan of campaign, and secured for Gen. Lee the delay which he so much needed. It was a deliverance from an alarming crisis. Gen. Lee had at first supposed that Burnside intended to embark his army for the south side of James River, to operate probably in eastern North Carolina; but in the latter part of November, the enemy showed plainly another design, and the Confederate scouts reported large masses of infantry advancing on Fredericksburg. On the 18th November, a portion of Longstreet's corps was marched thither; and Gen. Lee wrote to Richmond: "Before the enemy's trains can leave Fredericksburg" (i.e. for Richmond) "this whole army will be in position." The assurance was faithfully and fully kept, and Burnside found his alert antagonist in full force on the banks of the Rappahannock. The battle of Fredericksburg, on the 13th December, 1862, was one of the most easily and cheaply won Confederate victories of the war. It was a striking illustration of the advantage of fighting in a strong position-an advantage too little regarded by the Confederates during the war; for although victories in open fields obtained for the South a certain prestige, it was at the woful price of the flower of her people, for which there was but little compensation in the loss of life in the enemy's ranks, recruited as they were from the dregs of his own society, and the mercenary markets of the whole world.* At Fredericksburg, the Confederate position was all that could be desired by Gen. Lee. His army was drawn up along the heights, which, retiring in a semicircle from the river, embraced within their arms a plain six miles in length, and from two to three in depth. This semicircle of hills terminated at Massaponax River, about five miles below Fredericksburg. The right * Dr. Dabney, the biographer of Stonewall Jackson, writing in 1863, says: "Onehalf of the prisoners of war, registered by the victorious armies of the South, have been foreign mercenaries. Mr. Smith O'Brien, warning his race against the unhallowed enterprise, declares that the Moloch of Yankee ambition has already sacrificed 200,000 Irishmen to it. And still, as the flaming sword of the South mows down these hireling invaders, fresh hordes throng the shores. Last, our country has to wage this strife only on these cruel terms, that the blood of her chivalrous sons shall be matched against the sordid streams of this cloaca populorum. In the words of Lord Lindsay, at Flodden Field, we must play our'Rose Nobles of gold, against crooked sixpences."' GENERAL ROBERT EDWARD LEE. 90 of the Confederate army, extending nearly as far as the Massaponax, comprised the cavalry and horse artillery under Gen. J. E. B. Stuart, posted on the only ground at all suitable for that arm of the service. On his left was Gen. Jackson's corps, of which Early's division formed the right, and A. P. Hill's the left;,the divisions of Taliaferro and D. H. Hill being in reserve. The' left wing of the army, under Gen. Longstreet, comprised the division of Hood on the right, next to it that of Pickett, then those of McLaws, Ransom and Anderson. The artillery was massed together, and not dispersed among the divisions, and was so posted as to sweep the front of the position. It may be remarked that this was Gen. Lee's favourite disposition of his artillery in battle, and in this instance it was much favoured by the semicircular formation of the hills. The battle was at first declared against the Confederate right by a heavy attack upon Jackson, which was repulsed, and finally ceased about noon. By this time fresh divisions had crossed the river at Fredericksburg, and the mass of Burnside's army was brought to the desperate attack of Marye's Height, held by McLaws' division and the Washington artillery. Here, during the whole afternoon, attack after attack was repeated with a desperation never before exhibited by the enemy, and with appalling recklessness of human life. "It is hardly to be supposed," says a Northern writer, " that Gen. Burnside had contemplated the bloody sequence to which he was committing himself when first he ordered a division to assail the heights of Fredericksburg; but having failed in the first assault, and then in the second and third, there grew up in his mind something which those around him saw to be akin to desperation. Riding down from his headquarters to the bank of the Rappahannock, he walked restlessly up and down, and gazing over at the heights across the river, exclaimed vehemently,'That crest must be carried to-night.' Already, however, everything had been thrown in, saving Hooker, and he was now ordered over the river." But all was in vain. hiooker's attack shared the fate of its predecessors; the men rushed forward, then wavered, a third of their number fell, and the remainder fled. During the entire afternoon the struggle continued. The simile, so commonly used in descriptions of battles, of waves breaking upon a rock-bound coast, was never more just in its conception than in the frantic battle in which the Federal divisions were shattered upon the heights assailed, 96 GENERAL ROBERT EDWARD LEE. and were hurled back, one after the other, on the crimson tide of death. Night closed on a field on which lay more than ten thousand Federals killed or wounded. Gen. Lee dispatched to Richmond: " Our loss during the operations since the movements of the enemy began, amounts to about 1800 killed and wounded." It was a great victory; but the Confederate public expected from it something more than eclat, and had reason to hope that there would be inflicted upon the enemy not only defeat, but destruction. It was thus that the inconsequence of Burnside's safe retreat across the river was a great disappointment, attended for the first time with some popular censure of Gen. Lee. The only reply to such censure was a very candid explanation, in which Gen. Lee confessed he had been surprised as to the extent of the enemy's disaster and his design of retreat. In an official report he says: "The attack on the 13th had been so easily repulsed, and by so small a part of our army, that it was not supposed the enemy would limit his effort to one attempt, which, in view of the magnitude of his preparations, and the extent of his force, seemed to be comparatively insignificant. Believing, therefore, that he would attack us, it was not deemed expedient to lose the advantages of our position, and expose the troops to the fire of his inaccessible batteries beyond the river, by advancing against him. But we were necessarily ignorant of the extent to which he had suffered, and only became aware of it when, on the morning of the 16th, it was discovered that he had availed himself of the darkness of night, and the prevalence of a violent storm of wind and rain, to recross the river." With the Confederate victory of Fredericksburg quiet fell upon the lines of the Rappahannock; but on other theatres of the war there was not that cessation of interest that might have been expected in the harshest months of winter. The authorities at Richmond were soon disturbed by reported movements of the enemy in other directions, apparently against the city and its southern communications; and the consequence of these alarms and anxieties, in which Gen. Lee fully shared, was, that about one-third of his army had to be detached to cover the south side of the capital. In the month of February, 1863, the greater portion of Longstreet's command was sent to confront the army corps of Hooker, supposed to have been sent to the Peninsula, and to watch the movements GENERAL ROBERT EDWARD LEE. 97 of the enemy in the neighbourhood of Suffolk and on the coast of North Carolina. It was a period of indecision and anxiety; Charleston was threatened, and Gen. Lee advised every available man to be sent thither; the enemy was reported at various points of the sea-coast south of James River, and it was not known where his heaviest blow would be delivered; and distracted by so many prospects of attack, the policy of dispersion became, for a time, a necessary one, and Gen. Lee found himself, with not more than two-thirds of the army he had in the battle of Fredericksburg, left to watch the movements of the enemy still remaining north of the Rappahannock. This serious diminution of his forces affected Gen. Lee with great anxiety, in view of the exigencies of the approaching spring campaign, in which the fate of Virginia, and of the sea-coast, and of the Mississippi Valley, appeared to be equally involved, and naturally led to a revision of all the Confederate forces in the field. He made it the occasion of one of the plainest letters he ever wrote to the War Department-a letter in which the tone of censure and rebuke was more apparent than in any appeal he ever made to the patriotism of the people and the wisdom of the authorities. IHe suggested to the government an appeal to the Governors of the States to aid more directly in recruiting the armies. He said the people habitually expected too much from the troops now in the field; that because they had gained many victories, it did not follow that they should always gain them; that the legitimate fruits of victory had hitherto been lost for the want of numbers on our side; and, finally, that all those who failed to go to the field at such a momentous period, were guilty of the blood of the br1re soldiers who perished in the effort to achieve independence. While Lee's force on the Rappahannock was reduced to the extent we have noticed, the enemy had always been able to keep up its army in Northern Virginia to a strength exceeding 100,000 men; and now, for its fifth attempt on Richmond, had a force not less than 150,000, under the command of "Fighting Joe Hooker," the hero of Northern prints. To meet this tremendous force, Gen. Lee had the corps of Jackson, and only two divisions of Longstreet's corps-Anderson's and McLaws' —a total of about 45,000 men. Jackson's corps consisted of four divisions, commanded by A. P. Hill, Rodes, Colston, and Early. 7 98 GENERAL ROBERT EDWARD LEE. Gen. Hooker's plan of attack was to divide his army into two portions, of which the stronger, having crossed the Rappahannock and Rapidan rivers, should advance against the Confederate left wing; while the Federal left wing, under Sedgwick, equal in numbers to Gen. Lee's whole army, should attack and occupy the heights above Fredericksburg, and seize the railroad to Richmond. On the night of the 28th April, the greater portion of the Federal army crossed the rivers, and headed towards Chancellorsville, the assigned point of concentration. The situation in which HIooker boasted that the Confederate army must " either ingloriously fly or come out from behind its defences," where " certain destruction awaited it," was no sooner perceived by Gen. Lee, than he determined, leaving Early's division to deal with Sedgwick at Fredericksburg, to " come out" with the remainder of his little army against Hooker's four corps at Chancellorsville. On the 29th April, Jackson's three divisions, and those of McLaws and Anderson (Early's division remaining in the lines of Fredericksburg), were on the road to Chancellorsville. The aspect of affairs was anything but reassuring. The force moved out towards Chancellorsville was outnumbered nearly three to one; from 90,000 to 100,000 men were on what had formerly been its left rear, but which was now its front; while a force equalling in strength the whole army, threatened, by all advance from Fredericksburg, either to crush it or force it to retreat with both flanks exposed, and with a cavalry column of 10,000 sabres already on its communications with Richmond. But it was the absence of his cavalry which he had sent away in assurance of Lee's retreat, that proved the fatal circumstance for Hooker.; for it at once suggested the surprise of a movement on his flank. While, therefore, the divisions of Anderson and McLaws were sufficient to amuse him by feints of attack in front -indeed to such effect that on the 1st May he ordered another of his divisions from across the river, under the impression that the Confederates were in force in his front —Jackson was marching swiftly and silently to find his flank in the Wilderness. In the evening of the 2d May, the battle of the Wilderness was fought; Jackson striking the extreme right of the Federal army, routing Howard's corps, and driving the entire right wing of the enemy down upon the divisions of Anderson and McLaws. The torrent GENERAL ROBERT EDWARD LEE. 99 of Jackson's success was stemmed only by his fall in the midst of a victory, the completion of which had to be reserved for another day. On the 3d May, Gen. Stuart, having succeeded to Jackson's command, bore down again on the enemy's right wing, while Gen. Lee's remaining divisions attacked the centre and left. By ten o'clock in the morning, Hooker was driven to his second line of intrenchments, Chancellorsville was taken, and the destruction of the enemy now appeared to be the work of but a few hours. But just here that adverse combination of circumstances in which Gen. Lee fought was again apparent; and as he gathered up his forces to attack Hooker's fresh position, news came that Sedgwick, having turned Marye's Heights, was advancing from Fredericksburg, while Early had fallen back to a position at Salem Church, five miles from the town. It became necessary at once to turn attention to this movement; and McLaws' division was rapidly marched to Early's support in time to check Sedgwick's advanced troops, and drive them back on the main body. On the 4th May the battle was renewed, and Sedgwick was overwhelmed and driven back in disgraceful confusion, while Hooker remained idle in his intrenchments, detained in a defensive attitude by a few Confederate divisions, thoroughly cowed, and without spirit even to make the attempt to relieve one of his own corps. On the night of the 5th, his grand army, despite its losses yet larger than that of Lee, but directed by a commander who had evidently lost all stomach for fight, retreated across the river in a drenching storm of wind and rain, leaving behind it 17,000 killed, wounded, and prisoners, 14 pieces of artillery, and 30,000 stand of arms. Thus three victories-that of the Wilderness, that on Hooker's front, and that at Salem Church, all compassed in the general name of " the battle of Chancellorsville " —had been achieved by Gen. Lee in so many days. In looking back upon all the circumstances of this struggle, it must be pronounced to have been for Gen. Lee the most brilliant of the war, and to have crowned his reputation for transcendent courage and ability. All the movements of the enemy preceding the battle had been successful and well-timed; he had turned the Confederate line of defence on the right and on the left;.and he had apparently placed the little army of Lee in the jaws of destruction. With what consummate 100 GENERAL ROBERT EDWARD LEE. skill the great Confederate commander extricated his army; with what impregnable equanimity he awaited the full development of his adversary's designs; with what admirable readiness he divided his forces, and concentrated his chief strength upon the important point; with what towering courage he at last struck the enemy on his vulnerable side, then engaged him in front, and finally turned to engage a victorious column in his rear, the reader will perceive even from the bare outlines of the battle we have given in the preceding narrative. Those who were near Gen. Lee's person in these eventful three days, say that his self-possession was perfect, and his calm, courteous demeanour the same as on ordinary occasions; he spoke of his success without exultation; and from first to last, his unshaken confidence in his men fortified his resolution and manners, and assured him of victory. A few days after the battle of Chancellorsville, Gen. Lee issued an address to his army, congratulating them for "the heroic conduct they had displayed under trying vicissitudes of heat and storm, in a tangled wilderness, and again on the hills of Fredericksburg," and inviting them to unite on the following Sunday "in ascribing to the Lord of Hosts the glory due His name." At the same time a letter from President Davis was read, wherein he said to Gen. Lee: " In the name of the people, I offer my cordial thanks to you and the troops under your command, for this addition to the unprecedented series of great victories which your army has achieved. The universal rejoicing produced by this happy result, will be mingled with a general regret for the good and the brave who are numbered among the killed and wounded." Two great victories, Fredericksburg and Chancellorsville, had now been won on the banks of the Rappahannock; but they had no other effect than driving the enemy back to the hills of Stafford. The position was one in which he could not be attacked to advantage. It was on this reflection that Gen. Lee resolved on a new and adventurous campaign. It was to manceuvre Hooker out of Virginia, to clear the Shenandoah Valley of the troops of the enemy, and to renew the experiment of the transfer of hostilities north of the Potomac. But the events of this campaign we reserve for another chapter. GENERAL ROBERT EDWARD LEE. 101 CHAPTER VIII. Controversy between Gen. Lee and the War Department.-The Secretary winces.Gen. Lee's new campaign of invasion.-How it differed from that of 1862.-Reorganization of the Army of Northern Virginia.-Some remarks on its artillery service.-Gen. Lee across the Potomac.-His orders at Chambersburg, Pa.-His errours with respect to the policy of " retaliation."-His conversation with a millowner.-A letter from President Davis.- Gen. Lee misunderstood and disappointed by the Richmond authorities.-Orders to Stuart's cavalry.-The Confederate army blinded in Pennsylvania for want of cavalry. —The battle of Gettysburg has the moral effect of a surprise to Gen. Lee.-The lost opportunity of the 1st July.-Why Gen. Lee fought the next day.-Temper of his army. —He assaults the enemy's centre on the 3d July.-Recoil of the Confederates.-Gen. Lee cheering and comforting his men.-His fearful retreat, and his wonderful success in extricating his army. IN the shifting of forces consequent upon the battle of Chancellorsville, the divisions of Longstreet that had been operating in Southeastern Virginia were recalled to Gen. Lee; and the usual consequence of a great victory in the return of large numbers of " absentees" to the ranks, was fully realized. From these sources Gen. Lee rapidly increased his army to the mark of the necessities of the campaign he now designed. Since Gen. Lee had been in command, he had been able to effect a much-desired reform in curtailing the authority of the War department, which at one time had presumed to dictate campaigns, and had once driven Gen. Jackson to the extremity of resignation by moving forces under his command by its peremptory orders. That despotic department was now much reduced in its authority, and its favourite idea of a dispersion of forces was brought within limits. After what we have already said of detachments from Gen. Lee's army, and the peril this policy occasioned at Chancellorsville, it will surprise the reader to learn that on the 15th May, 1863, the Secretary of War dispatched him that a portion of his army (Pickett's division) might be sent to Mississippi. To this untimely and vexatious call, Gen. Lee replied that it was a dangerous and doubtful expedient; that it was a question 102 GENERAL ROBERT EDWARD LEE. between Virginia and Mississippi; but that. he would send off the division without delay, if still deemed necessary. The issue was thus boldly and sharply thrust upon the Richmond authorities. The Secretary winced, and the troops were not sent away. The campaign which Gen. Lee had now determined upon was more properly one of invasion than when in the previous year he had crossed the Potomac into Maryland. His design was larger and more ambitious; and so far as it contemplated not merely putting back the war to the trans-Potomac region for the purpose of respite, but a steady and formidable invasion of the enemy's territory, it overleaped the former defensive and prudent policy that had hitherto prevailed in the military councils of the Confederacy. The reoccupation of the Shenandoah Valley, the invasion of Pennsylvania, and the change in the theatre of the war from Virginia to the enemy's country, were the immediate objects of Lee's intended movements. Whatever might result from these operations could not be foreseen, and the ultimate designs could only develop themselves as success, or the reverse, should occur in the campaign, and influence its prosecution. But never was the prospect of invasion more hopeful. It was undoubtedly thrust upon Gen. Lee by the excited and extraordinary spirit of his army and the country. The morale of his troops had been wonderfully improved by the victories of Fredericksburg and Chancellorsville; the confidence of the men and of their commander had been greastly raised by these events; the army of Northern Virginia had been mobilized, improved, was in better condition in transportation, equipment, and clothing (and in every respect but supplies) than it had been before, and in increased confidence in itself and contempt for the enemy, was said to be " equal to anything; " and, above all, the public temper of the South, swollen and bursting with grief at the ruin the enemy had wrought on its own dwellings and fields, fiercely and with one voice demanded that in this season of opportunity, some of the suffering and rigour of the war should be carried home to the people of the North. Gen. Lee could not be insensible to these considerations, or wholly deaf to the appeals of the populace. Pennsylvania offered supplies for his troops, and Commissary Northrop had told him to go there to find them; the spirit of his army pointed to invasion; and so, when the alternative of campaigns was presented at Richmond, of reinforcing the GENERAL ROBERT EDWARD LEE. 103 armies of the West or carrying the war across the Potomac, Gen. Lee chose the latter, believing that a victory in Pennsylvania, besides all its other advantages, would be a counterpoise to whatever successes the enemy might obtain in the West, and relieve the pressure on our armies in Tennessee, Mississippi, and in all parts of the Confederacy. It was thus for various reasons and in peculiar circumstances that he cut loose from the defensive policy, and on his own responsibility undertook the experiment of invasion. In preparation for the campaign, the Army of Northern Virginia was now thoroughly reorganized, and divided into three equal and distinct corps. The reorganization was made with a view to recent promotions in the army-five Major-Generals and two Lieutenant-Generals having obtained their promotions, without a proper distribution of commands. The two Lieutenant-Generals were Ewell and A. P. Hill. To each of these a corps was assigned, consisting of three divisions; Gen. Longstreet, for this purpose, parting with one of his divisions (Anderson's). A. P. Hill's old division, reduced by two brigades, was assigned to Maj.-Gen. W. D. Pender. The two brigades taken from A. P. Hill's division were united with Pettigrew's and another N.orth Carolina brigade, and assigned to Maj.-Gen. Heth, who, with Maj.-Gen. Pender, had been recently promoted from the rank of Brigadier-General. Gen. A. P. HIill was assigned to the command of this corps, whilst Gen. Ewell retained Jackson's old corps, consisting of Early's division (Early having been made a Major-General in February, and receiving command of Ewell's old division), Rode's division, and Trimble's division, the latter assigned to Gen. Edward Johnson, then just promoted to a Major-Generalship. There were thus three corps of three divisions: Longstreet (MecLaws, Hood, and Pickett); A. P. Hill (Anderson, Pender, and ileth); Ewell (Early, Rodes, and Johnson) —each corps numbering about 25,000 men, with about 15,000 cavalry, under Gen. J. E. B. Stuart, making a total of 90,000 men. But the most important part of the reorganization, directed by Gen. Lee, was the reform of the artillery arm, which had been wonderfully growing in strength and brilliancy since the time when the famous "' Washington Artillery " first wreathed the Confederate banner with the smoke of its guns on the field of Manassas. It had now become the matchless pride of the Army of North 104 GENERAL ROBERT EDWARD LEE. ern Virginia, and presented a splendid array of high intelligence, practised skill, and disciplined valour. The original organization of the Confederate artillery was into companies, attached each to its infantry brigade, and subject to the orders of the brigadier; but it was soon discovered that commanders of brigade, the great majority of whom were from the walks of civil life, were not the class of officers to give the artillery arm that power and effectiveness, of which, under skilful scientific direction, it was so eminently susceptible. Therefore, before the opening of the spring campaign of 1863, a regular artillery and ordnance staff was organized in the Army of Northern Virginia, with Gen. Pendleton at its head. Battalions were formed, numbering from sixteen to twenty guns each, and operating in the field, with its respective infantry division, and each under the immediate command of its own artillery chief, who had been assigned, or promoted to it, by reason of his distinguished fitness and qualification, as indicated by former tests of high excellence in the practice of the field. And under the direction of this able corps of artillery officers, the grand Southern field-park, both mounted and horse, proudly asserted its claim to a place in the very front rank of the artillery armament of the world. Pelham's and McGregor's famous cavalry batteries, that operated with the dashing troopers of Stuart, won a distinction, second not even to the celebrity of the famous flying artillery of Austria. For the first two years of the war, the field-metal of the Confederate park was greatly inferiour to that of the enemy. The battles of Bull Run, and Manassas, and the Seven Pines, were fought with six-pounder guns, twelve-pounder howitzers, and a few threeinch rifles; and it was not until the battle of Chancellorsville, that the Confederate artillery armament was of sufficiently heavy metal to cope successfully with the formidable Federal field-ordnance. By capture and foreign purchase, the artillery of the Army of Northern Virginia was strengthened by a full field-complement of ten and twenty-pounder Parrotts, the twelve-pounder Parrotts, the twelve-pounder Napoleon gun-howitzer, and a few Whitworth and Armstrong rifles; but the twenty-pounder Parrotts, and the twelvepounder Napoleons, were the weapons with which the Confederate artillerists chiefly won their bloody trophies, and wrote such a brilliant chapter in the records of artillery performance. In nothing was the Southern artillery inferiour to that of the Federals, save in GENERAL ROBERT EDWARD LEE. 105 the matter of ammunition; in every other particular it was decidedly superiour, as attested on every field where the two armies were brought into direct collision. To gain the Shenandoah Valley and relieve the town of Winchester was the first aim of the intended movement. In the first week in June, Longstreet's and Ewell's corps were directed to march on Culpeper, whilst the corps of A. P. Hill was left to occupy the lines of Fredericksburg. A reconnoissance of cavalry imperfectly disclosed the movement to Hooker; but while his attention was turned to Culpeper, and guarding the line of the Rappahannock, Ewell's corps was thrust into the Valley through Chester Gap, and, moving rapidly on Winchester, captured the place, with more than three thousand prisoners and thirty pieces of artillery. Upon learning the movement, and now quite bewildered as to the designs of the Confederates, Hooker broke up his camps along the Rappahannock, and moved on the direct route towards Washington, following the line of the Orange and Alexandria Railroad, his first anxiety being to respond to Mr. Lincoln's usual fears for the safety of the capital. The disappearance of the enemy behind the hills of Stafford was the signal for A. P. Hill to take up his line of march towards Culpeper, where Longstreet's corps still held position. On the 22d June, Ewell, with the van of the invading columns, passed into Maryland; and two days later the corps of Longstreet and Hill, making the passage of the Potomac at Williamsport and Shepherdstown, followed the path of Ewell into Pennsylvania. The troopers of Jenkins had already preceded Ewell's advance by a week, and had penetrated Pennsylvania as far as Chambersburg, throwing the whole country into a condition of unparalleled alarmn and excitement. President Lincoln issued a proclamation calling for one hundred thousand militia from the States most directly menaced; New York was summoned to send twenty thousand men; the archives were removed from Harrisburg, and the farmers in the rich valleys drove their cattle to the mountains. Some asserted positively that Pittsburg and Ohio were the objects of Lee's march; others that Harrisburg, and even Philadelphia, would fall into his hands; and others, again, pointed to Baltimore and Washington as the true points which were menaced by the invading army. After crossing the Potomac, Gen. Lee had marched up the 106 GENERAL ROBERT EDWARD LEE. Cumberland Valley, while Ewell's corps occupied York and Carlisle, and threatened the passage of the Susquehanna at Columbia and Harrisburg. Within twenty days he had brought his army from Fredericksburg into Pennsylvania, made the march in the face of hostile garrisons at Winchester, Martinsburg, Harper's Ferry, and Berryville, blinded the enemy as to his designs, and moved without his progress having been once seriously arrested. He had now fairly entered upon the campaign, and at Chambersburg issued the following order to his troops for their government in the enemy's country: HEADQUARTERS ARMY NORTHERN VIRGLNIA, CHAMBERSBURG, PA., June 27, 1863. GENERAL ORDERS No. 73. —The Commanding General has observed with marked satisfaction the conduct of the troops on the march, and confidently anticipates results commensurate with the high spirit they have manifested. No troops could have displayed greater fortitude, or better performed the arduous marches of the past ten days. Their conduct in other respects has, with few exceptions, been in keeping with their character as soldiers, and entitles them to approbation and praise. There have, however, been instances of forgetfulness on the part of some, that they have in keeping the yet unsullied reputation of the army, and that the duties exacted of us by civilization and Christianity are not less obligatory in the country of the enemy than in our own. The Commanding General considers that no greater disgrace could befall the army, and through it, our whole people, than the perpetration of the barbarous outrages upon the innocent and defenceless, and the wanton destruction of private property, that have marked the course of the enemy in our own country. Such proceedings not only disgrace the perpetrators and all connected with them, but are subversive of the discipline and efficiency of the army and destructive of the ends of our present movements. It must be remembered that we make war only upon armed men, and that we cannot take vengeance for the wrongs our people have suffered without lowering ourselves in the eyes of all whose abhorrence has been excited by the atrocities of our enemy, and offending against Him to whom vengeance belongeth, without whose favour and support our efforts must all prove in vain. GENERAL ROBERT EDWARD LEE. 107 The Commanding General, therefore, earnestly exhorts the troops to abstain, with most scrupulous care, from unnecessary or wanton injury to private property; and he enjoins upon all officers to arrest and bring to summary punishment all who shall in any way offend against the orders on this subject. R. E. LEE, General. The reader will perceive in this address some pleasing and honourable sentiments; although the distinction appears to have been clouded in Gen. Lee's mind, between retaliation in kind, and such severe and regular retribution as might have been visited upon the enemy by acts of war; such as devastating the country in line of battle, without endangering the morale of his troops, and running counter to the charges of irregular pillage and brigandish atrocities. Such devastations of the enemy's country, the Confederate public had expected; and, while Gen. Lee professed to yield much to the temper of the South in the project of invasion, he might have reflected that the main object of the popular desire for such a measure was to visit upon the enemy, not necessarily the exact repetition of his atrocities, but the severest penalties of war that could be executed under the authority of superiours, without risk to the discipline of the army, and without contravention of the just practices of a provoked invasion. But these were not his views; and even the commonest penalties of war were unexpectedly spared the people of Pennsylvania.* * Of the extreme forbearance of Confederate soldiers in Pennsylvania, abundant evidence may be gathered even from the most violent newspapers printed in the North. The following is quoted from a Northern account of the proceedings of Jenkins' cavalry:-" By way of giving the devil his due, it must be said, that although there were over sixty acres of wheat, and eighty acres of corn and oats in the same field, he (Gen. Jenkins) protected it most carefully, and picketed his horses so that it could not be injured. No fences were wantonly destroyed, poultry was not disturbed, nor did he compliment our blooded cattle so much as to test the quality of -their steak and roasts. Some of his men cast a wistful eye upon the glistening trout in the spring; but they were protected by voluntary order; and, save a few quarts of delicious strawberries, gathered with every care, after first asking permission, nothing in the gardens or about the grounds was taken." An intercepted letter from a Confederate officer to his wife in Virginia, which found its way into Northern newspapers, contained the following: "I felt, when I first came here, that I would like to revenge myself upon these people for the devastation they have brought upon our own beautiful home; that home where we could 108- GENERAL ROBERT EDWARD LEE. In the Northern newspapers an account was given by a millowner of Pennsylvania, of a conversation with Gen. Lee, in which occurred the following: "It is not that we love the Pennsylvanians," observed Lee, "that we refuse to let our men engage in plundering private citizens. We could not otherwise keep up the morale of the army. A rigid discipline must be maintained, or the men would be worthless." "'In fact," adds this mill-owner, "I must say that they acted like gentlemen, and, their cause aside, I would rather have forty thousand rebels quartered on my premises than one thousand Union troops. The Colonel of one of the New York regiments (militia) drove his horse into the engine-room of my mill, a place which must be kept as clean as a parlour; the men broke all the locks, and defiled every apartment from basement to garret. Yet all this time I have been quartering sick Federal officers at my house, and my new hotel is thrown open to the men to sleep in, free of charge." "I told Gen. Lee," continues this correspondent, "'that the South must give it up; that the North would fight it out rather than see the country broken in two, and that their invasion of Pennsylvania was a great mistake." " What would you do," replied the General, "if you were in our place? " Here he produced copies of the Richmond papers, which complained so bitterly about the war being waged in the South, while it ought to be carried into the Free States. But we must return to the movements of the two armies, which were now approaching the greatest crisis of the war. The day Gen. Lee issued at Chambersburg the order just referred to, Hooker relinquished the command of the Federal army, which he had now marched to Frederick in Maryland; and Gen. Meade, who succeeded him, having ascertained the general direction of Lee's march, at once put his columns in motion by the inner line from Frederick towards Harrisburg. But he had ascertained something more. Whilst reconnoitring the passes of South Mountain, have lived so happily, and that we loved so much, from which their Vandalism has driven you and my helpless little ones. But though I had such severe wrongs had grievances to redress, and such great cause for revenge, yet when I got among these people, I could not find in my heart to molest them. They looked so dreadfully scared, and talked so humbly, that I have invariably endeavoured to protect their property, and have prevented soldiers from taking chickens, even in the main road." GENERAL ROBERT EDWARD LEE. 109 Capt. Dahlgren-the same who afterwards made a murderous raid on Richmond —had captured an orderly carrying an important dispatch from President Davis to Gen. Lee, in which the former stated his disapproval of the advance into Pennsylvania, throwing the responsibility of it entirely on Lee, and informing him that he could expect no reinforcements, as Richmond was almost stripped of troops; also that no assistance could be furnished by Beauregard from South Carolina, as his hands were full, and he could not spare a man. This dispatch afforded a new encouragement to the enemy, and gave him the important assurance that Washington could not be threatened by any forces remaining in Virginia. It had been Gen Lee's idea, not that Gen. Beauregard should get a force for active operations, but that he should merely collect the semblance, of an army at Gordonsville, announce his headquarters there, etc., so as to distract the enemy's attention, and continue his anxiety for Washington. In this respect he was misunderstood and disappointed by Richmond authorities. But a greater mishap had already befallen him, and compelled him practically to relinquish the campaign. When Gen. Lee crossed the Potomac from the Shenandoah Valley, the plainest orders had been given to Stuart's cavalry column, left on the east side of the Blue Ridge, to watch the enemy, keep on his left flank, and maintain constant communications with Lee, so as to develop the enemy's designs. Now it happened that Stuart had not followed these orders, but crossing the Potomac at Seneca, below where Hooker crossed, found the entire Federal army interposed between him and Lee, and finally resolved to make a circuit of it by way of Westminster and Carlisle. Unaware of this disappointment of the most essential part of his plans, Gen. Lee had marched on day after day, inquiring ceaselessly after his lieutenant. His anxiety was extreme; all his staff-officers observed the troubled look in his face, as day after day, and at last hour after hour, he inquired for " news from Stuart." The phrase at headquarters was: "We are hungry for cavalry." Gen. Lee had depended upon Stuart for information of the enemy's movements; he had designed an advance upon Harrisburg; but when he headed his columns to cross the Susquehanna, there was still no news of Stuart, and no information of the movements of the 110 GENERAL ROBERT EDWARD LEE. enemy. The situation was one in which Gen. Lee found himself in the mountains of Pennsylvania, with the eyes of his army put out, not knowing where the enemy was, or where would be the field of battle, compelled to grope his way to whatever issue accidents might determine. It was in these circumstances that he determined to relinquish his hold on the Susquehanna, to look after his routes of retreat on the east side of the South Mountain range, and to find the enemy in order to bring him to a battle. With this view, Ewell was recalled from the demonstration on Harrisburg, and the several corps ordered to march towards Gettysburg. It will surprise the reader to learn that when this movement was made, Gen. Lee was actually ignorant that tHooker had crossed the Potomac,' and was compelled to turn from his designs on the Susquehanna river, to hunt the enemy up for battle! Such were the disastrous results of the absence of Stuart's cavalry. And in such circumstances the battle of Gettysburg had all the moral effect of a surprise for the Confederates.* On the 1st July Heth's division of Hill's corps, moving towards Gettysburg, became engaged near the town with the enemy's advance, Reynolds' corps. Gen. Reynolds was shot down as he rode forward to superintend the dispositions of his troops; and Ewell, coming up by the Harrisburg road, completed the disorder of the enemy, driving his fugitive and disorganized troops through the streets of Gettysburg with heavy loss, including about five thousand prisoners and several pieces of artillery. The success was not followed beyond the town; the broken Federal divisions were re-formed on a high range of hills south and east of Gettysburg; and the attack of the Confederates, which might have easily pushed this routed detachment of the enemy beyond this critical position, was recalled as the sun inclined to the horizon. Gen. Lee had had the opportunity of getting possession of these heights, instead of * In Gen. Lee's official report he makes no complaint of the disappointment of the campaign by the absence of Stuart's cavalry column; and, indeed, this circumstance was, until recently, lost to history. Gen. Lee was always very abstinent of censure of his officers; and he once remarked that he could never consider himself at liberty to make a reference in his official reports to a fault of an officer, unless it had been found and established by a court-martial. Despite Gen. Stuart's abundant record of glorious services, he is said to have deeply regretted his failure to get his cavalry in position to serve as designed in the campaign, and to have been affected by the disappointment to the day of his death. GENERAL ROBERT EDWARD LEE. 111 being forced to fight the succeeding days on a sunken parallel, under every disadvantage of position. But the opportunity slipped away in the darkness of one night; and Gen. Meade, who had in fact laid out a different line of battle, being advised of the singular advantages of the new position overlooking Gettysburg, pressed forward the bulk of his army, and on the morning of the 2d July had all his forces concentrated in the strongest position that had ever been taken by either army in the war. But it was no fault of Lee's generalship that he had been thus anticipated, and the table of position turned upon him; it was but another consequence of the circumstances which fettered him in the absence of his cavalry. It must be remembered that when he recalled the attack of the preceding evening, he was completely in the dark as to the movements and dispositions of the enemy's forces; his army was not concentrated; it was at a great distance from its base; he was uncertain of the numbers of his opponents; he was unable, by reason of the nature of the ground, to ascertain their exact position; and in these circumstances it would have been the height of imprudence to have risked, in the late hours of the day, an attack upon what might have been the whole Federal army. But while Gen. Lee is thus cleared of the censure, which popular opinion sometimes attached to him, of having allowed the enemy to take at leisure an almost impregnable position in the face of his victorious divisions, the more serious question remains, why he should have risked a battle after the enemy had secured an advantage so decisive, and in view of what were now the unequal circumstances of the field. In his official report he has given a partial statement of the reasons which determined him to deliver battle. He says: "'It had not been intended to fight a general battle at such distance from our base, unless attacked by the enemy; but finding ourselves unexpectedly confronted by the Federal army, it became a matter of difficulty to withdraw through the mountains with our large trains. At the same time the country was unfavourable for collecting supplies while in the presence of the enemy's main body, as he was enabled to restrain our foraging parties by occuping the passes of the mountains with regular and local troops. A battle thus became, in a measure, unavoidable. Encouraged by the successful issue of the first day, and in view of 112 GENERAL ROBERT EDWARD LEE. the valuable results which would ensue from the defeat of the army of General Meade, it was thought advisable to renew the attack." The fact is, the difficulties of retreat was an inferiour consideration, in Gen. Lee's mind, to others which he hints in his official word. Those difficulties were not insuperable. Gen. Longstreet was opposed to the risk of attack at Gettysburg, and proposed to manoeuvre Meade out of his position by a march on Frederick, threatening Washington. But the confidence of Gen. Lee in his troops, inspired by the results of the first day, overruled all other considerations; he felt that the temper of his men justified almost any enterprise; he had promised a repetition in Pennsylvania of the victories that had so often crowned their arms in Virginia; and witnessing the enthusiasm of his men, he could not bear to shock their expectations and to abandon his own towering hopes by declining battle, and changing the bold policy of invasion to a campaign of manceuvres. It was the animus and inspiration of the invasion that determined him to attack. In the morning of the 2d July, his line of battle was formed: Ewell occupying the left, A. P. Hill the centre, and Longstreet the right. The battle raged with unexampled fury. Longstreet broke the first part of the enemy's line in his front, and made one of those mortal struggles, rare in war, for the possession of " Round Top "-a steep hill, the key of the enemy's position. The opposing forces were clinched here in close contest. It was, as Longstreet describes it, fighting "' belly to belly." He gained some ground, and once some of his brigades were in temporary possession of the prize, but unable to hold it for want of a timely reinforcement. On the left, Ewell had thrust himself within the breastworks of the enemy, and gained some important positions, but the chief action of the day had been borne by Longstreet's corps and a part of Anderson's division of Hill's corps; and although the force had failed to obtain the coveted prize of " Round Top," it had carried the whole front of the enemy on which Sickles' ill-fated corps had been drawn, and night found the advantage on the side of the Confederates. The next day the fiery drama was resumed at noon. Gen Lee's plan of attack had been previously directed against both flanks of the enemy's position, but he now altered his determina GENERAL ROBERT EDWARD LEE. 113 tion, and resolved to assault Meade's centre, under cover of a heavy fire of artillery. More than 100 guns of the batteries of Longstreet's and Hill's corps opened a simultaneous fire, whilst Ewell's artillery, from the neighbourhood of Gettysburg, played on the slopes of Cemetery Hill. The Federal batteries replied, and for the space of two hours, a cannonade, whose volume had not yet been equalled in the war, thundered in the narrow valley separating the two armies. The Confederate columns of attack were formed on the edge of the woods, Pickett's division to lead the van, with one brigade of Hill's corps, commanded by Wilcox, on his right, and Heth's division under Gen. Pettigrew, on his left. There was an intervening space of near a mile, over not more than one-half of which, the Confederate artillery could protect the devoted troops. As they descended the hill and emerged into the plain, they received the fire of the enemy's artillery; but through shot and shell, Pickett carried his hostile front in compact and magnificent order. With a steady advance that awed the enemy, the Virginia troops came within musketry range. The artillery had ploughed their ranks in vain, and the lines of Federal infantry, with breathless expectation, braced themselves to receive the impact. Buffeting the severe volleys that met it, rushing up the crest of Cemetery Ridge, thrusting itself within the lines of the enemy, the solitary division of Pickett carried the long-contested heights and crowned the stone wall, from which had leaped so many messengers of death, with the battle-flags of the Confederacy. But, under the quick, desperate volleys of the enemy's musketry, and as the last fringe of fire blazed along the stone wall, Pettigrew's division had faltered, and was now in retreat; Wilcox's command had not attacked in time; and Pickett's division remained alone " a solid lance-head of Virginia troops tempered in the fire of battle." It only remained to consult safety where a moment before it had won success, and to withdraw from what were now desperate straits, which might have been the breach of a decisive victory. As the shattered column of Pickett returned to its lines on Seminary Ridge, Gen. Lee saw that the day was lost. HIe had watched the battle from a hill in rear of Gen. Hill's position; and when he witnessed the fatal recoil, he saw at once the necessity of providing against a counter-attack of the enemy, and 8 114 GENERAL ROBERT EDWARD LEE. displaying, in these terrible moments, the confidence and self-possession by which alone he could now hope to save his army. Never was he more sublime, more forgetful of self, more perfect in temper, as in this one hour of great misfortune and terrible danger. Among the throng of disrupted troops he rode quite alone, calm in manner, kind in voice, comforting the wounded, and encouraging the officers dispirited by the reverse. He exclaimed, repeatedly, "It's all my fault!" His presence, his generous words, kindled a new inspiration; the disorder was quickly remedied; /and as successive detachments were formed in the woods, they were quietly brought forward, and placed in positions to resist the attack which all considered imminent. The men were ordered to lie down in the woods, to await the attack. Presently a prolonged cheer arose from the Federal lines. It was thought to be the painful signal of another battle; but it proved to be only the greeting awarded Gen. M3eade, as he rode along the lines, in full sense and satisfaction of the victory he had won. The 4th of July, heretofore the most joyful and proudest of American anniversaries, was spent in burying the thousands of dead that strewed an arena of civil war, and cursed with fraternal slaughter what had once been a valley of beautiful and supreme peace. More than 16,000 killed and wounded Federals had fallen on that field. On the CQnfederate side, the casualties were scarcely less, while their loss in prisoners was considerably greater than that of the enemy. Gen. Lee, so far from being in a condition to renew the conflict, was at the extremity of fear for the safety of his army; his ammunition was nearly exhausted, and the Potomac was reported to be rising, from recent freshets, so as to cut off his chances of retreat. In the night of the 5th July, he commenced his fearful retreat, compelled to leave many of his wounded behind; and by daylight his rear column had left Gettysburg, without interruption from the enemy. On reaching the Potomac he found, as he had feared, his retreat barred by the rise of the river; and until the 12th July, his desperate army remained in line of battle at Williamsport. But the timidity of the enemy, which appeared to be consequent on all his victories, or rather that weak characteristic fear of a mediocre commander, which fears to spoil kclat already won, by the possibility of a reverse, and stops half-way in success, saved Gen. Lee from the fearful trial of another battle; and, eventually, GENERAL ROBERT EDWARD LEE. 115 in face of the hesitating Federals, his pontoon bridges being completed, he crossed the river, was again in Virginia, and by leisurely movements succeeded in planting his suffering and diminished army on the banks of the Rapidan. His scheme of invasion had been baulked and brought to naught; he had sustained a severe defeat; but he had reason to congratulate himself that he had extricated his army, which the whole Northern public had waited to hear would be cut off by Meade, as the crowning prize of his campaign. "The fruit seemed so ripe, so ready for plucking," said President Lincoln, "that it was very hard to lose it." 116 GENERAL ROBERT EDWARD LEE. CHAPTER IX. Decline of the fortunes of the Confederacy.-Operations in the autumn of 1863.Gen. Lee's patriotic exhortation to his troops.-His great care for them.-Meeting of the chaplains in his army.-TRelations between General Lee and his troops.His habits on the battle-field.-Intercourse with his men.-Simplicity of his manners.-His feelings towards the public enemy. —How he rebuked a Tankee-phobist. —Sufferings of the Confederate troops.-Commissary Northrop. —General Lee demands food for his troops. —Touching address to his half-starved men. —Anecdote of Gen. Lee and his cook.-Personal recollections of the great commander. -An English officer's description of his person and habits. TEE recoil at Gettysburg marked a period when the Southern fortunes commenced to decline, and on its disastrous field was buried much of the former prestige of the Army of Northern Virginia. But the army had saved itself and its honour, if it had not done all that popular admiration had predicted for it; and it obtained at least the advantage of several months' repose. It was not in motion again until October, and the remainder of the year was consumed by a campaign of manoeuvres, which, as it was generally without result, we need not give in detail here. An attempted flank march on Centreville, by which Gen. Lee aimed to get between Meade and Washington, was anticipated by the enemy, and proved a failure; and in the month of November the enemy appeared to make a retaliatory signal of attack, advancing, and crossing the Rapidan at several points. - Gen. Lee, noticing the movement, issued the following general order, in which his patriotic exhortation and appeal to the army were expressed in words of more than usual urgency and power: "The enemy is again advancing upon our capital, and the country once more looks to this army for its protection. Under the blessings of God, your valour has repelled every previous attempt, and, invoking the continuance of His favour, we cheerfully commit to Him the issue of the coming contest. " A cruel enemy seeks to reduce our fathers and our mothers, our wives and our children, to abject slavery; to strip them of GENERAL ROBERT EDWARD LEE. 117 their property, and drive them from their homes. Upon you these helpless ones rely to avert these terrible calamities, and to secure to them the blessings of liberty and safety. Your past history gives them the assurance that their trust will not be in vain. Let every man remember that all he holds dear depends upon the faithful discharge of his duty, and resolve to fight, and if need be to die, in defence of a cause so sacred and worthy the name won by this army on so many bloody fields." But the expected battle did not occur; Meade's plan of action came to an abortive issue, and, in a few days, he withdrew across the Rapidan, and resumed his old camps. Both armies went into winter-quarters; and Gen. Lee, who was always busy in the intervals of action in recruiting and improving his army, again addressed himself to the usual tasks of winter, providing for the comfort of his men, and corresponding with the War Department at Richmond on the many needs of the military service. It is interesting to observe how the religious interests of his men were attended to by a commander who appears to have taken into his heart every comfort and care of the soldiers he commanded, and to have omitted nothing from his scheme of welfare. In November, all the chaplains of Gen. Lee's army held a meeting or convention in the camps on the Rapidan, to invoke the God of Battles, and to consult about their spiritual cares. Most interesting reports were made, showing a high state of religious feeling throughout the army. At a later day, in his winter-quarters, Gen. Lee appointed a day of "fasting, humiliation, and prayer;" requiring military duties to be suspended, and desiring the chaplains to hold divine service in their regiments and brigades. A: correspondent of the Richmond Dispatch said: " The great success of Gen. Lee's army is due to the religious element which reaches every corner of it; whilst, on the other hand, I am very much disposed to fear, from what I have been told by officers who have served in the Army of Tennessee, that the lack of success of that army is due, in a large measure, to the want of religious influ — ence upon the troops." The task of reorganizing and inspiriting his army, after the most arduous campaigns, was one in which Gen. Lee was more successful than any other Confederate commander. And while engaged in this work, preparatory to the great spring campaign of 118 GENERAL ROBERT EDWARD LEE. 1864, it will be convenient for us to pause here to make some estimate of the commander for which the accounts of so many battles already fought will prepare the reader, and to explain those relations to his army in which he was so fortunate and powerful. A great element of Gen. Lee's popularity in his army was his exceeding, almost paternal, care for his men. It is a remarkable circumstance that he never harangued his troops on a battle-field; he employed but little of rhetoric, and was innocent of theatrical machinery in maintaining the resolution and spirit of his army. He was never a conspicuous figure in the field of battle. His habit was to consult the plan of battle thoroughly; assign to each corps commander his precise work, and leave the active conduct of the field to his lieutenant-generals, unless in some case of critical emergency. He but seldom gave an order on the field of battle. It is indeed remarkable that with such little display of his person, and with a habit bordering on taciturnity, Gen. Lee should have obtained such control over the affections of men whom he tried not only by constant battle but by tests of hardship, privation and suffering, and by a measure of general endurance such as has not been applied to any army of modern times. But his intercourse with his army was peculiar. He mingled with the troops on every proper occasion; he spoke a few simple words here and there to the wounded and distressed soldier; and his kindliness of manner was so unaffected that it at once gained the confidence and touched the heart. Iie had a rare gift, which many persons copy or affect, but which can never be perfectly possessed unless by a great man and a true gentleman-a voice whose tones of politeness never varied, whether uttered to the highest or lowest in rank. His men not only felt a supreme confidence in his judgment as a commander, but they were conscious everywhere of his sympathy with their sufferings, and his attention to their wants; and they therefore accepted every sacrifice and trial as inevitable necessity imposed upon them by a paternal hand. In those long and weary marches which try the patience of the soldier, he would not allow the men to be hurried without necessity, gave them sufficient opportunities for rest and refreshment, and would inquire among them at the end of the day how they had stood the march, and receive any suggestions for making that of the next day less irksome. When the march was necessarily a hard one, it GENERAL ROBERT EDWARD LEE. 119 was his custom to send back couriers, when the point aimed at was near at hand, to encourage his weary men with the intelligence. The habits of Gen. Lee was those of a thorough soldier, and all that men can require in the assurance that their commander shares with them the hardships of war. On a march, when camping out, he did not, as some of his brigade commanders did, select the finest dwelling-house in the neighbourhood of his camp, and insist upon the occupant entertaining himself and staff. It was only when he had established headquarters at a place where he was likely to remain some time, that he sought the protection of a house. He dressed without unnecessary display of his rank; he endured the commonest hardships without the affectation that calls attention to them; and in the sincere simplicity of his manners he afforded an example how readily even the much-abused populace will distinguish between the arts of the demagogue and the virtues of the man. In all his official intercourse and private conversation Gen. Lee never breathed a vindictive sentiment towards the enemy who so severely taxed his resources and ingenuity, and put against him so many advantages in superiour means and numbers. IIe had none of that Yankee-phobia common in the Southern army; he spoke of the Northern people without malevolence, and in a style that deprecated their political delusions rather than denounced their crimes; and he generally referred to the enemy in quiet and indifferent words, quite in contrast to the epithets and anathemas which were popularly showered on " the Yankees." On one occasion, a spectator describes him riding up to the Rockbridge Artillery, which was fiercely engaging the enemy, and greeting his son Robert, who as a private soldier was bravely working one of the guns. "How d'ye do, father?" was all that Robert had to say as he continued his duty at his gun; and Gen. Lee replied quietly: "That's right, my son; drive those people back."* At another time, * Gen. Lee had three sons, all of whom did hard and noble service in the Confederate army. Brig.-Gen. G. W. Custis Lee, was for some time aide-de-camp to the President, and held part of the Richmond defences; Maj.-Gen. W. H. F. Lee commanded a division of cavalry in the Army of Northerh Virginia: and Robert Edward Lee, to whom we have referred as a private in the Rockbridge Artillery, was afterwards on the staff of Gen. Fitzhugh Lee, a son of Commodore Lee, and nephew of the great commander. 120 GENERAL ROBERT EDWARD LEE. in sight of the enemy on the Rapidan, Gen. Lee was standing near his lines, conversing with two of his officers, one of whom was known to be not only a hard fighter and a hard swearer, but a cordial hater of the Yankees. After a silence of some moments, the latter officer, looking at the Yankees with a dark scowl on his face, exclaimed most emphatically, " I wish they were all dead." Gen. Lee, with the grace and manner peculiar to himself, replied, "How can you say so, General! Now I wish they were all at home, attending to their own business, and leaving us to do the same." He then moved off, when the first speaker waiting until he was out of earshot, turned to his companion, and in the most earnest tone said, "I would not say so before Gen. Lee, but I wish they were all dead and in hell!" When this " amendment " to the wish was afterwards repeated to Gen. Lee, in spite of his goodness and customary reproof of profanity, he could not refrain from laughing heartily at the speech, which was so characteristic of one of his favourite officers. The greatest suffering of Confederate troops was in the article of food; and on this subject Gen. Lee exhibited especial care, and exhausted every possible appeal to the proper authorities. He was constantly writing to Richmond of the deficiency of food in his army; he experienced here the greatest difficulty of his campaigns; and he appears never to have convinced the dull brain of the government, of the vital importance of a concern which lacerated his sensibilities, weighed down his energies, depleted the army by "absenteeism," and contributed largely to the final catastrophe of his arms. In the first winter of his campaign in Northern Virginia, he recommended that an appeal should be made to the people to bring food to the army, to feed their sons and brothers. But the plan was overruled by Commissary Northrop, who put on it a curt and impertinent indorsement, that as he had no acquaintance with that means of maintaining an army (the patriotic contributions of the people), he could not recommend the adoption of Gen. Lee's suggestion. In the spring of 1863, Gen. Lee appears to have been more deeply concerned in this matter, and wrote a remarkable letter to the government at Richmond. He stated that his men had each, daily, but a quarter-pound of meat, and sixteen ounces of flour; they had, besides, one pound of rice to every ten men, two or three times a week; and he plainly declared that such GENERAL ROBERT EDWARD LEE. 121 rations might sustain life in his men, but if they were expected to keep the field, they must have more generous food. But this was only the beginning of trials and sufferings which culminated in later periods of the war, when, for days, Lee's army was entirely without meat, and the supply of bread, even, was in danger. That these deficiences were the result of culpable neglect in Richmond, appears to have been the persistent opinion of Gen. Lee, as there is a letter from him as late as December, 1864, declaring his judgment that, even then, there were supplies enough in the country, if the proper means were used to procure them. There is no more noble and touching appeal to his army than that made by Gen. Lee in the bitter winter that preceded the mighty campaign of 1864 in Virginia, when the destitute and halfstarved troops found themselves in almost the last extremity of suffering. In this dark period, he issued the following proclamation, expressive of proud congratulation and noble encouragement: HEADQUARTERS ARMY OF NORTHERN VIRGINIA, January 22, 1864. The Commanding General considers it due to the army to state that the temporary reduction of rations has been caused by circumstances beyond the control of those charged with its support. Its welfare and comfort are the objects of his constant and earnest solicitude, and no effort has been spared to provide for its wants. It is hoped that the exertions now being made will render the necessity but of short duration; but the history of the army has shown that the country can require no sacrifice too great for its patriotic devotion. Soldiers! you tread, with no unequal steps, the road by which your fathers marched through suffering, privation, and blood, to independence. Continue to emulate in the future, as you have in the past, their valour in arms, their patient endurance of hardships, their high resolve to be free; which no trial could shake, no bribe seduce, no danger appall; and be assured that the just God who crowned their efforts with success, will, in His own good time, send down His blessings upon yours. R. E. LEE, General. In the article of food, as in other things, Gen. Lee appears to 122 GENERAL ROBERT EDWARD LEE. have uniformly shared the distress of his men, and to have claimed for headquarters no exemption from the common lot of the army. His scanty meals were the occasions of some thoughtless jokes, and many comic anecdotes. In his tent, meat was eaten but twice a week. His ordinary dinner consisted of a head of cabbage, boiled in salt water, and a pone of corn bread. The story is jocosely told that on one occasion, a number of gentlemen having appointed to dine with him, he had ordered his servant to provide a repast of cabbage and middling. A very small bit of middling garnished the dish; so small that the polite guests all declined middling, and it remained on the dish when they rose from the table. Next day, the General, remembering the untouched meat, ordered his servant to bring "that middling." The man hesitated, scratched his head, and finally said: "De fac is, mass'r Robert, dat ar middlin' was borrid middlin,' and I done giv it back to de man whar I got it from." Gen. Lee never allowed familiarity; but he was of that dignity that rather disarmed than repulsed it. Yet to those immediately around him he often spoke in a simple, playful speech, that was quite charming. An aide relates of him, that just before the battle of Chancellorsville, when the army was alert for action, he entered Gen. Lee's tent with a hurried message that the enemy was supposed to be crossing the river about Fredericksburg. Gen. Lee replied: " Well, I heard firing, and I was beginning to think it was time some of you lazy young fellows were coming to tell me what it was all about. Say to Gen. Jackson that he knows just as well what to do with the enemy as I do." When Jackson was prostrated with his wound that unexpectedly proved mortal, Gen. Lee sent him a number of kindly messages in his peculiarly simple and affectionate words. "Give him," he said in his half-playful and tender manner, " my affectionate regards, and tell him to make haste and get well, and come back to me as soon as he can. He has lost his left arm, but I have lost'my right arm." At another time, hearing of the threatening change in the condition of the sufferer, he said with great feeling: "Surely Gen. Jackson must recover. God will not take him from us, now that we need him so much. Surely he will be spared to us, in answer to the many prayers which are offered for him." He afterwards added: " When you return, I trust you will find him better. When a, GENERAL ROBERT EDWARD LEE. 123 suitable occasion offers, give him my love, and tell him that I wrestled in prayer for him last night, as I never prayed, I believe, for myself." We have already referred to Gen. Lee's noble and collected behaviour on the field of Gettysburg. An English colonel, who observed him closely on that momentous occasion, has made such a characteristic relation, that every one will recognize in it the manner and words of Gen. Lee, especially his simple and unaffected way of talking to his men. This writer says: "I joined Gen. Lee, who had, in the meanwhile, come to the front on becoming aware of the disaster. Gen. Lee was perfectly sublime. He was engaged in rallying and encouraging the broken troops, and was riding about, a little in front of the wood, quite alone-the whole of his staff being engaged in a similar manner further to the rear. His face, which is always placid and cheerful, did not show signs of the slightest disappointment, care, or annoyance, and he was addressing to every soldier he met a few words of encouragement, such as,'All this will come right in the end; we'll talk it over afterwards; but, in the meantime, all good men must rally. We want all good and true men just now,' etc. tHe spoke to all the wounded men that passed him, and the slightly wounded he exhorted to'bind up their hurts and take up a musket' in this emergency. Very few failed to answer his appeal, and I saw many badly wounded men take off their hats and cheer him. "' There was a man lying flat on his face, in a small ditch, groaning dismally; Gen. Lee's attention was drawn to him, and he at once appealed to the man's patriotism to arouse himself, but finding such to be of no avail, he had him ignominiously set on his legs, by some neighbouring gunners. " Gen. Wilcox now came up to him, and, in very depressed tones of annoyance and vexation, explained the state of his brigade. But Gen. Lee immediately shook hands with him, and said, in a cheerful manner,'Never mind, General. All this has been my fault. It is I that have lost this fight, and you must help me out of it the best way you can.' In this mannner did Gen. Lee, wholly ignoring self and position, encourage and reanimate his somewhat dispirited troops, and magnanimously take upon his own shoulders the whole weight of the repulse. It was impossible to look at him, or to listen to him, without feeling the strongest 124 GENERAL ROBERT EDWARD LEE. admiration, and I never saw any man fail him, except the man in the ditch." The same writer (Col. Fremantle) has made the following description of the person and habits of the great and beloved Confederate commander: " Gen. Lee is, almost without exception, the handsomest man of his age I ever saw. IIe is tall, broadshouldered, very well made, well set up-a thorough soldier in appearance-and his manners are most courteous, and full of dignity. He is a perfect gentleman in every respect. I imagine no man has so few enemies, or is so universally esteemed. Throughout the South all agree in pronouncing him as near perfection as a man can be. HIe has none of the small vices, such as smoking, drinking, chewing, or swearing; and his bitterest enemy never accused him of any of the greater ones. He generally wears a well-worn, long, gray jacket, a high, black felt hat, and blue trowsers, tucked into his Wellington boots. I never saw him carry arms; and the only marks of his military rank are the three stars on his collar. He rides a handsome horse, which is extremely well groomed. He himself is very neat in his dress and person; and in the most arduous marches he always looks smart and clean." GENERAL ROBERT EDWARD LEE. 125 CHAPTER X. Opening of the great campaign of 1864.-Precise account of Gen. Lee's plans.-He acts with his accustomed boldness, and takes the offensive.-Actions of the 5th and 6th May.-General Lee determines to lead a critical assault.-Protest of the soldiers.-Grant resorts to manoeuvre.-Spottsylvania Court-House.-General Lee again in the extreme front of his men.-A thrilling spectacle.-Heroic action of Gordon. —" Gen. Lee to the rear! "-Account of the strategy from Spottsylvania Court-House to the vicinity of Richmond.-Grant on the old battle-field of McClellan. —Iis army defeated in ten minutes at Cold Harbour. —His losses in one month exceed Lee's whole army.-Precise statement of the odds against Gen. Lee.-Reflections on the nature and degrees of generalship.-Comparison of the two rival commanders of the North and South. THE most terrible campaign that had yet happened in Virginia took place when the Federal army, numbering from one hundred and fifty to two hundred thousand men, under U. S. Grant, now acclaimed the hero of the North, and the little army of Lee, consisting of not one-third of that number, of all arms, with diminished strength, but unabashed front, came into the grand collision of the war, and upstarting in the days of spring, faced each other on the lines of the Rapidan. At midnight of the 3d May, 1864, Grant commenced his advance in two columns, crossing the river at Germanna and Ely's Fords, and designing a turning movement on the right flank of the Confederate line. The passage of the Rapidan was not disputed by Lee. His army was positioned in echelon from the river to Gordonsville-the corps of Longstreet being near the latter place, that of Hill in the vicinity of Orange Court-House, and that of Ewell stretching thence towards the Rapidan, in the direction of Raccoon Ford-and he immediately determined on a rapid concentration of his forces so as to give battle before the enemy emerged from the Wilderness, thus taking the offensive where Grant had expected him to fall back. The movement was characteristic of Gen. Lee, and displayed his accustomed boldness in seizing the opportunity of attack; there was no hesitation when he found his flank turned, 126 GENERAL ROBERT EDWARD LEE. no thought of retreat; but an instant determination to make a rapid change of front, and fall upon the enemy before he should have time, by a march beyond the Wilderness, to lay hold of the Confederate communications with Richmond. Such was the theory of the battle. In the morning of the 5th May, Ewell's corps, moving by the old turnpike, and Hill's by the plank-road, were in close proximity to the enemy's line of march. The action commenced by Ewell's advance, consisting of Johnson's division, making an impetuous attack on the enemy on the turnpike; it was momentarily repulsed; but joined by Ewell's other divisions, it resumed the offensive, broke WVarren's corps, and gave a severe shock to the enemy's column, entailing upon it a loss of above 3,000 men. Later in the day the enemy concentrated against Hill, who, with his own and Wilcox's divisions, successfully resisted the repeated and desperate assaults, which continued until eight o'clock in the night. Satisfied with the work of the day, Gen. Lee did not press his advantage, and awaited during the night the arrival of Longstreet's corps, which had to march from Gordonsville-forty milesto the scene of battle. It was appointed that Longstreet, on his arrival, should come upon the right flank of Hill's corps; but before he got into position, the enemy renewed his heaviest attack on that part of the line, and for a time carried away the whole hostile front, throwing Hill's division into confusion, and driving them back more than a mile. It appeared that the enemy was about to snatch a great victory; but, at the height of Hill's confused retreat, the head of Longstreet's division came upon the ground. There was now a pause on the enemy's side; a rehabilitation of the Confederate line, and then again, with a new breadth and weight, the tattle was restored. But in the fury of the onset, which drove Hancock's corps back, and while Longstreet prepared for a decisive blow on his flank, he fell severely wounded, as he rode forward in front of his column, from a musketry fire of his own flanking force. The attack was stayed; Gen. Lee arrived to take charge of this critical part of the field, but precious time was obtained by Hancock to thoroughly reistablish his position, now strengthened by fresh troops sent to him. It was not until four o'clock in the afternoon that any new demonstration was made on the part of the Confederates. About GENERAL ROBERT EDWARD LEE. 127 that time, Gen. Lee, having got well in hand the troops of Longstreet and Hill, prepared to make a desperate assault upon the enemy's intrenched position, where Hancock had taken refuge under the pressure of the former attack. At this anxious moment he expressed a determination to lead the assault himself; but as he moved forward to take his place at the head of the troops, an anxious murmur ran along the lines, and grim and ragged soldiers refused to advance unless their beloved commander retired to a place of safety. The protest was one of touching solicitude; the troops would not move while their commander was in the advance, but with shouts declared that they were ready to drive the enemy, and only waited for the word of command. It was given, and nobly did the men redeem the promise by which they had urged Gen. Lee's withdrawal from the post of danger. Within less than a hundred yards of the enemy's breastwork of logs, they delivered their fire, got temporary possession of the intrenchments, and only retired a little space under the heat and smoke of a conflagration which had sprung up in the woods, and was now communicated to the logs behind which the enemy had fought. This closed the main action of the day. But on the Confederate left, about dark, Ewell gained the last success, moving a force around the right flank of the wing held by a portion of the Sixth corps, driving the enemy in confusion through the forest, and capturing Brig.-Gens. Seymour and Shaler, and the greater part of their commands. The next day (7th May) the Confederates were found standing at bay behind their intrenchments; and Grant, now despairing, after two days of bloody battle, of finishing his adversary by the application of brute masses in rapid and remorseless blows, i.e., " hammering continuously," determined to resort to manceuvre, and to plant himself between Lee's army and Richmond, by a movement upon Spottsylvania Court-House. When darkness came he began his march to this new trial of fortune. Although in the battles of the Wilderness Lee had not obtained a positive victory, yet the result was a grievous disappointment to Grant, who had hoped to destroy his antagonist, and who, coming to the command of the Army of the Potomac with the declared opinion that it had never fought its successes out, had expected at one blow of his immensely superiour numbers, and without the aid of strategy, to 128 GENERAL ROBERT EDWARD LEE. accomplish his work, and clear the road to Richmond. Disillusionized by the bloody experience of two days, he was now content to essay a new route, to attempt a strategic operation, and yet, in the end, to repeat the dreadful experiment of the application of brute masses and the competitive destruction of human life in the decision of the contest. At Spottsylvania Court-House he found Lee ready to receive him and his entire army, right across the path by which he must march to get to Richmond. It was the repetition of the slaughter of the Wilderness. Of the battle which took place here, and its monument of carnage, the Richmond Examiner had the following account: " Grant attempted no manceuvre; he relied on main strength; bringing up his ten lines at a run, each one close behind another, and dashing them like the waves of the sea against the rocks, on the breastworks of the South. By these tactics, either a perfect victory is won, or an attacking army is lost. The first rush was successful on one point. The enemy broke through the blaze of the living volcano upon Johnson's men, leaped the works, took 2,000 men and 10 guns. But reserves were ready, and a charge of greater fury than their own drove them out in brief time. On all other parts of the line they were entirely unsuccessful; they were utterly repulsed with scarcely any loss to the Confederates, who fired with the advantages of rest, aim, and cover, but with a slaughter of the foe which is represented by universal testimony to have been the most terrible of modern warfare. "The Confederate loss, killed, wounded, and missing, in all these battles, beginning with the Wilderness, and including that at Spottsylvania Court-House, was under 15,000. The Washington Chronicle, the organ of Lincoln, that sees all these things in the rose's colour, announces the depletion of Grant's army, by the battle of the Wilderness and'other causes,' to have been on Tuesday evening ascertained at 35,000. To this awful figure must now be added the two days of unsuccessful assault on the breastworks of Spottsylvania-assault without manceuvre, full in front, with deep columns, each forcing the other on the muzzle of the guns. "There are butchers of humanity, to whom the sight of their fellow-creatures' blood affords an intoxicating pleasure. They are indifferent whose blood it is, so it does not come from their veins. GENERAL ROBERT EDWARD LEE. 129 And Grant is one of those charming individuals. Ilis government and his Generals will not baulk him in the present instance. A large part of the army now in his hands is composed of the regiments enlisted for three years, and their time expires in this coming summer. They have resisted every inducement to re-enlist, and have formally notified the Secretary of War that they will obey orders so long as they are legally given, but no longer. The government is entirely willing that Grant should save it the trouble and mortification of giving the discharge to these veterans. He will use them, and he is using them." At one time in the terrible contest of Spottsylvania, it seemed that the fate of Lee's army hung in the balance-the time when the enemy had taken a salient of the works and overrun Johnson's division, when Hancock sent to Grant his laconic dispatch: "I have finished Johnson, and am going into Early" (meaning A. P. HIill's corps, then commanded by Gen. Early). It was at this time that the quick and impetuous Gordon, commanding two brigades, Evans' Georgians and Pegram's Virginians, saw his opportunity and determined to check the enemy. His brigades were too short to extend across the front of attack; but he had determined to make a counter-charge, and by sheer audacity stem the current of the battle. At this fearful moment, when the men waiting the word of command could hear the pulses in their hearts, Gen. Lee himself was suddenly seen to ride out in front of the line, as if to lead the desperate charge. IIe took a position near the colours of the Fifty-ninth Virginia regiment. Not a word did he say. IIe simply took off his hat, as he reined up his gray charger. It was a spectacle that thrilled the senses of the men. But at this moment Gordon spurred his foaming horse to the front, seized the bridle-rein in the hand of his Commanding General, and exclaimed with passionate anxiety: "Gen. Lee, this is no place for you: go to the rear. These are Virginians and Georgians, sir-men who have never failed. Mlen, you will not fail now! " Loud cries of "No, no! Gen. Lee to the rear! Gen. Lee to the rear! " burst along the line. As his horse was guided a little way to the rear, his speaking eyes yet turned upon the men who carried upon their arms the trembling issues of the day, the command, "Forward! Charge!"" rang out, and -well did Gordon's brave troops redeem their promise; rushing through bush and swamp, coming so suddenly on the first 9 130 GENERAL ROBERT EDWARD LEE. line of Federals that they shouted "' Surrender! " to men motionless with surprise, the next moment scattering them like straw, pressing forward, driving everything before them, and following the enemy half a mile within his lines. If the charge did not terminate the day, if again the enemy rallied to the attack, yet it was the most powerful and dramatic incident of the field, and restored the spirit of the Confederate army, and recovered its position just as it had been pushed to the verge of a great disaster. The Confederate lines at Spottsylvania were but slightly broken, and stood firm at the close of the day. Although Grant had taken the field with triple Lee's numbers, he found it necessary to call for reinforcements. Out-generalled, beat, he was now detained a whole week by Lee's little army, waiting for fresh troops from TWashington. Resolved at first to carry the Confederate positions by direct attack, he was willing at last to resort to manceuvre. That manceuvre would have been easy enough in the first instance, if Grant had not been in love with the " hammering process," and deliberately and criminally reckless of the lives of his men. On the 21st Mlay, he commenced a movement to the North Anna River, resolved by a turning operation to disengage Lee from a position he now declared to be unassailable. But Lee had already taken up a position here before Grant reached his new destination, and again confronted him on the path to Richmond. lere the Federal commander, defeated in the game of war, took up a new line of advance, and headed his army eastward and southward, to cross the Pamunkey River. But it was only again to encounter the Confederate force ready to accept the gage of battle. The whole strategy from Spottsylvania to the neighbourhood of Richmond, was simply a series of movements in which each of Grant's turning movements was met by a corresponding retrograde on the part of Lee, and at each stage of operations the two armies stood constantly face to face. It was thus at last that Grant found himself on the old battlefields of McClellan (which he might have reached by the Peninsular route without loss or opposition); found Lee confronting him, covering the approaches to the Chickahominy; found the cost of another great battle demanded to decide the experiment of securing the prize of the Confederate capital by an action in the field. The ground occupied by Gen. Lee, in the vicinity of Cold Harbour, was the same as that on which McClellan had sustained his GENERAL ROBERT EDWARD LEE. 131 most decisive defeat in the battles of 1862 around Richmond; while the Federal army held about the same position to which the Confederates had been pushed out in the attempt to dislodge McClellan. In view of the relative situations of the two combatants thus reversed, it will be interesting to compare the results of the first and of the second battle of Cold Harbour. In the position which McClellan had failed to hold, Lee's army gained in ten minutes one of the most decisive victories of the war! In the first gray light of the morning of the 3d June Grant advanced in full line of battle; but one corps (Hancock) came in contact with the Confederate works; it was immediately repulsed most disastrously; while other parts of the enemy's line staggered before they had got beyond their rifle-pits. It was the most shameful spectacle the enemy had ever exhibited; more shameful than the drama of Bull Run-an entire army beat in ten minutes, standing stock-still in fear, its palsied commanders in vain issuing orders to advance, absolutely without power to move the demoralized and terrour-stricken mass. Mr. Swinton, the Northern historiographer of the Army of the Potomac, says: —" The action was decided in an incredibly brief time in the morning's assault. But, rapidly as the result was reached, it was decisive; for the consciousness of every man pronounced further assault hopeless. The troops went forward as far as the example of their officers could carry them; nor was it possible to urge them beyond; for there they knew lay only death, without even the chance of victory. The completeness with which this judgment had been reached by the whole army was strikingly illustrated by an incident that occurred during the forenoon. Some hours after the failure of the first assault, Gen. Meade sent instructions to each corps-commander to renew the attack without reference to the troops on his right or left. The order was issued through these officers to their subordinate commanders, and from them descended through the wonted channels; but no man stirred, and the immobile lines pronounced a verdict, silent, yet emphatic, against further slaughter. The loss on the Union side in this sanguinary action was over thirteen thousand, while on the part of the Confederates it is doubtful whether it reached that many hundreds." It is said that Grant rode from the field slow and serious, and with a cast of deep thought on his face. He had probably in the brief space of time decided that the experiment of taking Rich 132 GENERAL ROBERT EDWARD LEE. meond by assault was at an end, and that nothing was left for him but the slow results of siege-operations, wherein he would have to demand a new lease of Northern patience, which he had abused by promises to destroy Lee and to eat a patriotic dinner in Richmond on the Fourth of July. He had sacrificed in the experiment thus concluded more men than there were in Lee's whole army; in one pregnant month of operations he had lost more than sixty thousand men; while Lee had lost in the same time, as reported by his Adjutant-General, about eighteen thousand men, covered probably by the reinforcements of Beauregard, etc, and had conducted his army with such skill, constantly thrusting it between Grant and Richmond, that its morale was never better than after the battle of Cold Harbour. A review of this remarkable one month's campaign in Virginia, so glorious to Lee, illustrates the difference between the mediocre commander and the master of the art of war, and is a striking commentary on the fruitful topic of skill against numbers. Gen. Lee was not reinforced by a single musket upon the battles of the Wilderness and Spottsylvania Court-House, and had no resource at hand from which to repair the terrible losses sustained on those bloody fields. It was not until he arrived at IHanover Junction that he received any addition to his thinned ranks; and here he was joined by Pickett's division of Longstreet's corps, and Breckinridge, with two small brigades of infantry, and a battalion of artillery. These, with HIoke's brigade, were the first and only reinforcements received by Gen. Lee since the opening of the campaign. He had commenced the campaign with not more than 50,000 effective men of all arms. The report of the Federal Secretary of War shows that the "available force present for duty, May 1, 1864," in Grant's army, was 141,166, to wit: In the Army of the Potomac 120,386, and in the Ninth corps 20,780. The draft in the United States was being energetically enforced, and volunteering had been greatly stimulated by high bounties. The Northwestern States had tendered large bodies of troops to serve one hundred days, in order to relieve other troops on garrison and local duty, and this enabled Grant to put in the field a large number of troops which had been employed on that kind of duty. It was known that he was receiving heavy reinforcements up to the very time of his movement on the 4th May, and after GENERAL ROBERT EDWARD LEE. 133 wards; so that the statement of his force on the 1st May, by Stanton, does not cover the whole force with which he commenced the campaign. Moreover, Secretary Stanton's report shows that there were, in the Department of Washington and the TMiddle Department, 47,751 available men for duty, the chief part of which, he says, was called to the front after the campaign began, " in order to repair the losses of the Army of the Potomac;" and Grant says that, at Spottsylvania Court-House, "the 13th, 14th, 15th, 16th, 17th, and 18th May, were consumed in manceuvring and awaiting the arrival of reinforcements from Washington." His army, therefore, must have numbered very nearly, if not quite, 200,000 men, before a junction was effected with Butler. To a review of the odds and difficulties against which Gen. Lee had to contend, and to the comparisons suggested by the operations from the Rapidan to the Chickahominy, there is a view so apposite in the work of a recent military writer,* that we transcribe it here as a just conclusion of what may be said of this campaign, and the two rival commanders of the North and South: "Skill in arms is the equivalent of thousands of good troops, and may again succeed, as it has so often succeeded before, in gaining, against odds, victories which fix the fate of nations. Let us imagine that an army in the field is commanded by a General who has fought his way upward from grade to grade, who is valiant, devoted, and practised in war. He is versed in all routine duties, knows the uses and capabilities of the different arms, can choose and occupy a position, make the dispositions for the march of his columns, stubbornly cover a retreat, and save his army even after a heavy disaster. But not having a mind capable of comprehensive views or of deep study, he knows nothing of great combinations. Strategy, in the sense of a flexible science to be adapted to circumstances, is a sealed book to him; the theatre of war is written in a cipher to which he has not the key; he can deal with accidents of the country, when they present themselves, as something to be immediately attacked or defended, but they suggest no large problems by the solution of which a few marches decide a campaign. Cautious, from not knowing when he may venture to be bold, and rash from ignorance of what may be attempted * Col. Hamley: Operations of War. 134 GENERAL ROBERT EDWARD LEE. against him, he spoils his offensive movements by hesitation, defends himself by makeshifts, and only half understands his own blunders when they have ruined his army. This is no unfair picture of what has often passed muster in the world as a respectable leader to be intrusted with the fate of hosts. It would do injustice to some of Napoleon's most celebrated marshals. Such a one will probably acquit himself with credit so long as he is opposed by no qualities superiour to his own. " But let us imagine that a General of a different stamp enters the field-one who has been taught by study and thought, not merely what has been done in war, and how to conform to respectable precedent (although that may be much), but how to meet new circumstances with new combinations. He has mastered the problems of strategy, and can read the theatre of war. He knows not only how to draw from a situation all its inherent advantages, but how to produce the situation. Thus when a great opportunity arrives he is the less likely to lose it, because it is of his own making; he seizes it unhesitatingly, because he has confidence in his own knowledge of the game; and in darkness and difficulty his step is assured, because he is familiar with the ground he moves on. When such opponents are matched we have the conditions of startling, brilliant, decisive success in war." GENERAL ROBERT EDWARD LEE. 135 CHAPTER XI. General Lee's private opinion of the defences of Richmond.-A serious communication to the Government, and how it was treated.-Vagaries of President Davis.-Gen. Lee decides that the safety of Richmond lies in raising the siege-Expedition of Early across the Potomac.-Anxiety of Gen. Lee.-He meditates taking command of the force in Maryland.-Retreat of Early.-Gen. Lee next proposes a diversion in the Valley of Virginia.-Failure of this operation.-Constant extension of Grant's left around Richmond.-Period of despondency in the South. —A letter of Gen. Lee on the question of supplies.-He proposes bringing in two or three years' supplies from Europe.-Desertion the great evil in the Confederate armies.-Difficulties of dealing with it.-Various letters and protests from Gen. Lee on the subject of discipline.-An angry comment of President Davis.-Gen. Lee a severe disciplinarian, and yet loved by his men.-Anecedote of the General and a onearmed soldier.-Skeleton returns of the army.-The popular clamour against President Davis.-Gen. Lee's quasi acceptance of the position of Commander-in-chief. Nature and peculiar history of this rank in the Confederate armies.-Hopeful views of Gen. Lee.-Project of arming the negroes.-Growth of new hopes for the Confederacy. ALTHOUGH Gen. Lee had fought, in most respects, a successful campaign, and in all respects a glorious one, he feared now that the safety of Richmond was to be put to a test which he had been long persuaded it could not withstand. As long as the enemy chose to " hammer" on his lines, he had nothing to fear; but the anxiety was that Grant might proceed to envelop the city as far as possible, without attacking fortifications; might turn his attention to the railroads on the south side, and trusting to the slow operations of taking one by one Lee's communications, and wearing out his little army, assure himself of a result which he had not been able to obtain by an action in the field. It was not long before Grant's operations against Richmond developed the very designs which Gen. Lee had suspected and feared; the bulk of the Federal army being transferred to the south side of the James, and after an abortive attempt to take Petersburg, turning its attention to the railroad lines which fed Richmond, and were, indeed, of vital concern to the army which defended it. 136 GENERAL ROBERT EDWARD LEE. It is not necessary to detail these operations further than to explain the ideas which governed Gen. Lee in his radical change of the defence of the capital from a distant line to one immediately covering Richmond and its outpost in Petersburg. WVhen Grant crossed the James River, and developed his design upon the communications of Richmond, Gen. Lee seriously advised the Richmond authorities that he could not hope to hold the Weldon road; and he frequently thereafter expressed his surprise that the government received this information with so little concern, scarcely exhibiting a sense of danger. Indeed, such was the almost incredible obtuseness of the Confederate President and his advisers, that the reader will scarcely be prepared for the statement that while Lee's little army stood in the desperate straits of Richmond and Petersburg, 5Mr. Davis was actually proposing a detachment from his thin lines to reinforce Charleston, in answer to letters from the Governor of South Carolina, exclaiming, what was the constant cry from that State, that if Charleston was lost, the Southern Confederacy would be instantly non-extant by that event! But such insane counsels were ultimately abandoned. As Gen. Lee had predicted, the Weldon Railroad, after repeated attemps of the enemy, was at last seized, and firmly held by him; while Grant extended the left flank of his army to insure its tenure. His operations now appeared, by repeated extensions of the left, to be directed against the Southside and Danville roads, which remained covered by Lee's army. These remaining lines of supply were threatened not only by the extension of Grant's line, but might be operated against by a column able to cut itself loose from its base. In these circumstances of the danger and difficulty of his communications, and the constant accession of unstinted numbers to the enemy in the design of enveloping his army, which could not possibly keep pace with that of Grant in reinforcements, Gen. Lee decided that the safety of Richmond lay in raising the siege. About the first of July, Washington was uncovered as it had never been before. The Army of the Potomac was south of the James; and that of Hunter, which had been defeated at Lynchburg, had retreated wildly into the mountains of Western Virginia, leaving open the line of march to Washington by the Shenandoah Valley. It was an extraordinary opportunity to strike Washington, or at GENERAL ROBERT EDWARD LEE. 137 least to make such a menace against it as to compel Grant to turn his attention in that direction, and relieve the pressure on the beleaguered lines of Richmond; and Gen. Lee was prompt to avail himself of a great advantage which the chances of war had now cast in his way. It was a matter of great concern to select, for the important enterprise of a movement against Washington to relieve Richmond, a commander of certain qualifications. Jackson, who would have been the man for the occasion, was dead; Ewell was disabled and out of the field; Longstreet was thought unfit for separate commands; Early, upon whom the choice at last fell, had a mediocre reputation, and only that of a division commander who had fought courageously and tenaciously in the positions to which his superiours had assigned him. WVith a force consisting of the greater portion of Ewell's old corps, and numbering more than twelve thousand men, Early commenced his march from Lynchburg without hindrance, and on the 7th July reached Frederick in Maryland, from which point he might threaten both Baltimore and Washington. How large and anxious were Gen. Lee's expectations from this movement may be judged from a letter which he wrote to the War Department, on hearing of Early's arrival at Frederick. He desired of the Secretary of War most especially that the newspapers be requested to say nothing of his movements for some time to come, and that the department would not publish any communication from him which might indicate from its date his " distaxnce from Richmond." But while the commander anxiously awaited further news from Early, expecting the capture of Washington, and the possible necessity of his personal presence on a new and towering theatre of operations, the report came that Early, after having won the battle of Monocacy Bridge, had delayed to attack Washington until overawed by reinforcements, and had retreated across the Potomac satisfied with the success of his spoils. Gen. Lee was disappointed, more than he cared to express, in the failure of his lieutenant to fulfil the expectations that had been indulged in the direction of Washington; but, determined to give Early another chance, and to persist in his counter movement to relieve the Richmond lines, he reinforced him by two divisions (Kershaw's infantry and Fitzhugh Led's cavalry), for an active 138 GENERAL ROBERT EDWARD LEE. campaign in the Valley. Nearly a month elapsed without results; Kershaw's division was recalled in consequence of this inaction; and without going further into the details of the Valley campaign, it may be said that it was one of such repeated and decisive victories for the Federals, that it was wholly ineffective as a diversion of the enemy from Richmond, and merely confirmed there the unequal circumstances in which Gen. Lee was left to fight the last battles of the Confederacy. It would be a tedious narrative to include here the various incidents on the Richmond lines, which took place in the course of many months, and were yet without any remarkable result beyond the constant and growing extension of Grant's left threatening Lee's lines of supply. This indeed was the feature of interest. Lee's army proved itself equal to the repulse of partial assaults; it gained some successes; but it was a serious question how long it could defend a line which, running from northeast of Richmond to southwest of Petersburg, already extended nearly forty miles, and was being constantly stretched to meet Grant's development of his left in the direction of its only remaining communications with the South. The autumn and winter of 1864 are remarkable for the concern which fell upon the Confederacy as to the question of supplies and men for the prosecution of the. war. In this period, Gen. Lee's correspondence with the War Department is very interesting, and indicates how much his foresight extended beyond the circles of the Richmond Administration. At a time when Wilmington was the only practicable seaport through which to obtain foreign supplies, Gen. Lee insisted that it should be used to its utmost capacity. In September he wrote a long letter to the Secretary of War, deprecating the use of this port by the Tallahassee and other cruisers, that went out and ravaged the enemy's commerce, such as the destruction of fishing-smacks, etc. Already he noticed that the presence of the Tallahassee and the Edith at Wilmington had caused the loss of a blockade-runner, worth more than all the vessels destroyed by the Tallahassee, and the port was now guarded by such an additional number of blockaders that it was with difficulty steamers could get in with supplies. He suggested that Charleston, or some other port, be used by the cruisers; and that Wilmington be used exclusively for the importation of supplies-quartermaster's, GENERAL ROBERT EDWARD LEE. 139 commissary's, ordnance, etc. He concluded by advising that supplies enough for two or three years be brought in, so that there might be no apprehension of being destitute hereafter. The admonition and advice of this letter were alike unheeded. But the military situation was not only desperate with respect to supplies; there was a more painful concern, and one which, as it has not been admitted to sufficient consideration in most accounts of the war, we may state here at some length. Desertion was the great evil in the Confederate armies, and the most conspicuous of the immediate causes of the downfall and destruction of the Southern Confederacy. The world will be astonished when the extent of this evil is fully and authentically known, and will obtain a new insight into that maladministration which wrecked the Confederate cause, and which is positively without parallel in any modern history of war. There were various and peculiar causes of this evil; among them the injudicious and excessive use of President Davis' prerogative to pardon deserters and men condemned to death under the military law. Mr. Davis was one of those obstinate men, immovable in certain respects, and yet utterly destitute of real vigour of character; he had a weak sentimentalism that was easily approached, and that put him under the dominion of preachers and women, who in the character of humanitarians, friends or relatives, were constantly beseeching the pardon of deserters. The President scarcely ever refused such appeals to his feelings, or strengthened the weak side of his character by public considerations; and the consequence was that the broadcast interposition of the pardoning power soon made it plain to the soldiers of the Confederacy that there was the fullest immunity for desertion. The statement is derived from authorities in the War Department, that in the last two years of the war, an average of two-thirds of the Confederate armies was constantly in the condition of deserters and "absentees!" This statement is sufficient to damn the administration of military affairs in the Southern Confederacy, and is an example of weakness in the authorities that will astonish political mankind. People in Richmond did not doubt the evil; it was constantly before the eyes of the authorities. One could not travel a day in the Confederacy outside the fnilitary camps without seeing about the depots and cross-roads sauntering soldiers enough to form several regiments. But no hand appeared 140 GENERAL ROBERT EDWARD LEE. strong enough to arrest the scandalous and mortal evil, as long as President Davis continued to shudder at public executions, and interposed to pardon deserters condemned to die. Gen. Lee, although no commander ever took better care than he of his troops, or obtained a larger share of their affections, was a thorough disciplinarian, and an uncompromising judge on all questions of duty. His heart was kind; but he did not have that mercy which murders justice. Ever since the return of his army from its first invasion of Northern territory, in 1862, he was deeply exercised about its discipline, and was constantly writing letters to the War Department at Richmond, urging this vital concern, and especially protesting against the loose practice of executive pardon to offenders. After the battle of Sharpsburg, which appears to have dated an era of desertion and disorder in his command, he had written to Richmond that unless some additional power was given by Congress to enforce discipline: he feared his army would melt away. He suggested that incompetent officers should be reduced to the ranks, and that more stringent regulations should be adopted. The recommendation was observed to some extent, and the condition of the army improved. Other suggestions were made; the most notable of which was to keep the new conscripts in camps of instruction until they were " seasoned" for the field. In these respects Gen. Lee inproved the discipline and material of his army; but with the monster evil of desertion he was but little able to contend, as long as he was fettered by the prerogative of the President to pardon men condemned by the military authority. The consequence was, that in the hard and critical campaign of 1864, the evil of desertion broke out afresh, and to such an extent that Gen. Lee lost nearly half his army from this cause alone, and in the last period of the war found his numbers utterly incapable of offensive operations. In December, 1864:, Gen. Longstreet reported: " Over 100 of Gen. Pickett's men are in the guard-house for desertion, and that the cause of it may be attributed to the numerous reprieves, no one being executed for two months." Gen. Lee indorsed on the paper: "Desertion is increasing in the army, notwithstanding all my efforts to stop it. I think a rigid execution of the law is mercy in the end. The great want in our army is firm discipline." The Secretary of War sent it to the President " for his information." The GENERAL ROBERT EDWARD LEE. 141 President sent it back with the following imperious indorsement: "' When deserters are arrested they should be tried, and if the sentences are reviewed and remitted, that is not a proper subject for the criticism of a military commander." These texts are sufficient indication of the policy on the part of the President that had broken down military discipline, depleted the armies, and brought the Confederacy to the brink of destruction. The protest of Gen. Lee, even, was unavailing; desertions increased as the rigour of winter came on, demoralizing the army as well as diminishing its numbers, until at last we shall find Gen. Lee holding both Richmond and Petersburg with not more than 34,000 men, while Grant confronted him with an army of 160,000, and Sherman with another grand army of 100,000 men was within 150 miles of his lines. While the record of Gen. Lee on the subject of discipline in the army was thus full and explicit, we must repeat that it was consistent with the most kindly and affectionate care for his men. Although this alone was unable to stop desertion, yet it had some effect, and probably explains the fact that extensive as wvas this evil in Gen. Lee's army, it was considerably less than in other armies of the Confederacy. Of his constant and unaffected care for his men there are numberless anecdotes; one of which is so characteristic that we cannot refrain from copying it here, although it has been so widely circulated in the newspapers that by this means it is doubtless already known to the public. It was an incident of the last winter of the war, and was thus told by the Richmond Whig: "' A gentleman who was in the train from this city to Petersburg, a very cold morning not long ago, tells us his attention was attracted by the efforts of a young soldier, with his arm in a sling, to get his overcoat on. His teeth as well as his sound arm were brought into use to effect the object; but, in the midst of his efforts, an officer rose from his seat, advanced to him, and very carefully and tenderly assisted him, drawing the coat gently over his wounded arm and buttoning it up comfortably; then with a few kind and pleasant words, returning to his seat. Now the officer in question was not clad in gorgeous uniform, with a brilliant wreath upon the collar, and a multitude of gilt lines upon the sleeves, resembling the famous labyrinth of Crete, but he was clad 142 GENERAL ROBERT EDWARD LEE. in'a simple suit of gray,' distinguished from the garb of a civilian only by the three stars which every Confederate colonel in the service, by the regulations, is entitled to wear. And yet he was no other than our chief General, Robert E. Lee, who is not braver than he is good and modest." It is interesting to notice in the last periods of the war the skeleton organization of the Confederate armies, and to compare its imposing breadth on paper with the number of men actually under arms. Regiments were counted by tens, brigades by hundreds; and a division, which according to European ideas represented, in some respects, a complete army, often did not number more than a thousand men. As an instance of such reduction in Gen. Lee's army, we may take the actual numbers of some of the brigades just before the final battles of Petersburg. Corse's brigade was put down at 1,100 muskets; Terry's at 700; Stewart's at 800. In the division of Bushrod Johnson, Ransom's brigade numbered 700 muskets; that of Wallace, 300 muskets! It may be said here that these brigades selected for example, composed the force of infiuetry that the enemy estimated as a large army in his account of the battle of Five Forks-an event which we have yet to relate. It is not to be supposed that the Congress at Richmond was as wilfully blind as the President to the desperate situation of military affairs. In the growing distrust of Mr. Davis' administration there had come to be a very general opinion that the only hope of the South remained in some radical change in the conduct of military affairs, some new inspiration of the Confederate arms, which Gen. Lee alone was competent to effect. To him all eyes turned as the remaining hope of the Confederacy; on his shoulders there was an anxiety to put the burden of the public cares; and a movement commenced in the second year of the war, to give him the entire administration of military affairs apart from and above the President, and then discontinued by his wishes, was now resolutely and persistently renewed. To the extent of this trust and confidence of the people in him Gen. Lee could not be insensible; his modesty could not bar the knowledge of it; it was in the thoughts and speeches of all men; it was before his eye in every newspaper he read; it was the daily conversation of the people; it reached his ear in every tone of expression. His judgment, approved by so many events; the great proportions and lordly character of the GENERAL ROBERT EDWARD LEE. 143 man; his constancy under heavy trials; his noble equanimity in the face of misfortune, were to popular apprehension the only assurances of the future, the only signals of hope and deliverance in what was now the darkest and most painful time of the war. The irresistible logic of events had proved Mr. Davis incapable, at least in the military branches of his administration. In times of peace he might have made a fair President; he had virtues and accomplishments; he was really a man of ability; and in the ordinary routine of government, his personal prejudices, his unjust and unequal distribution of favours, might have amounted to nothing more than a partisan delinquency, in which the country, though badly served, was not seriously injured. But he had not the broad intellect requisite for the gigantic measures needed in a time of war; he he had not the health and physique for the labours devolving on him; he was too much of a politician to discard prejudices for public considerations; and he persisted in keeping aloof from him and his administration all the great statesmen and patriots who had been conspicuous in the first stages of secession, and had been his distinguished colabourers in the work of preparing the minds of the people for resistance to Northern domination. While the finance and subsistence of the country, the two most important concerns of the war, were surrendered to such curiosities as Memminger and Northrop, where were such men as Hunter, Wise, Floyd, Rhett, Yancey, Toombs, etc.? The mere apposition of such names is sufficient commentary on Mr. Davis' administration. Its cardinal fault was that he drove from him the heart and brain of the country; and the consequence was that many of these influential men whom he excluded from the circle of his patronage and power busied themselves in organizing an opposition, and carried with them the sympathies of the people. It was a long time before Gen. Lee could be brought to accept the position of Commander-in-chief of all the forces of the Confederacy, empowered to act in military matters without the advice of the President, and then only, as we shall see, in an ineffective sense. The great fault of Gen. Lee was a want of self-assertion in a time and circumstances which demanded this quality. It was not so much the declination of modesty, as a positive disinclination to accept any responsibilities not imposed upon him by the clear and dominant demand of duty. The disposition of the man to 144 GENERAL ROBERT EDWARD LEE. keep within the severe boundaries of his vocation, and not to do an iota more or less than duty demanded, is apparent in every article of his life. It was, we repeat, conscientiousness rather than a modesty timid of new experiments; but a conscientiousness carried to a morbid excess, and bordering on the negative side of character, is not admirable, and it is to be regretted that Gen. Lee was impracticable to the universal popular demand that he should take control of the military administration of the Confederacy. His scruple was that President Davis was Commander-in-chief, and the appointment of himself to such a position, in derogation of his authority, was, in a certain sense, a revolutionary measure. Yet the whole war was, in a certain sense, revolutionary, and the circumstances were those in which the salus reipublicce was the higher law and the supreme consideration of duty. With reference to the popular demand that Gen. Lee should take command of all the armies, President Davis made the following explanation:-" When Gen. Lee took command of the Army of Northern Virginia, he was in command of all the armies of the Confederate States by my order of assignment. He continued in this general command, as well as in the immediate command of the Army of Northern Virginia, as long as I would resist his opinion that it was necessary for him to be relieved from one of these two duties. Ready as he has ever shown himself to be to perform any service that I desired him to render to his country, he left it for me to choose between his withdrawal from the command of the army in the field, and relieving him of the general command of all the armies of the Confederate States. It was only when satisfied of this necessity that I came to the conclusion to relieve him from the general command, believing that the safety of the capital and the success of our cause depended, in a great measure, on then retaining him in the command in the field of the Army of Northern Virginia." It is to be regretted that the President of the Southern Confederacy could have brought his mind to so disingenuous a statement. The position which Gen. Lee held in 1862, described here as "command of all the armies of the Confederate States," had attached to it the condition, "with the advice and direction of the President," and the occupant was nothing more than part of " Mr. Davis' military family;" while the present demand was that Gen. GENERAL ROBERT EDWARD LEE. 145 Lee should have independent supreme control of the armies, and supersede the military authority of the President. The discussion of this change in the Confederate Administration ended with the apparent acceptance by Gen. Lee of the appointment of Commander-in-chief. It was thus announced by him to the public: "In obedience to General Order, No. 3, from the Adjutant and Inspector-General's office, February 6, 1865, I assume command of the military forces of the Confederate States. Deeply impressed with the difficulties and responsibility of the position, and humbly invoking the guidance of Almighty God, I rely for success upon the courage and fortitude of the army, sustained by the patriotism and firmness of the people, confident that their united efforts, under the blessing of Heaven, will secure peace and independence." But Gen. Lee did not accept the position in the sense and to the extent that Congress had intended. Ile had not discarded the scruple referred to; he still believed the President to be " constitutionally " Commander-in-chief; and while accepting the position to which Congress and the country had called him, in terms so as to satisfy public sentiment and end a controversy in which he was unpleasantly involved, he did it with a mental reservation to respect the views of the President quite equivalent to the former written conditions that had been attached to the position. This explanation is necessary to understand a part of Confederate history which has been generally confused; and proofs of it we shall soon see in the sequel, where the unfortunate judgment of the President was still visible, and took its accustomed precedence in the conduct of military affairs. The apparent change, however, in the military conduct of affairs, which the public interpreted according to the letter of the announcement, and without knowledge of its limited application, was the occasion of some new animation in the Confederacy. It was believed now, that with the renewal of confidence in the armies under Gen. Lee's hand, that the efflux of desertions might be stayed, and time gained for new measures to recruit the armies. Men commenced to lay hold on new grounds of hope. Gen. Lee himself was not despondent, as might be supposed, in his full knowledge of the desperate condition of affairs; he had conceived 10 146 GENERAL ROBERT EDWARD LEE. the hypothesis that the Confederacy might last another campaign, and proceeding on this hypothesis, he meditated many measures by which its strength might be repaired in another twelve months' lease of existence, and the really large resources which yet remained in the country he made available for the purposes of the war. Mr. Rives was given as authority in Congress for saying that Gen. Lee " had but a single thing to fear, and that was the spreading of a causeless despondency among the people." "Prevent this," he said, " and all will be well. We have strength enough left to win our independence, and we are certain to win it, if people do not give way to foolish despair." These hopeful views of Gen. Lee contemplated time; and probably proceeded in a great degree from his conception of a measure to make available the negro population of the South-a vast resource, indeed, but unwieldy, and surrounded by embarrassing questions as to the precise methods of employment. In September, 1864, Gen. Lee had given his opinion in a letter to the Secretary of War, that the army should have the benefit of a certain per cent. of the negroes, free and slave, as teamsters, labourers, etc.; and he suggested that there should be a corps of them permanently attached to his army. Subsequently, he enlarged his view of the matter, and addressed the following letter to a leading member of Congress: HEADQUARTERS CONFEDERATE STATES ARMIES, February 18, 1865. lon. E. Barksdtle, House of Representatives, Richmond: SIR:-I have the honour to acknowledge the receipt of your letter of the 12th inst., with reference to the employment of negroes as soldiers. I think the measure not only expedient, but necessary. The enemy will certainly use them against us if he can get possession of them; and as his present numerical superiority will enable him to penetrate many parts of the country, I cannot see the wisdom of the policy of holding them to await his arrival, when we may, by timely action and judicious management, use them to arrest his progress. I do not think that our white population can supply the necessities of a long war without overtaxing its capacity and imposing great suffering upon our people; and I believe we should provide resources for a protracted struggle-not merely for a battle or a campaign. GENERAL ROBERT EDWARD LEE. 147 In answer to your second question, I can only say that, in my opinion, the negroes, under proper circumstances, will make efficient soldiers. I think we could at least do as well with them as the enemy, and he attaches great importance to their assistance. Under good officers, and good instructions, I do not see why they should not become soldiers. They possess all the physical qualifications, and their habits of obedience constitute a good foundation for discipline. They furnish a more promising material than many armies of which we read in history, which owed their efficiency to discipline alone. I think those who are employed should be freed. It would be neither just nor wise, in my opinion, to require them to serve as slaves. The best course to pursue, it seems to me, would be to call for such as are willing to come with the consent of their owners. An impressment or draft would not be likely to bring out the best class, and the use of coercion would make the measure distasteful to them and to their owners. I have no doubt that if Congress would authorize their reception into service, and empower the President to call upon individuals or States for such as they are willing to contribute, with the condition of emancipation to all enrolled, a sufficient number would be forthcoming to enable us to try the experiment. If it proved successful, most of the objections to the measure would disappear, and if individuals still remained unwilling to send their negroes to the army, the force of public opinion in the States would soon bring about such legislation as would remove all obstacles. I think the matter should be left, as far as possible, to the people and to the States, which alone can legislate as the necessities of this particular service may require. As to the mode of organizing them, it should be left as free from restraint as possible. Experience will suggest the best course, and it would be inexpedient to trammel the subject with provisions that might, in the end, prevent the adoption of reforms suggested by actual trial. With great respect, Your obedient servant, R. E. LEE, General. What might have been the results of this measure if the conditions of time necessary to realize them had been secured, it would be profitless speculation now to inquire; for the time to test it was 148 GENERAL ROBERT EDWARD LEE. never obtained. The experiment was but poorly initiated by Congress in a very defective bill passed on the heel of the session, and shared the fate of all Confederate things in a few weeks thereafter. While Gen. Lee laid hold of new hopes and new measures, all were overwhelmed by one catastrophe, and the Southern Confederacy fell with a suddenness that the enemy even had not expected, and perished before the time predicted in which a temporary recovery might take place and a last grand struggle of arms terminate the contest. GENERAL ROBERT EDWARD LEE. 149 CHAPTER XII. Extraordinary cheerfulness of Gen. Lee.-A psychological reflection.-The Army of Northern Virginia at a third stage in its history.-Military preparations for the evacuation of Richmond.-Protests of the Government.-Gen. Lee's last and desperate resolution.-Battle of Five Forks.-Theory and results of the action.Grant's assault in front of Petersburg.-How Gen. Lee received it.-His remark to a staff-officer. IT has often been remarked by those who saw Gen. Lee in Richmond in the last periods of the war, shortly before the final battles of Petersburg, what extraordinary cheerfulness he exhibited, despite of all he knew of the extreme condition of the Confederacy. His manners were observed to be unusually lively and pleasant at this time; his step was elastic; and he presented a picture of healthy, cheerful activity that many despondent persons were at a loss to understand. There is in some measure a psychological explanation of this apparent inconsistency of behaviour. While ordinary men are depressed by the approach of a desperate trial, it appears to be the gift of the great soul to meet it with inspirations of alacrity, and to show a smiling face even in the last agonies of the contest against fate. It is the old heathen picture of man sublimely contending with fate, to the admiration of the gods; the modern idea of the true hero, with elated form and illuminated face, accepting the last test of endurance, and with the smile of a sublime resolution risking the last defiance of fortune. Cheerfulness in such circumstances is an inspiration; the crest of the truly great man rises in circumstances wherein the ordinary countenance falls, and the thought of a desperate trial puts a peculiar smile on his face when that of meaner men it would stamp with anxiety and alarm. But there were reasons other than this recondite inspiration that so perceptibly kindled Gen. Lee's manners in what proved to be the last days of Richmond. He had conceived a resolution, at that time utterly unknown to the public, and founded on it a rational and lively hope. 150 GENERAL ROBERT EDWARD LEE. The Army of Northern Virginia was at a third stage in its history. The three stages were: First, when it had defended Richmond on a distant line of operations; second, when it held the immediate works of the capital, and was subjected to the operations of siege; third, when unable to break the enemy's investment, no longer capable of offensive operations, and in imminent danger of losing its communications, its policy had come to be the extrication of itself, and an eccentric campaign. The third and last concern Gen. Lee was now meditating; and he determined to save his army while there was exit for it, and the means of retreat were available. In the early part of February he made preparations for the evacuation of Petersburg and Richmond. It was certainly the best thing he could do under the circumstances. There is a stupid persistence in whatever may once take the imagination of the populace; and thus many persons in Richmond maintained the hallucination that Lee's lines were to be held en permanence, and Grant to " hammer " away indefinitely, for no other reason than that this situation was the one most familiar to.their minds. But it was plain to the intelligent that this situation must soon resolve itself into one or the other of two things-retreat or surrender; that it was impossible that Lee could hold his lines against the large and steady reinforcements sent to Grant. He had already forty miles of earthworks to defend against more than four times his own numbers. There were some things obvious on the survey of the field, which were, of course, not lost to the military eye of Gen. Lee. It was obvious that if Grant continued to receive heavy reinforcements, and Lee none, while his army continued to diminish from desertions and casualties, the time would soon come when retreat or surrender would be the only alternative. It was obvious that if the immense line of Lee's works was broken anywhere, he was lost. It was obvious that he should make an attempt to save his army, and that there was only one hopeful way to do it, the opportunity of which was of doubtful duration. If he moved at all, he would have to do so on the line of the Southside Railroad towards Danville; and he must move at once. With the hope of cutting off his retreat, and with a full knowledge of his adversary's necessities, Grant was moving heavy columns towards Hatcher's Run, and was awaiting what he supposed to be the certain attempt of the Confederates to retreat. His army was kept GENERAL ROBERT EDWARD LEE. 151 ready day and night, with rations cooked and in haversacks, and with every preparation complete for instant pursuit. If Gen. Lee did not retreat, time might allow the Federal army to fight its way to the Southside road, or opportunity might be obtained to operate on it with a detached column; and once lodged on this great artery of the Confederate army, it could at once cut its vital communications, and bar what was apparently its only chance of escape. Influenced by these views, Gen. Lee determined to evacuate Richmond and Petersburg during the winter months, and before spring brought on those active operations which he feared might be fatal to his army. In February he gave orders for the removal of all the stores of the army to Danville. Cotton and tobacco, belonging to the Government, were hauled away from Petersburg; large numbers of the inhabitants left the place; all the surplus artillery was sent to Amelia Court-House, and even the reserve ordnance train of the army was ordered to the same point. But in the midst of these preparations came such protests from Richmond as Gen. Lee felt bound to regard. President l)avis considered the evacuation of the capital as the last thing to be done; he feared its moral effect; he hoped for changes in the military situation elsewhere which might relieve the aspect of affairs about the capital; he clung to the strange idea of a victory over Sherman, whose eccentric march was described by one of the Richmond clergy in the words: " God had put a hook in Sherman's nose, and was leading him to destruction." The unhappy consequence was that Gen. Lee was dissuaded from his first intentions, and finally/ determined to hold his position, to test his lines of defence, and in the last event of their giving way to trust for the extrication of his army through whatever developments might take place in the experiment. The close of the Valley campaign, with another sum of misfortune for the South, gave Grant the control of Sheridan's unrivalled cavalry command of about twelve thousand sabres. With this great advantage of cavalry he determined to organize a column to operate towards the Southside road, and to throw the elite of his army against Lee's right. Such an assault, in his enfeebled condition, was more than Gen. Lee could sustain, unless he stripped his works elsewhere. But a brave effort was made to prepare for the 152 GENERAL ROBERT EDWARD LEE. coming storm; and Gen. Lee was now evidently determined to stand at bay and fight to the last. The designs of the Federal commander were soon evident. For some time he had rested on the assurance that, with the force at his command, and the advantages of his new base at City Point, success was but a question of time. ITe knew quite accurately the strength and condition of the opposing force, and that it was quite impossible for Gen. Lee to hold with it a line extending forty miles, and on both sides of the James River. The junction of Sheridan's cavalry raised Grant's force to 170,000 effectives, and was the signal of action. On the 29th March commenced the movement to the left, and the attack upon the Confederate right. This movement was made under the cover of a threatened attack along the entire line, but did not deceive the wakeful eye of Lee, who at once prepared to resist as best he could. The divisions of Gen. Pickett and of Gen. Bushrod Johnson were sent to the extreme right, and with them the cavalry, in numbers small; and in the weak and broken-down condition of their horses, almost starved for want of food, in poor plight to compete with the splendid army under Sheridan, flushed with their recent successes. To Sheridan and his ten thousand cavalry, supported by two corps of picked infantry, was intrusted the movement upon Lee's right flank. The first attack was unsuccessful; at I)inwiddie CourtHouse Sheridan was defeated by the troops under Pickett, and compelled to retreat. He renewed the attack upon the 1st April, his cavalry covering and completely masking his infantry. The battle of " Five Forks " followed. It was the last important fight of the war. The forces under Johnson and Pickett, two small divisions, with the handful of cavalry, in numbers scarcely onefourth of the opposing host, for a time maintained most gallantly, and with heroic spirit, the unequal contest. Their flanks were turned; they were overpowered by numbers, surrounded, and cut off; resistance was no longer possible, and reinforcements were out of the question. There never was published any official report, on the Confederate side, of the battle of Five Forks. To this day the reports of the Confederate Generals engaged, although regularly made to Gen. Lee, have never seen the public light; and the consequence has been that the Northern version of the battle has been generally GENERAL ROBERT EDWARD LEE. 153 accepted, even in the newspapers and popular narratives of the South, and a very false idea has obtained of the merits of the action on the side of the Confederates, and particularly as to the extent of the odds against which they contended on the eventful first day of April. The author has before him manuscript copies of the official reports made to Gen. Lee; and from these it appears that the Confederate force was not half what it has been popularly supposed to be; that it maintained the action with courage and ability; that it won a victory at first over Sheridan, before his infantry had reinforced him; and that it at last yielded the field only after it had been nearly enveloped by the largely superiour forces of the enemy. In his official report of Five Forks (suppressed after the surrender of the Confederate arms) Gen. Pickett writes: "The field was most stubbornly contested against great odds. The whole of Sheridan's cavalry, joined with IKautz, the Second corps, and part of the Sixth, were attacking us. I learned a few days afterwards, from a General of division in WVarren's corps, that it was 19,000 strong, making the enemy's force probably 35,000, whilst we did not have more than 8,000 men engaged." Of this small Confederate force nearly one-half were taken prisoners; and an action which had taken place in the most desperate circumstances, and had once obtained some of the auspices and fruits of a Confederate victory, became a frightful disaster. But without reference to the battle of Five Forks, and even if a Confederate victory had been obtained there, the fate of Petersburg and Richmond was decided elsewhere; for Grant, espying the weakness of Lee's intrenched line before the former city, determined to break it, and in the morning of the 2d April opened an attack from the Appomattox to Hatcher's Run. Gen. Lee had foreseen such an attack; he knew well how little the troops of Hill and Gordon, strung on the long line, were able to meet it; but he was never more calm and collected than when on this memorable Sabbath, in the broad stretches of the morning sunshine, and on the irradiated landscape, he witnessed from a position near his headquarters the battle that probably contained the fate of himself and army. It was observed that, though always attentive to his person, he was dressed this morning with unusual and scrupulous care. His gold-hilted sword, seldom worn, hung by his side. It was as if he had put on his best attire and insignia, not know 154 GENERAL ROBERT EDWARD LEE. ing where the night might find him. But to all appearance he was never more self-possessed than when mounted on his iron-gray horse, straight as an arrow and calm as a May morning, he watched through his glasses the advance of the enemy. One could imagine him at a review; the repose of his manner was perfect and commanding, while his restive horse curveted and fretted under him; but it was remarked once that his cheek flushed, and a gleam of battle shone in his face, as a shell burst almost upon him, killing a horse near by, and cutting the bridle-reins of his own magnificent charger. On came the enemy in double column with fearful array. Check ed momentarily on Gordon's lines to the left of " the Crater," a more determined attack was made on Hill's weaker position; and it was soon observed that the masses of Federal infantry, overrunning the slender opposition, were pressing to the line of redoubts some two or three hundred yards in rear of the ground first held by Hill. Fort Gregg was run over; Fort Alexander fell only after a heroic resistance; and by noon it was apparent to Gen. Lee, that with the Southside Railroad in the enemy's possession and his intrenched line in front of Petersburg gone, it only remained for him to hold the town long enough to collect and organize his men for the last chances of retreat. On the brief and fiery drama that had taken place before his eyes he made no comment, further than to turn to Col. Marshall, one of his aides, and say: " Well, Colonel, it has happened as I told them it would in Richmond: the line has been stretched until it has broke." GENERAL ROBERT EDWARD LEE. 155 CHAPTER XIII. The last retreat of Gen. Lee's army.-Two notable pictures.-Geu. Lee conceives a new prospect of action.-A fatal miscarriage at Amelia Court-House.-No food for the army.-Terrible sufferings of the retreat.-General desljair and misery.-Action at Sailor's Creek.-Condition of the army at Appomattox Court-House.-Apparition of the white flag.-Correspondence between Generals Lee and Grant.-Authentic and detailed account of their interview at McLean's House.-Contradiction of various popular reports of this event.-Gen. Lee announcing the terms of surrender to his officers.-Scenes in the encampments.-Gen. Lee's last address to his troops. -His return to Richmond.-Last tokens of affection and respect for the Confederacy. NIGHT gave Gen. Lee the time he wanted to collect his forces for retreat, and the morning of the 3d April found him across the Appomattox, with the remains of his army well got together, heading away from Richmond. In the light of that morning were two notable pictures. A pall of smoke, with the golden light weaved in its folds, hung in the sky above Richmond; beneath roared and surged a sea of fire, reaching from the island-dotted river to the tall trees that fringed the hill on which the Capitol stood; skirting this sea, pouring down Church Hill, was the victorious army glistening with steel and banners, now ascending Franklin street, curving at the Exchange Hotel to the upper streets that led to Capitol Square, making this curve the point where passionate music clashed out its triumph, and each body of troops took up the cheer of victory, and cavalrymen waved their swords, and the column swept up the hill as if in sudden haste to seize the green patch of ground where stood the dumb walls of the Capitol of the Confederacy. Away from this scene of sublime horrour was the other picture: an army tattered, brown, weather-beaten, moving through the woods and on blind roads, with straggling, distressed trains, the faces of its soldiers turned from Richmond, but ever and anon looking curiously to the sky, and to its pillars and drapery of smoke, and the black horrour that stood there all day, while the forest pulsed in glorious sunshine, and quiet fields peeped out in the garniture of Spring. 156 GENERAL ROBERT EDWARD LEE. The last game of war had now truly commenced between Lee and Grant, the former aiming to save his army, which he had already extricated beyond his hopes, and the latter making every endeavour to cut off and capture or destroy it. In the morning of the 3d April, Gen. Lee showed remarkable spirits, and had evidently obtained a new confidence. A correspondent of the London Times, who faithfully and vividly described the retreat, relates that on this morning Gen. Lee remarked: "I have got my army safe out of its breastworks, and in order to follow me, my enemy must abandon his lines, and can derive no further benefit from his railroads and the James River." Anyhow, a reflection of this sort was just. Gen. Lee had yet an army of twenty-five thousand men; it was foot-loose, ready to move in any direction; the men were exhilarated, relieved from the confinement of siege and emerging into the open country; and having already accomplished so much, the commander might yet hope to use his army with effect, especially if opportunity occurred to fall in detail upon the forces into which Grant would necessarily have to divide his army, with a view to a comprehensive and vigorous pursuit. In that pursuit, the possession of the Southside Railroad had given the enemy all the advantages of the interiour line. Lee was alive to this disadvantage; the very privates of his army understood it. Men who carried muskets were heard to say to their comrades: " Grant is trying to cut off' Uncle Robert' at Burkesville junction" (the point of meeting of the Southside and Danville roads); and the answer was: " Grant has got the inside track and can get there first." This was the plain truth of the situation. Grant held the Southside road, and was pressing forward troops under Sheridan towards the Danville road, to which he had a straight cut without a particle of obstruction, except a small force of cavalry under Fitzhugh Lee. Gen. Lee, on the contrary, was moving by a circuitous route on the north bank of the Appomattox, encumbered by a huge wagon train, and having in front of him a swollen river, which proved, indeed, a terrible delay when every moment counted. So great were these obstacles, that there is little doubt Grant might have effectually intercepted the retreat at Amelia Court-House, if he had made extraordinary exertions to do so, and concentrated the forces under Sheridan and l[leade. As it was, Gen. Lee did not succceed in reaching this point until the GENERAL ROBERT EDWARD LEE. 157 5th April; the bridges over the Appomattox being swept away, or rendered useless by the freshets which covered the low grounds and prevented access to them. The troops finally crossed on pontoons at two or three places; and although suffering severely from want of rations, they pushed forward in good spirits to Amelia Court-House. In the suburbs of this pretty little village the trains encamped, and the travel-worn troops bivouacked in the fields. The morale of the army was excellent; it had not yet been put to the test of any great suffering. It still presented a formidable spectacle in lines of veterans with bristling bayonets, led by such heroic commanders as Longstreet, Gordon and Mahone. The important, vital concern was, to provision it; and a fortnight before, Gen. Lee, in view of the exigencies of retreat, had given urgent and precise orders that large supplies of commissary and quartermaster's stores should be sent forward from Danville to Amelia Court-House. But at the latter place he found not a ration. His orders had been disregarded; and now, in the second stage of retreat, aiming at Lynchburg in the direction of Farmville, his army faced a new enemy in hunger, and staggered under an accumulation of distress that only the hardiest natures could endure. The line of retreat penetrated a region of hills, where good positions might be taken for defence; but the straggling woods, the pine barrens, and the small patches of clearing, afforded bu't little prospect for subsistence. Half the army was broken up into foraging parties to get food; opportunities of desertion diminished it at every step; men who plucked from the trees leaves and twigs to assuage their hunger, dropped out by the wayside, famishing; jaded horses and mules sunk under the whips of the teamsters, and broken wagons choked the roads. The retreat became slow and slower. The numbers and excellence of the enemy's cavalry gave them a fatal advantage. The reserve train, containing nearly all the ammunition of Lee's army, was attacked and burned in the first stages of retreat, and the fate awaiting other portions of the army train was foreseen. Its unwieldy size and slow movement made it an easy prey, and it was incessantly attacked, and large sections carried off or destroyed. From this time commenced the most distressing scenes of the march. Hunger brought with it the demoralization it never fails to produce in a large number of men; nearly 158 GENERAL ROBERT EDWARD LEE. every hour of the day there was an attack of cavalry, a running fight; the woods rocked with the explosions, where burning wagons filled with ammunition and shells had been abandoned; and when night came, and the army paused in the hasty field-works throwvn up for their protection, the wolves were heard again upon the track, and the incessant cry of " cavalry," and fierce volleys of fire, prevented the jaded men from catching even one undisturbed hour of sleep. The retreat continued. Hunger, thirst, and weariness continued. For the four or five days, during which the retreating army toiled on, it is said " the suffering of the men from the pangs of hunger has not been approached in the military annals of the last fifty years." Despondency, like a black poisonous mist, weighed down its endeavours, and infected the stoutest hearts. The men fell out of the ranks by hundreds, overcome by want of food and sleep, and worn out by exhaustion; or what was equally bad, they dropped their heavy guns and cartridge-boxes, and straggled along, a useless and cumbrous mob. Many laid down to die; many welcomed death as God's blessing in disguise, and with gaunt famine glaring hopelessly from their sunken eyes, sought places to throw down their exhausted bodies, and demand from nature the end of their sufferings. The fashion of retreat was, that at every hill divisions would alternately halt and form lines of battle to check their pursuers. It was on one of these halts, just south of Sailor's Creek, a tributary of the Appomattox, that a considerable fight ensued on the 6th of April, in which Sheridan struck in upon the line of retreat, and took a number of prisoners, but not without learning to his cost, that in the fugitive, famishing crowd there was yet something of the old fire of the Army of Northern Virginia capable of an episode of desperate and devoted courage, in what were evidently the final scenes of its existence. The attack was made with great suddenness; the enemy running over a portion of Ewell's command, appeared determined to bring matters to a crisis, when suddenly he found in his front a line of battle that had been developed with a swiftness that showed that Lee had yet under his quick and facile hand troops, devoted, desperate, even in the last extremity responsive to their commander. At the first perception of the shock of attack, Gen. Lee formed a line of battle to GENERAL ROBERT EDWARD LEE. 159 repulse the enemy, if he advanced upon what remained of the Confederate trains moving towards High Bridge. A brigade of infantry was pushed across at double-quick, and between Ewell's men and the hitherto victorious troopers of Sheridan, arose a wall of bayonets flanked by cannon. In view of this formidable apparition, the enemy went back. At one time, however, a fierce battle was expected, and in the gloom of twilight a lurid glare of signals along the Federal lines made a luminous track through the forest, and seemed to be the prelude to another attack. Gen. Lee himself watched anxiously the remarkable and picturesque scene. On a plateau, raised from the forest whence they had emerged, were the broken troops; there were exclamations of rage and defiance among them, the evident smart of mortification; in front was the line of battle still and calm, awaiting another attack. But no attack was made; Sheridan was content with his adventure. As Gen. Lee rode back in the gathering gloom of night, through the disordered groups on the plateau, there were cries: " It's Gen. Lee! Uncle Robert! Where's the man who won't follow Uncle Robert? " He had not yet despaired of saving the men who testified to him such love and confidence in the extremities of fate. In the night of the 8th April, the reduced, worn, suffering army reached Appomattox Court-House. It was now within twenty-four miles of Lynchburg, on a strip of land between the James and Appomattox Rivers. What had been the Army of Northern Virginia was now counted by a few thousands. Gordon marched in front with scarcely more than two thousand men; the wreck of Longstreet's command made up the rear; and between Gordon and Longstreet were the remaining wagons, and clinging to them thousands of unarmed and famished stragglers, too weak to carry their muskets. To such condition was reduced the grand, memorable army that had traversed so many distances, and accomplished so many campaigns; that had twice trod the enemy's soil, and displayed itself on the foreground of Washington; that had never known rout or panic; that had made the greatest name in the world's history; and that was now to die only in the annihilation of all its parts, without ever having given to its enemy aught of triumph or taken upon itself a shadow of shame. In the early light of the 9th April, Gordon discovered the enemy in his front in heavy force, closing the outlet towards 160 GENERAL ROBERT EDWARD LEE. Lynchburg, and was ordered to cut his way through. Advancing with his thin line, he drove the enemy's dismounted cavalry for half an hour, until he came upon large masses of infantry just forming to advance. It was now apparent that the Federal forces were closing in, and extending their cordon of infantry, cavalry, and artillery, until the Confederate army was almost completely surrounded. Sheridan was in front, MnAeade was in the rear, Ord was south of the Court-House. The moment seemed to have come when in an attempt to extricate itself, what remained of the Army of Northern Virginia would be called upon to crown its historic fame by a last charge and a glorious death. There were men who would have died with Lee, without a murmur, fighting to the last. But a wanton sacrifice of human life was far from the thoughts of the great commander. At first Gen. Lee had recoiled from the idea of surrender. In the distress of retreat the idea had been suggested to him by one of his officers, and he had answered with concern and in a tone of displeasure: "Surrender! I have too many fighting men for that." When on the 7th April, Grant sent a note proposing surrender, Gen. Lee replied by denying the premise assumed by the enemy " of the hopelessness of future resistance on the part of the Army of Northern Virginia." But the experience of two succeeding days brought him face to face with the desperate situation; the current was now too strong against him, and he was forced to yield. As the signs of battle strangely and suddenly ceased by the appearance of a flag of truce, Gen. Lee was seen riding rapidly to the rear to seek an interview with Grant. The object of this sharp ride in the fresh morning was known only to the two commanders. After the affair of Sailor's Creek, and while Gen. Lee continued his retreat towards Appomattox Court-House, the following correspondence had gone on while both armies were in motion, unconscious of the silent and significant use of the pen that had at last come in to supersede their arms, and conclude the drama: April 7. Gen. R. E. Lee, Commander C. S. A.: SIR:-The result of the last week must convince you of the GENERAL ROBERT EDWARD LEE. 161 hopelessness of further resistance on the part of the Army of Northern Virginia in this struggle. I feel that it is so, and regard'it as my duty to shift from myself the responsibility of any further effusion of blood, by asking of you the surrender of that portion of the Confederate States army known as the Army of Northern Virginia. Very respectfully, your obedient servant, U. S. GRANT, Lieutenant- General, Commanding Armies of the United States. April 7. GENERAL:- I have received your note of this date. Though not entirely of the opinion you express of the hopelessness of further resistance on the part of the Army of Northern Virginia, I reciprocate your desire to avoid useless effusion of blood, and, therefore, before considering your proposition, ask the terms you will offer on condition of its surrender. R. E. LEE, General. To LIEUT.-GEN. U. S. GRANT, Commanding Armies of the United States. III. April 8. To Gen. R. E. Lee, Commanding Confederate States Army: GENERAL: —Your note of last evening, in reply to mine of same date, asking the conditions on which I will accept the surrender of the Army of Northern Virginia, is just received. In reply, I would say, that peace being my first desire, there is but one condition that I insist upon, viz.: That the men surrendered shall be disqualified for taking up arms against the Government of the United States until, properly exchanged. I will meet you, or designate officers to meet any officers you may name for the same purpose, at any point agreeable to you, for the purpose of arranging definitely- the terms upon which the sur — render of the Army of Northern Virginia will be received. Very respectfully, your obedient servant,. U. S. GRANT, Lieutenant-Generat, Commanding Armies of the United States. 11 162 GENERAL ROBERT EDWARD LEE. IV. April 8. GENERAL: —I received, at a late hour, your note of to-day in answer to mine of yesterday. I did not intend to propose the surrender of the Army of Northern Virginia, but to ask the terms of your proposition. To be frank, I do not think the emergency has arisen to call for the surrender. But, as the restoration of peace should be the sole object of all, I desire to know whether your proposals would tend to that end. I cannot, therefore, meet you with a view to surrender the Army of Northern Virginia, but so far as your proposition may affect the Confederate States forces under my command, and lead to the restoration of peace, I should be pleased to meet you at 10 A.M. to-morrow, on the old stage-road to Richmond, between the picket-lines of the two armies. Very respectfully, your obedient servant, R. E. LEE, General Confederate States Armies. To LIEUT.-GEN. GRANT, Commanding Armies of the United States. V. April 9. Gen.?. E. Lee, Commanding? C. S. A.: GENERAL:-Your note of yesterday is received. As I have no authority to treat on the subject of peace, the meeting proposed for 10 A.M. to-day could lead to no good. I will state, however,,General, that I am equally anxious for peace with yourself; and the whole North entertain the same feeling. The terms upon which peace can be had are well understood. By the South laying down their arms they will hasten that most desirable event, save thousands of human lives, and hundreds of millions of property not yet destroyed. Sincerely hoping that all our difficulties may be settled without the loss of another life, I subscribe myself, Very respectfully, your obedient servant, U. S. GRANT, Lieut.-Gen. U. S. A. GENERAL ROBERT EDWARD LEE. 163 VI. *April 9, 1865. GENERAL:- I received your note of this morning on the picketline, whither I had come to meet you and ascertain definitely what terms were embraced in your proposition of yesterday with reference to the surrender of this army. I now request an interview in, accordance with the offer contained in your letter of yesterday for that purpose. Very respectfully, your obedient servant, R. E. LEE, General. To LIEUT.-GEN. GRANT, Commanding United States Armies. VII. April 9. Gen. R. E. Lee, Commanding Confederate States Armies: Your note of this date is but this moment (11.50 A. M.) received. In consequence of my having passed from the Richmond and Lynchburg road to the Farmville and Lynchburg road, I am at this writing about four miles west of Walter's Church, and will push forward to the front for the purpose of meeting you. Notice sent to me on this road where you wish the interview to take place will meet me. Very respectfully, your obedient strvant, U. S. GRANT, Lieut.-Gen. It was in accordance with this intimation that Gen. Lee now rode to the rear. The news ran quickly through the Federal and Confederate ranks, as they suspended hostilities. While the interview was taking place between the commanders, the two armies watched each other in a strange suspense, readily imagining the mighty interests which these two men now weighed in the simple farm-house where they had met. Peace might follow this inter. view. It might end in resumption of hostilities, in fiercest battle, in terrible carnage. The two armies were plainly visible to each other. The Confederates skirted a strip of woods in rear of the town. Through the vistas of the streets might be seen their wagontrains. The minutes passed but slowly. The approach of every 164 GENERAL ROBERT EDWARD LEE. horseman attracted an eager look. Skirmish line confronting skirmish line, lines of battle confronting lines of battle, cannon confronting cannon, awaited in dead silence the issue of the pregnant hour. The interview in which Gen. Lee concluded to surrender his army, and resolved the destiny of the Southern Confederacy, is certainly one of the most important and memorable single events of modern annals. It is usual- in history, and a great satisfaction to the curious, to relate such events with singular minuteness, attending to the slightest circumstances. The author has been enabled to give such an account of this interview; and it is interesting to notice how this plain circumstantial account, bordering on the style of a proces-verbal, differs from the many attempts to dramatize the event, and contradicts nearly every popular story that has been recited for sensation. The author has the best evidence in the world for saying that every account of this interview which has hitherto appeared in popular publications contains no less than four or five distinct and remarkable errours. Thus it has been popularly reported that the first interview between the two commanders took place under an apple-tree, which has consequently been crowned with historic associations. This is false. The fact is, that in the morning of the 9th April, after the correspondence between the two commanders had progressed to the point referred to in our narrative, Gen. Lee, with a single member of his staff, was resting under an apple-tree, when Col: Babcock, of Gen. Grant's staff, rode up under a flag of truce, saying that if Gen. Lee remained where he was, Gen. Grant would come to him by the road the latter was then pursuing. This was the only interview under or near the apple-tree; and it may be mentioned here that the following day Col. Marshall, who attended Gen. Lee on the occasion, was surprised to find Federal soldiers hacking at the tree, and was amused at their idea of obtaining from it mementoes of the surrender. Obtaining news of Grant's approach, Gen. Lee at once ordered Col. Marshall to find a fit and convenient house for the interview. Col. Marshall applied to the first citizen he met, Mr. Wilmer McLean, and was directed to a house vacant and dismantled. He refused to use it, and Mr. McLean then offered to conduct him and the General to his own residence, a comfortable frame house, with a long portico and GENERAL ROBERT EDWARD LEE. 165 convenient " sitting-room," furnished after the bare style of the times. The house was about half a mile distant from Gen. Lee's camp. The Confederate commander was attended only by one of his aides, Col. MIarshall, a youthful, boyish-looking scion of the old and illustrious Marshall family of Virginia, who had been the constant companion of Gen. Lee in all his campaigns, and, as his private secretary, had shown himself master of the pen as well as of the sword. With Grant there were several of his staff-officers; and a number of Federal Generals, including Ord and Sheridan, entered the room and joined in the slight general conversation that took place there. The interview was opened without the least ceremony. The story has been frequently repeated that Gen. Lee tendered his sword, and that Gen. Grant returned it with a complimentary remark. There was no such absurdity. Gen. Lee wore his sword (which was not his usual habit), and, on the exchange of salutations, Gen. Grant remarked: " I must apologize, General, for not wearing my sword; it had gone off in my baggage, when I received your note." Gen. Lee bowed, and at once, and without further conversation, asked that Gen. Grant would state, in writing if he preferred it, the terms on which he would receive the surrender of the Army of Northern Virginia. Gen. Grant complied by sitting at a table in the room, and writing with a common lead-pencil the following note: APPOMATTOX COURT-HOUSE, April 9, 1865. Gen.?. E. Lee, Commanding C. S. A.: In accordance with the substance of my letter to you of the Sth inst., I propose to receive the surrender of the Army of Northern Virginia on the following terms, to wit: Rolls of all the officers and men to be made in duplicate, one copy to be given to an officer designated by me, the other to be retained by such officers as you may designate. The officers to give their individual parole not to take arms against the Government of the United States until properly exchanged; and each company or regimental commander to sign a like parole for the men of their commands. The arms, artillery, and public property to be parked and 166 GENERAL ROBERT EDWARD LEE. stacked, and turned over to the officers appointed by me to receive them. This will not embrace the side-arms of the officers, nor their private horses or baggage. This done, each officer and man will be allowed to return to their homes, not to be disturbed by United States authority so long as they observe their parole and the laws in force where they may reside. Very respectfully, U. S. GRANT, Lieut.-General. Gen. Lee read the paper with' quiet and sober attention; there was no discussion of terms. The common report that Gen. Lee expressed any grateful emotion, or characterized the terms as generous, is wholly untrue. Such an effusion might have been just; it is a pleasant satisfaction to one party of the curious, but it did not occur. The only and single remark he made upon the pencilled note was to inquire about the officers' property exempted from the surrender, remarking that most of the horses in the service were owned by those using them. The note was handed to Col. Badeau, who attended Gen. Grant as secretary, to copy in ink. There was but one ink-stand available, and copies were made in turn by Col. Badeau and Col. Marshall. This occupied some time, and in the interval the Generals made some natural inquiries after the health and condition of mutual acquaintances. But there was no conversation of general interest except one remark of Gen. Lee, that he had some 2,000 or 3,000 Federal prisoners on his hands, and feared that he did not have rations to supply them. Gen. Sheridan spoke up: "I have rations for 25,000 men." The copy of Gen. Grant's note having been obtained in ink, Gen. Lee spoke apart to Col. Marshall, who wrote a reply commencing with the usual formality, " I have the honour to reply to your communication of," &c, which words Gen Lee erased, reducing the reply to the following brief sentences: HEADQUARTERS AnRMY OF NORTHERN VIRGINIA, April 9, 1865. Lieut.- Gen. U. S. Grant, Commanding U. S. A.: GENERAL: —I have received your letter of this date, containing the terms of surrender of the Army of Northern Virginia, as pro GENERAL ROBERT EDWARD LEE. 167 posed by you. As they are substantially the same as those expressed in your letter of the 8th inst., they are accepted. I will proceed to designate the proper officers to carry the stipulations into effect. Very respectfully, your obedient servant, R. E. LEE, General. The exchange of these notes terminated the interview. It was singularly simple; utterly bald of all rhetorical flourishes and ceremonies; but its very simplicity give it an interest and dignity that the most excessive formalities might fail to furnish. The bareness of t4e dialogue should not give the idea of stiffness in the actors; there was nothing of the sort. The manners of both commanders were easy, self-possessed, those of plain gentlemen in ordinary intercourse, and it is remarkable that no two men of important station could be found within the limits of America who so equally abhorred the theatrical as Gen. Ulysses S. Grant and Gen. Robert E. Lee. The manners and carriage of the latter in the memorable interview were thus described by the correspondent of a Northern newspaper: "Gen. Lee looked very much jaded and worn, but, nevertheless, presented the same magnificent physique for which he has always been noted. He was neatly dressed in gray cloth, without embroidery or any insignia of rank, except three stars worn on the turned portion of his coat collar. His cheeks were very much bronzed by exposure, but still shone ruddy underneath it all. He is growing quite bald, and wears one of the side locks of his hair thrown across the upper portion of his forehead, which is as white and fair as a woman's. He stands fully six feet one inch in height, and weighs something over two hundred pounds, without being burdened with a pound of superfluous flesh. During the whole interview he was retired and dignified to a degree bordering on taciturnity, but was free from all exhibition of temper or mortification. His demeanour was that of a thoroughly possessed gentleman who had a very disagreeable duty to perform, but was determined to get through it as well and as soon as he could." When Gen. Lee rode back slowly and thoughtfully to his headquarters, what had been done was visible in his face, and there was no need of words to inform his officers assembled to meet him that terms of surrender had been agreed upon, and that the Army of Northern Virginia was no more. When he had announced the 168 GENERAL ROBERT EDWARD LEE. result to his officers in a few simple words, they approached him in order of rank to shake hands and express their satisfaction at his course. Many shed tears; but the ceremony was quiet and decorous; and when at a later hour the fact of surrender and the terms were announced to the troops, there was not a shout, not a word of exultation even at the prospect of the termination of their sufferings, and the observer could scarcely appreciate the magnitude of an event unattended by spectacle or dramatic circumstance. The fact was, the surrender of the Army of Northern Virginia was an event felt without an exhibition to the eye. There was no spectacular conclusion of a struggle that for four years had rocked the fields of Virginia; no dramatization; the feelings of the troops in this respect were magnanimously spared by the enemy. There was a Federal column waving a white flag and lines of troops fiinging a distant hill. There was nothing visible in front but these; no crash of music disturbed the evening air; no cheer was heard. On the Confederate side the disbanded lines of attack moved across the field with the slow stejp of mourners. As the sun descended the sky it was strange to see that Federal column so near, and yet no gun in position to confront it, no line of battle, no preparations for action so long familiar to the soldiers who had so often snatched their hasty sleep on the verge of battle, thinking of the chances of eternity on the morrow. The very absence of dramatic accessary in the surrender gives it a strange and tender interest. The simple scene in which Gen. Lee and his army separated is touching from its very simplicity. There was no harangue or ceremony when in the evening of this memorable day the men surrounded Gen. Lee's headquarters, and without distinction pressed upon the illustrious and beloved commander, and sought to shake his hand and hear the voice that had so often conducted them to battle. It was said that Gen. Lee wept on the occasion. He did not; there were deeper signs of suffering -the misty look of unshed tears in a strong man's face as he turned to the throng that pressed upon him, and said slowly and painfully: "Men, we have fought through the war together. I have done my best for you. My heart is too full to say more." The formal leave of his army was accomplished the next day in the following written address: GENERAL ROBERT EDWARD LEE. 169 HEADQUARTERS ARmY NORTHERN VIRGINIA, April 10, 1865. After four years of arduous service, marked by unsurpassed courage and fortitude, the Army of Northern Virginia has been compelled to yield to overwhelming numbers and resources. I need not tell the survivors of so many hard-fought battles, who have remained steadfast to the last, that I have consented to this result from no distrust of them; but feeling that valour and devoti6n could accomplish nothing that could compensate for the loss that would have attended the continuation of the contest, I have determined to avoid the useless sacrifice of those whose past services have endeared them to their countrymen. By the terms of agreement, officers and men can return to their homes, and remain there until exchanged. You will take with you the satisfaction that proceeds from the consciousness of duty faithfully performed; and I earnestly pray that a merciful God will extend to you His blessing and protection. With an unceasing admiration of your constancy and devotion to your country, and a grateful remembrance of your kind and generous consideration of myself, I bid you an affectionate farewell. R. E. LEE, General. At the final act of surrender Gen. Lee was not present. It was executed by commissioners, designated for the purpose, who acceded to the following agreement: APPOMATTOX COURT-HOUSE, VA., April 10, 1865. Agreement entered into this day, in regard to the surrender of the Army of Northern Virginia to the United States authorities. First.-The troops shall march by brigades and detachments to a designated point; stack their arms, deposit their flags, sabres, pistols, etc., and from thence march tb their homes, under charge of their officers, superintended by their respective division and corps commanders, officers retaining their side-arms and the authorized number of private horses. Second.-All public horses, and public property of all kinds, to be turned over to staff-officers to be designated by the United States authorities. Third. —Such transportation as may be agreed upon as neces 170 GENERAL ROBERT EDWARD LEE. sary for the transportation of the private baggage of officers will be allowed to accompany the officers, to be turned over, at the end of the trip, to the nearest United States quartermaster, receipts being taken for the same. Fourth. —Couriers and mounted men of the artillery and cavalry, whose horses are their own private property, will be allowed to retain them. Fifth.-The surrender of the Army of Northern Virginia shall be construed to include all the forces operating with that army on the 8th instant, the date of the commencement of the negotiations for surrender, except such bodies of cavalry as actually made their escape previous to the surrender, and except, also, such pieces of artillery as were more than twenty miles from Appomattox CourtHouse at the time of surrender on the 9th instant. (Signed) JOHN GIBBON, i.aj.-Gen. Volunteers. CHARLES GRIFFIN, Brevet Maj.- Gen. U. S. Vols. W. MERRITT, Brevet Maj.-Gen. J. LONGSTREET, Lieut.-Gen. J. B. GIBBON, Mfaj.-Gen. W. N. PENDLETON, Brig.- Gen. and Chief of Artillery. A few days after the surrender, Gen. Lee rode into the city of Richmond he had so long defended, and passed through its blackened streets, a paroled prisoner of war. He entered the city with no display, accompanied by five members of his staff, took the shortest route to his house, and appeared anxious to avoid all kind of public demonstration. He had so often passed through those streets, the object of all eyes, attended by the admiration of the populace! Though he came back now a fallen commander, though his arrival was unexpected, he found in quickly gathered crowds evidence that the people still loved him; evidence that the enemy respected him. The first cheers that had been heard from citizens since the scarred and blackened city cringed under the flag of the enemy, now ran along the streets, and brave and noble-minded men, in Federal uniform, raised their caps, as the former Commander-in-chief of the Southern Confederacy passed before their eyes, with hair white as snow, and care-worn face, but with touching and unspeakable dignity. To the doors of his house he was followed by a large crowd, who cheered him as heartily as if he GENERAL ROBERT EDWARD LEE. 171 had ridden into Richmond at the head of a victorious army. It was no word that he spoke, for he did not open his lips. It was no gesture, no sign of emotion, for he rode on without other recognition of the crowd than occasionally to raise his hat. It was his presence and its signification that moved the people of Richmond to a demonstration, in which men forgot their own sorrow, disregarded the presence of a hostile army, and gave way to the glory and gratitude of the past. The occasion was that of the last token of visible public respect to the memory of the Southern Confederacy, made in face of the enemy, who neither interrupted the demonstration, nor gainsaid the tribute it implied. 172 GENERAL ROBERT EDWARD LEE. CHAPTER XIV. An interesting interview with Gen. Lee after the surrender.-Remarks upon the Federal rule.-Indicted for " treason."-Proceedings stayed on the protest of Gen. Grant. —Explanation of Gen. Lee's course with reference to amnesty, etc.-Elected President of Washington College.-The true spirit of his advice of "submission."-IIis hopes for the repose and welfare of the South. WHEN Gen. Lee entered his house in Richmond, he showed a disposition to shut himself in its four walls, and to exclude all visitors, with the exception of a very few especial friends. There was no bitterness in this disposition. There are times in the lives of all men when retirement is decorous and necessary. In the career of the great man there are pauses where he rests with dignity, weighs past and future, collects the scattered thoughts, and courts solitude for the self-communion. An intimate friend of Gen. Lee, who secured an interview with him shortly after his return to Richmond, gives the following account of what transpired, and quotes the words of the fallen commander as precisely as he can recollect: "I had seen him on the field of battle and in victory. I desired to hear how such a man would talk in adversity. When inquiring what guaranty he had that Gen. Grant's terms would be observed, he remarked that he had no assurance beyond his personal good faith, upon which he relied. He said that the civil authorities might nullify Gen. Grant's conditions and exact new ones, as they seemed then by degrees doing; but that it would be in spite of Grant's efforts to the contrary, remarking that he had written to him, calling his attention to the violation of the terms of surrender in the imposition of new conditions; and though he had received no answer, he had implicit faith in the honour of Gen. Grant, and in his determination to stand up to the spirit of his stipulations. I remarked that the paroled officers and men were in a great dilemma as to what to do; and in view of the condition of the country and the gloomy future, many were talking of GENERAL ROBERT EDWARD LEE. 173 emigrating to other countries. With a dignity and impressiveness I shall never forget, and with a sigh that came from the depths of a saddened heart, he replied that the condition of our people was, indeed, most deplorable. With every species of industry prostrated, the resources of the country exhausted, want and destitution threatening almost every one, it was a sad spectacle' to contemplate, and the duty of every one was clear, but in one respect.' What course I shall pursue,' said he,'I have not decided upon, and each man must be the judge of his own action. We must all, however, resolve on one thing —not to abandon our country. Now, more than at any other time, Virginia, and every other State in the South, needs us. We must try and, with as little delay as possible, go to work to build up their prosperity. The young men, especially, must stay at home, bearing themselves in such a manner as to gain the esteem of every one, at the same time that they maintain their own self-respect.' In allusion to the oath which it was required to take before entering upon any pursuit, he remarked that he hoped that would be regarded as violating the terms of surrender, and be no longer required; but'meanwhile,' said he,'what can we do? Hundreds of brave and gallant men have families starving. Without money, they cannot even work for their sustenance, unless they take the oath under Gen. Halleck's order. We cannot even claim protection from violence. If I walk upon the street, and a ruffian choses to seize my watch in the eye of day, and in a street full of witnesses, I can have no recourse unless I have taken the oath. In fact, the practical operation of the system, as now conducted, is to outlaw all of us who decline to take the oath. My only hope at present is that the power of Gen. Grant will prevail in requiring the strict observance of the terms of my surrender' " The order of things at Washington soon called Gen. Lee to attend to his personal position. President Johnson's proclamation of amnesty was soon issued; and shortly thereafter the outrage was perpetrated of framing an indictment for treason against Gen. Lee in the Federal court at Norfolk. Proceedings, however, were withheld at the interposition of Gen. Grant, who very properly and manfully insisted that such a prosecution would compromise the engagements he had made in the surrender at Appomattox CourtHouse. 174 GENERAL ROBERT EDWARD LEE. In his farewell address to his army, Gen. Lee had expressed his last conviction of the justice of the cause for which he had fought, and had pleaded the satisfaction of a "consciousness of duty." It is certainly in apparent opposition to such sentiments that he should have sought amnesty for the past, and been willing to direct an application to Washington for pardon. There were some hasty strictures on this conduct; but, taken in the light of subsequent explanations, it is found to be the noblest part of Gen. Lee's life, consistent with all he had done, and characteristic of his unselfish spirit. There was no passionate chagrin of defeat when Gen. Lee surrendered his army. He had fought gallantly while by fighting he could hope to achieve any practicable result; but when the fate of war determined such hope, submission became a duty, humanity spared the useless effusion of blood, and honour demanded compliance with the arbitration of arms. But Gen. Lee proposed to go further than the sheer act of submission, and determined to show a lively acquiescence in the result, to manifest renewed allegiance to the Federal authority, and under its direction to qualify himself afresh for the active pursuits of life. It was a determination taken in no selfish spirit; he knew the immense weight of his name with his countrymen; he saw with pain and anxiety the disordered condition of the South; and he resolved to give an example of acquiescence in the new order-an example of ready resumption of the active duties of life calculated to restore the public spirit and reistablish some of the prosperity of former times. His duty to the South was not yet ended, and he had no false pride to set above the true interests of his country. Even if his own desires pointed to retirement, and he had been content to reject all relations with the new authority, while he gave it the bare submission conditioned in his parole*, and rested on a reputation complete in history, there was a higher sense of duty which contemplated the peculiar necessities of his Southern countrymen, and prompted him by his personal example to assist in the restoration of a cordial and lasting peace. To secure such a peace it was * The following is a copy of the parole signed by Gen. Lee and his staff-officers: "We, the undersigned, prisoners of war belonging to the Army of Northern Virginia, having been this day surrendered by Gen. R. E. Lee, commanding said army, to Lieut.-Gen. Grant, commanding the armies of the United States, do hereby give our solemn parole of honour that we will not hereafter serve in the armies of the Con GENERAL ROBERT EDWARD LEE. 175 not only necessary that the South should abandon its arms, but abandon also all enmity and negative position, and accept with cheerful alacrity the changes of the time. It was mainly from unselfish considerations such as these, and yet with much of that natural elasticity with which the true hero rises from misfortune and takes up the broken thread of his life, that Gen. Lee resolved to emerge from retirement and qualify himself for whatever active employment the broken fortunes of the South might now bestow upon him. It has been well remarked since the war that the truest Confederate, the man who now gives the best proofs of wisdom and affection for the land he loves, is not he who disputes and disparages the restored Federal authority, or resents the results of the war by private violence, or shows an unjust temper to the unoffending negro. The standard of Southern patriotism is now quite to the contrary. He comes best up to it, who gave his whole heart and soul to the cause when the war prevailed; who fought, and would willingly have died for it; but who, having surrendered, observes with a scrupulous and knightly fidelity all its terms and conditions, and all the obligations implied by the oaths he took; who keeps the peace, aims at the repose and welfare of his people, and, by example and influence, endeavours so to shape the Southern conduct, as to leave the North no excuse for the further exclusion of the South from her proper place in the Union. Such a model Southern man, such a true Confederate, was Gen. Lee. federate States, or in any military capacity whatever, against the United States of America, or render aid to the enemies of the latter, until properly exchanged in such manner as shall be mutually approved by the relative authorities. R. E. LEE, General. W. H. TAYLOR, Lieut.-Col. and A. A. G. CHAS. S. VENABLE, Lieut.- Col. and A. A. G. CHAS. MARSHALL, Lieut.-Col. and A. A. G. H. E. PRATON, Lieut.- Co. and Insp2ector-General. GILES BROOKE, Major and A. A. Surgeon- Gen. H. S. YOUNG, A. A. General. Done at Appomattox Court-House, Va., t this ninth (9) day of April, 1865." The parole was countersigned as follows: The above-named officers will not be disturbed by United States authorities as long as they observe their parole and the laws in force where they may reside. GEO. H. SHARPE, General, and Assistant Provost-JMarshal. 176 GENERAL ROBERT EDWARD LEE. In August, 1865, he was offered the Presidency of Washington College, at Lexington. Here was the home of his great and beloved lieutenant, Stonewall Jackson; here an institution of learning had been planted under the gifts and auspices of George Washington; and in these pleasing and appropriate associations Gen. Lee undertook a task which was not unbecoming, to which his nature was not foreign, and to which his personal example gave assistance and dignity. Having qualified himself by taking the " amnesty oath," he was installed with interesting ceremonies on the 2d October, 1865. In his letter accepting the appointment, he wrote: "' It is the duty of every citizen, in the present condition of the country, to do all in his power to aid in the restoration of peace and harmony, and in no way to oppose the policy of the State or General Government directed to that object; and it is particularly incumbent on those charged with the instruction of the young to set an example of submission to authority." .~~~~~~~~~~~rla~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ ij'!, I,[i~~~~~~~~ ~~~~~~~ ii iI'l V11: i ii~ii~iii~l iili:.'.?,i?~ i'~ i I:~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~..'",~i i.~~: ~?!,1/!'p, II iii',~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~M:~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~:Ij ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~il/n LIEUT.-GEN. STONEWALL JACKSON. CHAPTER XV. Boyhood of Thomas Jonathan Jackson.-His experience at VTest Point.-His studies and hlabits.-Anovel analysis of awkward manners.-Jackson's promotions in the Mexican War. —His love of fight.-Recollections of " Fool Tom Jackson " at Lexington.-A study of his face and character.-His prayers for':the Union."-A reflection on Christian influences in America.-Jackson appointed a colonel in the Virginia forces. —In command at Harper's Ferry.-Constitution of the " Stonewall Brigade."-Jackson promoted to Brigadier.-His action on the field of Manassas.-He turns the enemy's flank and breaks his centre.-How much of the victory was due him.-His expedition towards the head waters of the Potomac. THOMAS JONATHAN JACKSON was born at Clarksburg, in Harrison county, Virginia, in 1824. He came of a Scotch-Irish family that had settled in Virginia in 1748; and a perhaps fanciful relation has been traced between his ancestral stock and that of Andrew Jackson, the seventh President of the United States. In 1827, he was left one of three penniless orphans; his father, Jonathan Jackson, a lawyer of moderate repute, and a man of social and facile temper, having wrecked a good estate by an imprudent and irregular life. The early life of the orphan was harsh and erratic. He found shelter with one or another of his relatives, until at last he obtained a pleasant home and countenance in the house of an uncle, Cummins Jackson, residing in Lewis county. Here he remained until he was sixteen years old. The early adversity and buffet of his life appear to have inspired the boy with singular determination; and among the first signs of character we find in him is a sensitive ambition reflecting painfully on his dependence on his relatives, and coupled with the resolution to reinstate himself in the ranks of his kindred, and rise from the position to which orphanage and destitution had thrust him. 12 178 LIEUT.-GEN. STONEWALL JACKSON. There were no aristocratic names or traditions of great wealth in his family; but among the peculiar population of'Western Virginia the Jacksons were known as an energetic, dominant stock, making distinct impressions on the new country, potential in their neighbourhoods, filling the county offices and places of local distinction, marked by strong and characteristic features, and disposed to be clannish in their family associations. To assert his proper position in this close and influential kindred, and to recover from his position as dependent in the house of one of them, appears to have been the first ambition of young Jackson, and the first instance of serious resolution in his life. He resolved to.obtain an education. He had access to what is called in Virginia the " old-field school;" he might there learn to read and "cipher;" but his mind was set upon acquisitions far beyond these rudiments of learning; and at the age of sixteen we find him having recourse to the office of constable and collector, and hoping from its paltry fees to collect means to enable him to realize to some extent his ardent desire for a liberal education. At this time there appears to have been in young Jackson's mind no thought of a military career, or aspiration after the profession of the soldier. The direction of his life to military employments was purely accidental, and came to pass through his general desire for an education of some better sort than he was able to get in his neighbourhood. Happening to learn that in the military school at West Point there was a vacancy from the Congressional district which he inhabited, and perceiving here an opportunity to obtain a thorough scientific education at the expense of the Government, he eagerly caught at it, and at once obtained letters of recommendation to the member of Congress representing his district, and qualified to nominate him to the Secretary of War. The letters were dispatched at once. But so anxious and active was the boy that he determined to make the journey to Washington, and enforce his application by every possible means. Part of the journey was. performed on foot. The ardent country youth, clothed in homespun, with his leathern saddle-bags on his shoulder, made his difficult and curious way to the Federal capital. Without delaying even to change his dress, he ascertained the address of the Congressman, Mr. Hays, and, accompanied by his patron, with the stains of travel upon him, he was introduced at the War LIEUT.-GEN. STONEWALL JACKSON. 179 Department, and the circumstances of his journey related there. The Secretary of War was at once pleased with the evidence of the boy's resolution, and his manifestation of an honourable desire of improvement; and the warrant of young Jackson, as a cadet, was made out on the spot. The four years of our hero's life spent at West Point were, to the common apprehension, of but little promise. He had gone there with very defective literary qualifications and no special preparation whatever for the course of study; he showed no natural sprightliness of mind; his acquisition of knowledge was slow and laborious, but he had the advantage of studying with great thoroughness and honesty; and although in the first year he barely escaped being ruled among the "incompetents," he advanced his grade each year, and by steps of remarkable distinctness showed what resolute toil may accomplish in a race with minds of easier disposition. In his first year his " general standing " had been 51; in his second, 30; in his third, 20; in his fourth it was 17. In the same class with him were Generals McClellan, Foster, Reno, Stoneman, Couch, and Gibbon, of the United States army afterwards; and Generals A. P. Hill, Pickett, Maury, D. R. Jones, W. D. Smith, and Wilcox, of the Confederate States army. In such a company Jackson was scarcely the man to be designated for future preeminence; but to the studious observer his steady steps of ascent, and above all his unlimited confidence in himself, were true signs of future greatness. The young man who wrote in a private book of " maxims," "You may be whatever you resolve to be," who made this the practical dogma of his life, and who was heard repeatedly to declare that " he could always do what he willed to accomplish," had shown that supreme confidence in himself which, distinguished from vanity and conceit, never expressing itself offensively, always associated with quietude and modesty of manner, is the unfailing mark of greatness. Such a confidence resides in all great minds; a peculiar confidence, supreme, quiet, waiting its time, rather approaching austerity than conceit, never unpleasant in its expression, disposed to silence and solitude, and often exhibiting that shyness and embarrassment in general companies which were early remarked as peculiarities in Jackson's behaviour, and superficially ascribed to a naturally graceless manner. The world makes no greater mistake 180 LIEUT.-GEN. STONEWALL JACKSON. than to designate as," modest" men, or as persons holding low opinions of themselves, those who are awkward and bashful in society, who blush easily when confronted in a general conversation, or are constrained and embarrassed in the conventionalisms of social intercourse. But an observation more studious than that of the drawing-room and general assembly often discovers under such manners the very sensitiveness of a supreme self-appreciation, the chafe or reserve of a great proud spirit without opportunity to assert itself. It is thus we may explain how the shy and clumsy manners of Jackson, which made him the butt of social companies, yet covered an enormous self-regard and masked the ambition which devoured him. A recent biographer declares: " The recollection is still preserved of many of his personal peculiarities; his simplicity and absence of suspicion when all around him were laughing at some of his odd ways; his grave -expression and air of innocent inquiry when some jest excited general merriment, and he could not see the point; his solitary habits and self-contained deportment; his absence of mind, awkwardness of gait, and evident indifference to every species of amusement." These eccentricities were the subjects of jesting comment among the companions of the obscure man: they have since been recited as curiosities of greatness. In the Mexican War Jackson's ambition was like a consuming fire; he sought the earliest distinction, and from West Point he immediately reported for duty on the field, in Mexico, where he was assigned to the First regiment of heavy artillery. His record in this war was a succession of active and daring services; he was always seeking the post of danger, and the opportunity of distinction. For "gallant and meritorious conduct at the siege of Vera Cruz," he was promoted to the rank of first-lieutenant. In the battles of Contreras and Cherubusco, he again obtained distinction, and was brevetted captain. Intent upon the opportunity of distinction, he had obtained a transfer to light artillery service, then almost an experiment in American warfare, and an arm, the peculiarity of which was to be always thrust forward to the post of danger and of honour. At Chapultepec he had charge of a section of Magruder's famous light field-battery, and had pushed forward until he found himself unexpectedly in the presence of a strong battery of the enemy, at so short a range that its whirlwind of iron, LIEUT.-GEN. STONEWALL JACKSON. 181 tore man and horse to pieces. The cannoneers were either struck down or fled from their pieces, until only Jackson and a sergeant were left in the storm of fire. At this time, Capt. Magruder dashed forward; a shot cut his horse from under him; he ordered Jackson to withdraw his guns, one of which the heroic officer was yet serving, with the sponge-staff in his hand. Jackson remonstrated; he could hold his ground, he declared, and if they would send him fifty veterans, he would capture the battery which had so crippled his. Magruder, enthused by such a display of spirit, acquiesced, the men were sent, and Jackson immediately advanced his section, which was soon thundering after the discomfited Mexicans towards the gates of the city. For his gallantry on this occasion Jackson received the brevet rank of major. To this rank Jackson had risen within seven months, from the position of brevet second-lieutenant. He was promoted oftener for meritorious conduct than any other officer in the whole army in Mexico; he had made a greater stride in rank than any of his competitors; he had obtained high and remarkable commendation in the official reports; Magruder, his immediate superiour, wrote of him: " If devotion, industry, talent and gallantry, are the highest qualities of a soldier, then he is entitled to the distinction which their possession confers." The ambition of Jackson was at once gratified and stimulated; and from this time he appears to have conceived most strongly the idea that war was his true vocation, and that his way to distinction was the career of the soldier. And he was profoundly right in this estimate of himself. He was, by nature, a soldier. And although we afterwards find him in the quiet walk of a professor at the Virginia Military Institute, possessed by a remarkable religious zeal, a fervid member of the church, delighting in the exercises of piety, yet at the bottom of the man, and to the day of his death, was the same dominant, combative nature, the same disposition delighting in antagonism and conflict that he had displayed on the fields of Mexico. To the last, with all his piety and kindliness, Jackson loved the battle, and confessed to a peculiar exaltation and delight in its hot atmosphere -the irrepressible emotion, indeed, of the born soldier. In 1851, Jackson was elected a professor in the Military Institute of Virginia, at Lexington, securing a preference over McClellan, Reno, Rosecrans, and G. W. Smith, whose names were submitted 182 LIEUT.-GEN. STONEWALL JACKSON. by the Faculty of West Point. Here the recollection is preserved of him as a stiff, earnest, military figure, eccentric and abstracted in his habits, practising a military exactness in the courtesies of society, an oddity on the street, a "blue-light" Presbyterian, a harsh, awkward teacher of youth, punished by his scholars with the name of " Fool Tom Jackson." It is surprising what different opinions have been held as to the comeliness of the man. To the vulgar eye he was a clumsy-looking man, and his roughly-cut features obtained for him the easy epithet of an ugly man. But to the eye that makes of the human face the janua animi, and examines in it the traces of character and spirit, the countenance of Jackson was superlatively noble and interesting. The outline was coarse; the reddish beard was scraggy; but he had a majestic brow, and in the blue eyes was an introverted expression, and just sufficient expression of melancholy to show the deeply earnest man. But the most striking feature, the combative sign of the face, was the massive iron-bound jaw-that which Bulwer declares to be the mark of the conqueror, the facial characteristic of Coesar, and William of Normandy, the latter of whom he has brought before our eyes in one of his most splendid romances. In brief, while common curiosity saw nothing to admire in Jackson, a closer scrutiny discovered a rare and interesting study. It was not the popular picture of a bizarre and austere hero: it was that of a plain gentleman of ordinary figure, but with a lordly face, in which serious and noble thoughts were written without effort or affectation. It is more interesting than the world takes it to study a character like that of Jackson in repose, as when withdrawn to the tranquil life of professor. In such times there appears to be a tenderness of great minds, a disposition to poetical sentiment, strangely in contrast with the fiery and active life in other circumstances. Stern and dull as Jackson appeared in the routine of professor, there was a concealed poetry in his nature, a strange tenderness in those reveries which common observers regarded only as absence and blankness of mind. We have read no more simple and touching tribute to the beauties of nature, and their soothing influence, than that contained in a private letter of Jackson written during his quiet term of years at Lexington. " I love," wrote Professor Jackson, " to stroll abroad after the labours of the day are over, and indulge feelings of gratitude to God for all the sources of natural LIEUT.-GEN. STONEWALL JACKSON. 183 beauty with which He has adorned the earth. Some time since my morning walks were rendered very delightful by the singing of the birds. The morning carolling of the birds, and their notes in the evening, awaken in me devotional feelings of praise and gratitude, though very different in their nature. In the morning, all animated nature (man excepted) appears to join in active expressions of gratitude to God; in the evening, all is hushing into silent slumber, and thus disposes the mind to meditation." But in these tranquil scenes and exquisite reveries the life of Jackson was not destined to pass. The warriour was to be called to the field again. The stormy music of battle that had saluted his ambitious youth was to summon his more mature but not less ambitious manhood to the hard-fought fields of a mighty contest, and celebrate there the chief interest and glory of his life. In the discussion of parties which preceded the great war in America, Jackson was found an adherent of the Union. He deprecated that enormous aggregate of woe which he foresaw would ensue from a war so peculiar; and in a conversation with his pastor but a little while before the catastrophe, he suggested the idea that all the Christian people of the land should be induced to unite in a concert of prayer to avert the calamities of civil strife. The idea was characteristic and forcible. But it is a significant commentary on that want of vital practical Christianity which foreigners have remarked in the churches of America, that these bodies, with all their boasts of numbers and influence, were not only incompetent to avert the horrours of fratricidal contest, but powerless to make the least visible impression on events, and unable at any time of the ensuing conflict to give tone or qualification to the war. The influence of the American churches was null; events hurried on; the tempest of passion continued to rise; the battle of Sumter was fought; Virginia withdrew from the Union; and Jackson, now resolved to do his duty to his State, offered his sword and service at Richmond to what had now become the distinct side of right in a war which it was no longer possible to avoid. He left Lexington at a half-day's notice, taking no time to arrange his private affairs. It was Sunday when an order came to march the cadets to Richmond; Jackson mustered them for a parting prayer by his pastor, devoted an hour to religious exercises, and then turned his back on the peaceful home, where his familiar 1[84 LIEUT.-GEN. STONEWALL JACKSON. figure was never to return but as a corpse bedewed and sanctified by the tears of a nation. After his arrival in Richmond Jackson performed various duties in the camp of instruction and in the engineer department. While he was thus engaged, Governor Letcher nominated him for colonel in the Virginia forces, and indicated that he would take command at Norfolk or Harper's Ferry. When the nomination was communicated to the State Convention there was some distrust and hesitation, so important were these points then considered. Some one inquired, " Who is this Major Jackson, to whom we are asked to confide so important a trust?" "He is one," replied the member from Rockbridge, "who if you order him to hold a post, will never leave it alive in the face of an enemy." The recommendation was so much to the taste of the Convention that Jackson's appointment was at once and unanimously confirmed. On the 3d May, 1861, he took command of the forces assembled at Harper's Ferry. Here a most important and difficult task awaited him in moulding and organizing into an army a mass of raw volunteers, who had been thrown into almost inextricable confusion by the revocation of the commissions of all the militia officers in command of them; who exhibited scarcely a sign of discipline; who were without an ordnance department, and had not more than five or six rounds of ammunition to the man. Jackson speedily reduced this crude material to order and consistency; secured transportation, collected artillery horses, obtained ammunition, drilled the troops, equipped them as far as he could, and in a few weeks showed the result of his enormous labours in a compact little army of nine regiments, and two battalions of infantry, four companies of artillery, and about three hundred cavalry. When the Confederate authority was established at Richmond, Gen. Joseph E. Johnston was appointed to take command at Harper's Ferry, and superseded Jackson there on the 23d May. But Jackson was consoled, and the appreciation of his services marked by his assignment to the command of the Virginia regiments which were now separated and organized into a brigade. This was "the Stonewall Brigade," a name it was shortly to earn on the first important field of battle, and to carry through the war as an unsurpassed title of glory. It consisted of the Second Virginia, Col. Allen; the Fourth Virginia, Col. Preston; the Fifth Virginia, Col. LIEUT.-GEN. STONEWALL JACKSON. 185 Harper, and the Twenty-seventh (Lieut.-Col. Echols commanding), to which was soon afterwards added the Thirty-third Virginia, Col. Cumming. These regiments were composed of the flower and pride of Virginia manhood. When Gen. Johnston fell back from Harper's Ferry, they were the advanced body of the infantry of the Army of the Valley, and continually near the enemy, learning steadiness under fire, receiving the impress of their commander's strong character and genius, and unconsciously training for the important crisis in which they achieved their great and familiar name in history. It would be uninteresting to recite in detail here those movements in the Shenandoah Valley, which were only designed as a preface to the conflict preparing on the plains of Manassas. It is sufficient to say that in the movements which followed Gen. Johnston's strategic retreat from Harper's Ferry, and which were designed to foil Patterson's superiour force, and neutralize it, Jackson did marked service. On one occasion, with only a single regiment -the Fifth Virginia-a few companies of cavalry, and a light field piece, he. encountered an entire brigade of the enemy advancing from Williamsport, held them in check for several hours at Falling Waters, fell back with consummate skill, and took the first lot of prisoners in the war. On his return to Winchester he again had evidence that his services were appreciated, and that his energy at Harper's Ferry, and his activity in the field, had been noticed at Richmond. The following note awaited him: RICHMOND, 3d July, 1861..MY DEAR GENERAL: —I have the pleasure of sending you a commission of Brigadier-General in the Provisional Army; and to feel that you merit it. May your advancement increase your usefulness to the State. Very truly, R. E. LEE. On the 18th July, Gen. Johnston having eluded Patterson, was hastening his force to join that of Beauregard, now threatened with battle on the banks of Bull Run, near Manassas Junction. Jackson's brigade headed the march. The next day this body of troops had reached the Junction, and hungry, weary, and dusty, were marched to the pine coppices near one of the fords of Bull Run. 186 LIEUT.-GEN. STONEWALL JACKSON. In the line of the great battle of the 21st, Jackson's brigade was put in reserve in a position calculated to support Bonham at Mitchell's Ford, or to extend aid to Cocke's forces below Stone Bridge, where rested the extreme Confederate left. The first development of the battle was a heavy flank movement of the enemy, who following a narrow road through the " Big Forest," had crossed Bull Run, so as to commence the assault in the rear of the Confederate left; the effect of which movement was ultimately to form a line of battle at right angles to the stream, the Confederates facing westward. In this general situation we may now understand the important part taken by Jackson's command. WVhen Evans, who guarded the Stone Bridge with 800 infantry and two six-pound guns, advanced to check the column of the enemy descending from Sudley Ford, Jackson was ordered to move up to the bridge; but his quick and trained ear discovered from the volume of fire in the direction of Evans' march that here was the true point of danger, and he hastened towards it, sending forward a messenger to Gen. Bee, who had already reinforced Evans, to encourage him with the assurance of support. There were yet only five regiments and six guns breasting the Federal advance. As Jackson advanced he met the fragments of these regiments retiring sullenly from the field, Bee exerting himself to retire his shattered little command in something like order to the plateau near the Henry House. The bristling battalions of the enemy's infantry were hard upon him; defeat appeared certain unless time could be gained to form a new line of battle on the plateau; it was a scene of inexpressible anguish and despair; and as Bee, covered with dust and sweat, reined his foaming steed by Jackson's side, he exclaimed, "General, they are beating us back." The eye of Jackson glittered, and he replied curtly,' Sir, we will give them the bayonet." It was then Bee exclaimed, as words of fresh rally to his troops, "There are Jackson and his Virginians standing like a stone wall." But the expression was hardly correct; Jackson did not stand long; he paused only until he was assured by Bee that the troops would be rallied in the rear; and then rapidly advancing, he carried his line of 2,600 bayonets near the summit of the next hill. His orders were to charge the enemy with the bayonet as soon as he should appear over the crest, and within about fifty yards. LIEUT.-GEN. STONEWALL JACKSON. 187 But the Federal advance had already wavered; and it now appeared to be the enemy's design to use his artillery, and to break the advanced lines of the Confederate infantry by a tempest of missiles poured upon them and their batteries. Jackson's infantry stood the ordeal; the men lying behind the batteries, while the plunging shot and shells of the enemy ploughed frequent gaps through their lines. Jackson knew that time was now the important thing, and that he was appointed to save the decisive hour, while Beauregard re-formed his line of battle and brought up his reserves. He kept his devoted line steady at every point; he rode between the artillery and the prostrate regiments to encourage his men by his presence; it was noticed that his eye blazed as he traversed the storm of death. Meanwhile the precious season was being diligently improved by Gens. Beauregard and Johnston in bringing up their reserves; and a little past two o'clock in the afternoon the order was given for a general advance of the new line of battle that had been constructed while Jackson held the enemy at bay. Jackson was now opposite the enemy's centre. As he ordered his men to advance on the long and glittering lines of the Federal infantry he shouted, " Give them the bayonet; and when you charge, yell like furies!" Delivering but one volley, they dash.ed upon the enemy, who never waited to cross bayonets, but broke in mad conifusion as the line of levelled steel bore down upon them. Simultaneously, the whole Confederate line was advanced and the disputed plateau was won. But Jackson had performed the most important part, for he had cut the enemy's centre and thus separated his two wings. His fiery brigade, however, was too eager in pursuit of the fugitive foe; it had advanced so far that both its flanks were turned by Federal forces, and it seemed at one time that it would be enveloped by the enemy. It was saved, however, by Jachson quickly reposting the artillery in rear; the contested arena was firmly occupied, and on it Gen. Beauregard arranged the final charge upon the enemy, which easily put him in full retreat. It will be readily seen how critical were Jackson's two parts in the battle of Manassas-first in checking the enemy's flank movement, and secondly in breaking his centre in the decisive charge of the day. To a friend in Richmond he proudly wrote: " You will find that when my report shall be published, that the First brigade was to our army what the Imperial Guard was to the First 188 LIEUT.-GEN. STONEWALL JACKSON. Napoleon —that, through the blessing of God, it met the thus far victorious enemy and turned the fortunes of the day." The report never saw the light, and was lost in the accidents of the war. That of the Commanding General has been frequently criticised as unreliable, and as slighting the claims of the Virginia troops on that day. Certainly it made but imperfect mention of Jackson; the newspaper accounts naturally followed the general tenour of the official narrative, and reflected its partialities; and so it happened that Jackson's brilliant story at Manassas was for a long time unknown, and obtained many imperfect versions, and emerged slowly to the surface of history. While so many were vaunting their exploits in the newspapers, Jackson was comparatively ignored, no doubt to his own painful surprise, and much to the impatience of his friends, who were aware of his valuable services. To his wife he wrote: " You must not be concerned at seeing other parts of the army lauded, and my brigade not mentioned.' Truth is powerful, and will prevail.' You think that the papers ought to say more about me. My brigade is not a brigade of newspaper correspondents. I know that the First brigade was the first to meet and pass our retreating forces, to push on with no other aid than the smiles of God, to boldly take its position with the artillery that was under my command, to arrest the victorious foe in his onward progress, to hold him in check until reinforcements arrived, and finally to charge bayonets, and, thus advancing, pierce the enemy's centre." Truth has prevailed, and has since testified, not only that Jackson more than any other brigade commander saved the day at Manassas, but that more than the Commanding General he understood the extent of the success; that he looked at the retreating army with eager and excited eyes; that he said: "Give me ten thousand men, and I will be in Washington to-night." But the inspiration was not caught, and the fruits of Manassas were not more than the visible ones of the battle-field. Some months after this famous battle, Jackson made another limited appearance before the public in command of an expedition towards the head waters of the Potomac, designed to protect the Valley of Virginia against Gen. Banks, and to clear the counties of Hardy, Hampshire, and Morgan, of the Federal troops which had so long harassed them. He was advanced to the rank of LIEUT.-GEN. STONEWALL JACKSON. 189 Major-General, and assigned to take command at Winchester of various detached bodies of troops ordered to concentrate there, including the commands of Gens. Loring and Henry R. Jackson, which had hitherto operated in Western Virginia. Here too he regained his old brigade; and with an army of about ten thousand men, he moved in the early days of January, 1862, in the direction of Bath, thence to Romney, effectually reconquering from the enemy the country about these places, wrecking the Baltimore and Ohio Railroad, and making some important captures. But the results of the expedition were scarcely in proportion to its hardships; they were diminished by the recall of Loring from Romney by the War Department at Richmond, overriding Jackson's authority; most of the country reoccupied was again laid open to the enemy; the sum of success was slight, the hardship and distress of the expedition memorable, and the addition to Jackson's reputation scarcely perceptible. 190 LIEUT.-GEN. STONEWALL JACKSON. CHAPTER XVI. Description of the Shenandoah Valley.- Its importance as an avenue to Washington.-Gen. Jackson retreats from Winchester, and returns and fights the battle of Eernstown.-His first and last defeat.-Analysis of the enemy's " On-to-Richmond."-Four armies to converge on the Confederate capital.-Situation of Gen. Jackson.-Reinforced by Ewell's division.-His rapid movement to McDowell, and its designs.-He falls upon the enemy at Front Royal.-He chases Banks' army through Winchester and across the Potomac.-President Lincoln " sets a trap " for him.-Gen. McDowell's remonstrance.-Battles of Cross Keys and Port Republic.-Summary of the Valley campaign. THE Valley of the Shenandoah,' of which we have seen Jackson already appointed, in some respect, the guardian, and where he was to win the most of his fame, is that portion of Virginia lying between the Blue Ridge and North Mountains, and extending from the head waters of the Shenandoah near Staunton to the Potomac. It afforded a natural avenue into the territory of the North, and enabled the Confederate forces in Virginia to menace the flank of Washington during the entire period of the war. Two principal places of entrance from Maryland are Harper's Ferry and Williamsport. The Valley is tolerably open until Strasburg is reached, where, in the centre, begins a separate chain-the Massanutten range —which splits the valley for just fifty miles, where, near Harrisonburg, it abruptly ends. At the head of the western division stands Strasburg: at the head of the eastern, Front Royal. The country thus described contained the most beautiful and fruitful fields of Virginia. The scenery was exquisite and picturesque; there were animated pictures of splendid landscape to be obtained from the spurs of the Blue Ridge; tall trees skirted the streams, bounding well-garnished fields; mighty forests stretched up the sides of the mountains; and the summer blooms burdened the airs of a delicious climate with constant perfumes. It was not the picturesqueness of sterile peaks and frowning rocks. The land was quick with growing life; green-clad fields basked in the sunshine; gentle, round-bosomed hills nestled in the arms of the great moun LIEUT.-GEN. STONEWALL JACKSON. 191 tain; the forests opened with vistas of cultivation; and on the tossing plumes of the wheat-fields the light and shade of the day chased each other. The region was not inappropriately called the "Garden of Virginia." Here was not only one of the most beautiful and romantic theatres of the war, but from a military point of view one of the most important districts of the Confederacy. While it held the proper gate to Washington, its possession by the enemy would turn upon the Confederates almost equal danger and involve the security of Richmond. A short march through the Blue Ridge, at Snicker's, Ashby's, or Manassas' Gaps, would enable the enemy to take Manassas Junction in flank and reverse, and assail the Confederate force there at an enormous advantage. WVe have already seen that to guard against this danger, Gen. Jackson had been sent to the lower part of the Valley. The key of the region was Winchester. This ancient town was less than thirty miles from the Potomac; and turnpike roads converged towards it from Romney, Martinsburg, Sheppardstown, Charlestown, and Berryville. Over these roads, the Federal forces, reported to be near Romney and Williamsport, could easily advance with their trains and artillery; and it was therefore important that they should be closely watched in a movement which might affect the whole military situation in Virginia. When Gen. Johnston retreated from Centreville, and commenced his masterly movement to unite his army with that under Gen. Magruder on the Peninsula, for the defence of Richmond, it became critically important that Jackson-who was still at Winchester, and who constituted, as it were, the left of Johnston's army-should check or amuse the enemy in this direction. But Jackson's army had been diminished now to about 4,000 men. In front of him at Charlestown was Gen. Banks, with about 35,000 men; it being understood that the design of this commander was to occupy Winchester, and after defeating or crippling Jackson, to move the bulk of his forces rapidly to Manassas, and take part in McClellan's new combination against Richmond. On the 12th March, 1862, Banks occupied Winchester, and Shields' division was advanced as far up the Valley as Strasburg. Jackson continued to retreat until he arrived at the little town of Mount Jackson, nearly opposite Luray, and about forty-five miles fiom Win 192 LIEUT.-GEN. STONEWALL JACKSON. chester. Shields, having desisted from pursuit, returned to TWinchester, and occupied it with three brigades; while the other forces of Banks commenced their march to Manassas, well assured that no serious trouble was to be apprehended from Jackson, and that they might now take their part against Johnston, who lingered on the banks of the Rappahannock. At once apprehending the necessity of a rapid diversion, Jackson hurried forward by forced marches to Winchester. In the afternoon of the 23d March, he came up with the enemy's rear at the little village of Kernstown, about three miles from Winchester, on the road to Strasburg, and one of the most unequal and brilliant battles of the war ensued. For once Jackson had not a correct idea of the force he engaged; he had been informed that the enemy had only four regiments in Winchester, and he ultimately found himself engaging a force triple his numbers. But he struggled for the field desperately and furiously. According to his official report his infantry engaged was 2,742 men; and he estimated the force of the enemy present at 11,000, of whom "over 8,000," he declares, were probably engaged. But even against these odds it appeared at one time that he would win the field. The fury of the battle did not relent as the sun sunk beneath the horizon. Jackson watched the contest with an eager and animated eye, shouting, again and again: "One more volley, my brave boys!" as charge after charge of the enemy's infantry was repulsed, and it was evident that the vigour of their attack must soon be spent. But while Jackson, on his high sorrel charger, towered above the smoke, watching for the conclusion of the day, he suddenly noticed his old brigade retiring, under the command of Gen. Garnett. He galloped towards them, stern and menacing. "Beat the rally," he shouted, seizing a fugitive drummer, and holding him by the shoulder in a stormf of balls. But it was too late; the enemy had penetrated the opening, the day was lost; and Jackson, without giving any order to retreat, moved sullenly among his troops, who had done everything that human courage and endurance could accomplish, and even at the last fell back without panic and surrendered a field covered with nearly one-fifth of their numbers killed and wounded. Kernstown was not a Confederate victory. It was Jackson's first and last defeat. It had been fought on imperfect information, LIEUT.-GEN. STONEWALL JACKSON. 193 and was yet riot a blunder; for, no matter what was the enemy's superiority of force, it was an essential part of Jackson's calculation and design, to attack, with the view of taking the attention of Banks, and disconcerting the enemy's programme on the other side of the Blue Ridge. In this sense the battle of Kernstown was a success, accomplished the most important part of Jackson's design, and even exceeded his expectations. Banks, at once alarmed, hastened back to Winchester, and ordered the troops on the march to Mianassas to retrace their steps. It was at once believed at Washington that the Confederates were still in considerable force in the Shenandoah Valley. It was decided to detain Gen. Banks there with an augmented command; and the consequence was, that the plans of McClellan had to be subjected to fresh changes and more delays. WVhen at last a definite programme did emerge from the confusion and conflict of views at Washington, it was formidable enough to Richmond, and, on paper, was readily decisive of the fate of that city. Upon the Confederate capital four armies were to converge: that of Fremont from the northwest, that of Banks from the Valley, that of McDowell from Fredericksburg, and that of McClellan from the Peninsula, between the James and York. Towards the middle of April, the three first-mentioned armies occupied respectively the following positions: Gen. Fremont was at Franklin, a small town in the mountains of Western Virginia, near the source of the south branch of thePotomac, with a force of at least three divisions, including that of Blenker, which had been withdrawn from the Army of the Potomac; Gen. Banks, having advanced along the north fork of the Shenandoah River, had placed his headquarters at Newmarket, beyond the terminus of the rail which intersects the Shenandoah Valley; while Gen. McDowell, with about 30,000 men, occupied Fredericksburg on the Rappahannock. The line of operations against Richmond thus extended from the shores of the James to the base of the Blue Ridge; for it was designed that the forces in the Valley, driving Jackson out, should cut the Confederate communication, sweep down upon the capital from the mountains, while McDowell was to advance from Fredericksburg and extend his left wing until it formed a junction with McClellan's right, on the lines about Richmond. 13 194 LIEUT.-GEN. STONEWALL JACKSON. Where was Jackson in this fearful situation? After the battle of Kernstown, he had retreated up the Valley by way of Harrisonburg, and turning to the Blue Ridge, took up a position between the south fork of the Shenandoah and Swift Run Gap. Here he was retained by Johnston, after the main body of the Confederate army had been drawn in towards Richmond. On the 30th April, he was joined by Ewell's division from Gordonsville, and with the combined force was now prepared to take the desperate field, hoping to strike in detail the divided forces of the enemy. His first care was to evade Gen. Banks. That dull commander had already advanced a considerable distance up the Shenandoah Valley, felicitating himself with the idea that he was driving Jackson before him, and delighting the authorities at Washington with the report that the Confederates were about to relinquish the Valley while Milroy, commanding the advanced guard of Fremont's army, had reached Buffalo Gap in the chain of mountains on the western side of the Valley, en routte for the proposed junction that was to threaten Richmond from the west. Jackson was indeed between two armies-that of Fremont and Banks; but seizing the opportunity to strike in detail, he left Ewell on Banks' front, hurried forward to the support of Gen. Edward Johnson, who was endeavouring to hinder Fremont's advance, struck the enemy at McDowell, driving back the brigades of Milroy and Schenck to Franklin, and then swiftly brought his forces over the mountains to the attack of Banks, who having taken some alarm, had fallen back to Strasburg. Instead of marching direct on Strasburg, Jackson diverged on a line to the eastward by way of Luray Valley, and moved on Front Royal, with the view of cutting off Banks' retreat from Strasburg, interposing between him and reinforcements, and compelling his surrender. On the 23d May, he entered Front Royal, capturing the garrison of seven hundred men there, under Col. Kenly; and thence he moved to Middletown by a road to the right of the main Valley road, hoping there to cut off Banks.* Here, * There was published in a Northern newspaper the following account of the surprise of Banks at Jackson's sudden apparition at Front Royal, in which a private soldier claims to have first alarmed the commander in time to save the bulk of his army: " Our company and company B [Fifth New York Cavalry] were ordered to Front Royal, in the mountains, twelve miles from Strasburg, last Friday, and when we got within two miles of our destination we heard cannonading. The Major or LIEUT.- GEN. STONEWALL JACKSON. 195 however, he pierced the enemy's column of retreat, drove a part of his rear towards Strasburg, and then pressed on in hot pursuit to Winchester. The enemy continued his frantic retreat through the streets of the city. As his fugitive masses made their exit on the north side of the town, the Confederates entered it. All the streets were in commotion; cavalry were rushing in disorder, and infantry, frightened by the rapidity of their mounted companions, were in consternation. Guns, knapsacks, cartridge-boxes, bayonets, and bayonet-cases, lay scattered upon the ground in great profusion, thrown away by the panic-stricken soldiers. On the heights north of the town, Banks made a momentary stand, but was soon in full retreat again. In the night of 25th May he reached the Potomac, having accomplished a march of fifty-three miles in forty-eight hours. He had made an extraordinary race, and one of the most ludicrous flights of the war. His army was in miserable plight, but excessively thankful. No sooner had his panicstricken troops taken breath than he wrote to Washington: " There never were more grateful hearts in the same number of men, than dered the baggage to stop, and our two companies dashed on, and found several companies of our infantry and two pieces of artillery engaged with several thousand of the enemy. Just as we arrived on the field, Col. Parem, who had command of our forces, rode up to me and ordered me to take one man and the two fastest horses in our company, and ride for dear life to Gen. Banks' headquarters in Strasburg, for reinforcements. The direct road to Strasburg was occupied by the enemy, so I was obliged to ride round by another, seventeen miles. I rode the seventeen miles in fifty-five minutes. Gen. Banks didn't seem to think it very serious, but ordered one regiment of infantry and two pieces of artillery off. I asked Gen. Banks for a fresh horse to rejoin my company, and he gave me the best horse that I ever rode, and I started back. I came out on the Front Royal turnpike, about two miles this side of where I left our men. Saw two men standing in the road, and their horses standing by the fence. I supposed they were our pickets. They didn't halt me, so I asked them if they were pickets? They said no. Says I:'Who are you?''We are part of Gen. Jackson's staff.' I supposed that they were only joking. I laughed, and asked them where Jackson was. They said he was in the advance. I left them and rode to Front Royal, till I overtook a soldier, and asked him what regiment he belonged to. He said he belonged to the Eighth Louisiana. I asked how large a force they had, and the reply was' twenty thousand.' 1 turned back and drew my revolver, expecting either a desperate fight or a Southern jail; but the officers in the road didn't stop, me, and I was lucky enough not to meet any of their pickets. But if it was not a narrow escape, then I don't know what is. When I got out of the enemy's lines I rode as fast as the horse could carry me to Gen. Banks, and reported what I had seen and heard. He said I had saved the army. In less than an hour the whole army was in motion towards Winchester." 196 LIEUT.-GEN. STONEWALL JACKSON. when at mid-day on, the 26th we stood on the opposite shore of the Potomac." Jackson had shown nerve, energy, rapidity of movement, and had accomplished a success far beyond the limit of his captures. His apparition in Winchester was the occasion of unbounded consternation at Washington. The news of Banks' defeat fell like a thunderbolt on the Federal war council; the most exaggerated rumours of the numbers and designs of Jackson were circulated through the North; Washington was declared to be in danger; the "secessionists" of Baltimore appeared about to rise; and sharing the general alarm, President Lincoln at once countermanded the order for McDowell's advance from Fredericksburg, to unite with McClellan, and directed him to put twenty thousand men in motion for the Valley, and " set a trap " for the man who knew every gap and gorge of the country. Gen. MNcDowell, who was not without sagacity, addressed to the authorities at Washington a strong letter of remonstrance on the policy of transferring so large a portion of his force from Fredericksburg to the Shenandoah. His out-pickets had already effected a junction with those of Gen. McClellan; and he fullyappreciated the importance of a conjoined movement upon Richmond. But Jackson had already created the panic that was to break up the designs against the Confederate capital, and destroy a critical part of the combination; and the only answer that McDowell received to his remonstrance, was a repeated order to march to the Shenandoah. Shields' division was accordingly sent towards Strasburg, where it was expected a converging movement of Fremont might entrap Jackson, who was now on his retreat from Winchester. On the 1st June Fremont entered Strasburg, a few hours before the main body of Shields' division. But again had Gen. Jackson escaped his pursuers; he had passed through the town unmolested, in a night of rain, thunder, and lightning. His long train conveyed the plunder and spoils of Banks' army, and about 2,000 prisoners; his rear was protected by Ashby's cavalry, and he marched rapidly onward. Fremont now engaged in the pursuit by moving up the valley of the north fork of the Shenandoah River, while Shields marched in an almost parallel line up its southern branch, and was preparing to cut off the retreat through the passes of the Blue Ridge LIEUT.-GEN. STONEWALL JACKSON. 197 Mountains. Jackson's position was most perilous. The only point to cross the branches of the Shenandoah, was a bridge at Port Republic; Shields might prevent his crossing, or effect a junction with Fremont; and both these results were to be prevented. Jackson rapidly threw forward his own division to cover the bridge, and left Ewell's division five miles back on the road, to take care of Fremont. It was a desperate venture, for Ewell fought with his back to a river, and against superiour numbers. But Jackson had not miscalculated the man whom he trusted of all others. Ewell repulsed Fremont; and by the bold battle of Cross Keys, Jackson was able to effect the object he had in view of falling with his whole force on Shields. In the night of the 8th June, he brought the greater portion of Ewell's division across the North River by the bridge at Port Republic, leaving only a small force on the left bank to deceive Fremont, and to burn the bridge. The plan was successful, and Fremont arrived at the bank of the river only in time to see the bridge in flames, and to hear the guns which were playing on his colleague. Shields had obtained a very strong position. His left rested on wooded hills, and on a small knoll near the woods was posted the greater portion of his artillery. The Confederate batteries were no match for those of the enemy. Jackson found his lines of infantry soon disordered and broken. At one time the enemy gained ground, and it was only by a determined attack of Ewell with some Virginia regiments on the flank of the enemy's advancing line, that the battle was restored. Jackson's unerring eye now saw at once the key of the whole position. He instantly determined that unless the enemy's artillery, so advantageously posted, was captured or silenced, it would continue to sweep the entire ground in front, and render an attack upon the Federal centre or right wing impossible. He sat on his horse, looking at the guns belching forth their showers of iron hail, and turning to Gen. Taylor, commanding the Louisiana brigade, said briefly, " Can you take that battery? It must be taken." The Louisianians responded with a shout, advanced through an incessant storm of grape, canister and shell, gained the crest, and by a sudden charge captured the greater portion of the artillery. The enemy's line was broken, some regiments retreated in fair order, others were completely routed, and in detached bodies took to the hills and 198 LIEUT.-GEN. STONEWALL JACKSON. sought refuge among the woods. The Confederate cavalry pursued, and the defeat was complete. Jackson had won the most doubtful day of his campaign, and was safe. He had obtained a crowning victory in the last conjuncture of danger; he had turned upon his pursuers, and defeated them right and left; and when Fremont, who had helplessly watched the battle across the river, commenced his languid retreat down the Valley, Jackson withdrew leisurely to the gaps of the Blue Ridge, whence he had easy access to the most practicable routes and direct line of rail to Richmond. A summary of Gen. Jackson's campaign in the Valley is undoubtedly the most brilliant page in the history of the war. We have seen how he checked the advance of Milroy from the west; how he then advanced upon Banks, and drove him precipitately across the Potomac; how he outmarched the columns of Fremont and Shields which pursued him, brought off all his captured stores and prisoners, and finally, by a strategy as successful as it was daring, turned upon two important forces of the enemy, defeated them in detail, and concluded the campaign in a blaze of victory. With a little army of 15,000 men, at one time a hundred miles from its base, and with about 40,000 enemies on his front and flanks, he had accomplished a chapter of wonders, and conducted a campaign of unbroken brilliancy. He had defeated four separate armies; he had overcome his old adversary Banks, in a way to cover him with ridicule, delighting the South with the caricature of a commander who was especially odious to them;* he had captured a total of 3,500 prisoners; he had marched four hundred miles within forty days, in constant combats and skirmishes; and defeating at last two armies, whose aggregate was double his own, he was left master of the situation, with his victorious hands full of trophies. Finally, and above all, he had succeeded in neutralizing a force of at least 60,000 men designed to operate against Richmond, and to this extent had contributed to the safety of the capital of the Confederacy. * The Charleston Mercury printed the following epigram: " Whilst Butler plays his silly pranks, And closes up New-Orleans banks, Our Stonewall Jackson, with more cunning, Keeps Yankee Banks forever running." LIEUT.-GEN. STONEWALL JACKSON. 199 CHAPTER XVII. Gen. Jackson's share in the " seven days' battles " around Richmond.-Shifting of the scenes of war from the James River to the Rappahannock.-Battle of Cedar Run. -Gen. Jackson moves a column between the enemy's rear and Washington.Scenes of the march.-Battle of Groveton.-The two days' conflict on Manassas Plains.-Gen. Jackson strikes the enemy at Ox Hill. —Results of the campaign so far.-Extraordinary achievement of Jackson's command.-He moves against, and captures Harper's Ferry.-His part in the battle of Sharpsburg. GENERAL JACKSON was yet to do more for the safety of Richmond, and to crown what he had done in strategy by a direct attack on the lines of the Chickahominy. Gen. Lee had taken pains to mask his withdrawal from the Valley by sending him the divisions of Whiting and Lawton, as if to reinforce him to prosecute the campaign to Winchester, where Fremont had withdrawn; but his orders in fact were to move towards Richmond, and fall upon McClellan's right, while Lee's other divisions moved directly upon Mechanicsville. On the 25th June, Jackson reached the vicinity of Ashland, about twelve miles from Richmond. At sunrise next morning his forces were in motion, advancing abreast of the enemy's right flank at Mechanicsville; and as he crossed the Tottopotomy Creek, his cannon announced to A. P. Hill, who awaited the signal at Mechanicsville, that the time for action had arrived. At night Jackson bivouacked within sound of the furious cannonade, with which Hill and Longstreet sought to dislodge the enemy at Beaver Dam, turned the position in the morning, and now joined by D. H. Hill, took up his line of march to a point a few miles north of Cold Harbour. Passing Cold Harbour, he perceived the enemy a little to the southward, drawn up in battle array; Hill and Longstreet were already engaged; and Jackson, hoping that if the enemy retreated, he would expose his flank to him, halted his troops in a margin of woods. It soon became apparent, however, that the Confederates were hard pressed, and that upon Jackson's three divisions might depend the fortune of 200 LIEUT.-GEN. STONEWALL JACKSON. desperate attack. Gen. Lee, ascertaining the approach of Jackson, hastened to give him the necessary orders. Exchanging a hurried greeting, the Commanding General paused a moment, and listened anxiously to the roar of artillery in the woods. "The fire is very heavy," he said: " do you think your men can stand it?"' Sir," said Jackson, "they can stand almost anything;" and then turning his head to one side to listen, "they can stand that." In a moment his columns were in motion, advancing with tumultuous cheers, which were caught up and ran along the shattered lines of Hill, proclaiming the long-expected relief. Whiting's division was hurried forward to assist Longstreet in his assault upon the Federal left, and formed on the left of his line, joining the right of Gen. A. P. Hill. On the left of Hill, and opposite the enemy's centre, was a part of Jackson's old division, the remainder being sent to the right; on the left of that, Ewell's; and on the extreme left, D. H. tIll's division. The latter first came in contact with the enemy's line, rushing through the swamp, underwood, and felled trees. It was unable to rout the enemy, but obtained some ground and stubbornly held it. Ewell moved next, and engaged the enemy in the forest. lfeanwhile Whiting attacked the enemy's left, having the most difficult part of the field, and achieved the critical triumph. He emerged into the field at the head of a deep ravine, which covered the Federal left; he advanced through a number of retreating and disordered regiments; for a quarter of a mile the enemy, protected by breastworks, poured into the advancing line a destructive and terrible fire; but yet the devoted column, led by " food's brave Texans," pressed on with unfaltering step. In this splendid charge upwards of a thousand men fell killed and wounded. Its way was strewn with carnage. Leaping ditch and stream, clambering up a difficult assent, through showers of cannon and musketry, amid smoke and smell of blood, these heroic troops pierced the Federal stronghold, took fourteen pieces of artillery, and placed the battleflag of the Confederates on the first, then on the second tier of the enemy's defences. "It was," wrote Jackson-who seldom used an animated phrase in an official report-" a rapid and almost matchless display of desperate and daring valour." "The shouts of triumph which rose from our brave men, as they, unaided by artillery, had stormed this citadel of the enemy's strength, were LIEUT.-GEN. STONEWALL JACKSON. 201 promptly carried from line to line; and the triumphant issue of this assault, with the well-directed fire of the batteries, and successful charges of Hill and Winder upon the enemy's right, determined the fortunes of the day. The Federals, routed at every point, and aided by the darkness of the night, escaped across the Chickahominy." Beyond this glorious part in the decisive field called Gaines' Mills, Jackson had but little share in the " seven days' battles." He was obstructed in White Oak Swamp, in pursuit of the enemy, important bridges having been destroyed; and at Malvern Hill, D. H. Hill's division, which was temporarily with Jackson, began the action prematurely, and was compelled to fall back before Ewell's troops could reinforce him. The campaign of the Peninsula ended here. In a few weeks it was perceived that the scene of action was rapidly changing from the James to the Rappahannock. It became necessary to maintain the Confederate position at Gordonsville, and to guard that point, Jackson was detached in the latter part of July, with a force consisting of his "old divisidn," Ewell's, and afterwards that of A. P. Hill. Ascertaining to his satisfaction that Pope, who commanded the Federal forces in Northern Virginia, was waiting at Culpeper Court-IHouse to be reinforced by Burnside, he resolved to attack before that event should occur. On the 8th August he crossed the Rapidan, and took up a position in the wooded and hilly country in the vicinity of the main road from Gordonsville to Culpeper. His force consisted of about 15,000 men, and on his front was the corps of his old Valley acquaintance, Banks, with a division of MIcDowell. This force had been thrown forward by Pope, to take a strong position near Cedar or Slaughter's Mountain, the wooded slopes of which Jackson had already occupied. In the afternoon of the 9th August, Banks advanced his divisions, and the battle of Cedar Run was fought. The result was that the Federal line was driven back about a mile, and Pope himself acknowledged a loss of 1,800 killed, wounded, and prisoners, and stated that fully 1,000 more straggled back to Culpeper CourtHouse and beyond, and never entirely returned to their commands. In the battle of Cedar Run, Jackson had only intended to check the enemy's advanced divisions, and to save Gordonsville; and he now proposed to defer operations until the arrival of the main army 202 LIEUT.-GEN. STONEWALL JACKSON. from Richmond, set free by the withdrawal of McClellan from Harrison's Landing. He did not have long to wait. Gen. Lee was soon up with him, made various demonstrations at the fords of the Rapidan to attract Pope's attention, and while thus amusing the enemy, designed an attack on his left flank and rear, so as to cut off his retreat to the Rappahannock by the line of the railroad. With this end in view, Longstreet moved by way of Raccoon Ford, and Jackson by way of Somerville Ford, on the Rapidan. Pope declined the battle with Lee's forces massed on his flank, and fell back promptly to the north bank of the Rappahannock. It was now determined by the Confederate commander to send a column against the enemy's rear, to get between him and Washington, cut his communications, and in conjunction with the rest of the army which would follow, engage his whole force, and capture or destroy it before it could retreat to the Potomac. This desperate movement was intrusted to Jackson. On the 25th, he left the main army, and proceeded rapidly towards the head waters of the Rappahannock. It was a sore and painful march, up the steeps, along and across the valleys skirting thEe Blue Ridge Mountains; the artillery was dragged with difficulty up the narrow and rockribbed roads; many of the men were barefooted, many faint from want of food. But Jackson was on his favourite adventure a flank movement-and inspiriting his men, pushed forward to Thoroughfare Gap, hoping to reach it before the enemy could be made aware of his intention. Passing Salem through C" crowds all welcoming, cheering, staring with blank amazement," he pressed on through the plains to the -well-known mountain gorge. It was undefended. He passed rapidly between the frowning ramparts with his little army, hungry, exhausted, but resolute as ever. The open country was now before him, and he descended, like a hawk, upon Manassas. Here a small force of the enemy was routed, and a rich spoil obtained. Eight pieces of artillery, ten locomotives, and two trains of enormous size, loaded with many millions' worth of stores, fell into Jackson's hands. The rich and varied contents of the sutlers' stores were turned over to the men, who had been living mostly on roasted corn since they had crossed the Rappahannock. "To see," said an eye-witness, " a starving man eating lobster-salad, and drinking Rhine wine, barefooted and in tatters, was curious; LIEUT.-GEN. STONEWALL JACKSON. 203 the whole thing was incredible." But they did not tarry long at their strange feast. Destroying what he could not appropriate, Jackson, at nightfall of the 27th August, turned his back on the burning houses of Manassas; for Pope was now moving to attack him, and the head of the Federal column had already come in collision with Ewell. With his command reduced by the hardships of the march to scarcely more than twenty thousand jaded men, far from his supports, with Pope's whole force faced upon him and threatening annihilation, it was now the difficult task of Jackson to ward off the threatened blow, and yet hold the enemy in check until Lee and Longstreet arrived. These latter forces, marching the same route which Jackson had pursued, had to follow the arc of a circle, over the chord of which Pope moved; and the Federal commander had already announced, in the slang of the braggart, that he would "bag" Jackson. But arrived at Manassas Junction, the enemy found that Jackson had given him the slip, and moving across to the Warrenton turnpike, had gained the high timber-land north and west of Groveton, and taken a position to form a junction with Longstreet as soon as he arrived. As one of the Federal columns advanced parallel with the Warrenton turnpike, it unwittingly presented a flank to Jackson. The temptation to assail it was irresistible. Jackson said briefly, "Ewell, advance!" and, bringing up his old division, furiously attacked the enemy. It was a fierce and sanguinary conflict; the enemy did not give way, but at night his forces —those of McDowell-were withdrawn to Manassas, and Jackson held precisely the position to put himself in the way of a junction with the main body of Lee's army, and which it should have been Pope's supreme object to have anticipated. The next morning, 29th August, Jackson, now confident of his ability to hold his ground until reinforcements arrived, presented a dauntless front, ready to accept battle at any moment. A cloud of dust in the direction of Thoroughfare Gap told the tale of succour and good hope; and Longstreet's divisions were soon formed across the Warrenton road, his left resting upon a range not far from Jackson's right. The enemy appeared to adhere to his design of overwhelming Jackson before succour reached him; and as Longstreet was coming into position, a heavy column attacked 201 LIEUT.-GEN. STONEWALL JACKSON. Jackson's left with great fury. Six separate and distinct assaults were met and repulsed. For hours the conflict continued obstinate and determined; until a demonstration made on the enemy's left by the brigades of Hood and Evans relieved Jackson from the heavy pressure of the enemy's columns, gained some ground, but left the day undecided. In the greater battle of the next day, Jackson appeared destined again to bear the brunt of the enemy's attack. Most of the day was consumed by the enemy in manceuvring; but about four o'clock, a dense column of infantry, massed in a strip of woods near Groveton, advanced against the Confederate centre, where Jackson's right and Longstreet's left joined, and where eight batteries had been concentrated. As the fire of these was directed upon the enemy's triple lines of infantry, it seemed to rake and tear them to pieces. They were swept away like leaves in the wind. But again the obstinate masses came charging as before; again the iron storm crashed through the ranks; and again they broke and retired. A third force, heavier than before, now advanced with mad impetuosity, and, in the midst of the rapid fire of the batteries, threw themselves upon Jackson, and engaged him in a last and terrible struggle for the field. The desperate onset was sustained by Jackson. As he struggled, Col. Lee moved the batteries referred to a little to the left, and at four hundred yards from the Federal lines poured into them a fire that ploughed broad gaps through them. Through the rifts of smoke could be seen soldiers falling and flying; and then piercing yells told that Jackson was advancing with his terrible weapon, the bayonet. Just at this moment Longstreet seized the opportunity presented to him, and attacked the exposed left flank of the enemy. The whole Confederate line was now advancing; it was charge! charge! through the woods, over the hills, over the dead and dying. Jackson's troops came on like " demons emerged from the earth." The whole field was swept with the bayonet; the grand advance never paused; and the Federal army, breaking and disappearing in the rapidly gathering darkness, now thought of nothing but its safety beyond the sheltering heights of Centreville. The next day Jackson's corps was again in motion: it had not yet completed its work. At Centreville, Pope united with the corps of Franklin and Sumner, and Jackson was at once sent on LIEUT.-GEN. STONEWALL JACKSON. 205 a detour to his right to intercept, if possible, his retreat to Washington. Pope, meantime, fell back to positions covering Fairfax Court-House and Germantown; and on the evening of the 1st September, Jackson struck his right, posted at Ox Hill, near Germantown. On the Confederate side the action was fought with Hill's and Ewell's divisions, in the midst of a cold and drenching rain. The conflict was maintained until dark, when the enemy retreated, having lost two general officers —Reno and Kearneyand the next day had drawn back within the lines of Washington. This engagement closed the campaign against Pope. It will be observed that throughout it Jackson was given the most prominent place. The campaign was commenced by him alone; he had won a victory at Cedar Run; he had, by a swift and silent march, reached Thoroughfare Gap before the enemy suspected his advance; passed through the narrow gorge without resistance; repulsed the advances of Pope at Bristoe Station; captured and destroyed the large stores at Manassas; cut to pieces the force sent to relieve the garrison; retired with deliberation to the old battle-field of Manassas; repulsed the attack of the Federal army; held his position until Longstreet arrived; and then falling upon the enemy, had borne the brunt of the encounter during battles of incredible fury, joined in the final and decisive charge, and pursued him to the foreground of Washington. The total loss of the Confederate army in this series of battles was about 7,500, of whom 1,100 were killed upon the field. Of this loss, nearly 5,000 fell upon the corps of Jackson; out of which number 805 officers and men were killed. The prisoners lost by him, in the whole of the long struggle, amounted to only thirty-five. But the wonderful campaign of the Confederates was not to end on the historic plains of Manassas, so deeply crimsoned with Southern blood; and while Pope retreated towards Alexandria, Lee had determined on the invasion of Maryland, and was making for the fords of the Potomac. Between the 4th and 7th September, the whole Confederate army crossed the Potomac, and encamped in the vicinity of Frederick. It was ascertained that at Harper's Ferry a force of about 12,000 of the enemy remained directly in Lee's rear; and it became necessary to dislodge that force before concentrating the Confederate army west of the mountains. To this duty Jackson, with his own three divisions, the two divisions 206 LIEUT.-GEN. STONEWALL JACKSON. of McLaws, and the division of Walker, was assigned. The advance was begun on the 10th. In the morning of the 14th, the investment of Harper's Ferry was complete; McLaws having occupied Maryland Heights, and Jackson and Walker investing the town by the rear, the latter occupying Loudoun Heights. During the day, the heights were crowned with artillery; and at dawn of the 15th Jackson opened his artillery. In two hours a white flag was raised in token of surrender. Jackson received the capitulation of 12,000 men, and came into possession of seventythree pieces of artillery, 13,000 small-arms, and a large quantity of military stores.* He tarried but a little while with his prize; and leaving A. P. Hill at Harper's Ferry, he headed towards Maryland to unite with Lee, and by a severe night-march reached Sharpsburg in the morning of the 16th September. In the battle of Sharpsburg, Jackson held the Confederate left. He had with him only Ewell's and his own division, the greater portion of his command being yet en route from Harper's Ferry. Against his thin line the heaviest fire of the enemy's artillery was directed in the early part of the day; and with such effect that Jackson himself gave the order to retire. Hood's two brigades were moved to his support; and of what ensued a Northern' correspondent writes: " The rebels, greatly reinforced, made a sudden * A correspondent of the New York Evening Post, who had an opportunity of seeing Jackson during the brief hours he was at Harper's Ferry, thus records his impressions of the famous Confederate: "While the officers were dashing down the road, and the half-naked privates begging at every door, Gen. Jackson was sunning himself, and talking with a group of soldiers at the pump across the street-a plain man, in plain clothes, with an iron face and iron-gray hair. Only by his bearing could he be distinguished from his men. He stood as if the commonest of all, marked only by the mysterious insignia of individual presence by which we know, intuitively, the genius from the clown. No golden token of rank gleamed on his rusty clothes; of the shining symbols of which, alas, too many of our officers are so ridiculously fond that they seem unconscious how disgraceful is this glitter of vanity They were nowhere visible on old Stonewall's person. When Gen. Jackson had drank at the pump, and talked at his leisure, he mounted his flame-colored horse and rode down the street at the jog of a comfortable farmer carrying a bag of meal. "As he passed, I could but wonder how many times he had prayed on Saturday night before commencing his hellish Sabbath work. His old servant says that'When massa prays four times in de night, he knows the devil'11 be to pay de next day.' And I am very sure that there were a large number of devils at work above Harper's Ferry on Sunday, September 14, 1862." LIEUT.-GEN. STONEWALL JACKSON. 207 and impetuous onset, and drove our gallant fellows back over a portion of the hard-won field. What we had won, however, was not relinquished without a desperate struggle, and here, up the hills and down, through the woods and the standing corn, over the ploughed land and the clover, the line of fire swept to and fro as one side or the other gained a temporary advantage." As the day advanced the troops of McLaws and Walker reached the field, and Jackson was enabled to defeat the persistent attempt of the enemy to turn his left. The design of the Federal commander was to force Lee back upon the river, and to cut him to pieces before he could cross. His main assault was against the Confederate left, and his failure there destroyed his best expectations of the day. Jackson held his ground firmly; on other parts of the field the battle spent itself in indecisive results; and the day closed with the two armies holding the same positions which they occupied when it began, save that in the centre the Confederate line was retracted about two hundred yards. Sharpsburg, although not a Federal victory, purchased a respite in the storms of war. Gen. Lee having determined to recruit his army, withdrew to the soil of Virginia; and Jackson's corps passed the beautiful autumn months in the bosom of the most charming regions of the lower Valley of the Shenandoah. It was not until these precious months of rest had glided past, and the blasts of winter carried away the gorgeous foliage and the brilliant sunshine, that the Federal authorities were prepared for another advance into Virginia, and the veteran corps of Jackson summoned to other bloody scenes of conflict. 208 LIEUT.-GEN. STONEWALL JACKSON. CHAPTER XVIII. Battle of Fredericksburg.-Gen. Jackson conceives the desperate enterprise of driving the enemy into the river.-But he recalls the attack.-Battle of Chancellorsville.-A night council under the pines.-The flank-march.-How Gen. Hooker was deceived.-Gen. Jackson's last dispatch.-Fury of his attack in the Wilderness.-HIIe is shot from his horse by his own men.-Particulars of his wound and sufferings. —His dying moments.-Funeral ceremonies in Richmond. VWHEN the Federal host, now put under the command of the feeble but gallant Burnside, essayed its fourth " On-to-Richmond," it was determined to try the line of the Rappahannock; and in the battle of Fredericksburg, fought the 13th December, Jackson's command had an active share. In the Confederate line of battle Jackson held the right, occupying about half of the range of hills, which swept around to Hamilton's Crossing on the railroad, inclosing a broken plain stretching back from the margin of the Rappahannock. In the early hours of the day the sun struggled with a thick haze; but as the morning mist lifted there was suddenly revealed one of the most animated scenes of the war, in which the Confederates, looking down as from an amphitheatre, saw before them a plain alive with the multitudes of a great army, and the gleaming bayonets of columns advancing to the attack. On the crest of hills the lines of the Confederate army stretched away, and on a commanding eminence, a little southeast of Marye's Heights, Gen. Lee obtained a view of the entire field. Occasionally Jackson rode up to this point of observation, where Lee camly conversed with his lieutenants, and arranged the final order of battle. Once Gen. Longstreet exclaimed to Jackson: "Are you not scared by that multitude of Yankees you have before you down there?" To which the latter replied: "Wait till they come a little nearer, and they shall either scare me or I'll scare them." The sun had no sooner let in light enough to disclose the proximity of the lines than the battle commenced with a fierce attack upon A. P. Hill, who held Jackson's front. The divisions of LIEUT.-GEN. STONEWALL JACKSON. 209 Early and Taliaferro composed Jackson's second line, while D. H. HEill's division was held in reserve. Jackson estimated the enemy in his front at 55,000 men-the wing of Franklin, supported by a portion of Hooker's division. The first serious incident of the battle was the irruption of this heavy mass through Hill's line. But it was only a temporary triumph; Jackson's second line was ordered forward, checked the enemy's advance, and drove him with great slaughter from the woods to the railroad, only ceasing the pursuit far within the range of the enemy's artillery. The enemy appears to have been satisfied with this trial of Jackson, and during the remainder of the day did not renew the attack upon him, limiting their demonstration to a spiteful cannonade on his lines. The chief interest of the field transpired upon the left, where the day was decisively won. In the afternoon, Jackson learning the brilliant fortune on other parts of the field, dispatched an order that " he was going to advance and attack the enemy precisely at sunset, and Gen. Stuart was desired to advance his artillery and fire as rapidly as possible, taking care not to injure the troops as they attacked." He had conceived the desperate enterprise of driving the enemy into the river. With his watch in his hand, he counted the minutes until the sun touched, the horizon, while he considered the terrible risks of the enterprise, the double embankments of the river road before him, and the immense artillery which crowned the Stafford hills on the other side of the river. Just as he moved forward, and his first line sprung to the deadly work before it, the enemy opened all his artillery; it covered Jackson's whole front; with a quick perception and perfect self-command he saw the risk- and cost of the endeavour, and in a moment relinquished it. It was enough that the day was won. Of what followed the brilliant but imperfect victory of Fredericksburg, Gen. Jackson writes in his official report: "On the 15th the enemy still remained in our front, and, in the evening of that day, sent in a flag of truce requesting a cessation of hostilities between his left and our right wing, for the purpose of removing his wounded from the field, which, under previous instructions from the Commanding General, was granted. Our troops patiently remained in position on that, as they had done the previous day, eagerly awaiting another attack from the enemy; and such was the. 14 210 LIEUT.-GEN. STONEWALL JACKSON. desire to occupy the front line, when such an attack should be made, that the division of Maj.-Gen. D. H. Hill sent in a written request to be permitted to remain in the front line until next day. But our brave troops were disappointed in the expectation of another attack. For whilst they patiently waited during the night of the 15th, in the hope of another encounter on the following day, and of visiting upon the invaders of their sacred homes and firesides a just retribution for the outrages of this most unprovoked and unchristian war, the enemy hurriedly and silently, during that night, made good his retreat by recrossing the river." The campaign of 1863 opens with the battle of Chancellorsville. In April of that year the two armies confronted each other on the banks of the Rappahannock from a point above its confluence with the Rapidan as far down as Port Royal. The bulk of the Confederate forces remained, however, near Fredericksburg. Lee had been weakened by detachments; he had not more than 45,000 men; and when Hooker, the new Federal commander, with twice his numbers, crossed the Rappahannock with the design of enveloping him, and left fronting Fredericksburg Sedgwick, with a force nearly matching Lee's whole army in numbers, the situation was never more desperate for the Confederates. In the last days of April, Hooker had got the greater portion of his army across the Rappahannock, and was moving towards Chancellorsville, about four miles south of the point of the confluence of the Rapidan. The divisions of Anderson and McLaws were marched westward to arrest the progress of Hooker, while Jackson remained in the lines occupied by him in the battle of Fredericksburg, watching the proceedings of Sedgwick before him. On the 29th April, Lee, determining to meet Sedgwick by a feint, left Early's division only to confront him, while Jackson stole rapidly away to reinforce Anderson and McLaws, and to take the aggressive against Hooker. In the mists of the morning and under cover of the forest, Jackson passed securely out of view, defying the espionage of the enemy's balloons, and before noon was with Gen. Lee on Hooker's front, busy in disclosing his real strength and position. The enemy had here 90,000 troops intrenched at their leisure; his front was well-nigh impregnable; and the design of assailing him from the east or the south was speedily abandoned. LIEUT.-GEN. STONEWALL JACKSON. 211 Gen. Jackson eagerly proposed to throw his command entirely into Hooker's rear, availing himself of the absence of the Federal cavalry, and to assail him from the west, and in concert with Anderson and McLaws. It was a characteristic, brilliant, hazardous adventure; it involved a second detachment from Lee's sadly diminished army-Early remaining at Fredericksburg with about seven thousand men; it left only Anderson and McLaws to " contain " Hooker; and yet it was the best thing to be done under all the circumstances. The plan of action was decided in a council held at night in a cluster of pine trees, and at the foot of one of these Jackson slept, after discussing the grand adventure of the morrow. The thought of its peril might have kept an ordinary commander awake. He had undertaken to move, without being discovered, along the entire front of the enemy, and in close proximity to his lines; to make his way by unfrequented roads, and through dense thickets to his flank and rear; to attack the large force in the intrenchments above Chancellorsville, and to take the chances of a repulse, where, with 22,000 men, and without the possibility of assistance from Gen. Lee, he would have been at the enemy's mercy. Everything was put upon the issue of this movement; but having once calculated it, Jackson was perfectly self-possessed, and a more than usual confidence is said to have shone in his features. In the morning of the 2d May, Jackson was in the saddle. He had learned the absence of hostile cavalry; the friendly screen of forests which surrounded Chancellorsville had been described to him. Diverging westward from the Fredericksburg plank-road, he pursued his march by a forest path; passed a point known as "the Furnace; " there struck into a road which intersected the Orange plank-road, on which the enemy's force was planted, regaining which to the northward, he would be in a position to turn Hooker's left flank. But it was impossible to make the perilous flank-march across the whole of the enemy's front without attracting some attention, for his scouts were mounted in the tops of the highest trees, and the screen of the forest was not always available. As the column of Jackson passed over a hill near "the Furnace," it partially disclosed itself; but the enemy, instead of taking alarm, was seized with the conceit of interpreting the movement as a retreat towards Richmond on tihe part of Lee. 212 LIEUT.-GEN. STONEWALL JACKSON. Sickles, who observed the movement, struck the rear of the column, took a few prisoners, and sent an elated account to Hooker, who dispatched to Sedgwick at Fredericksburg: " We know the enemy is flying, trying to save his trains; two of Sickles' divisions are among them." The enemy's pleasant delusion was to be broken in a few hours by a sudden and almost mortal blow. At three o'clock in the afternoon, Jackson had arrived six miles west of Chancellorsville, and upon precisely the opposite side of the enemy to that occupied by Gen. Lee. Here he wrote his last dispatch to the Commanding General: " I hope, so soon as practicable, to attack. I trust that an ever kind Providence will bless us with success." Two hours were consumed in preparations for the attack; orders were issued, aides and orderlies galloped to and fro, and between five and six o'clock, Jackson advanced his force in three parallel lines, Rodes holding the front and tearing through the thickets to get within view of the enemy's lines. The right wing of Hooker's army, composed of the Eleventh corps under Howard, rested on the plank-road, all unsuspicious of danger. As Rodes' men burst from the woods, uttering loud cheers, attacking the alarmed enemy in front and flank, it appeared that scarcely any organized resistance was offered to the assault. Some of Howard's troops ran from the suppers they were cooking; a.few seized their arms, and endeavoured to defend themselves; but quickly the whole corps was in rout, the men flying in the wildest confusion, and leaving the field strewn with their guns and knapsacks. For three miles the Federals were swept back by a resistless charge, and panic-stricken fugitives fled towards the fords of the Rappahannock. In the dusk of nightfall there was a rushing whirlwind of men, artillery, and wagons sweeping down the road, and through the woods, in mad retreat. The Confederates pressed forward through the barriers of the forest, entangled now and then in an abattis of felled trees, their lines falling into disorder, but their victorious shouts still resounding in the woods. A description of Jackson at this time says: "The only order given by him had been his favourite battle-cry,'Press forward.' This was his message to every General, and his answer to every inquiry. As he uttered it, he leaned forward upon his hbrse, and waved his hand as though endeavouring, by its single strength, to urge for LIEUT.-GEN. STONEWALL JACKSON. 213 ward his whole line. Never before had his preoccupation of mind, and his insensibility to danger, been so great. It was evident that he regarded this as his greatest victory." By the time, however, the Confederates had reached the ridge overlooking that upon which Chancellorsville is situated, about half a mile distant, they were in very great confusion; the divisions of Rodes and Colston had been mingled almost inextricably; the enemy was rapidly bringing up artillery to stem the torrent of the pursuit. It was now past seven o'clock, and growing dark. Jackson had already seized the enemy's breastworks, had taken the whole line in reverse, and had pushed forward to within half a mile of headquarters. Here it became necessary to desist from the attack, in order to re-form the commands; and Jackson now proceeded to make preparations for following up his success by a blow that should be decisive. His design now was to swing round with his left, interpose his corps between Hooker's army and United States Ford, and capture or destroy it, or be himself destroyed.* The enemy was evidently recovering from his panic; hollow murmurs of preparation sounded through the night; fifty pieces of artillery were concentrated to sweep the approaches to his position at the first rustle in the forest that announced a new advance of the Confederates; there was the tramp and hum of men moving to their allotted positions; and on the dark lines, gunners stood with lighted port-fires to pour swift destruction into the Confederate ranks. A. P. Hill was now ordered to move with his division to the front, and Jackson rode forward to reconnoitre the enemy's position. The enemy was less than two hundred yards in front of his lines, and no pickets had been established. Jackson had proceeded half the distance, when a fire of musketry on his front warned him of the enemy's proximity. He turned to ride hurriedly back, plunging his horse into the cover of the woods. He had got within twenty paces of his lines, accompanied by six or seven riders, when there was a cry of "cavalry," and a volley of musketry for the * Some days before his death, and while wounded, Jackson, speaking of the attack he had made, said with a glow of martial ardour: "If I had not been wounded, I would have cut the enely off from the road to United States Ford; we would have had them entirely surrounded, and they would have been obliged to surrender or cut their way out-they had no other alternative." 214 LIEUT.-GEN. STONEWALL JACKSON. moment blinded the party, their horses recoiling in panic, some of them rushing through the woods unmanageable, and frantic from terrour. Several of the party fell dead upon the spot. Jackson's right hand was penetrated by a ball, his left fore-arm lacerated by another, and the same limb broken a little below the shoulder by a third, which not only crushed the bone, but severed the main artery. But he maintained his seat in the saddle, quieted his frantic horse, and turning to Capt. Wilbourne, his signal officer, remarked that his arm was broken, and requested to be assisted to the ground. As he was being lifted from the saddle he fainted, and his feet had to be disengaged from the stirrups. To remove him from the spot where he had fallen was absolutely necessary; the enemy was not more than a hundred yards distant, and the battle might recommence at any moment. No litter or ambulance was at hand, and Lieut. Morrison, his aide, exclaimed, " Let us take the General up in our arms, and carry him off! " but Jackson recovered from his swoon, and though very faint and pale, replied, "No; if you can help me up, I can walk." Supported by the shoulders, he tottered towards the road. A litter was now procured, but it had scarcely begun to move, when one of the bearers was shot down, and the fire of the enemy's artillery became frightful. The enemy had probably perceived some cause of confusion in the Confederate ranks, or suspected that another attack was about to commence, and now swept the road where Jackson lay with the concentrated fire of their heaviest artillery. The bearers of the litter, and all Jackson's attendants, excepting Major Leigh, and Lieuts. Smith and Morrison, fled in the woods on either hand to escape the fatal tempest. It was a weird and appalling scene. Wild curves of fire shot athwart the night sky; there were broken ranks and riderless horses in the woods; and in the interval of all this roar and confusion were distinctly heard the plaintive notes of the whippoorwills in the forest. It seemed that nothing could live in the road, where Jackson lay prostrate with his feet to the foe. On one side of the sufferer lay Major Leigh, and on the other Lieut. Smith. The earth was torn around them; Minie-balls flew hissing over them; as the iron hail fell in the road, they could hear the feet of Death pattering around them. Jackson endeavoured to rise, when Lieut. Smith threw his arm over him, and held him tithe ground, saying, "Sir, you must lie still; it will cost you your life if you rise." LIEUT.-GEN. STONEWALL JACKSON. 215 None of the party hoped to escape unhurt from the tempest of fire; and it appeared, indeed, as if the spirit of the great commander was to go out in that great diapason of battle, which rung its solemn charges through the forest; while through its foliage escaped the startled night-birds, and the moonlit sky hung peacefully above the Wilderness. But it was not so ordered. Presently the fire of the enemy veered from the road, and the devoted officers who had almost miraculously escaped death, assisting Jackson to rise, struck into the woods, the General dragging himself painfully along until a litter was again procured. The party had proceeded but a short distance when one of the litter-bearers stumbled, and Jackson fell upon the shoulder where the bone had been shattered. The pain must have been exquisite, and for the first time the sufferer groaned, and most piteously. When he reached the field hospital at Wilderness Run, he was almost pulseless; his hands were cold, his skin clammy, his face pale, and his lips compressed and bloodless. Stimulants were freely applied, and the next morning he was free from pain, and his physicians were hopeful of his recovery. At this time the last drama of the battle of Chancellorsville was being enacted, and Lee was completing the victory which Jackson had commenced and assured. The news of the complete victory was brought to the sufferer, and he was told how the Stonewall Brigade had joined in the final charge, shouting, " Remember Jackson! " and how, when their commander, Paxton, fell, they rushed forward, unconscious of his absence, led, as it were, by the name which formed their battle-cry. He was deeply affected by the incident. He said: "The men of that brigade will be, some day, proud to say to their children,'I was one of the Stonewall Brigade!''" Visitors and letters crowded upon the distinguished sufferer, who it was yet hoped would recover. Gen. Lee wrote: "I have just received your note, informing me that you were wounded. I cannot express my regret at the occurrence. Could I have directed events, I should have chosen for the good of the country, to have been disabled in your stead. I congratulate you on the victory which is due to your skill and energy." Upon reading it, Jackson reverently said: " Gen. Lee should give the glory to God." (7 On the fifth day of his sufferings, symptoms of pneumonia were 216 LIEUT.-GEN. STONEWALL JACKSON. discovered, and when the week passed, his condition was such that his wife, who attended him, was informed that his recovery was very doubtful, and that she should be prepared for the worst. The prospect of death produced no change in the Christian hero. When informed of it by his wife, he was silent for a moment, and then said: " It will be infinite gain to be translated to heaven." He advised his wife, in the event of his death, to return to her father's house, and added, " You have a kind and good father, but there is no one so kind and good as your Heavenly Father." He still expressed a hope of his recovery, but requested her, if he should die, to have him buried in Lexington, in the Valley of Virginia. His exhaustion increased so rapidly that, at eleven o'clock, Mrs. Jackson knelt by his bed and told him that before the sun went down he would be with his Saviour. He replied, " Oh, no you are frightened, my child; death is not so near; I may yet get well." She fell over upon the bed, weeping bitterly, and told him again that the physicians said there was no hope. After a moment's pause he asked her to call Dr. McGuire. " Doctor, Anna informs me that you have told her that I am to die to-day; is it so?" When he was answered, he turned his eyes towards the ceiling and gazed for a moment or two, as if in intense thought, then replied, "Very good, very good; it is all right." Col. Pendleton came into the room about one o'clock, and he asked him, "Who was preaching at headquarters to-day?" When told that the whole army was praying for him, he replied: "Thank God! they are very kind." He said: " It is the Lord's day; my wish is fulfilled. I have always desired to die on Sunday." That delirium which appears to seize upon the most powerful organizations in the moment of death, began to affect him. IHis mind began to fail and wander, and he frequently talked as if in command upon the field, giving orders in his old way; then the scene shifted, and he was at the mess-table, in conversation with members of his staff; now with his wife and child; now at prayers with his military family. Occasional intervals of return of his mind would appear, and during one of them his physician offered him some brandy-and-water, but he declined it, saying, "It will only delay my departure, and do no good; I want to preserve my mind, if possible, to the last." About half-past one he was told that he had but two hours to live, and he answered again, feebly LIEUT.-GEN. STONEWALL JACKSON. 217 but firmly, " Very good; it is all right." A few moments before he died, he cried out in his delirium, " Order A. P. Hill to prepare for action! pass the infantry to the front rapidly! tell Major Hawks " — then stopped, leaving the sentence unfinished. Presently a smile of ineffable sweetness spread itself over his pale face, and he said quietly, and with an expression as if of relief, " Let us cross over the river, and rest under the shade of the trees; " and then without pain or the least struggle, his spirit passed from earth to the mansions of the eternal and just. Gen. Jackson's death was officially announced to the army in which he served by the following order, which was issued by the Commanding General: HEADQUARTERS, ARMY OF NORTHERN VIRGINIA, May 11, 1863. TWith deep grief the Commanding-General announces to the army the death of Lieutenant-General T. J. Jackson, who expired on the 10th instant, at a quarter-past three P.M. The daring, skill, and energy of this great and good soldier, by an all-wise Providence are now lost to us. But while we mourn his death, we feel that his spirit still lives, and will inspire the whole army with his indomitable courage and unshaken confidence in God as our hope and strength. Let his name be a watchword to his corps, who have followed him to victory on so many fields. Let the officers and soldiers imitate his invincible determination to do everything in the defense of our beloved country. R. E. LEE, General. The remains were carried to Richmond, which clothed herself in mourning. Had a visible pall overspread the city, it could not have expressed grief more profound, nor sorrow more universal, than that which filled every bosom and sat upon every countenance. The public heart was full of grief to'bursting. The special train bearing the remains advanced into the city through an avenue which for two miles was thronged with multitudes of men and women. It drove slowly up into the depot, the bells of the city meanwhile sending their solemn peals over the city and into thousands of throbbing hearts. The coffin was removed from the car and enshrouded with the flag under which the Christian hero fought and fell, covered with spring flowers and placed upon the hearse in waiting. 218 LIEUT. GEN. STONE WALL JACKSON. The cortege moved through the main streets of the city, and then returned to the Capitol. When the hearse reached the steps of the Capitol, the pall-bearers, headed by Gen. Longstreet, bore the corpse into the hall of the lower house of the Congress, where it was placed upon a species of altar, draped with snowy white, before the Speaker's chair. The coffin was still enfolded with the white, blue, and red, of the Confederate flag. Here the face and bust of the dead was uncovered; and the expectant thousands now claimed the melancholy satisfaction of obtaining the last look of the beloved commander. It was estimated that twenty thousand persons filed through the hall to view the body as it lay in state for the greater part of the day. In recognition of the solemn occasion all business in the city was suspended during the day, and the theatres were closed at night. The next morning the remains were placed on a special train for Lexington, in charge of a becoming escort of officials and citizens, and were finally deposited there, in the village burying-ground, with nothing but a green mound to mark the place of final rest. Of the last tributes of a people's love to Jackson, the Richmond Examine&' said: "All the poor honours that Virginia, sorely troubled and pressed hard, could afford her most glorious and beloved son, having been offered to his mortal part in this capital, the funeral cortege of the famous Jackson left it yesterday morning, on the long road to'Lexington, in the Valley of Virginia.' It was the last wish of the dead man to be buried there, amid the scenes familiar to his eyes through the years of his manhood, obscure and unrecorded, but perhaps filled with recollections to him not less affecting than those connected with the brief but crowded period passed upon a grander stage. This desire, expressed at such a time, demanded and has received unhesitating compliance. Yet many regret that his remains will not rest in another spot. Near this city is a hill crowned by secular oaks, washed by the waters of the river, identified with what is great in the State's history from the days of Elizabeth to the present hour, which has been well selected as the place of national honour for the illustrious dead of Virginia. There sleep Monroe and Tyler. We have neither a Westminster nor a Pantheon, but all would wish to see the best that we could give conferred on Jackson. Hereafter, Virginia will build him a stately tomb, and strike a medal to secure the LIEUT.-GEN. STONEWALL JACKSON.- 219 memory of his name beyond the reach of accident, if accident were possible. But it is not possible; nor is a monument necessary to cause the story of this man's life to last when bronze shall have corroded and marble crumbled." 220 LIEUT. GEN. STONEWALL JACKSON. CHAPTER XIX. Review of Gen. Jackson's services and character.-True nature of his ambition.-The value of glory.-Religious element in Gen. Jackson's character.-Peculiarity of his religious habits.-Anecdotes.-Want of natural amiability.-Harshness of manner towards his officers.-His severe idea of war.-Destructiveness.-lHis readiness to forgive.-A touching personal incident. —Iis self-possession as a mark of "genius."-His military faculty not a partial one.-European estimates of his career.-A lesson to Northern insolence and rancour. WE have said Gen. Jackson was a born soldier. This furnishes a larger and more thorough insight into his character than any other observation. We use the term soldier, not merely as denoting an aptitude to arms, or even the possession of the military genius, but we include the common association with the profession of an ardent love for glory, a thirst for distinction, a peculiar ambition, that values a name in history above the coarser gifts of popularity and power. An ambition so pure and ideal ran perceptibly through the whole of Jackson's wonderful career. His passion for renown was not of that common type that seeks the tangible gifts of power, and enjoys the evanescent noises of popularity. Ite had not that order of mind that mistakes " a dunce's puff for fame," and the penny-a-lines of the newspaper for the inscriptions of history. His was an ambition that valued " skilled commendation," and was not entirely insensible to the praise of his contemporaries; but which mostly and chiefly prized the name in history-an aspiration after the ideal, and not the vulgar hunt for notoriety and its gifts. Such an ambition is consonant with the most refined spirit of Christianity; it resides in the depths of great minds; and it easily escapes observation, because those moved by it are generally silent men, of mysterious air and mechanical manners, living within themselves, conscious that few can enter into sympathy with them, and constantly practising the art of impenetrable reserve. The world, in fact, often deceives itself in this regard, and has mistaken many prominent actors on its theatre for LIEUT.-GEN. STONEWALL JACKSON. 221 emotionless and ascetic men, deaf to praise-the mere cold figures in a round of duty-who yet have been inwardly consumed by the fires of ambition, and have made daily sacrifice on its altars. There has been a good deal of slighting philosophy about the emptiness of historic fame; a marked tendency in a superficial and materialistic school of morals to caricature it as a shadow, and ridicule it as the object of a human life. We reject this philosophy with infinite contempt and irrepressible disgust. Nations have fought for titles to fame as above all other objects of contest, and in this have represented but the aspirations for glory in the breasts of the individuals composing the society. These aspirations are given to us by the Creator; and so far from the love of glory being a frailty, it may be declared to be of the very dignity of human nature. The writer recollects a pretty story translated from the French, which was published as a lesson for the times, in a Richmond newspaper in the first months of the war. A young man uses some shallow and plausible phrases about glory being an "empty sound," " the bubble reputation," etc. His father, a worn veteran, reproves him; speaks in tender and reverential language of the great wars, teaches the lesson that the glory of a nation, that all the best and sentimental parts of civilization, proceed from its soldiers; and declares that the mutilations and scars of his body are dear as his children; ornaments of his age, tokens of his manhood, letters of his nobility, even more than stars and crosses of diamonds in the eyes of his countrymen.* * The same journal that contained this early lesson of the war, had this to say in summing up the results of the third year of the contest: " But this year is not without glorious consolations. The unaided strength and unbacked courage of the nation redeemed its fortunes from the dust, plucked up its drowning honour by the locks, and tore from the very jaws of death the right to live forever. History will hereafter show no page illuminated with more enduring glory than those which record the heroic events of the circle of months which end with this day. In these months of a forlorn republic, a people covered with the opprobrium and prejudice of the world; have secured a place in the Pantheon of remembered nations far above the most famous. Neither the story of Greece, or Rome, or France, or England, can bear a fair parallel with our own brief but most eventful narrative. Is not this triumphant crown of victory worth the awful price? The question will be answered according to the temperament of the reader. Many think, with Sir John, that honour cannot cure a broken leg, and that all the national glory that has been won in battle since Greeks fought Trojans, will not compensate the loss of a beef or 222 LIEUT.-GEN. STONEWALL JACKSON. But whatever may be the precise worth of martial glory, and however it may be measured by a coarse commercial philosophy, it is certain that it was the dominant passion of Jackson's life, and equally certain that it detracted nothing from the beauty and harmony of his character, and made him none the less a man or a Christian. The spirit that courted the greatest amount of danger in the Mexican War for the greatest amount of glory, showed the same tendency in the higher career of arms from ilanassas to Chancellorsville. It is said, that when Jackson was once asked if he had felt no trepidation when he made most extraordinary exposures of his person in the battles in Mexico, he replied, that the only anxiety of which he was conscious in any of these engagements, was a fear lest he should not meet danger enough to make his conduct under it as conspicuous as he desired; and as the danger grew greater, he rejoiced in it as his opportunity for distinction. This sentiment of the true soldier survived to Jackson's last moments, however emotions of piety may have been mingled with the ardour and joy of the warriour. The religious element in Gen. Jackson's character has come in for an undue share of public attention; and indeed one of his biographers has committed the mistake of taking the religion of the man as the stand-point of the entire view, forgetting that the interest of the religious life is merely auxiliary to the interest which Stonewall Jackson has excited in the world as a master of war. There are other considerations which make Jackson's piety of very partial interest. It is true that he was an enthusiast in religion, that he was wonderfully attentive in his devotions, and that prayer was as the breath of his nostrils. To one of his friends he declared that he had cultivated the habit of " praying without ceasing," and connecting a silent testimony of devotion with every familiar act of the day. "Thus," he said, "when I take my meals, there is the grace. When I take a draught of water, I always pause, as a dollar. But the young, the brave, the generous will everywhere judge that the exercise and exhibition in this year of the noblest virtues has been more than worth the misfortunes which have marked its progress. "Sound the clarion, fill the fife; To a sensual world proclaim, One crowded hour of glorious life Is worth an age without a name I" LIEUT.-GEN. STONEWALL JACKSON. 223 my palate receives the refreshment, to lift up my heart to God in thanks and prayer for the water of life. Whenever I drop a letter in the box, I send a petition along with it, for God's blessing upon its mission, and upon the person to whom it is sent. WVhen I break the seal of a letter just received, I stop to pray to God that He may prepare me for its contents, and make it a messenger of good." But notwithstanding the extreme fervour of Jackson's religion, it is remarkable that he kept it for certain places and companies; that he was disposed to be solitary in its exercise; and that he was singularly innocent of that Cromwellian fanaticism that mixes religious invocations with orders and utterances on a battlefield. He prayed in his tent; he delighted in long talks on religion with the many clergymen who visited him; he poured out the joys and aspirations of his faith in his private correspondence; but he seldom introduced religion into the ordinary conversation of his military life, and he exhibited this side of his character in the army in scarcely anything more than Sunday services in his camp, and a habitual brief line in all his official reports acknowledging the Divine favour. He was very attentive to these outward observances; but his religious habit was shy and solitary; he had none of the activity of the priest; we hear but little of his work in the hospitals, of private ministrations by the deathbed, and of walks and exercises of active charity. In his military intercourse he was the military commander; and though he often visibly prayed on the battle-field, it was in invariable silence, and he never mixed the audible exhortations of religion with the clear and ringing notes of his orders for the charge. Such a mixture we think is always of questionable taste, and sometimes borders on irreverence. Thus it is related of one of Jackson's former pastors who had a military education and commanded his artillery, that in one of the early battles of the war, before delivering the fire of his batteries upon the enemy, he exclaimed: "May we kill a thousand of them, and may God have mercy on their souls! " If such utterance is authentic, we think there is something improper and distasteful in it. The life of Jackson is, indeed, so copious of anecdote, particularly with reference to his religious habit, that it is difficult to choose from the mass of minor narratives, those most indicative of the character of the man. Among his curious rules of Christian 224 LIEUT.-GEN. STONEWALL JACKSON. discipline was one which required, whenever the usual Sunday exercises were omitted in his command, from the exigencies of the campaign, that some other day of the week should be set apart for religious services, to be performed in all respects as on the Sabbath. One of these occasions occurred in the forced and hurried march from McDowell, so necessary a preliminary to what followed of the Valley campaign; and the next Tuesday was appointed for preaching and services in the camp. Capt. Alfriend, a gallant young Virginian, in Jackson's command, relates that in the morning of this day, he was met some distance from his camp by the great commander, who rode towards him, unattended, and asked briefly " if there was preaching going on." "I do not know," re. plied Capt. A. "Show me to your colonel's headquarters, sir," rejoined Jackson. They had not proceeded far when their notice was attracted to a multitude of men standing in the open air, paying respectful attention to a sermon of a favourite chaplain, Mr. McIlvain. Seeing this, a spectacle so gratifying to his solicitude, Jackson said, with a smile of satisfaction, "Ah! it's all right;" and turning to his young companion with the winning and halfplayful expression he sometimes wore, he remarked, " And now, Capt. A., won't you promise to know there is preaching next time by going yourself to hear it." The manner of this simple remark was so touching and solicitous, that Capt. Alfriend declared that never thereafter, in the course of a long and stormy experience as a soldier, did he omit an occasion to attend religious services in his command. He describes with the pathos of a noble heart the impression made upon him, as Jackson, after the conversation just related, dismounted, fastened his horse to a neighbouring tree, and then proceeded to the gathering around the preacher, standing shoulder to shoulder with his own men, a common worshipper, claiming the common privilege of hearing the word of God. The day had been showery, and just as the benediction was pronounced there was a heavy fall of rain; but despite this, as the solemn words were pronounced, Jackson's head was uncovered, the rugged shoulders bowed to the pitiless storm, and in that attitude of humility the figure of the illustrious General, doing common reverence to his Maker with the soldiers of his command, constituted a picture more truly sublime than when he stood on the battle's crest and challenged all that men could do. LIEUT.-GEN. STONEWALL JACKSON. 225 Among all the Confederate commanders Jackson was most remarkable for his courtesy to the private soldiers of his command. He never failed to return the salute of the humblest man, and to touch his cap with uniform precision. Once on the march in the Valley, he came upon a private separated from his command, whose face had been horribly disfigured by a musket-ball that had traversed it. He was no straggler, but was evidently doing his best on the march. Jackson rode up to him and asked the name of his regiment. The man replied. " Where were you wounded?" was the next question. "Yesterday, at Port Republic, General." Raising his cap, and with an air that thrilled the poor soldier, Jackson said: "I thank you for your gallantry." These six words were a scroll of fame that many men would have died for. Gen. Jackson, despite such examples of courtesy as we have just related, did not have that natural amiability which was the charm of Lee's character; and his intercourse with his officers in matters of duty, was in striking contrast to the generosity of the latter towards his subordinates, and his forbearance of censure almost to that point where such forbearance ceases to be a virtue. In everything that concerned duty Jackson was stern and exacting; he was slow to admit excuses; laborious himself, he expected of all his officers prompt and precise execution of whatever work was assigned them. The man who was so gentle in his intercourse in times of peace, who was so mild in ordinary companies, was the very picture of severity on the battle-field; he appeared then to be translated into another being —a passionate, distinct, harsh commander, whose sharp and strident orders were as inexorable as messengers of fate. He was naturally of a very high temper; he was irascible and domineering; and it required all the grace of his Christian character and the severest discipline of his religion to keep within bounds his impulses of anger. He never hesitated to censure freely the conduct of the officers with whom he was associated. When Gen. Loring, by withdrawing from Romney, defeated Jackson's early plan of expelling the enemy from a large portion of the Valley district, and relieving some six or seven counties, the latter showed an almost excessive resentment by tendering his resignation, and went to the extent of declaring that Loring ought to be cashiered. At another period, of his campaign in the Valley, on Banks' retreat across the Potomac, Ashby came under the displeas15 226 LIEUT.-GEN. STONEWALL JACKSON. ure of his commander, and was charged with remissness in the pursuit; but happily Ashby made abundant reparation before his death, and Gen. Jackson wrote in his official report an extraordinary tribute to the fallen cavalier. Having no sense of danger himself, or at least holding it in no estimation by the side of his duty and pride, Gen. Jackson never could bear the least word on that subject from any of his officers. To any expostulation of peril, his manner was stern and terrible beyond description. At Malvern Hill, which was rather a bloody combat than a scientific battle, he ordered one of his officers to take a brigade across the open space in front of the enemy's works. The officer protested that it was impossible; that his command could not live through such a storm of fire. Jackson turned to him a countenance rigid with displeasure, and in a low and intense tone said, " General -, I always endeavour to take care of my wounded and to bury my dead; you have heard my order; obey it." Even in his last appearance on the field of battle-when supposed to be dying in the tangles of the Wilderness-he showed his old fierce impatience at the least suggestion of retreat. Hearing one of his brigadiers say that his lines were so badly broken that he would have to fall back, he raised his wounded form, and with eyes glittering with pain and anger, said sharply, " You must hold your ground, sir." It was the last order he ever gave on the field of battle. It may readily be inferred from Gen. Jackson's stern character as a warriour, and his intense realization of the struggle, that he was a stranger to all weak sentimentalism; that he hesitated at none of the harsh necessities of war; that he regarded it as a fierce competition of life with life; that he was averse to much of the ostentation and refinement of arms. Not that he was destitute of chivalry, or of the fine emotions of magnanimity to the conquered. On the contrary, he was noted for his generosity to prisoners, his indisposition to exult over an adversary, and the moderate statement of his victories. But his idea of war was wounds, death, the shedding of blood. He appears to have had the same gloomy conception as Forrest, the brilliant and destructive cavalry chief of the West: "his men fought for blood." On one occasion, when he was falling back from Winchester, three Federal cavalrymen performed an inexplicable feat of daring in charging through the LIEUT.-GEN. STONEWALL JACKSON. 227 whole length of one of his brigades. Two of them were shot from their horses. Col. Patton, giving the details of the incident to Jackson, said he would have prevented the troops from firing on these audacious men if he could have controlled them; they were brave men who had got into a desperate situation, where it was as easy to capture them as to kill them. Jackson's reply was brief and cold. "Shoot them all," he said; " I don't want them to be brave." These were not the utterances of a hard heart, or the indication of a cruel disposition. They were nothing more than the expression of the severe and supreme idea of war. Of all high Confederate commanders, Gen. Jackson appears to have been most convinced of the necessity of fierce and relentless war. HIe realized fully that it was quite vain to court the enemy with shows of magnanimity, and that the only way to deal with a horde of invaders was by examples of terrour and lessons of blood. Yet no one was more attentive to the proper courtesies of war, and in no breast bared to the conflict resided a finer spirit of humanity. Judgment with him took precedence of the sensibilities, and the commands of necessity were broadly translated into the lessons of duty. It may naturally be supposed that with Jackson's disposition to censure the officers connected with his command and the exactions he made in severe discipline and hard service he incurred many personal enmities in the army, and suffered not a little from recriminations. This was especially so before he mounted to the height of his reputation, and fought the daring and luminous campaign of the Valley. At one time detractors were busy with his name, and his reputation trembled between that of the great man and that of the weak-brained adventurer. At Port Republic he passed the crisis of greatness —that nice line in the career of genius where doubt and envy cease and the popular admiration becomes irresistible. But whatever personal animosities at any time attended his military career, the great commander had not only the sublime Christian power to forgive, but to him who confessed his errour, he was at once a tender and affectionate friend. A touching relation is given by an intimate friend of one of these acts of reconciliation. It was the night after the battle of Fredericksburg, and Jackson, who had just come from a council of war, where he had given the grim and laconic advice to drive 228 LIEUT.-GEN. STONEWALL JACKSON. the crippled enemy into the river, and consequently expected a renewal of the contest in the morning, was engaged in meditation and prayer in his tent, as was his invariable custom, whenever circumstances allowed it, before the hour of battle. About midnight the sound of horses' hoofs was heard, a messenger from Gen. Maxcy Gregg was announced, and an officer appearing at the opening of the tent saluted Jackson, and said: "Gen. Gregg is dying, General, and sent me to say to you that he wrote you a letter recently in which he used expressions he is now sorry for. He says that he meant no disrespect by that letter, and was only doing what he considered his duty. He hopes you will forgive him." There was a moment of silence, as when a noble heart is touched by inexpressible emotions; and then turning to the messenger, Jackson said: " Tell Gen. Gregg I will be with him immediately." In a moment his horse was saddled and Jackson rode silently ouat in the dark and bitter night on his errand of forgiveness and consolation. What passed between the two officers-what of prayer and comfort was spoken in the solemn farewell-is not known to mortals. The spirits of both have met since and forever in the world beyond the grave. Summing the exploits, and fairly regarding the character of Jackson, there is no doubt that he was a great man in the highest sense of those words. He had genius. All his campaigns showed one remarkable trait: an almost infallible insight into the condition and temper of his adversary. He was never successfully surprised; he was never routed in battle; he never had a train or any organized portion of his army captured by the enemy; he was always ready to fight; and' he never made intrenchments. There is among men of action perhaps no more striking evidence of that subtile quality of mind, genius, than a perfect self-possession in circumstances which surprise and alarm ordinary persons; for it is the peculiarity of genius to act with intuition and rapidity, to make instant combinations, and to obtain advantage of mere intellect, by planning and executing, while the latter has taken time to meditate. Jackson was supreme in his self-possession; never more calm and complacent than when beset by circumstances which to his companions in arms were the occasions of the utmost trepidation. When his little army was nearly cut to pieces at Kernstown, he bivouacked it, the night after the battle, close LIEUT.-GEN. STONEWALL JACKSON. 229 enough to the lines of the victour to hear the conversation of the Federal soldiers at their camp-fires, and went to sleep in a fencecorner with as much unconcern as if there were no enemy within a hundred miles. At Harper's Ferry a courier dashed into his presence with the alarming intelligence that McClellan's whole army was within a few miles of him. The news was more than probable; it would have been literally true if the Federal army had not been delayed in the mountain passes by the tenacious and almost superhuman courage of a small Confederate force. Jackson received the report perfectly at his ease; with such calmness, indeed, as to abash the messenger, and only called after him, as he was retiring, to know " whether McClellan had a drove of cattle with him," as if anticipating the capture of so much subsistence for his almost starving army. A certain popular opinion has gained ground that Jackson's military faculty was a partial one; that he was splendid in execution of any work designated for him, and was thus an important auxiliary of Lee, but that he was but little competent to originate and plan. This estimate is unjust, and has no foundation whatever in fact. Jackson had all the qualities of a great General, and the war produced no military genius more complete, or more diversified in its accomplishments. He planned as brilliantly as he executed. HIis campaign in the Valley (although the general design was inspired by Johnston) was an independent one, and is remarkable for its clear-cut plan, and movements as precise in their adjustment as a diagram of Euclid. The great stroke of generalship at Chancellorsville-the flank attack that came from the Wilderness as a blaze of lightning-originated with Jackson, and not with Gen. Lee. It was proposed by the former in a council of war, and was but a repetition of those sudden and mortal blows, which, dealt in the crisis of the contest, had made all his victories, and completed the circle of his fame. The death of Gen. Jackson was an irreparable loss to the Confederacy; and even in distant communities it was mourned as the extinction of one of the great men of the world. His fame extended to the most cultivated parts of Europe, and the severe press of the Old World freely admitted him into the company of the greatest characters of history. The London Times had designated him as the "Heaven-born General" of the Confederacy. 230 LIEUT.-GEN. STONEWALL JACKSON. The London Herald held up his great fame, in contrast to the barren boastfulness of the North, and said: "The Northern Republic has produced no heroes of the stamp of Jackson. One such man might be the salvation of them yet. Blatant demagogues at home, bragging imbeciles in the field, afford a spectacle so absurd, yet so painful, that Europe knows not whether to laugh or weep at the degradation of her children. The Northerners want a man to do a man's work. The only great men of the war have been developed in the South." At a public meeting held in England, this resolution was put on record: "That we have heard with profound regret of the death of Lieut.-Gen. Thomas Jonathan Jackson, of the Confederate States of North America; a man of pure and upright mind, devoted as a citizen to his duty, cool and brave as a soldier, able and energetic as a leader, of whom his opponents say he was' sincere and true and valiant.'" We quote this language not only for its clear sum of Jackson's qualities, but for its peculiar allusion to the testimony of that enemy, against whom the dead hero had contended in honourable arms. The tribute was taken as the generous admission of an antagonist; the rancour and insolence of the conqueror may recall it, and entitle Jackson "the rebel;" but the world will think the greatest victory on the part of the North, the highest gift of peace, the most enduring fruit of reconciliation, would have been to have won such names as Jackson and Lee for the common glory of America, to have made the heroes of the South the heroes of the nation, and to have woven a common ornament of whatever was brilliant and admirable on both sides of a war distressful and deplorable in every respect except in its examples of genius and heroism. GENERAL PETER G. T. BEAUREGARD. CHAPTER XX. Early life of P. G. T. Beauregard. —His gallantry and promotions in the Mexican War.Life in Louisiana.-Appointment in the Confederate Army.-Defences of Charles. ton.-Battle of Fort Sumter.-Gen. Beauregard takes command in Virginia. —His contempt of "the Yankees." —A grotesque letter.-Popular sentiment concerning the war.-Explanation of the sudden disappearance of the Union party in the South.-Gen. Beauregard's declaration of the purposes of the war.-" Beauty and Booty."-A Northern journal on Butler vs. Beauregard. —Battle of Manassas.Complimentary letter from President Davis.-The popularity of Gen. Beauregard alarms the vanity of the President.-A scandalous quarrel.-Gen. Beauregard's political "card" in the Richmond newspapers. A NORTHERN periodical, commenting upon the most active period of the late war, remarked: "No one who reads the voluminous reports of Scott's campaign in Mexico can fail to observe the frequency with which special. honourable mention is made of three young officers of engineers-Captain R. E. Lee, First-Lieutenant Beauregard, and brevet Second-Lieutenant G. B. McClellan. Lee seems to have been the special favourite of the veteran General........ The careful reader of the whole series of dispatches respecting the campaign in Mexico will come to the conclusion that the three men who, after the veteran General, displayed the highest military talents, were the three young officers of engineers: Lee, Beauregard, and McClellan." The second of this trio of celebrities, Peter Gustavus Toutant Beauregard, was born in the parish of St. Bernard, Louisiana, in May, 1818. His father was James Toutant Beauregard, of French descent, and his mother, Mary Helen Judith de Reggio, a lady of Italian descent. The early history of Louisiana contains the names of his ancestors. Both on his father's and mother's sides they occupied con 232 GENERAL PETER G. T. BEAUREGARD. spicuous positions in the new settlement of the post of New Orleans. After preliminary studies in New Orleans, Beauregard's parents sent him to the school kept by the brothers Peugnet, New York city. These gentlemen were both ex-captains of the French service: one a graduate of the Polytechnic School, the other of the cavalry school at Saumur. The school of Peugnet & Brothers was well known at the North as the " French school," and acquired an extensive reputation as a " Commercial and Mathematical School." Young Beauregard remained there a few years, when, in 1834, he was appointed a cadet in the Military Academy at West Point. In 1838, he graduated second in his class, at the age of twenty. According to the West Point regulations, those five who take the highest honours are entitled to the selection of that arm of the service for which they suppose themselves most capable. Beauregard selected the engineer corps, and thus, in the inception of his real life, exhibited a consciousness of his peculiar abilities, which the future so splendidly indorsed. At the breaking out of the war with Mexico, in 1846, after repeated applications to the Department at Washington, he was allowed to take a part in it. He served through the war as a lieutenant of engineers; he fortified Tampico, and was twice breveted for gallant conduct and meritorious services: once for Contreras and Churubusco, and another time for Chapultepec and the Garita of Belen. At the siege of Vera Cruz he selected the sites of most of the batteries which reduced that city after a siege of about two weeks. At the attack on Chapultepec, Lieut. Beauregard was engineer officer to Gen. Pillow, commanding the attack. During the assault, as the columns were awaiting the ladders, etc., to throw into and across the ditches of the citadel, Lieut. Beauregard, noticing Lieut.Col. Joseph E. Johnston, of the voltigeur regiment, placing his troops in position, not far off, and encouraging them under the tremendous fire of the garrison, took a rifle from the hands of one of the soldiers near him, and said to Johnston: "What will you bet on this shot? " The latter answered: " One picayune, payable in the city of Mexico." Lieut. Beauregard aimed deliberately, and GENERAL PETER G. T. BEAUREGARD. 233 fired, when he said, "I have won, and you will have to pay," which Johnston did a few days afterwards. It was the advice of Lieut. Beauregard, which, in opposition to the opinion of a council of war, decided on the side and manner in which the city of Mexico should be attacked. Ex-President Pierce well remembers, that at that council he asked to reconsider his vote, after Lieut. Beauregard had expressed his views on the subject; which example was followed by several of the other opponents. On his return from Mexico, Beauregard, now a major by brevet, resumed his duties in the engineer service, being stationed at New Orleans. He was also intrusted with the superintendence of the construction of the New Orleans custom-house and marine hospital, which to this day testify to his efficiency as an engineer and architect. The Government does not possess in any locality more suitable or more handsome monuments of its magnificence. Selected by President Buchanan, in November, 1860, as Superintenrident of West Point, Beauregard assumed the duties of the position in January, 1861, with the rank of colonel; but soon after learning of the secession of Louisiana, he resigned, and returned to cast his lot with that of his native State. When war appeared imminent, the evidences of talent displayed by Col. Beauregard could not be overlooked; and after offering his services to the Confederate States Government, he was ordered to take command, as Brigadier-General at Charleston, where he constructed batteries to command the entrance into that harbour, and, if necessary, reduce Fort Sumter, then held by the Federal forces. One remarkable feature connected with the reduction of that fort was the use of an "iron-clad floating battery." From this sprang the Merrimac and the monitors, and consequences influencing war on the ocean never before dreamed of. The first iron riveted battery was also used at this siege. Fort Sumter is famous and interesting as the opening scene of hostilities; and the story of its battle is essentially connected with an act of treachery on the part of the Federal Government. When South Carolina seceded from the Union, December 20, 1860, the event was celebrated in Charleston by a grand banquet; and while festivity prevailed, and an unsuspicious community feasted or slept, Major Anderson, commanding the Federal forces in the harbour, 231 GENERAL PETER G. T. BEAUREGARD. abandoned Fort Moultrie at midnight, spiked the guns, and conveyed all his men and stores to Fort Sumter. This treacherous and menacing act, done in the face of a pledge from President Buchanan that the existing military status should undergo no change in South Carolina, greatly incensed the State authorities, alarmed the whole South, and so scandalized Mr. Buchanan's administration, that Mr. Floyd of Virginia, and afterwards Mr. Thompson of Mississippi, withdrew from his cabinet in indignation and disgust. Soon after President Lincoln's inauguration, commissioners from the Confederate government, just established at Montgomery, proceeded to Washington to urge a peaceable separation, and to negotiate for the transfer of government property, and, in particular, for the removal of the Federal garrisons from Forts Pickens and Sumter. They were told by Mr. Seward, that to treat with them avowedly and officially might embarrass the administration of Mr. Lincoln; but they were assured, through an intermediate party, that all would yet be well, that the military status of the South would be undisturbed, and that Sumter would be evacuated. These assurances proved treacherous; they were only a trick to gain time for collecting armaments, and preparing measures of war against the South. On the 8th of April, 1861, an expedition started from New York to convey "provisions to the starving garrison " of Sumter; but it consisted of eleven vessels, with an aggregate of 285 guns, and 2,400 men. It was evidently designed to provoke a collision, and it speedily had that effect. This brief story of Sumter explains the artifice by which the Federal government, having deceived the South, and outraged its confidence, induced it at last to take the initiatory step of resistance, and thus gave it the colour of commencing the war. If the first shot was fired by the South, the occasion that provoked it was given by the North; and so on the side of the latter was the first military aggression, and the true responsibility for the war. Apprised of the intentions of the Federal government, and ordered, by a dispatch from Montgomery, to demand the evacuation of Fort Sumter, Gen. Beauregard communicated with Major Anderson, offering him the honourable terms of transferring his garrison to any post in the United States he might elect, and saluting his flag on taking it down. Anderson refused to surrender; and to show GENERAL PETER G. T. BEAUREGARD. 235 to the last his desire to avoid a conflict of arms, and the effusion of blood, Gen. Beauregard sent him a second proposal in the following words: HEADQUARTERS PROVISIONAL ARMY, C.S.A., CHARLESTON, April 11, 1861, 11 P.M. MAJOR: —In consequence of the verbal observations made by you to my aides, Messrs. Chestnut and Lee, in relation to the condition of your supplies, and that you would in a few days be starved out if our guns did not batter you to pieces-or words to that effect-and desiring no useless effusion of blood, I communicated both the verbal observation and your written answer to my communication to my Government. If you will state the time at which you will evacuate Fort Sumter, and agree that in the meantime you will not use your guns against us, unless ours shall be employed against Fort Sumter, we will abstain from opening fire upon you. Col. Chestnut and Capt. Lee are authorized by me to enter into such agreement with you. You are, therefore, requested to communicate to them an open answer. I remain, Major, very respectfully, Your obedient servant, P. G. T. BEAUREGARD, M/ajor.- General commanding. Anderson replied by agreeing to evacuate Fort Sumter on the 15th April, unless he should receive, prior to that time, controlling instructions from his Government, or additional supplies. This stipulation not being considered satisfactory, as a fleet with supplies and reinforcements was known to be off the harbour, Gen. Beauregard sent an intimation at 3.30 A.M., on April 12, that he would open fire on Fort Sumter in one hour's time. The fort was reduced in thirty-three hours; the Federal fleet lying at anchor in the distance during the action, and never firing a gun. Gen. Beauregard bore testimony to the gallant conduct of his adversary, agreed that the garrison might take passage at their convenience for New York, and allowed Anderson to salute his flag with fifty guns. In this, the first battle of the war, Gen. Beauregard's conduct had been most admirable. He had not only obtained a great success, but he had shown so much caution and 236 GENERAL PETER G. T. BEAUREGARD. moderation in the preliminaries of the contest, such noble and just desires to avert it, and at last, had given such exhibition of chivalrous qualities in his intercourse with the enemy, that he was applauded not only for the proof of his military abilities, but for the true and elevated representation he had made of the spirit and dignity of the new government. Called for by the unanimous voice of the Southern people, he was now ordered to take command of the main portion of the Confederate army in Northern Virginia. He selected Manassas Junction as the point at which he would receive the onset of the Federal host, directed by Lieut.Gen. Scott, and immediately commanded by Gen. McDowell. The only purely volunteer army the United States have had in the field, advanced to what they considered a plain and certain route to Richmond.* At the end of May, the North had nearly 100,000 men under arms, distributed as follows: * It will be recollected about this time how replete the Northern newspapers were with wild and sensational rumours, in all of which the terrible Beauregard and his whereabouts appear to have been the chief subjects of concern. The following squib is amusing and characteristic: THE WHEREABOUTS OF GEN. BEUAREGARD. [By telegraph to Vanity Fair-after manner of Daily Papers.] IAVRE DE GRACE, April 26.-Gen. Beauregard was in Richmond at twenty-three minutes past six o'clock yesterday, and will attack Washington at once. PHILADELPHIA, April 26.-We learn, on undoubted authority, that Gen. Beauregard was in Alexandria at twenty-four minutes past six yesterday, reconnoitring. BALTIMORE, April 26.-Gen. Beauregard was in Norfolk at twenty-five minutes after six yesterday, and took a gin cocktail with several of the first families. HAVRE DE GRACE, April 26.-1I learn from a gentleman just from Mobile, that Gen. Beauregard is on his way North, with 150,000 troops. Gen. Beauregard is six feet high, but will not join Blower's " Household Guards." Declines advertising in the Household Journal. ANNAPOLIS, April 26.-Gen. Beauregard was discovered in the White House rearyard last night at twenty-six minutes past six, armed with three large howitzers and a portable sledstake. He went away after reconnoitring pretty numerously. PHILADELPHIA, April 26.-1I learn on excellent authority that Gen. Beauregard was in Charleston at twenty-two minutes past six yesterday, and had no intention of leaving. He was repairing Fort Sumter. The people of Bangor, Maine, and of Cape Cod, Mass., report that Gen. Beauregard has lately been seen prowling around those places. I learn that Gen. Beauregard is within five miles of Washington. The report, in some of your contemporaries, that Gen. Beauregard is within five miles of Washington, is utterly without foundation. Sensation dispatches in times like these cannot be too strongly deprecated. GENERAL PETER G. T. BEAUREGARD. 237 South of the Potomac, Brig.-Gen. McDowell.. 21,000 At Washington, Brig.-Gen. Mansfield... 22,000 Fortress Monroe, Maj.-Gen. Butler... 9,000 West Pennsylvania, Maj.-Gen. Keim. 16,000 Cincinnati and West, Maj.-Gen. McClellan... 13,000 Cairo and its vicinity, Brig.-Gen. Prentiss.. 6,000 Baltimore, Brig.-Gen. Cadwallader.... 5,000 Philadelphia, Maj.-Gen. Patterson.... 3,000 Total........ 95,000 Such an array of force at the commencement of the war would, it might have been supposed, have assured the South of a long and difficult period of hostilities, and affected its confidence in a certain and early issue of independence. But it is curious how supreme and unquestioning was this confidence, how insolent and impatient of contradiction. As an illustration of this over-confidence, and as an exhibition of contempt for the enemy, we may place here a letter of Gen. Beauregard, dated as he was about to take command in Virginia: CHARLESTON, May 27, 1861. MY DEAR -:-I sincerely regret leaving Charleston, where the inhabitants have given me such a welcome that I now consider it as my second home. I had hoped that when relieved from here it would have been to go to Virginia, in command of the gallant Carolinians, whose courage, patience, and zeal I had learned to appreciate and admire. But it seems my services are required elsewhere, and thither I shall go, not with joy, but with the firm determination to do more than my duty, if I can, and to leave as strong a mark as possible on the enemies of our beloved country, should they pollute its soil with their dastardly feet. But rest assured, my dear sir, that whatever happens at first, we are certain to triumph at last, even if we had for arms only pitchforks and flint-lock muskets, for every bush and haystack will become an ambush, and every barn a fortress. The history of nations proves that a gallant and free people, fighting for their independence and firesides, are invincible against even disciplined mercen 238 GENERAL PETER G. T. BEAUREGARD. aries at a few dollars per month. What then must be the result when its enemies are little more than an armed rabble, gathered together hastily, on a false pretence, and for an unholy purpose, with an octogenarian at its head? None but the demented can doubt the issue. I remain, dear General, yours sincerely, P. G. T. BEAUREGARD. This letter appears grotesque enough in the light of subsequent events. But in justice to Gen. Beauregard, and in explanation of his apparently inflated words, it must be declared that they did nothing more than reflect what was then the judgment of the almost universal mind of the South, with reference to the sure and easy conclusion of the war in its victory and independence. And here we have the opportunity of introducing an account of one of the most curious phenomena of the war-the sudden and entire disappearance of the Union party in the South on the declaration of secession. Immediately before this event, that party had been numerous and formidable; it had a compact organization; it contained many men who, from principle and affection, were strongly attached to the Union, and who were incapable of changing their opinions at the mere bidding of expediency. And yet never did a political party more quickly and entirely vanish from the scene after an untoward election, than did the Unionists of the South after the proclamation of secession. The explanation of this extraordinary disappearance is to be found not so much in the easy virtue of political parties, as in the especial fact of a foregone conclusion, which seemed to take possession of the whole mind of the South, that the impending conflict would necessarily result in its favour, and that the mere declaration of secession was quite as decisive of the fate of the Union as would be the last battle of the war. The Union party in the South had contended for the Union up to the question of secession, and that decided, it considered the controversy practically determined, and prepared to accommodate itself to what it regarded as the inevitable fact of assured separation. The mass of the Southern people, both Secessionists and Unionists, appears at this time never to have admitted even the possibility of an overthrow of the Southern arms, and defeat of the Confederate cause; and the few minds that did entertain such an event were so few as only to constitute the exception which proves the rule. When the GENERAL PETER G. T. BEAUREGARD. 239 Union members of the Virginia Convention sobbed at their desks, and exchanged tearful sympathies as the vote for secession was announced, it was because they deemed that it was all over, and that by the mere will of the South the dissolution of the Union was irrevocably decreed. It is astonishing how universal and supreme was a conviction in the South, which subsequent events were so signally to belie. If we are to find an explanation for such a delusion, we perhaps need go no further than that popular vanity which, embracing for once the intelligent with the vulgar, appears to be the common sin of all communities in America. But whatever the cause, there is no doubt that the Southern public was so generally assured of the termination of the war in favour of a Southern Confederacy, that the Union party within the limits of the seceded States considered that the role of controversy was ended, and that nothing was left them but to submit to the fiat, and accommodate themselves to the change. Had there been in the early periods of the war any considerable doubt in the South of the issue of the war, it is more than probable that the Union party would have maintained its organization, asserted itself much sooner than it did, and seriously disturbed the first years of the government. Gen. Beauregard signalized his taking command at Manassas, by a proclamation in which he presumed to declare the real purposes of the enemy in the war. He declared: " A reckless and unprincipled tyrant has invaded your soil. Abraham Lincoln, regardless of all moral, legal, and constitutional restraints, has thrown his Abolition hosts among you, who are murdering and imprisoning your citizens, confiscating and destroying your property, and committing other acts of violence and outrage, too shocking and revolting to humanity to be enumerated. All rules of civilized warfare are abandoned, and they proclaim by their acts, if not on their banners, that their war-cry is'Beauty and Booty.' All that is dear to man, your honour, and that of your wives and daughters, your fortunes and your lives, are involved in this momentous contest." We can easily remember the storm of denial and indignant protest which this proclamation produced in the Northern newspapers. The idea of there being any anti-slavery intention in the war was denounced as ridiculous; and when, a few months later, 240 GENERAL PETER G. T. BEAUREGARD. Gen. Beauregard, in his persistent notion that the war was intended to free the negroes, recommended the enemy to be officially styled " Abolitionists " instead of " Federals," the New York Times hooted him as an idiot. The commentary of the Baltimore American is refreshing now. That paper wrote: "We cannot avoid contrasting with the proclamation of Beauregard the offer of Gen. Butler to put down'servile insurrections'in his first landing at Annapolis, and the subsequent address of Gen. Patterson to the Pennsylvania troops, that it might be their duty to'suppress servile insurrections.' Can the people of Virginia be imposed upon by such productions as this of Gen. Beauregard's? Can any intelligent community in the South be thus cheated into madness? Surely if they can be, they are to be pitied; and we have only to say that so poor a compliment, paid by any high functionary to the intelligence of the people of Maryland, would receive their scorn and reprobation. " This commentary is strange enough in view of the sequel of the war; but certainly the most curious and amusing part of it is that which compares, on the score of humane and chivalrous sentiment, Gen. Beauregard with the future " tyrant of New Orleans." Never was prognostic more completely verified than that of Gen. Beauregard. He had shown a better judgment here than in predicting the ultimate success of the South. He appears, indeed, to have been the earliest of the Confederate leaders who saw the essential and ultimate design of the war, and recognized in it a spirit of spoliation and revenge, when protestations were, most numerous and vehement of the kind intentions of the Federal authorities, and the government at Washington was making the largest show of conciliation. Even some of his countrymen thought him violent in his denunciations of the enemy, when he was simply in advance of the popular mind, in his intelligent estimation of the Federal designs upon the South. But we return from these anticipations of the war to follow the progress of events. On the 20th July, the army under Gen. Beauregard's command on the line of Bull Run, numbered nearly 28,000 men and 49 guns. A small portion only consisted of cavalry. This force included a brigade under the command of Gen. Holmes, brought forward from Acquia Creek, a regiment termed Hampton's Legion, and about 6,000 men and 20 guns of the army of the Shenandoah, GENERAL PETER G. T. BEAUREGARD. 241 which had all been telegraphed for by Gen. Beauregard when he heard of the actual advance of the enemy. The numerical strength of the Federal army which marched from the lines around Alexandria, Arlington Heights, and Washington, was more than fifty thousand men. Such were the forces confronted on the first important field of the war. The battle of Manassas was perhaps on the side of the Confederates the least scientific battle of the war. Gen. Beauregard had intended to move by his right and centre on the enemy's flank and rear; but his orders miscarried, his plans of action were wholly disarranged, and he found himself at last with his left flank turned and compelled to fight a battle at right angles with the defensive line of Bull Run. The ardour of the troops rather than any merit of generalship gained the day for the Confederates, and that, too, only after they had been twice driven to the most desperate extremity. Once, when on the key-point of the field, the plateau near the Henry House, it appeared that the enemy would have enveloped the Confederates on both flanks, and Beauregard had only 6,500 men to withstand the onset of 20,000 infantry, he addressed his troops in some thrilling and memorable words. "I sought," says the General, " to infuse into the hearts of my officers and men the confidence and determined spirit of resistance to this wicked invasion of the homes of a free people, which I felt. I informed them that reinforcements would rapidly come to their support, and we must at all hazards hold our posts until reinforced. I reminded them that we fought for our homes, our firesides, and for the independence of our country. I urged them to the resolution of victory or death on the field. These sentiments were loudly, eagerly cheered wheresoever proclaimed, and then I felt assured of the unconquerable spirit of that army which would enable us to wrench victory from the host then threatening us with destruction." When the plateau was won, and the crisis of the day had arrived, Gen. Beauregard placed himself at the head of his reserves, and ordered the line to advance. This was about 2.30 P.M., and the reinforcements of Kirby Smith arrived during the movement. They took position on the left of the advancing line, and the grand advance was made, which swept the enemy from the field, and put him in unexampled route. Gen. Beauregard's horse was killed under him by the explosion of a shell, but he escaped unhurt. 16 242 GENERAL PETER G. T. BEAUREGARD. A remarkable fact regarding the battle of Manassas was the comparatively small portion of the troops actually engaged on both sides. With the Confederates this was partially owing to a miscarriage of the orders sent to Holmes and Ewell, and is thus adverted to in Gen. Beauregard's orders:-" In connection with the unfortunate casualties of the day-that is, the miscarriage of the orders sent by courier to Gens. Holmes and Ewell to attack the enemy in flank and reverse at Centreville, through which the triumph of our arms was prevented from being still more decisiveI regard it in place to say, a divisional organization, with officers in command of divisions, with appropriate ranks, as in European services, would greatly reduce the risks of such mishaps, and would advantageously simplify the communications of a General in command of a field with his troops." The fact is, that there was a want of organization in both armies; the battle was fought in a fragmentary way, and the victory of the Confederater is more to be ascribed to their naked valour, the physical fact of fighting, than anything else.* * The events of the war were generally celebrated on the Southern side in very execrable verse. An exception to the silly and tawdry poetry of the war is the following lines of Mr. John R. Thompson (of Richmond), on Manassas, an admirable union of burlesque and keen satire. They obtained, we believe, the imprint of the English Punch; anyhow, they are excellent: ON TO RICHMOND. AFTER SOUTHEY'8 "MARCH TO MOScOW." Major-General Scott, An order had got, To push on the column to Richmond; For loudly went forth, From all parts of the North, The cry that an end of the war must be made In time for the regular yearly Fall Trade. Mr. Greeley spoke freely about the delay, The Yankees, " to hum," were all hot for the fray. The chivalrous Grow Declared they were slow, And therefore the order To march from the border, And make an excursion to Richmond. Major-General Scott, Most likely, was not GENERAL PETER G. T. BEAUREGARD. 243 But such criticisms of Manassas belong to the scientific history of the war, and scarcely come within the limits of a popular biography of its hero. The South was elated with the victory withVery loth to obey this instruction, I wot, In his private opinion, The Ancient Dominion Deserved to be pillaged-her sons to be shot, And the reason is easily noted: Though this part of the earth, Had given him birth, And medals and swords, Inscribed with fine words, It never for Winfield had voted. Besides, you must know, that our first of commanders Had sworn quite as hard as the army in Flanders, With his finest of Armies and proudest of Navies, To wreak his old grudge against Jefferson Davis. Then " Forward, the column I " he said to McDowell, And the Zouaves, with a shout, Most fiercely cried out: "To Richmond or h-11," (I omit here the vowel,) And Winfield, he ordered his carriage and four, A dashing turn-out, to be brought to the door For a pleasant excursion to Richmond. Major-General Scott Had there on the spot A splendid array To plunder and slay; In the camp he might boast Such a numerous host, As lie never had yet In the battle-field set. Every class and condition of Northern society Were in for the trip, a most varied variety; In the camp he might hear every lingo in vogue, "The sweet German accent, the rich Irish brogue," The beautiful boy, From the banks of the Shannon, Was there to employ His excellent cannon, And besides the long files of dragoons and artillery, The Zouaves and Hussars, All the children of Mars, There were barbers and cooks, And writers of booksThe chef de cuisine, with his French bills of fare, 244 GENERAL PETER G. T. BEAUREGARD. out reference to questions of skill; the popular mind had not yet become critical of generalship, and the newspapers had not yet caught the technical language of the battle-field; and on the afflaAnd the artists to dress the young officers' hair And the scribblers all ready at once to prepare An eloquent story Of conquest and glory; And servants with numberless baskets of Sillery. Though Wilson, the Senator, followed the train At a distance quite safe to " conduct the champagne;" While the fields were so green, and the sky was so blue, There was certainly nothing more pleasant to do On this pleasant excursion to Richmond. In Congress the talk, as I said, was of action To crush out instanter the traitorous faction. In the press and the mess, They would hear nothing less, Than to make the advance, spite of rhyme or of reason, And at once put an end to the insolent treason. There was Greeley And Ely, The blood-thirsty Grow, And Hickman, the rowdy, (not Hickman, the beau,) And that terrible Baker, Who would seize on the South-every acre, And Webb, who would drive us all into the Gulf, or Some nameless locality smelling of sulphur. And with all this bold crew Nothing would do, While the fields were so green, and the sky was so blue, But to march on directly to Richmond. Then the gallant McDowell Drove madly the rowel Of spur that had never been " won " by him, In the flank of his steed, To accomplish a deed, Such as never before had been done by him: And the battery, called Sherman's, Was wheeled into line, While the beer-drinking Germans, From Neckar and Rhine, With Mini6 and Yager, Came on with a swagger, Full of fury and lager. (The day and the pageant were equally fine), GENERAL PETER G. T. BEAUREGARD. 245 tus of victory Beauregard at once ascended to the first reputation of the war. His promotion was made on the field of Manassas, and was announced in the following note: Oh I the fields were so green, and the sky was so blue, Indeed'twas a spectacle pleasant to view, As the column pushed onward to Richmond. Ere the march was begun, In a spirit of fun, General Scott, in a speech, Said his army should teach The Southrons the lesson the laws to obey; And just before dusk, of the third or fourth day, Should joyfully march into Richmond. He spoke of their drill, Of their courage and skill, And declared that the ladies of Richmond would rave O'er such matchless perfection, and gracefully wave In rapture their delicate kerchiefs in air, At their morning parades on the Capitol Square. But alack I and alas I Mark what soon came to pass, When this army, in spite of his flatteries, Amid war's loudest thunder, Must stupidly blunder Upon those accursed " masked batteries; " There Beauregard came, Like a tempest of flame, To consume them in wrath, On their perilous path: And Johnston bore down in a whirlwind to sweep Their ranks from the field, Where their doom had been sealed, As the storm rushes over the face of the deep: While swift on the centre our President prest, And the foe might descry, In the glance of his eye, The light that once blazed upon Diomed's crest. McDowell I McDowell I weep, weep for the day, When the Southrons ye met in their battle array; To your confident host, with its bullets and steel,'Twas worse than Culloden to luckless Lochiel Oh I the generals were green, and old Scott is now blue, And a terrible business, McDowell, to you Was that pleasant excursion to Richmond. 246 GENERAL PETER G. T. BEAUREGARD. MANASSAS, VA., July 21, 1861. SIR:-Appreciating your services in the battle of Manassas, and on several other occasions during the existing war, as affording the highest evidence of your skill as a commander, your gallantry as a soldier, and your zeal as a patriot, you are promoted to be General in the Army of the Confederate States of America, and, with the consent of the Congress, will be duly commissioned accordingly. Yours, etc., JEFF. DAVIS. Gen. P. G. T. BEAUREGARD, etc., etc., etc. From the testimony of this note it would appear that at this time the relations between President Davis and Gen. Beauregard were of the most amicable kind, and mutually pleasing. But if such were their relations on the field of Manassas, they were not long to continue so. This victory brought to Gen. Beauregard such an accession of popularity as to alarm the vanity of the President, who was impatient of rivals in the popular admiration, and in the early periods of the war had discovered a conceit to be the central military figure as well as the political chief of the war. This comprehensive concert was visible throughout the entire administration of Mr. Davis; it was especially shown in his anxiety to catch the attention of the world as planner and originator of military campaigns, and it carried him to the lengths of a pragmatical interference with most of his Generals in the field, The truth is that Mr. Davis had that unfortunate mind of the ruler which repulses from its councils men of spirit and ability, delights to surround itself with mediocrity as a safeguard to its vanity, and proceeds on the supposition that the feeble will prove the most obedient. He was alarmed by exhibitions of fame in which he did not share, and the approach of men of merit and of spirit always gave him an uneasy notion of rivalry. Gen. Beauregard was the first to provoke the unhappy disposition by the sudden ascent of his fame after the battle of Manassas. That battle was naturally followed by popular endearments of its hero; the reputation of Beauregard was at once seized upon by those alert politicians who nominate Presidents several years in advance, and no sooner find a favourite of the people than they hasten to name him for the honours of party; and he was accused by the President of a political move GENERAL PETER G. T. BEAUREGARD. 247 ment against his Administration, in which there is every reason to believe he was not only innocently complicated but unconscious of any design injurious to Mr. Davis' vanity or ambition. The pause of active war that followed Manassas seems to have given unusual opportunity for a political controversy. Whatever the merits of that controversy, it is not to be denied that from this time there commenced to be evident that jealousy or dislike on the part of the Administration towards Gen. Beauregard, which through the war tended to cripple his energies and neutralize his best plans of campaign. The first open occasion of controversy between Gen. Beauregard and the President appears to have been with reference to certain passages in the famous official report of the battle of Manassas, in which Mr. Davis conceived that the General had travelled out of the record to cast an imputation upon the defensive military policy then upheld at Richmond, to the great dissatisfaction of the people. For some time he would not allow the report to be printed, and with a sensitive alarm denounced it as an attempt to make favour with the public at his expense. The subject was even taken up in the Congress at Richmond, during a secret session; the President having sent Beauregard's report to that body, accompanied by comments of his own on some of its preliminary passages. The order eventually taken by Congress, however, was to have the document published, after expunging the portion referred to, and the President's comments thereon. What was the sentiment of Gen. Beauregard in the controversy may be judged from the following letter, printed in a Richmond newspaper: CENTREVILLE, WITHIN HEARING OP THE ) ENEMY'S GUNS, Sunday, Nov. 3, 1861. To Editors Richmond Whig: GENTLENMEN: My attention has just been called to an unfortunate controversy now going on relative to the publication of a synopsis of my report of the battle of Manassas. None can regret more than I do this, from a knowledge that, by authority, the President is the sole judge of when, and what part of the conlmanding officer's report shall be made public. I, individually, do not object to delaying its publication as. long as the War Department thinks proper and necessary for the success of our cause. 248 GENERAL PETER G. T. BEAUREGARD. Meanwhile, I entreat my friends not to trouble themselves about refuting the slanders and calumnies aimed against me. Alcibiades, on a certain occasion, resorted to an extraordinary method to occupy the minds of his traducers-let, then, that synopsis answer the same purpose for me in this instance. If certain minds cannot understand the difference between patriotism, the highest civic virtue, and office-seeking, the lowest civic occupation, I pity them from the bottom of my heart. Suffice it to say, that I prefer the respect and esteem of my countrymen to the admiration and envy of the world. I hope, for the sake of our cause and country, to be able, with the assistance of kind Providence, to answer my calumniators with new victories over our national enemies; but I have nothing to ask of the country, Government, or any friends, except to afford me all the aid they can in the great struggle we are now engaged upon. I am not either a candidate, nor do I desire to be a candidate, for any civil office in the gift of the people or Executive. The aim of my ambition, after having cast my mite in the defence of our sacred cause, and assisted, to the best of my ability, in securing our rights and independence as a nation, is to retire to private life, my means then permitting, never again to leave my home, unless to fight anew the battles of my country. Respectfully, your most obedient servant, P. G. T. BEAUREGARD. The statements of this letter were undoubtedly just. But it must be confessed that its publication was ill-advised; that there was a theatrical circumstance and tone about it that displeased many people; and that its effect was to aggravate a quarrel which was in all respects deplorable, and which did much to scandalize the Confederacy. GENERAL PETER G. T. BEAUREGARD. 249 CHAPTER XXI. Gen. Beauregard transferred to command in West Tennessee.-His order about " the bells."-He concentrates the Confederate forces at Corinth.-Battle of Shiloh.-A " lost opportunity."-Retreat to Tupelo.-Hie obtains a sick furlough.-President Davis deprives him of his command.-Official persecution of Gen. Beauregard.Violent declarations of the President.-Gen. Beauregard in retirement.-A private letter on the war. IN January, 1862, Gen. Beauregard was ordered to West Tennessee. After the evacuation of Columbus, he was employed in fortifying Island No. 10, which was captured four days after he left there; urged as he was, by the rapid and serious movements of the Federal troops on the Tennessee River, to take command of the forces to oppose the enemy's progress in that direction. It was about this time Gen. Beauregard issued his famous order about bells to be moulded into cannon-an incident that furnished a good deal of poetry in the war. The following was his appeal to c" the planters of the Mississippi Valley: " HEADQUARTERS ARmy OF THE MISSISSIPPI, JACKSON, TENN., March 8, 1862. More than once a people fighting with an enemy less ruthless than yours; for imperilled rights not more dear and sacred than yours; for homes and a land not more worthy of resolute and unconquerable men than yours; and for interests of far less magnitude than you have now at stake, have not hesitated to melt and mould into cannon the precious bells surmounting their houses of God, which had called generations to prayer. The priesthood have ever sanctioned and consecrated the conversion, in the hour of their nation's need, as one holy and acceptable in the sight of God. We want cannon as greatly as any people who ever, as history tells you, melted their church-bells to supply them; and TI, your General, intrusted with the command of the army embodied of your sons, your kinsmen and your neighbours, do now call on you to send your plantation-bells to the nearest railroad d6pot, subject 250 GENERAL PETER G. T. BEAUREGARD. to my order, to be melted into cannon for the defence of your plantations. Who will not cheerfully and promptly send me his bells under such circumstances? Be of good cheer; but time is precious.* P. G. T. BEAUREGARD, General commanding. The serious train of Confederate disasters in the West that, commencing with Fort Donelson, had opened the Mississippi and its tributaries, and carried the war to the Southern bank of the Tennessee, was now approaching another crisis. At the suggestion of Gen. Beauregard, troops were concentrated at Corinth, Mississippi. Imbued with a high sense of the cardinal principle in war-concentration-a principle illustrated by the military history of all wars, Gen. Beauregard sought to swell his inadequate force in all possible ways. He called on Gens. Bragg and Lovell for their disposable troops. Lovell had already, under orders of Gen. A. S. Johnston, detached for Corinth a fine brigade under Gen. Ruggles, with certain other troops, in all quite 5,000 men, choice troops of all arms. Gen. Bragg referred the matter to the War Department, by whom positive orders were declined, and the responsibility was left to him. IHe determined to withdraw his main force from Pensacola and Mobile, and join Gen. Beauregard, which he did in person at Jackson, Tennessee, about the Ist March, 1862. Gen. Van Dorn, also, was strenuously urged by Gen. Beauregard to transfer his whole command to the east bank of the Mississippi, and was already in motion to form the junction before the battle of Shiloh. The Governors of Louisiana, Alabama, Mississippi, and Tennessee, had also been called on by Gen. Beauregard for 5,000 men respectively, or as many as could be sent to him. Gen. Albert Sidney Johnston, whose army was now falling back along the Nashville and Chattanooga railroad, was requested * The witty Louisville Journal had the following commentary: "The rebels can well afford to give up all their church-bells, cow-bells, and dinnerbells to Beauregard, for they never go to church now, their cows have been all taken *by foraging parties, and they have no dinners to be summoned to.' GENERAL PETER G. T. BEAUREGARD. 251 by Gen. Beauregard to send froward to Corinth one or two of his brigades. That judicious commander sent a brigade at once, and announced his determination to make a junction, with his whole force, at Corinth, which, in the main, was effected by the last of iMarch, 1862. The Confederate army here now consisted of1. Gen. Polk's army corps (infantry and artillery),.. 9,136 2. Gen. Bragg's army corps, consisting of his original command from Pensacola and Mobile, and Lovell's quota, with the new levies from Louisiana (infantry and artillery),........ 13,589 3. The Army of Kentucky, now subdivided into Hardee's army corps and reserve division, under Breckenridge, (infantry and artillery),..... 13,228 35,953 4. Untrained cavalry, distributed with the three corps,. 4,382 Effectives of all arms,...... 40,335 With this force it was determined to advance upon Grant's army, which had obtained a position near Pittsburg, and, if possible, overwhelm it before it could be reinforced by Buell, who was advancing for that purpose by rapid marches from Nashville, by the way of Columbus. The plans of the battle were drawn up entirely by Gen. Beauregard and approved by Gen. Johnston. The action lasted two days, the 6th and 7th April. Gen. Beauregard, who wrote his official reports with great animation, has given so graphic a description of the conflict, that we readily copy portions of it in the general narrative. He says: " Thirty minutes after 5 o'clock A.M., our lines and columns were in motion, all animated evidently by a promising spirit. The first line was engaged at once, but advanced steadily, followed in due order, with equal resolution and steadiness, by the other lines, which were brought up successively into action, with rare skill, judgment, and gallantry, by the several corps commanders, as the enemy made a stand, and with his masses rallied for a struggle for his encampments. Like an Alpine avalanche our troops moved forward, despite the determined resistance of the enemy, until six o'clock P.M., when we were in possession of all his encampments between Owl and Lick 252 GENERAL PETER G. T. BEAUREGARD. creeks, but one. Nearly all of his artillery was taken, about thirty flags, colours, and standards, over three thousand prisoners, including a division commander (Gen. Prentiss) and several brigade commanders, thousands of small-arms, an immense supply of subsistence, forage, and munitions of war, and a large amount of means of transportation-all the substantial fruits of a complete victory. * * * " It was after six o'clock in the evening when the enemy's last position was carried, and his forces finally broke and sought refuge behind a commanding eminence, covering the Pittsburg Landing, not more than half a mile distant, and under the guns of the gunboats, which opened on our eager columns a fierce and annoying fire with shot and shell of the heaviest description." It was here that Gen. Beauregard unfortunately closed the battle for the day, and lost, we must confess, the most brilliant opportunity of his military life. The shattered forces of the enemy were within a circuit of less than a mile around Pittsburg Landing. There was time to complete the victory; one effort more, and the routed, dispirited, and disorganized mass would have been driven into the river. It was known by Gen. Beauregard that Buell was in close vicinity, and that in a short time his army would reinforce that of Grant. But the last supreme effort to destroy Grant, and render the march of Buell futile, was not made. Gen. Beauregard, influenced by the disorganized condition of his troops, whom he describes as jaded, but eager to gather the spoils of the field already won, refrained from attacking, and sent orders to the brigades, which were actually preparing in the darkness of the evening for one last effort, to withdraw. Night accomplished the junction of Buell's forces with Grant, and decided Beauregard's lost opportunity. The next day is thus described in Gen. Beauregard's official report: " About six o'clock on the morning of the 7th April, a hot fire of musketry and artillery opened from the enemy's quarter on our advanced line, assured me of the junction of his forces, and soon the battle raged with a fury which satisfied me I was attacked by a largely superiour force * * * * Again and again our troops were brought to the charge, invariably to win the position at issue, invariably to drive back their foe. But hour by hour, thus opposed to an enemy constantly reinforced, our ranks were perceptibly thinned under the unceasing, withering fire of the enemy; and by twelve meridian, eighteen GENERAL PETER G. T. BEAUREGARD. 253 hours of hard fighting had sensibly exhausted a large number, my last reserves had necessarily been disposed of, and the enemy was evidently receiving fresh reinforcements after each repulse. Accordingly, about 1 Pm.., I determined to withdraw from so unequal a conflict, securing such of the results of the victory of the day before as was then practicable." On two different occasions of this day Gen. Beauregard led the troops flag in hand, and by his conspicuous display of devoted courage arrested the tide of battle, and enabled his hard-pressed army at last to withdraw in perfect order from the field. In the battle of Shiloh,Beauregard's forces consisted of 33,000, against 87,000 under Grant and Buell. His losses in killed and wounded amounted to thirty-three and a-third per cent.-a most astounding loss for new troops and raw volunteers. The evening of the 7th April found him back behind the rifle-pits of Corinth; and there he prepared to defy the immense army collected to crush him. Gen. Beauregard was never disposed to acknowledge the second day of Shiloh as a defeat. He declares that he retired to Corinth "in pursuance of his original design to make that the strategic point of his campaign;" and that he left the field of Shiloh on the second day "only after eight hours' successful battle with a superiour army of fresh troops, whom we had repulsed in every attack upon our lines; so repulsed and crippled, indeed, as to leave it unable to take the field for the campaign for which it was collected and equipped at such enormous expense and with such profusion of all the appliances of war." His subsequent retreat from Corinth to Tupelo, about the end of May, 1862, was looked upon by European officers as a masterly performance, considering the quality of his troops, and the trifling loss attendant upon such a movement, confronted by so large a force-there being about 125,000 of the enemy against 35,000 Confederates. About this time the health of Gen. Beauregard was so much broken that his physicians insisted upon a period of rest and recreation; and having obtained a sick furlough, he left for Montgomery, Alabama, where he arrived on the 17th June, accompanied only by his personal staff. Opportunity was taken at Richmond of this sick furlough to give the command of the army at Corinth permanently to Gen. Bragg, to deprive Beaure 254 GENERAL PETER G. T. BEAUREGARD. gard of his well-deserved post, and to attempt to consign him to a term of obscurity, if not of disgrace. This unworthy device at Richmond was characteristic of the little circles and conspiracies in which the government there was conducted. It was plain that Mr. Davis, instead of wisely forgetting the personal differences which had grown out of the battle of Manassas, had nursed his animosity against Gen. Beauregard, and now aimed a revengeful blow in what he thought an opportune moment. There is nothing more repulsive in the personal history of President Davis' administration than his persistent persecution of this distinguished soldier. The severe justice of history must pronounce it mean and malignant. We are aware that there is a party in the South which constantly deprecates any personal criticism of the ex-President of the Confederacy, forgetting that Mr. Davis was of all public men himself the most profuse of personal recriminations, a merciless, inexorable adversary, and that, in a recent publication (his " Prison Life "), he is shown to continue his own style of personal allusion to those associated with him in the late war. When we write history we are compelled to state facts, no matter who is hurt by the declaration. The fact of President Davis' animosity to Gen. Beauregard was notorious at all times of the war. When he took from him the command of the army at Corinth, and a committee of Congressmen at Richmond earnestly sought his reinstatement, the President passionately replied that he would not consent to such a measure, though the whole world should urge him to it.* When at last public sentiment wrung from Mr. Davis a command of the coast defences for Gen. Beaure* Notes of an interview with the President relative to transferring back General Beauregard to the command of Department No. 2. RIrCHMOND, September 13, 1862. General Sparrow and myself this day called on the President and delivered to him a petition signed by about fifty members and Senators from the Western and Southwestern States, in which the restoration of Beauregard to the command of the army, now under Bragg, was solicited, it being stated in the petition that it was known that Bragg would welcome the restoration of Beauregard. * * * * * The President remarked, that so far as giving Beauregard command of Bragg's army is concerned, that was out of the question. Bragg had arranged all his plans, and had co-intelligence with the Department, with Kirby Smith, and Humphrey Marshall, and to put a new commander at the head of the army would be so prejudicial to the public interests, he would not do it if the whole world united in the petition. * * * * * * (Signed) TEs. J. SEMMES. GENERAL PETER G. T. BEAUREGARD. 255 gard, it was not only reluctantly bestowed, but only when the clamour of the people for a favourite commander had alarmed him, or could be o longer tolerated. And when Gen. Beauregard did take the new command, it was to find constant disfavour and suspicion at Richmond; to protest against his requisitions being unfilled, and his deprivation of troops; and to have his remonstrances disregarded, filed in obscure bureaux, or indorsed with fretful notes of inquiry or exclamation. A bureau officer in the War Department testifies: "Every letter Gen. Beauregard sends to the Department is sure to put twenty clerks at work in the effort to pick flaws in his accuracy of statement." In the interval of ill-health, and at a time when a cruel and infamous report was circulated in Richmond that Gen. Beauregard was losing his powers, and that his sickness verged on insanity, he wrote the following remarkable letter, intended to be private. As a just and striking commentary on the growing spirit of the war, and on many of the mistaken and short-sighted views then prevalent at Richmond, it will interest the reader: BLADEN, ALABAMA, Aug. 3, 1862. MY DEAR GENERAL:-I regret much to hear of -- being wounded. I hope he will soon be able to face the Abolitionists. In this contest we must triumph or perish; and the sooner we make up our minds to it the better. We now understand the hypocritical cry of " Union and the Constitution," which means, and always did mean, " spoliation and murder." We will yet have to come to proclaiming this war " a war to the knife," when no quarter will be asked or granted. I believe it is the only thing which can prevent recruiting at the North. As to ourselves, I think that very few will not admit that death is preferable to dishonour and ruin. Our great misfortune is, that we have always relied on foreign intervention "and peace in sixty days." No nation will ever intervene until it is seen that we can maintain alone our independence; that is, until we can no longer require assistance. England is afraid to admit that she cannot do without our cotton, for then she would virtually be in our power. France is unwilling to interfere, for fear of the treachery of the latter. She always remembers her as " a perfide Albion." 256 GENERAL PETER G. T. BEAUREGARD. But if France concludes to take Mexico, she will require the alliance of the Southern Confederacy to protect her from Northern aggression. Nations as well as individuals always consult their own interests in any alliance they may form. Hence, our best reliance must be in our "stout hearts and strong arms." I have been very unwell for several months, but could not rest until now. I hope shortly to return to duty, with renewed health and vigour. I know not yet to what point I shall be ordered. I hope to do something shortly by taking the offensive with a wellorganized army. However, " I'homme propose et Dieu dispose;" hence, I shall go with alacrity wherever I am ordered. With kind regards, etc., I remain, yours sincerely, P. G. T. BEAUREGARD. Gen. WM. E. MARTIN, Pocotaligo, S. 0. GENERAL PETER G. T. BEAUREGARD. 25T CHAPTER XXII. Gen. Beauregard in command at Charleston.-Military importance of "the City of Secession."-Gen. Beauregard's appeal to the patriotism of the Carolinians.-Naval attack on Charleston, 1863. — Gen. Beauregard's department stripped of troops.Unavailing remonstrance to President Davis. —Gen. Gillmore's attempt on Charleston. —Its impotent conclusion.-Fame of Gen. Beauregard as an engineer.-He receives the thanks of Congress.-Returns to Virginia in 1864. —" Battle of the Falchion and the Buzzard." —Gen. Beauregard's plan of campaign before the battle of Drewry's Bluff. —Remarkable interview with President Davis.-Connection of Gen. Beauregard with Hood's campaign.-He advises the evacuation of Richmond.-Merits of Gen. Beauregard's military career. —Description of his person and habits. IN September, 1862, we find Gen. Beauregard taking command of the defences of Charleston, which were pronounced by his predecessor-Gen. Pemberton —no longer tenable. The place, however, had as yet been but slightly molested by the enemy; and the friends of Gen. Beauregard were rather disposed to resent the appointment to a position, apparently so unimportant, and in any event so little likely to be adorned with victory, of one who had already distinguished himself in as high places as the Confederate army could then afford. But in this respect, Gen. Beauregard was "fortune's favourite;" and in looking back upon his memorable defence of the " City of Secession," we must declare that no other position during the war could have presented like opportunities to display what was undoubtedly Gen. Beauregard's speciality —his engineering genius. IIe himself appears to have been well satisfied with the appointment to Charleston, and to have anticipated there the tremendous conflict of valour and skill which ensued. There was a mixed reason, indeed, for a powerful Federal demonstration on Charleston. It was the city most meriting, in the Federal eye, the condign punishment due to the nursery of treason and rebellion. Military forecast, too, had already observed in Charleston a point bound to grow into importance as the war progressed. The requirements to the vitality of the body politic of the Confederacy made necessary a constant communication between 17 258 GENERAL PETER G. T. BEAUREGARD. Virginia and the more Southern States of the cis-Mississippi, both for concert of action among the troops, and the furnishing of supplies to the Virginia army. Thus the danger that threatened the long line of railroad that traversed Tennessee parallel to the Federal line of occupation, and therefore vulnerable at all its points, made the defence of the other line through South Carolina, and which approached so near to Charleston, at Branchville, an object of the most vital interest. This line of railroad was the artery that furnished life to the troops fed from the granaries of south Georgia, and its ultimate destruction in Sherman's march did, as we may hereafter see, touch the vitals of the Confederacy. In view of the dangers impending on the sea-coast, and particularly in Charleston-which, in fact, inadequately supplied with troops, was open to assault in no less than five different directions -Gen. Beauregard issued the following proclamation: HEADQUARTERS, DEPARTMENT OF SOUTH CAROLINA, ) GEORGIA AND FLORIDA, February 18, 1863. It has become my solemn duty to inform the authorities and citizens of Charleston and Savannah, that the movements of the enemy's fleet indicate an early land and naval attack on one or both cities, and to urge that persons unable to take an active part in the struggle shall retire. It is hoped, however, that the temporary separation of some of you from your homes will be made without alarm or undue haste, thus showing that the only feeling which animates you in this hour of supreme trial is the right of being able to participate in the defence of your homes, your altars, and the graves of your kindred. Carolinians and Georgians! the hour is at hand to prove your country's cause. Let all able-bodied men, from the sea-board to the mountains, rush to arms. Be not too exacting in the choice of weapons. Pikes and scythes will do for exterminating your enemies, spades and shovels for protecting your firesides. To arms, fellow-citizens! Come to share with us our danger, our brilliant success, our glorious death.* P. G. T. BEAUREGARD, Gen. commanding. * To this appeal there was but little substantial response in men and material. And yet curiously enough in Charleston "the spirit of the women "-a phrase which by the way appears to have had but little real value in the war (sentiment to the contrary), and was too often used to denote a silly nervous transport that quicklyr GENERAL PETER G. T. BEAUREGARD. 259 The most serious naval demonstration of the enemy was made upon Charleston, after an engagement had occurred at Pocotaligo, in which Gen. Beauregard was successful; and, after the attack made by Capt. Ingraham on the blockading squadron, in which the Mercedita, a Federal steamer, was disabled. On the 7th of April, 1863, the long-expected trial between the enemy's ironclads and the forts of Charleston Harbour came on; and from a distance of from nine to twelve hundred yards the Ironsides and monitors opened fire on the front of Sumter, and delivered a shock as of ten thousand battering-rams, impelled by the arms of Titans. The fort stood firm, replying with the angry flashes of its guns; a complete triumph was obtained for the Confederates; and the next morning was seen a turret and smoke-stack of the Keokuk, the only visible reminder of one of the most powerful vessels of the enemy's armada. An interval for other preparations elapsed, and the next attempt upon Charleston followed under Gen. Gillmore. We have already hinted at the desperate condition of the city when Gen. Beauregard took command. His engineering skill had to be taxed to the utmost; old batteries had to be altered and repaired; new sites had to be selected for other constructions. James and Sullivan's Islands were thoroughly protected; but Morris Island was imperfectly defended from want of labour and necessary materials. Other causes of alarm and embarrassment arose; for a disposition was shown at Richmond to diminish Gen. Beauregard's resources, and to strip his district of troops to reinforce Pemberton, at Vicksburg. In vain Gen. Beauregard protested against this disfavour to him and risk to the country. On the 16th May, he wrote to Richmond, complaining in desperate terms of the movement of so many of his troops to Mississippi; 5,000 on the 5th, and more than expired-was so high and extravagant that it burst all bounds of sex, and literally offered recruits from its own ranks. A short while before the proclamation referred to, the women of Charleston passed the following extraordinary resolution, which, prettily as it is written, we must own has something of a comical aspect now: "In the daughters of Carolina there are kindred spirits to the'Maid of Saragossa.' If the time for us to act has come, we are ready. We ask for the best method of action-whether to beformed into companies and regiments, or to wait and fill the places of our beloved soldiers who fall! Save our country, our Southern sunny homes. from Yankee thraldom, men and fathers. Your daughters hush their timid fearings, and would die for their country's freedom." 260 GENERAL PETER G. T. BEAUREGARD. 5,000 on the 10th instant. He made an exhibit of the forces remaining in South Carolina and Georgia-about 4,000 infantry, 5,000 cavalry, and 6,000 artillery-some 15,000 in all. He said the enemy was still on the coast, in the rivers, and on the islands, and might easily cut his communications with Savannah; and that they had sufficient numbers to take Charleston, in all probability, without passing the forts. To all these representations President Davis was deaf; and Gen. Beauregard was left with an inadequate force, and in the most unequal circumstances, to make one of the most desperate defences of the war, to win a victory where there was least reason to expect it, and to achieve, despite the confinements of an envious Administration at Richmond, the most glorious success of his life. The first effort of the enemy was directed to getting possession of the islands, on which to plant batteries controlling the city and harbour, under whose protection the gunboats were to advance to the capture of the city. An unsuccessful effort was made to carry Fort Wagner by storm, after effecting a landing on Morris Island; the trial was renewed on the 18th August, 1863, and followed by a terrific night attack, which resulted in a loss of over 1,500 Federal troops. The fort was not evacuated until the 6th of September, having been held all this time under Beauregard's orders, while he hastened to complete other works, whose effect completely neutralized all benefits the Federals had expected to enjoy in the occupation of Morris Island. The retention of this island by Gen. Beauregard for the space of two months, and with a force of about 1,200 men against about twelve thousand, was one of the most heroic and critical incidents of the struggle; the delay enabling him to construct interiour works for the defence of Charleston. In the interval, on the 21st August, Gillmore had demanded the evacuation of Forts Wagner and Sumter, threatening the destruction of Charleston if the demand was not complied with, and the following night the bombardment of Charleston proper commmenced. Gen. Gillmore, having dispatched to the authorities at Washington that "Fort Sumter was a shapeless, harmless mass of ruins," but one idea prevailed-that Charleston was already reduced. A summons to Fort Sumter, Maj. Stephen Elliot commanding, on the part of Admiral Dahlgren, not being acceded to, an attack under Commander Stevens, was directed against it at midnight of the 8th GENERAL PETER G. T. BEAUREGARD. 2&1 of September. It was completely frustrated; and the "mass of ruins" frowned defiantly in greater strength than in the days of the comeliest symmetry of this historic fort. It decided the safety of Charleston, and stood the faithful guardian of the city, and the defiant herald of Beauregard's engineering fame.* The defence of Charleston constitutes undoubtedly the happiest and most brilliant page in the life of Gen. Beauregard. It was his most successful service in the war, and gave him his greatest name in the world's estimation. Of this defence it has been said: " It developed and called forth such engineering skill, that to-day the world discusses the merits of the two who have distanced all others in engineering science-Beauregard and Todleben, of Russia-and hesitates to award to either the palm." The thanks of the Confederate Congress rendered to Gen. Beauregard for his services at Charleston were conveyed in resolutions of more than usual import. It was unanimously voted that he had accomplished an unparalleled and glorious work; and the following resolution assured him in uncommon terms of the appreciation of his countrymen: * It is partly amusing now to look back upon the confidence with which the North had anticipated the fall of Charleston, or delighted itself with visions of the hateful city being devoured by the "infernal fires" of Gillmore's new and wonderful ordnance. The event so surely hoped for was gaily commented on in the journals, and furnished a fund of caricature for the pictorials, which were already drawing on their imaginations for the final scenes of the rebellion. A gentleman who visited Gen. Beauregard during the siege of Charleston, says: "A caricature in a New York illustrated paper, wherein President Davis and Gen. Beauregard were depicted shoeless and in rags, contemplating a pair of boots, which the latter suggested had better be eaten, excited considerable amusement when shown to him and a party, at an excellent dinner one day." In another of the pictorials was a brutal and devilish device-a picture representing Gen. Beauregard watering his horse in hell. It was engraved after one of the numerous Federal reports of the death of the hero whom the North seemed to hate above all others in the Confederacy. To this fund of the enemy's amusement in the siege of Charleston, we shall only add the following: BEAUREGARD AND GILLMORE. At midnight, in his blackguard tent, "Old Beau " was dreaming of the hour When Gillmore, like a suppliant bent, Should tremble at his power; 262 GENERAL PETER G. T. BEAUREGARD. " Resolved, That the thanks of Congress are eminently due, and are hereby cordially tendered to Gen. P. G. T. Beauregard and the officers and men of his command, for their gallantry and successful defence of the city of Charleston, S. C.-a defence which, for the skill, heroism, and tenacity displayed by the defenders during an attack scarcely paralled in warfare, whether we consider the persistent efforts of the enemy, or his boundless resources in the most improved and formidable artillery and the most powerful engines of war hitherto known, is justly entitled to be pronounced'glorious' by impartial history and an admiring country." Charleston having proved impregnable, public opinion forced the Administration to employ Gen. Beauregard on another field of usefulness. It created a new command for him which extended from Virginia to Florida; a command vast indeed, in extent, but almost without the presence of an army or an enemy, and affording but scant and unimportant operations. From this command Gen. Beauregard was summoned to take part in the great campaign of 1864, in Virginia. Notwithstanding the warnings of Gen. Beauregard, the approaches to Richmond and Petersburg were left unprotected; and Gen. Butler landed at.Bermuda Hundred with about 35,000 men. By a telegraphic dispatch Gen. Beauregard, who was then at WelIn dreams, through camp and street he bore The trophies of a conqueror. He sported Gillmore's gold-laced hatHis red-topped boots, his gray cravat, As wild his fancy as a bat, Or " any other bird." An hour passed on-" Old Beau" awoke, Half strangled by a villainous smoke, Enough the very devil to choke, While all around the " stink-pots " broke And blinded him with smoke. He cursed the villainous compound, While stunk the pole-cats far around; Then roared with wild, demoniac shriek: "Lord I what a stink I the Greek I the Greek I Put out this villainous Greek fire I Or in the last red ditch expire.'Tis sweet to draw one's dying breath For one's dear land, as Horace saith, But dreadful to be stunk to death."-Nashville Union. GENERAL PETER G. T. BEAUREGARD. 263 don, North Carolina, was ordered immediately to arrest the progress of Butler. With what troops he could collect around Petersburg, he repulsed the attack and saved the city. Establishing his headquarters at Drewry's Bluff, Gen. Beauregard hastily organized an army out of the heterogeneous materials. Inflamed with the knowledge that he had in his front the man who had inflicted such cruelties and such indignities on his much-loved home, he matured a plan of battle in an instant, struck Butler in the front, and achieved a brilliant victory. The Richmond Examiner entitled it " the battle of the falchion and the buzzard." With 15,000 men, Gen. Beauregard defeated Butler and 30,000 men of his army; drove them back in disorder to Bermuda Hundred; and it is said that if one of his Generals-Whiting-had carried out the plan of attack, but few of Butler's men would have reached the place of shelter. As it was, "the Army of the James " was neutralized, and remained " an army of observation." Fourteen hundred prisoners were taken and five pieces of artillery; and Butler was hemmed by the Confederate lines, which were since, from time to time, advanced after every skirmish, until they completely covered the Southern communications of the capital, thus securing one of the principal objects of the attack. The hesitation of the Confederate left wing, and the premature halt of the Petersburg column, saved the enemy from greater disaster, and took place, as Gen. Beauregard officially reported, " before obstacles, in neither case sufficient to have deterred from the execution of the movements prescribed." Drewry's Bluff was a valuable victory. But just before this action, Gen. Beauregard had proposed something much grander and more decisive in the Virginia campaign. He had represented to the authorities at Richmond that with the force at his command he could scarcely do more than obtain the colour of victory; and he had proposed, if ten or fifteen thousand men were furnished him from Gen. Lee's lines, to assemble a force that would crush Butler, and, annihilating him, instead of merely driving him back, would then be in instant readiness to move upon Grant's flank, while Gen. Lee made an attack in front, and to finish the campaign by a grand stroke of arms. The plan of action was communicated to Gen. Bragg, at the time exercising a species of general command, and acting as " military adviser" of President Davis. It impressed 264 GENERAL PETER G. T. BEAUREGARD. Bragg so deeply that he persuaded the President to visit the headquarters of Gen. Beauregard, and to receive his views in person. Mr. Davis made the concession of this unusual interview. In order that there might be no imperfect or interested version of his plan, Gen. Beauregard had made the following precise memorandum of it:HEADQUARTERS DEPARTMENT N. C. AND S. VA., DREWRY'S BLUFF, May 14, 1864. General Braxton Bragg, Commandfing- General: GENERAL:-Considering the vital importance of the issue involved, and resting upon the success of the plan suggested to you this morning, I have deemed it desirable and appropriate that its substance should be briefly communicated in writing, as follows:Gen. Lee's army at Guinea Station, and my command at this place, are on nearly a right line passing through Richmond, Grant's army being on the left flank, and Butler's on the right; our lines are thus interiour. Butler's aim is unquestionably to invest and turn Drewry's Bluff, threatening and holding the Petersburg and Danville Railroads, opening the obstructions in the river at Fort Drewry for the passage of war-vessels, necessitating then the retreat of Gen. Lee to the lines about Richmond. With the railroads held by the enemy, Grant in front and Butler in rear of the works around Richmond, the capital would be practically invested, and the issue may well be dreaded. The plan suggested is, that G-en. Lee should fall back to the defensive lines of the Chickahominy, even to the intermediate lines of Richmond, sending temporarily to this place 15,000 men of his troops; immediately upon that accession to my present force, I would take the offensive, and attack Butler vigorously. Such a move, properly made, would throw me directly upon Butler's communications, and (as he now stands) on his right flank, well towards the rear; General Whiting should also move simultaneously. Butler must then be necessarily crushed or captured, and all the stores of that army would fall into our hands; an amount probably that would make an interruption into our communications, for a period of a few days, a matter of no serious inconvenience. GENERAL PETER G. T. BEAUREGARD. 265 The proposed attack should be accomplished in two days at furthest, after receiving my reinforcements; this done, I would move with 10,000 more men to the assistance of Gen. Lee than I received from him, and Grant's fate would not long remain doubtful. The destruction of Grant's forces would open the way for the recovery of most of our lost territory, as already submitted to you in general terms. Respectfully, etc., P. G. T. BEAUREGARD. Gen. Beauregard had judged that with the reinforcement named in this memorandum he could surprise the army of Butler, destroy it, and then, with Gen. Lee's cooperation, overthrow Grant, and march quickly on Washington, which was defenceless. It was a surprise elevated to a decisive battle; it failed entirely from lack of promptitude in the execution. The persistence of Beauregard in desiring a reinforcement compelled President Davis to visit him, to listen to his plan. That was one day lost already. Mr. Davis was immovable; he did not want to give the 15,000 men; he refused. "Remember," said Beauregard to him, "that we are now playing the last act of our drama, on which the curtain will soon fall; let the play at least end gloriously for us! Remember, also, that I am certain of success, for I have staked everything in this last grand effort-my life and my reputation." One must know the modesty, recall the courage and military genius of Beauregard to understand that when he said "I am certain of success," it was because he was certain of it. President Davis was moved; but his obstinacy continued; he refused the reinforcement. The result was the lingering and fatal campaign of 1864. Months after the close of the war, Gen. Beauregard, repeating to a friend his plan of action, adhered to the belief that it would have broken to pieces the enemy's combination against Richmond; and, with the light of conviction in his eyes, he said: "Yes, I was certain of success." On the 3d October, 1864, Gen. Beauregard was assigned to the nominal command of two military departments and the troops therein, known as the Department of Tennessee and Georgia, and the Department of Alabama, Mississippi, and East Louisiana. He 266 GENERAL PETER G. T. BEAUREGARD. immediately proceeded to the West, joined Hood's army, and then issued an earnest appeal to the people to come forward, with renewed efforts, to drive the enemy from the South. In this, his last field of service, Gen. Beauregard was unfortunate; his name was connected with Hood's great disaster, and he shared some of the responsibility of that ill-starred campaign that brought the fortunes of the Confederacy to the last extremity. This responsibility is not clearly defined; for in President Davis' singular fondness for equivocal military commands, Gen. Beauregard's position was not so much that of a General ill the field, as a sort of military director, having no power to take direct controul of either Hood's or Taylor's armies. Whether or not he might have assumed to countermand Hood's unfortunate campaign into Middle Tennessee, it is certain that he declined doing so when, on arriving at Augusta, Ga., on the 6th December, he found that Sherman had 275 miles the start, and the roads were impracticable in Northern Georgia and Alabama. But he telegraphed the Governors of Alabama, Georgia, and other States, to concentrate troops rapidly in Sherman's front, ordered a brigade of cavalry from Hood to Wheeler, and supposed some 30,000 men could be collected to oppose Sherman's march, and destroy him. The result shows that he was mistaken; that the volunteer assistance he had hoped for could not be aroused in the demoralized state of the country; that the inadequate forces in the enemy's front could not arrest that march to the sea, which was ultimately decisive of the fate of Savannah and Charleston, and was at last only ineffectually impeded in the forests of North Carolina. Whilst acting in this State under the command of Johnston, Gen. Beauregard proposed a plan of campaign to foil Sherman, by concentrating all the disposable Confederate forces at Fayetteville, and making a decisive battle there. The advice was in accord with Gen. Johnston's favourite and masterly policy of "' concentration;" but the junction of Schofield with Sherman gave the enemy such overwhelming odds as to put a single decisive battle out of the question. In this last emergency, Gen. Beauregard advised the immediate evacuation of Richmond, and wrote to Gen. Johnston: "I can see no other means of preventing the complete attainment of the main object of Sherman's campaign than by the prompt evacuation of ouir lines at Petersburg, and the occupation of those GENERAL PETER G. T. BEAUREGARD. 267 prepared for such an emergency around Richmond, and by detaching 25,000 men to unite with the force already in North Carolina, and give immediate battle to Sherman, which eould be done with almost certain decisive success. After which the whole army should be hastened back to Virginia to raise the siege of Richmond." How such a movement'would have resulted, is left entirely to the imagination; and whether it was practicable, at the time of its recommendation, is a subject of additional doubt. The surrender of the different armies of the Confederacy in April, 1865, brought back Gen. Beauregard, who was then with Gen. Johnston at Greensboro, North Carolina, to his native State. It appeared now to be the concurrent decision of the great leaders of the Southern armies, finding little room for themselves in the political world, to retire from the arena of public life, and devote those abilities which shone so brightly on the battle-field, and so steadily in the council chamber, to educational or commercial pursuits. Actuated by this sentiment, Gen. Beauregard has sought a new business, and is, at present, President of the New Orleans, Jackson, and Great Northern Railroad Company, attending faithfully and cheerfully to his new duties and responsibilities. Recently he went on a purely commercial tour to Europe, where he was received with great courtesy and distinction by all classes in England and France.* * One of the journals of Paris contained an interesting notice of Gen. Beauregard, while in that capital, his person, career, etc., from which we extract the following brief notices: " I have rarely experienced, in taking the hand of a soldier, the pleasure which I felt on pressing that of Gen. Beauregard, at the time when the Grand Hotel had the pleasure for two days of numbering him among the illustrious guests which it entertained. * * * * The question here is neither one of politics, nor of war, nor yet of the American question-North or South. It is a question only of one of the most sympathetic physiognomies; of one of those illustrations which we cannot let pass through Paris, without giving the profile, at least, to our readers. "First of all we do not forget that Gen. Gustave Toutant de Beauregard is of a family originating with De la Rochelle. Besides, the fact of his name being French (as well as his character and mind, which are of our country) has not the less contributed to draw a very sympathetic attention towards him on this side of the Atlantic, during the continuation of the American war. He was one of that trio of men, respected and admired in Europe, even by their enemies, and in whose hands was held the military destiny of the Confederacy. The other two, as is known, were Jackson-surnamed while under fire'Stonewall'-and Gen. Lee. "Beauregard is still young; he was born in Louisiana, in 1818. Physically he 268 GENERAL PETER G. T. BEAUREGARD. Remarking on the merits of Gen. Beauregard's military life, a Southern journal has offered a criticism so acute and just, that we adopt it in the language of the accomplished writer: "In one quality of a great General he was without compeer. We mean in the indescribable magnetic influence which a few men appear to have wielded over large masses. Wellington did not possess it, nor Marlborough, nor indeed we believe did Gen. Lee. Their troops had great, indeed unbounded confidence in them, but it seems to have been confidence which grew out of trial and ripened scarcely appears as old as he really is, notwithstanding the fatigues of a war where the responsibilities to be borne were as weighty as the dangers to be faced were great. He is above the medium height, slender, has an elegant deportment, is very gentlemanly, and has a decidedly French figure. His complexion is bronzed by exposure in the southern latitudes of America; his nose is long and shapely; his eye large and piercing; his look commanding. He wears a short moustache, partially gray, and also a small imperial. His extreme modesty, his gentleness of tone, and his simplicity of manner, cannot entirely conceal the soldier I * * * * * * * * * * * * * "I have said that Gen. Beauregard was French in character and mind; it seemed impossible for him in his American guise to forget his original country. One of his aides, Col. Lamar, told me that on his return to the General, after a voyage to France, he (Col. L.) had related to him the words of sympathy expressed in his honour in the ranks of our army, and that the General had wept for joy. One day on the heights of Charleston, Gen. Beauregard was pensively gazing towards the sea.'You are thinking of France, General I' said Col. Lamar to him.' Yes, I am thinking of France. Ah I if she knew for what a cause we fought, she would come to our assistance I For she believes that I am fghting for the maintenance of slavery, whilst I would willingly see in our ranks all the blacks of the South, defending with us the liberty of our territory.' "This opinion, decidedly against the support of slavery, was confirmed by the General to me, and it must not be forgotten that it was he who in connection with Gen. Lee, proposed arming the blacks. Too late a measure I "When I said that his name and his person inspired a lively sympathy, I found the proof of it in the crowd which filled the hall leading to the modest parlour occupied by the General at the Grand Hotel. Such demonstrations, entirely novel to him, surprised and troubled him. "One final illustration, which shows that at no point certain passions cease in the heart of man. This morning, as I communicated to Gen. Beauregard the dispatches which had arrived from Italy, said he,' Ah I the Italians are very happy in having still something to fight for.'' I saw by a sigh, and by a movement of the head, that he was very willing to add,' If they only wanted me in their ranks!' " It is pleasant to know, that by his mother, Gen. Beauregard has Tuscan blood in his veins. GENERAL PETER G. T. BEAUREGARD. 269 through success. But Beauregard was beloved of every army he commanded from the day he assumed the baton, and we are confident that to the last day of its organization, the grand Army of Northern Virginia would have greeted his presence among them with shouts of joy and demonstrations of wild affection, which no other living man could elicit. Napoleon possessed this quality in a striking degree; Stonewall Jackson possessed it to a great extent. Amongst the Federal generals we think Gen. Sherman exhibited more evidence of it than any other, unless perhaps Gen. McClellan. But for Beauregard, whether he commanded on the banks of the Tennessee, in the dreary sand-hills of Corinth, in the much bombarded city of the sea, or in the well defended lines which looked on classic Potomac, his troops ever showed the greatest enthusiasm, the most ardent affection." Among the Confederate Generals, the Richmond Examiner designated Gen. Beauregard by the Latin title of " Felix," not in the common school translation of happy or fortunate man, but in its true classical meaning, as denoting that rare and well-tempered combination of qualities that conciliates fortune, makes easy and graceful conquests of life, wins men, and obtains equal measures of human ambition in power and in love. In this sense the designation was characteristic, and a neat use of the Latin language. The person of Gen. Beauregard is familiar to the public in photographs, which generally do justice to strongly marked features, and especially to an expression so settled as that which the face of the General wears. It is indeed the fixed and precise expression of the military man, with a figure small, but the beau-ideal of a perfect soldier. He is five feet seven and a half inches high, weighs about one hundred and fifty pounds; is well proportioned, compactly put up, and is erect and quick in his movements. Those who know him well declare that he is one of'the strongest and most active men of his weight in the country. His eyes are dark brown, nearly black. His hair was of the same colour, but is now gray. His health was not generally good since the second year of the war. It was so bad towards the end of the siege of Charleston as almost to unfit him for duty; but his great energy and perseverance enabled him to remain in command until the surrender at Greensboro. In manners Gen. Beauregard is kind and generous to those around him; but he is uncompromising where a duty has 270 GENERAL PETER G. T. BEAUREGARD. to be performed by himself or others. We have already observed that he ruled his armies more through the affection and enthusiasm his presence created, than by the severities of military discipline. But he always exacted implicit obedience from those whom he commanded, and he was the first to show the example of that obedience to those whom the country had placed in a position to command him. His staff was so attached to him that although to be a member of it was to relinquish all hopes of promotion (on account of the animosity of President Davis), yet all through the four years' war, not one officer voluntarily retired from it. He was well served by all immediately around him, for he was served from love. In his habits he was a model for the school of abstemiousness, rejecting all stimulants, drinking neither tea nor coffee, and an exception in the Southern army, to the extent that he used tobacco in no shape whatever. GENERAL ALBERT SIDNEY JOHNSTON. CHAPTER XXIII. Remarkable career of Albert Sidney Johnston. —He eludes the Federal authorities in California.-Declares for the Southern Confeaeracy, and " annexes " Arizona.In command of the Western armies.-Picture of a hero. —Proclamation on the occupation of Kentucky.-Foolish exaltation of Southern hopes.-True situation of Gen. Johnston.-His noble silence in the face of clamour.-Letter on the fall of Fort Donelson.-A glance at the Western map of the war.-The Confederate line broken and the campaign transferred to the southern bank of the Tennessee river.-Battle of Shiloh.-Gen. Johnston riding on to victory.-His deathwound.-Lamentations in the South. —Tributes to his memory.-A classic inscription. IN the annals of America, anteriour to the war, the name of Albert Sidney Johnston belonged both to history and romance, and shared equally the page of great national events and that of remarkable personal adventure. His life had been passed not only in camps, but in exploring the wilderness, in founding new homes, in pursuing the excitements of new countries, and running there the career from the humble individual to the high state official, commanding honours won by spirit and perseverance. He was born in Mason County, Kentucky, in 1803, and obtained a literary education at Transylvania University in that State. He graduated at West Point in 1826, standing eight in his class; was commissioned as lieutenant of infantry, served in the Black Itawk war with distinction, resigned, and settled in Texas in 1836. At this time Texas was struggling for her independence, and the battle of San Jacinto had been fought. Johnston, who appears to have emigrated here with the ambitious resolution to make his mark in a new country, seized the first opportunity of action, and entered the Texan army as a private soldier, enlisting in the division of Gen. Rusk. His merit soon raised him from the ranks, and he was 272 GENERAL ALBERT SIDNEY JOHNSTON. ultimately appointed senior Brigadier-General, and succeeded Gen. Houston in the command of the Texan army. This promotion was not without the accident of jealousy, and became the occasion of a duel with Gen. Houston, in which Johnston was wounded. In 1886, Johnston was appointed Texan Secretary of War, and in 1839 organized an expedition against the hostile Cherokees, in which he routed them completely in a battle on the river Neches. He warmly advocated the annexation of Texas to the United States, and after this union was effected he took part in the Mexican War. Here his services were distinguished, especially at the siege of Monterey, where he had three horses shot under him, and obtained the especial thanks of Gen. Butler, to whom he was acting as aide and inspector-general. In October, 1849, he was appointed paymaster by President Taylor, with the rank of major, and, upon the passage of the act of Congress authorizing the raising of additional regiments in the army, he was appointed colonel of the Second Cavalry. In the latter part of 1857, he received the command of the United States forces sent to coerce the Mormons into obedience to the Federal authority, and conducted the expedition in safety to Great Salt Lake City, after enduring great suffering in the mountains. The commencement of the war found him in command of the department of the Pacific; and having determined to espouse the cause of the Confederacy, he resigned his position in the army of the United States, and made instant preparations to elude the watch set upon him, and make his way to the Atlantic sea-board. With a few companions, he chose the overland route, by the way of Arizona. The little party, consisting of twenty-three citizens of California, and seven officers lately resigned from the Federal service, mounted on mules, arrived at Mesilla on the 21st July, 1861. Here Gen. Johnston found the Federal authority in the Territory substantially destroyed, and perceiving that nearly all the people were Southern in origin and sympathies, he took counsel with their leaders and determined to declare Arizona a territory of the Confederate States. On the 1st August, 1861, Col. Baylor, as military commandant, issued his proclamation, erecting a territorial government, with executive and judicial officers, and declaring the territory, until otherwise decreed, to consist of all of New GENERAL ALBERT SIDNEY JOHNSTON. 273 Mexico south of the thirty-fourth parallel of latitude, within which limits the local laws then in force should continue until changed by act of the Confederate Congress. Having completed, as he hoped, an act aggrandizing the new government to whose service he was hastening, Gen. Johnston resumed his journey, and passing through New Orleans, reached Richmond on the 2d September. Here he was visited by many who knew and admired him. The fame of his military abilities was popular and had preceded him; his thoughtful and intellectual face and commanding person obtained for him at once the respect and confidence of all who saw him; and his arrival at Richmond was an occasion of jubilation, in which the people saw an addition to the Confederate roll of distinguished generalship, and delighted themselves with the prospect of a new effulgence of their arms in districts which had not yet yielded much of Southern glory. The new commander was commissioned a full General, and was promptly appointed, by President Davis, to the command of the Department of Kentucky and Tennessee, and, without delay, repaired to the scene of his duties. In an army of volunteers the personal appearance of the commander is an important element in obtaining the admiration and confidence of the troops; and, indeed, in the military life, this circumstance appears to be of much more consequence in the people's eyes than in other professions and careers. In this regard, Gen. A. S. Johnston was fortunate, and filled all that the popular imagination could require in the picture of a hero. He was more than six feet high, of a large and sinewy frame, in the vigour of manhood, about sixty years of age. His countenance was grave, dignified and commanding, indicating serious thought, but without a sign of austerity upon it. His features were strongly marked, showing the Scottish lineage, and denoted great resolution and composure of character. His complexion, naturally fair, was, from exposure, a deep brown. His manner was courteous, but rather grave and silent. The whole expression was at once grand and pleasing; and it was often said of him, that he looked like one "born to command." No man had ever more devoted, enthusiastic friends, serving him from affection, ceaseless in praising him, holding it an honour to be by his side, and ready to die for him in any cause. It is only a strong nature that wins such friends. 18 274 GENERAL ALBERT SIDNEY JOHNSTON. On assuming command and establishing himself at BowlingGreen, Gen. Johnston issued the following proclamation, explaining the much vexed question of the occupation of Kentucky by Confederate forces: " WHEREAS, the armed occupation of a part of Kentucky by the United States, and the preparations which manifest the intention of their Government to invade the Confederate States through that territory, have imposed it on these last, as a necessity of self-defence, to enter that State and meet the invasion upon the best line for military operations; and, whereas, it is proper that the motives of the Government of the Confederate States in taking this step should be fully known to the world; now, therefore, I, Albert S. Johnston, General and Commander of the Western Department of the Army of the Confederate States of America, do proclaim that these States have thus marched their troops into Kentucky with no hostile intention towards its people, nor do they desire or seek to control their choice in regard to their union with either of the confederacies, or to subjugate their State, or hold its soil against their wishes. On the contrary, they deem it to be the right of the people of Kentucky to determine their own position in regard to the belligerents. It is for them to say whether they will join either the Confederacy, or maintain a separate existence as an independent sovereign State. The armed occupation of their soil, both as to its extent and duration, will, therefore, be strictly limited to the exigencies of self-defence on the part of the Confederate States. These States intend to conform to all the requirements of public law and international amity as between themselves and Kentucky, and, accordingly, I hereby command all who are subject to my orders to pay entire respect to the rights of property and the legal authorities within that State, so far as the same may be compatible with the necessities of self-defence. If it be the desire of the people of Kentucky to maintain a strict and impartial neutrality, then the effort to drive out the lawless intruders, who seek to make their State the theatre of war, will aid them in the attainment of their wishes. If, as it may not be unreasonable to suppose, these people desire to unite their fortunes with the Confederate States, to whom they are already bound by so many ties of interest, then the appearance and aid of Confederate troops will assist them to make GENERAL ALBERT SIDNEY JOHNSTON. 275 an opportunity for the free and unbiased expression of their will upon the subject. But if it be true, which is not to be presumed, that a majority of those people desire to adhere to the United States, and become parties to the war, then none can doubt the right of the other belligerent to meet that war whenever and wherever it may be waged. But, harbouring no such suspicion, I now declare, in the name of the Government which I serve, that its army will be withdrawn from Kentucky so soon as there shall be satisfactory evidence of the existence and execution of a like intention on the part of the United States. By order of the President of the Confederate States of America. A. S. JOHNSTON, General, commanding the Western Department of the Army of the Confederate States of America. It was easy to see that a collision of arms must soon occur in Gen. Johnston's department; and the popular expectation of great victories there would have been very much dampened, had the people known the real situation of affairs. He had but little over twenty thousand troops, when it was generally supposed that he commanded an army of a hundred thousand men, and would soon be marching to Cincinnati, and fulfilling the cherished popular hope of an invasion of Northern territory. This exaltation of Southern hope was foolish and characteristic; and Gen. Johnston knew well enough, while he could not communicate his information to the public, and moderate the vulgar expectation, that his condition was desperate in the extreme, and that the enemy had the most formidable advantages, not only in numbers and resources, but in superiour organization and drill. Buell was not far from him, in a position of immense strength, with an army said to be 50,000 strong. In his rear was the Cumberland River, liable to rise at any moment, and to admit the largest class steamers as high as Nashville. Then there was the Tennessee, traversing the entire State, and capable of passing gunboats to Alabama; while, at the mouth of both these rivers, at Paducah and Smithfield, the enemy was collecting an enormous force, both naval and military. The army with which Gen. Johnston had to encounter these immense preparations, was both inadequate and raw. In October, he wrote to the War Department: "We have received but little accession to our 276 GENERAL ALBERT SIDNEY JOHNSTON. ranks since the Confederate forces crossed the line-in fact, no such enthusiastic demonstration as to justify any movements not warranted by our ability to maintain our own communications." He repeatedly called upon the government for reinforcements. He made a call upon several States of the Southwest, including Tennessee, for large numbers of troops. The call was revoked at the instance of the authorities in Richmond, who declined to furnish twelve months' volunteers with arms; and here was another instance of petty objections at Richmond, in an exigency that surely required action, without reference to those forms and routine in which the government chose, to the last, to administer its military service. Gen. Johnston was forced to silence before the public. He could not acquaint them with the true situation, and fence his reputation, in case of disaster, by discovering how small his force was, and explaining how he was baffled by Mr. Judah P. Benjamin, the Secretary of War at Richmond. It was a case of severe self-abnegation. The commander suffered daily from the hasty and uninformed criticisms of the newspaper press. He was twitted with his former reputation; he was declared incompetent; and the constant interrogatory in the journals was, how long was a slow and unsympathetic commander to delay to pluck the victory which a brave and sufficient army panted to obtain. The truth was revealed with the fall of Fort Donelson. It was then known that Gen. Johnston had given the better half of his army to defend that place, and that when surrendered to overwhelming odds (Gens. Floyd and Pillow escaping) he was left with not more than twelve thousand men, to make the retreat from Nashville, which this event had made imperative. To President Davis he wrote: "In my first report I remained silent" (i. e. with reference to the embarrassments which surrounded him in his attempts to avert or remedy the disaster of Fort Donelson). " This silence you were kind enough to attribute to my generosity. I will not lay claim to the motive to excuse my course. I observed silence, as it seemed to me the best way to serve the cause and the country. The facts were not fully known; discontent prevailed, and criticism or condemnation was more likely to augment than to cure the evil. I refrained, well knowing that heavy censures would fall upon me, but convinced that it was better to endure them for the present, GENERAL ALBERT SIDNEY JOHNSTON. 2177 and defer to a more propitious time, an investigation of the conduct of the Generals, for, in the meantime, their services are required, and their influences useful. For these reasons, Gens. Floyd and Pillow were assigned to duty, for I still felt confidence in their gallantry, their energy, and their devotion to the Confederacy. The test of merit, in my profession, with the people, is success. It is a hard rule, but I think it right. If I join this corps to the forces of Gen. Beauregard (I confess a hazardous experiment), then those who are now exclaiming against me will be without an argument." The experiment was eventually made. On leaving Nashville Gen. Johnston fell back to Murfreesboro. There he managed to collect an army able to offer battle; but the weather was so inclement, and the floods in the river such as to wash the bridges away, that nothing effective could be accomplished. He therefore marched on, and crossed the Tennessee at Decatur, in Alabama, early in March, 1862, and soon afterwards a portion of his army joined the command of Beauregard and Bragg, the whole force being drawn in around Corinth. So far the events of the campaign west of the Alleghanies — the capture of Fort Henry, the fall of Fort Donelson, the evacuation of Columbus- had been of the most disastrous and serious consequence to the Confederate cause. It will be well here to look to the map to obtain an intelligent view of the only campaign of Gen. A. S. Johnston, closing with the untimely death of the commander. The events referred to opened to the enemy no less than three water avenues-the Mississippi, the Tennessee, and the Cumberland rivers, gave him bases of operations on the banks of these rivers, and left the Confederates no practicable line of operations in all West and Middle Tennessee. The newspaper press of the Confederacy, which was never candid with the public, and delighted to misrepresent and insult all the successes of the enemy, attempted for some time to make light of the loss of the forts, and told it as a story of a capture of hastily constructed earthworks, mounting a few cannon-a paltry and unworthy price for a great army and fleet to rejoice over. But this view shut out the strategic importance of these points, and was to the last degree superficial. The gravity of the events was that it had broken the Confederate line in the West, and transferred the campaign to the southern bank of the Tennessee; the Confederate army being forced now to take a posi 278 GENERAL ALBERT SIDNEY JOHNSTON. tion at Corinth, to defend the State of Mississippi. and to command the railroads diverging thence eastward and southward. But here Gen. Johnston was inspired with a new hope, and found a favourable conjuncture for a great battle, in which he might recover from his disasters, and repair his reputation so unjustly and cruelly injured by the carping critics of the newspapers. He had said to his friends, that he was confident of retrieving his fortunes at no distant day. The opportunity for action had now come; Grant's army, brought down the Tennessee River, was already in his front, while Buell was marching on the same point by land; and Gen. Johnston proposed to attack before the junction of the two forces. On the eve of the great battle of Shiloh, he made the following glowing and confident address to his troops: " Soldiers of the Army of the Mississippi: 1" I have put you in motion to offer battle to the invaders of your country. With the resolution and disciplined valour becoming men, fighting as you are, for all worth living or dying for, you can but march to a decisive victory over the agrarian mercenaries sent to subjugate and despoil you of your liberties, property and honour. Remember the precious stake involved; remember the dependence of your mothers, your wives, your sisters, and your children on the result; remember the fair, broad, abounding land, the happy homes and ties that would be desolated by your defeat. The eyes and the hopes of eight millions of people rest upon you; you are expected to show yourself worthy of your race and lineageworthy of the women of the South, whose noble devotion in this war has never been exceeded at any time. With such incentives to brave deeds, and with the trust that God is with us, your Generals will lead you confidently to the combat, assured of success." In the early morning of the 6th April, the enemy was attacked about twenty miles from Corinth, on the west bank of the Tennessee River. A small log-cabin, termed Shiloh Church, gave its name to the battle. The first line of the Confederates, commanded by Hardee, was soon engaged, struck the left of Sherman's line, and threw it into wild confusion. Until the enemy had been driven to his camps, Hardee's corps only had been engaged; and while GENERAL ALBERT SIDNEY JOHNSTON. 279 the masses of Federal infantry desperately strove to make a stand here, the line of Confederates was for a moment checked and dismayed. At this time Gen. Johnston rode forward with Gen. Breckinridge, and seizing a musket, presented it at a chargebayonet, and called on the men to follow. In the scene his grand figure seemed to expand to gigantic poportions; he was mastered by excitement, and in his eagerness, forgetting formal orders, he beckoned his men on to the charge. The gallant Kentuckians were the first to follow-Tennesseeans, Mississippians and Arkansans caught the heroic contagion; and now the line moved steadily forward at double-quick, and then, with a wild rush, receiving the deadly iron blast as it swept along the slopes, and pouring over the batteries, they scattered the heavy masses of the infantry in the wildest confusion. This was the mightiest effort of physical force and courage of the day. As soon as Gen. Johnston perceived the success of his appeal, and that his men had caught the spirit which he had sought to infuse into them, and were moving forward with the requisite vigour and resolution, he rode from the front, and returned to his original commanding position, a little in the rear and on the right, and waited the result of the assault. At half-past ten o'clock, the whole of the first line of the Federal army was in utter rout and confusion. Gen. Johnston, magnificently mounted, rode now in advance, his thoughts only on the great victory he was about achieving. As he pressed rapidly forward, one of his aides, perceiving blood on his clothes, anxiously asked if he was wounded. He replied, " Only a scratch;" adding, in entire unconsciousness of self, with his eyes on his troops: " Was not that splendidly done! glorious fellows! we have got them now!" Another moment he reeled in the saddle and was lifted down a dying man. His boot being pulled off, it was discovered to be full of blood, and that the purple current was still flowing rapidly from a small wound under the knee. It was indeed a small wound to produce death in a hale and vigourous man. But an artery had been severed, and what he had thought a scratch proved a mortal hurt. The body was borne from the fire into a ravine; stimulants were applied; but the commander was already dead; and as anxious, grief-stricken voices sought to arouse him, there was no sign of recognition on the grave countenance, peacefully and grandly composed in death. 280 GENERAL ALBERT SIDNEY JOHNSTON. The day's work was done; but the victory that it promised was not achieved. There is reason to suppose that if Gen. Johnston had not been stopped by the untimely messenger of death, the reverse of the second day of Shiloh would not have been experienced, and that with the setting of the sun, Grant would have been crushed, before Buell's reinforcements could have saved him. It is said that as his victorious lines were sweeping the field, Gen. Johnston, unconscious of his wound, remarked to one of his staff: "We will water our horses in the Tennessee River to-night." His army fell short of the victory that the commander would have grasped; but even apart from regret for that, never had a death before been so deeply lamented in all parts of the South as that of Gen. A. S. Johnston. The people remembered his virtues, and recalled his noble countenance; they considered how cruelly he had been abused by the newspapers, and how in the first part of his campaign, although President Davis was personally well disposed towards him-indeed, an ardent friend —he had been sacrificed by meddlesome authorities in the War Department; they resented all former injustice done him; they dwelt on the dramatic circumstance of his death; and they'remembered that he had fallen on the pathway to a great victory, which God did not spare him to complete. The public honours paid to his memory were exceedingly appropriate and tender. His death was commemorated in a special message of President Davis to Congress. He wrote: " But an all-wise Creator has been pleased, while vouchsafing to us His countenance in battle, to afflict us with a severe dispensation, to which we must bow in humble submission. The last long, lingering hope has disappeared, and it is but too true, that Gen. Albert Sidney Johnston is no more. My long and close friendship with this departed chieftain and patriot, forbid me to trust myself in giving vent to the feelings which this intelligence has evoked. Without doing injustice to the living, it may safely be said that our loss is irreparable. Among the shining hosts of the great and good who now cluster around the banner of our country, there exists no purer spirit, no more heroic soul, than that of the illustrious man whose death I join you in lamenting. In his death he has illustrated the character for which, through life, he was conspicuous-that of singleness of purpose and devotion GENERAL ALBERT SIDNEY JOHNSTON. 281 to duty with his whole energies. Bent on obtaining the victory which he deemed essential to his country's cause, he rode on to the accomplishment of his object, forgetful of self, while his very lifeblood was fast ebbing away. His last breath cheered his comrades on to victory. The last sound he heard was their shout of victory. His last thought was his country, and long and deeply will his country mourn his loss." In the army his death was announced in the following general orders: HEADQUARTERS ARMY OF MISSISSIPPI, | CORINTH, MISS., April 10, 1862. i SOLDIERS: —Your late Commander-in-Chief, Gen. A. S. Johnston, is dead; a fearless soldier, a sagacious captain, a reproachless man has fallen. One who, in his devotion to our cause, shrank from no sacrifice; one who, animated by a sense of duty, and sustained by a sublime courage, challenged danger, and perished gallantly for his country, while leading forward his brave columns to victory. His signal example of heroism and patriotism, if imitated, would make his army invincible. A grateful country will mourn his loss, revere his name, and cherish his many virtues. P. G. T. BEAUREGARD, General commanding. The body was taken to New Orleans, and was finally interred there with an august ceremony, a military and civic procession following it to the last resting-place in what is known as the St. Louis Cemetery. As the body reposed in state, before the burial, thousands visited it; many shed tears of true grief; the gentle hands and weeping eyes of women adorned the mournful scene; and the coffin, covered with beautiful flowers, containing the dead warrior, with his sheathed sword by his side, was attended to the cemetery not only by a procession of dignitaries, but by a long train of heartstricken mourners, carrying in their faces the emblems of woe. Recently a lady passing through this crowded cemetery to visit the grave of Gen. Johnston, found the following written epitaph pasted upon a rough board attached to the tomb. The author is not known; but an inscription more classic and noble has seldom been put over the head of the dead: 282 GENERAL ALBERT SIDNEY JOHNSTON. IN MEMORIAM. Behind this stone is laid, For a season, ALBERT SIDNEY JOHNSTON, A General in the Army of the Confederate States, Who fell at Shiloh, Tenn., On the sixth day of April, A.D., Eighteen hundred and sixty-two; A man tried in many high offices And critical enterprises, And found faithful in all. His life was one long sacrifice of interest to conscience; And even that life, on a woeful Sabbath, Did he yield as a holocaust to his country's need. Not wholly understood was he while he lived; But, in his death his greatness stands confess'd In a people's tears. Resolute, moderate, clear of envy, yet not wanting In that firmer ambition which makes men great and pure. In his honour-impregnable; In his simplicity-sublime. No country e'er had a truer son-no cause a nobler champion; No people a bolder defender —no principle a purer victim Than the dead Soldier Who sleeps here! The cause for which he perished is lostThe people for whom he fought are crushedThe hopes in which he trusted are shatteredThe Flag he loved guides no more the charging lines; But his fame, consign'd to the keeping of that time, which Happily is not so much the tomb of Virtue as its shrine, Shall, in the years to come, fire modest worth to noble ends. GENERAL ALBERT SIDNEY JOHNSTON. 283 In honour, now, our great captain rests; A bereaved people mourn him. Three commonwealths proudly claim him; And history shall cherish him Among those choicer spirits, who, holding their conscience unmixed with blame, Have been, in all conjunctures, true to themselves, their country, and their God. GENERAL BRAXTON BRAGG. CHAPTER XXIV. Equivocal reputation of Gen. Bragg in the war.-His services in Mexico.-Offers his sword to Louisiana.-His command at Pensacola.-Gallant participation in the battle of Shiloh. —His reflections upon Gen. Beauregard.-In command of the Western forces. —His Kentucky campaign, as correspondent to the Virginia campaign of 1862.-Battle of Perryville.- Gen. Bragg's retreat through Cumberland Gap.-Criticisms and recriminations touching the campaign. THE name of Braxton Bragg is connected with so much of recrimination in the late war, and has been bandied so violently between admirers and censors, that it is difficult to balance for history his character and deeds. In a popular biography, however, we have nothing to do with disputed questions of military science, unless to refer to them in a very general way; and with this explanation we shall proceed to give the main events in the military life of Gen. Bragg, and a view of his character, with a sincere effort to do equal justice to the man, and to the cause in which his record was so confused by partisanship, and his reputation so equivocal through constant recrimination. He is a native of North Carolina; born in Warren County, in 1815. Having graduated at West Point, he received the appointment of second-lieutenant of the Third Artillery, July 1, 1837; engaged in the Seminole war, and in 1838 was promoted to a firstlieutenancy. In the Mexican war he served under Gen. Taylor, and on the 9th May, 1846, was brevetted captain "for gallant and distinguishe — conduct in the defence of Fort Brown, Texas." His other services in Mexico were meritorious, and he was brevetted major "for gallant conduct in the several conflicts at Monterey, on the 21st, 22d, and 23d of September, 1846." At Buena Vista he commanded a battery, and was conspicuous for his bravery; and it was popularly reported that in the hottest part of the engagement, GENERAL BRAXTON BRAGG. 285 Gen. Taylor rode to his battery, and gave his famous nonchalant order: " A little more grape, Capt. Bragg I" The phrase gave a familiar title to Bragg, although the anecdote has been impeached, and is of doubtful authority. For his service on this field, Bragg was brevetted.lieutenant-colonel. A singular incident is related of his military life in Mexico, which we give in Col. Bragg's own words. He says, in a letter to a friend, dated August 27, 1847: " An attempt was made, about 2 A.M., night before last, to assassinate me in my bed. I have no clue to the perpetrator, and can suggest no reason for the act. My escape without injury is almost miraculous. As exaggerated accounts may reach the press, the truth may interest you. A twelve-pound shell, heavily charged, was placed within two feet of my bed, just outside of my tent, and exploded by a slow match; the fragments literally riddling my tent and bedding, pieces passing above and below me, some through a blanket spread over me, and yet I was untouched. I was not aware that I had an enemy in the world." At the period of the commencement of hostilities between the North and South Col. Bragg, who had resigned from the United States service, was cultivating a plantation in Louisiana. He offered his sword to the cause of the South; he was made Commander-in-chief of the volunteer forces of Louisiana; and on the accession of the Confederate power, his military experience was remembered, and he was appointed a Brigadier-General by President Davis, and put in command of the forces at Pensacola. The Federals held Fort Pickens, and there was an eager expectation of the public that the drama of Fort Sumter would be repeated here, and an attempt made to take this work, which, situated on the extremity of Santa Rosa Island, commanded the entrance to the harbour. But the events of the siege proved of but little interest. On the 8th October, 1861, Gen. Bragg sent an expedition to break up an encampment of " Billy Wilson" Zouaves on the island, which was of doubtful success; and in the succeeding month the Federal fleet replied by a lame attempt, assisted by the guns of the fort, to bombard and capture the Confederate position. On this event Gen. Bragg published the following congratulatory order: HEAD-QUARTERS ARMY OF PENSACOLA, NEAR PENSACOLA, FLA., Nov. 25, 1861. The signal success which has crowned our forty hours' conflict 286 GENERAL BRAXTON BRAGG. with the arrogant and confident enemy-whose government, it seems, is hourly looking for an announcement of his success in capturing our position-should fill our hearts with gratitude to a merciful Providence. This terrific bombardment of more than a hundred guns of the heaviest calibre, causing the very earth to tremble around us, has, from the wild firing of the enemy, resulted in the loss of only seven lives, with eight wounded; but two of them seriously, five of the deaths from an accident, and but two from the enemy's shot. We have crippled their ships, and driven them off, and forced the garrison of Fort Pickens, in its impotent rage, to slake its revenge by firing on our hospital, and burning the habitations of our innocent women and children, who have been driven therefrom by an unannounced storm of shot and shell. For the coolness, devotion, and conspicuous gallantry of the troops, the General tenders his cordial thanks; but for the precision of their firing, in this their first practice, which would have done credit to veterans, he is unable to express his admiration. Their country and their enemy will both remember the 22d and 23d of November. By command of Maj.-Gen. BRAGG. GEO. G. GARNER, Ass't. Adj't.-Gen. In February, 1862, Gen. Bragg, now made a Major-General, had his headquarters established at Mobile; and shortly afterwards joined his forces with the army of the Mississippi, under command of Gen. Albert Sidney Johnston. His first important field was at Shiloh, where he commanded the Second and largest army corps, consisting of 13,589 troops. In this action, Gen. Bragg made an excellent mark, and answered all the expectations which his reputation had inspired. When the first line of Confederates, driving the enemy through his camps, was found to falter as it came upon the Federal batteries, posted on eminences, with strong infantry supports, Bragg moved up steadily and promptly to its support, developed his whole line, and swept the ground, capturing three large encampments, and three batteries of artillery. Of the singular close of the day's performances, Gen. Bragg writes as follows: " The troops were soon put in motion, responding with great alacrity to the command of' Forward! let every order be forward.' It was now probably past four o'clock, the GENERAL BRAXTON BRAGG. 287 descending sun warning us to press our advantage, and finish the work before night should compel us to desist. Fairly in motion, these commands again, with a common head, and a common purpose, swept all before them. Neither battery nor battalion could withstand their onslaught. Passing through camp after camp, rich in military spoils of every kind, the enemy was driven headlong from every position, and thrown in confused masses upon the river bank, behind his heavy artillery, and under cover of his gunboats at the landing. He had left nearly the whole of his light artillery in our hands, and some three thousand or more prisoners, who were cut off from their retreat by the closing in of our troops on the left, under Major-Gen. Polk, with a portion of his reserve corps, and Brig.-Gen. Ruggles, with Anderson's and Pond's brigades of his division. The prisoners were dispatched to the rear under a proper guard, all else being left on the field, that we might press our advantage. The enemy hadfallen back in much confusion, and was crowded in unorganized masses on the river bank, vainly striving to cross. They were covered by a battery of heavy guns well served, and their two gunboats, which now poured a heavy fire upon our supposed positions, for we were entirely hid by the forest. Their fire, though terrific in sound, and producing some consternation at first, did us no damage, as the shells all passed over, and exploded far beyond our positions. As soon as our troops could be again formed and put in motion, the order was given to move forward at all points, and sweep the enemy from the field. The sun was about disappearing, so that little time was left us to finish the glorious work of the day; a day unsurpassed in the history of warfare for its daring deeds, brilliant achievements, and heavy sacrifices. Our troops, greatly exhausted by twelve hours' incessant fighting, without food, mostly responded to the order with alacrity, and the movement commenced with every prospect of success, though a heavy battery in our front, and the gunboats on our right, seemed determined to dispute every inch of ground. Jotst at this time, an order was received from the Commanding- General, to withdraw the forces beyond the enemy's fire. As this was communicated in many instances direct to brigade commanders, the troops were soon in motion, and the action ceased. The different commands, mixed and scattered, bivouacked at points most convenient to their positions, and beyond the range of the enemy's 288 GENERAL BRAXTON BRAGG. guns. All firing, except a half-hour shot from the gunboats, ceased, and the night was passed in quiet." Of the criticism, which the statement above evidently contains, respecting Gen. Beauregard's failure to complete the victory of the first day of Shiloh (reversed as it was by the events of the next twenty-four hours) it will be obvious to remark, that it was unfortunate that Gen. Bragg did not adopt for himself this lesson of improving critical opportunities. For we shall see, in his subsequent campaigns, that he repeated many times the very errour he reprehended, never completed his successes, and of all Confederate Generals was most famous for first-day battles, and for victories with defeats on their heels. The second day of Shiloh brought Buell's army on the scene, and ended with the retreat of the Confederates to Corinth. Bragg was made a full General after the battle; and when Beauregard retired his army about fifty miles south of Corinth, among the forests of Mississippi, occasion was taken of his furlough to recruit his health, to put Bragg in command of his department, and to give him the conduct of the whole campaign, between the Alleghany Mountains and the Mississippi River. A grand scheme was now organized for an aggressive campaign, embracing the whole theatre of the war in the West. Gen. Bragg had addressed his troops in significant language. He had proclaimed to them: "The slight reverses we have met on the sea-board have worked us good as well as evil; the brave troops so long retained there have hastened to swell your numbers, while the gallant Van Dorn and invincible Price, with the ever successful'Army of the West,' are now in your midst, with numbers almost equalling the'Army of Shiloh.' We have, then, but to strike and destroy; and as the enemy's whole resources are concentrated here, we shall not only redeem Tennessee, Kentucky, and Missouri at one blow, but open the portals of the whole Northwest." The campaign hinted here was intended as the western correspondent to the grand movement of 1862 in Virginia, to relieve the country of the invaders, and put the enemy back upon the frontier. The theatre was a much larger one than that on which Lee was contending. The proposed line of operations extended for a distance of between seven and eight hundred miles, from Cumberland GENERAL BRAXTON BRAGG. 289 Gap, on the borders of Eastern Tennessee and Kentucky, to the vicinity of the Lower Mississippi. It was proposed to assault Baton Rouge at the lower extremity of this line, to manoeuvre against the Federal army in the vicinity of Corinth in the centre, and to operate from its extreme right against Eastern Kentucky. With these objects in view, a small army under Gen. Breckinridge was assembled in Louisiana, a larger force under Van Dorn in Upper Mississippi, whilst a still more formidable army, under Gen. Bragg, was organized in Eastern Tennessee for the invasion of Kentucky. It was a magnificent prospect, in which Bragg indulged visions of a transcendent fame, and the public was dazzled with great expectations. In August he began his movement from Tupelo, in Mississippi, through the States of Georgia and Alabama, to Chattanooga, with a view to operations in East Tennessee and Kentucky. His army was now divided into three corps, respectively commanded by Major-Generals Polk, Hardee, and Kirby Smith; the latter being at Knoxville, ready to push forward when Bragog should reach Chattanooga. After arriving here, Bragg ascertained that Kirby Smith had turned Cumberland Gap and was marching on Lexington, Kentucky. Gen. Humphrey Marshall was to enter Eastern Kentucky from Western Virginia; and Bragg was now elated with the prospect that Buell's army, which had fallen back from the Memphis and Charleston Railroad, and appeared now likely to make a hopeless race to get between the Confederates and the Ohio, "was pretty well disposed of." He dispatched to Gen. Van Dorn, who remained in the Mississippi district: " Sherman and Rosecrans we leave to you and Price, satisfied you can dispose of them, and we confidently hope to meet you on the Ohio." On the 5th September, Gen. Bragg entered Kentucky, and marched to the right of Bowling Green, sending an advance on to Mumfordsville to demand its surrender. Mumfordsville is a large town on the Louisville and Nashville Railroad, and Bragg was now between it and Buell's army at Bowling Green. On the 17th September, Mumfordsville surrendered, and more than four thousand prisoners were taken. It appeared now that the crisis of the campaign had arrived; for Bragg was on the road by which Buell would be forced to march to get between the Confederates and the Ohio River, while Kirby Smith, at Lexington, threatened Louisville, 19 290 GENERAL BRAXTON BRAGG. about fifty miles distant. In this conjuncture, however, Gen. Bragg very unexpectedly declined battle, for no other reason that has ever been developed than that given in his official report; that his subsistence was low, and that " a serious engagement would not fail, whatever its results, to materially cripple him." The consequence was that Buell, without opposition and almost within sight of the Confederate army, effected his march to Louisville, recapturing Mumfordsville on the way, whilst Bragg, marching first to Bardstown and then to Frankfort, contented himself with inaugurating a provisional Governor of Kentucky.* * Here Gen. Bragg issued a long rhetorical address, portions of which we copy below: TO THE PEOPLE OF THE NORTHWEST. The responsibility then rests with you, the people of the Northwest, of continuing an unjust and aggressive warfare on the people of the Confederate States. And in the name of reason and humanity, I call upon you to pause and reflect, what cause of quarrel so bloody have you against these States, and what are you to gain by it. Nature has set her seal upon these States, and marked them out to be your friends and allies. She has bound them to you by all the ties of geographical contiguity and conformation, and the great mutual interests of commerce and productions. When the passions of this unnatural war shall have subsided, and reason resumes her sway, a community of interest will force commercial and social coalition between the great grain and stock-growing States of the Northwest, and the cotton, tobacco, and sugar regions of the South. The Mississippi river is the grand artery of their mutual national lives, which men cannot sever, and which never ought to have been suffered to be disturbed by the antagonisms, the cupidity, and the bigotry of New England and the East. It is from the East that have come the germs of this bloody and most unnatural strife. It is from the meddlesome, grasping, and fanatical disposition of the same people who have imposed upon you and us alike those tariffs, internal improvements, and fishing-bounty laws. whereby we have been taxed for their aggrandizement. It Is from the East that will come the tax-gatherer to collect from you that mighty debt which is being amassed mountain high for the purpose of ruining your best customers and natural friends. When this war ends, the same antagonisms of interest, policy, and feeling which have been pressed upon us by the East, and forced us from a political union where we had ceased to find safety for our interests or respect for our rights, will bear down upon you and separate you from a people whose traditional policy it is to live by their wits upon the labour of their neighbours. Meantime, you are being used by them to fight the battle of emancipation; a battle which, if successful, destroys our prosperity, and with it your best markets to buy and sell. Our mutual dependence is the work of the Creator. With our peculiar productions, convertible into gold, we should, in a state of peace, draw from you largely the products of your labour. In us of the South you would find rich and willing customers; in the East you must confront rivals in production and trade, and the tax-gatherer in all the forms of partial legislation. You are blindly following abolitionism to this end, whilst they are nicely calculating the GENERAL BRAXTON BRAGG. 291 This sharp and unexpected turn of affairs gave a new face to the campaign. At Bardstown, Gen. Bragg sent a dispatch to Van Dorn, which was strangely in contrast to the glowing messages he had sent from Chattanooga; for he now urged that Van Dorn should bring his columns to his support, and declared that an overwhelming force of the enemy was concentrating in his front. The entry of Buell into Louisville had given him all the advantage he wished for; he had obtained reinforcements, and moving on the 1st October, he had pressed the Confederate rear and soon advanced his three corps towards Perryville, a few miles south of Frankfort. At this time Gen. Bragg had his forces badly divided; the divisions of Kirby Smith and Withers had been drawn off by another demonstration of the enemy, which proved a feint; and he was left with three divisions of Polk's corps-Cheatham's, Buckner's and Anderson's-to fight the battle of Perryville, which took place on the 8th October. Of the action, Gen. Bragg writes: " For the time engaged it was the severest and most desperately contested engagement within my knowledge. Fearfully outnumbered, our troops did not hesitate to engage at any odds, and, though checked at times, they eventually carried every position, and: drove the enemy about two miles. But for the intervention of night, we should have completed the work. We had captured fifteen pieces of artillery by the most daring charges, killed one and wounded two brigadier-generals, and a very large number of inferiour officers and men, estimated at no less than 4,000, and captured 400 prisoners, including three staff-officers, with servants, carriage and baggage of Maj.-Gen. McCook. The ground was literally covered gain of obtaining your trade on terms that would impoverish your country. You say you are fighting for the free navigation of the Mississippi. It is yours freely, and has always been, without striking a blow. You say you are fighting to maintain the Union. That Union is a thing of the past. A union of consent was the only union ever worth a drop of blood. When force came to be substituted for consent, the casket was broken, and the constitutional jewel of your patriotic adoration was forever gone. I come then to you with the olive-branch of peace, and offer it to your acceptance, in the name of the memories of the past, and the ties of the present and future. With you remains the responsibility and the option of continuing a cruel and wasting war, which can only end, after still greater sacrifices, in such treaty of peace as we now offer, or of preserving the blessings of peace by the simple abandonment of the design of subjugating a people over whom no right of dominion has been conferred on you by God or man. 292 GENERAL BRAXTON BRAGG. with his dead and wounded. In such a contest our own loss was necessarily severe, probably not less than 2,500 killed, wounded, and missing." The battle of Perryville was a Confederate victory; but it had really been fought to cover Gen. Bragg's retreat, which he had previously resolved upon, in view of the rapidly augmenting forces of the enemy, who had now perfected his communications, and the danger of risking a Confederate army in Kentucky after the season of autumnal rains had made the roads impracticable for retreat. On the 13th October, Bragg put his army in motion for Cumberland Gap, secured his retreat with a vast amount of spoil, and ended the campaign of Kentucky. The campaign fell greatly below public expectation, and was long a theme of violent criticism in the Confederacy. On the other end of the line of operations in the West, Breckinridge had failed at Baton Rouge, and Van Dorn at Corinth; and the general feeling in the Confederacy was that of disappointment at the results of a campaign that had been so extensive in its plan, and so promising in its early announcements. Of the operations in Kentucky a fair critic has said: "Gen. Bragg has been blamed for having failed to bring all his force into the field at Perryville, in which case, it is alleged, he might have crushed the enemy; but the crisis of the campaign was not the battle of Perryville, which was obviously fought to cover the retreat of the army, but the junction of Buell with Wright at Louisville; it was at Mumfordsville, or in its vicinity, that Gen. Bragg should have concentrated his army for the decisive battle, and should have fallen on Buell during his march to Louisville, forcing him either to accept battle on his adversaries' terms, or to have fallen back on Nashville, and left Louisville and even Cincinnati to their fate." In Kentucky, the disappointment of the party of Southern sympathizers was very great, and Bragg was mercilessly criticised. It was said that the people of Kentucky looked upon the fleeting presence of his army as a ", horse-show," or military pageantry, and not as indicating the stern reality of war; and the excuse was made for their not rising in arms to expel the Federal authority, that they were diffident in following the fortunes of the Confederacy under the leadership of such an officer as Bragg. A clamour was raised in Richmond for the removal of a commander who had GENERAL BRAXTON BRAGG. 293 done so much to raise public expectation and then disappoint it. But Gen. Bragg had no sooner got his army through Cumberland Gap, than leaving it under the command of Gen. Polk, he hurried to Richmond to make the necessary explanations, and demonstrate there the successes he claimed to have obtained. It was strongly urged on his side that, although the Kentucky campaign had fallen short of the prime object of the liberation of that State, yet it had had the effect of relieving portions of Alabama and Tennessee, had obtained considerable advantages, and had secured supplies of vital necessity to the Confederate armies. A member of Gen. Bragg's staff gave the following as the advantages gained in the advance upon Kentucky: "1st. Buell, who had been threatening Chattanooga, and even Atlanta, was forced to evacuate East Tennessee in'double-quick.' "' 2d. North Alabama was thereby relieved from Federal occupation. " 3d. We got possession of Cumberland Gap, the doorway through that mountain to Knoxville and the Virginia and Tennessee Railroad. "4th. We took from 18,000 to 20,000 prisoners at Richmond, MIumfordsville, and other places. " 5th. We brought off a far greater amount of arms and ammunition than we carried into Kentucky. " 6th. Jeans enough to clothe the Army of the Mississippi were brought off, besides what Gen. Smith obtained. I know not what this amounts to; but I understand it is, as it ought to be from his longer stay in the State, much larger. " 7th. We beat the enemy in three considerable battles-at Richmond, Mumfordsville, and Perryville, and our cavalry whipped them in twenty smaller ones. " 8th. And last, we have paid a debt of honour due by the Confederate States to Kentucky. We have offered her an army to help her liberation, and her exclusion would be no longer an obstacle in honour or on principle to a treaty of peace with the United States." The truth is, the sum of these successes was not inconsiderable, and the public reception of the results of the Kentucky campaign 294 GENERAL BRAXTON BRAGG. was scarcely just, because the popular imagination had been too much excited by the hope of yet more important consequences. The Government, however, was much consoled by the rich spoil that had been gathered: 15,000 horses and mules, 8,000 beeves, 50,000 barrels of pork, 1,000,000 yards of Kentucky cloth, &c., &c. It was ascertained that Gen. Bragg's army was better disciplined, better clothed, and better fed than when it commenced the campaign; that it was in better health and tone; and so there was no hesitation in continuing him in command. In a few weeks he was again in front of the enemy at Nashville, where Gen. Rosecrans, having superseded Buell, was reorganizing and preparing his troops for a forward movement. GENERAL BRAXTON BRAGG. 295 CHAPTER XXV. Battle of Murfreesboro.-Interval of repose.-Retreat to Chattanooga.-Gen. Bragg refuses to fight at the instance of the War Department -Reinforced from the Army of Northern Virginia.-Battle of Chickamauga.-A commentary in the Richmond Whig. —Violent quarrel between Gens. Bragg and Longstreet. —The disaster of Missionary Ridge.-Gen. Bragg relieved from command and appointed " military adviser " of President Davis.-Explanations in a Richmond journal.Gen. Bragg's last service in the field.-Fall of Wilmington.-Gen. Bragg's military career criticised.-His ardent Southern patriotism. THE year 1862 was to expire with a grand conflict of arms in the West. On the 26th December the enemy advanced in force from Nashville to attack Gen. Bragg at Murfreesboro. It had been well ascertained that his strength was over sixty thousand effective men, while the force which Bragg had on the field, the morning of the battle, was less than two-thirds the Federal numbers. On the 28th December this force was concentrated in front of Murfreesboro. Rosecrans disposed the mass of his troops on his left, prepared to force the passage of the Stone River on the north of the Murfreesboro rail; whilst his right, more extended and more advanced, formed an angle with the centre and left, and faced in an almost due easterly direction. The Nashville turnpike and the river divided both armies into two wings; the Confederate left, under Gen. Hardee, composed of the divisions of Cleburne and McCown, with Breckinridge in reserve, being formed on the east bank of the river, with its left resting near the Nashville road. It was determined by Gen. Bragg, that on daylight of the 31st December, Hardee should open the battle, the attack to be taken up by Polk's command in succession to the right flank; the object being to force the enemy back on Stone River, and, if practicable, by the aid of cavalry, cut his communications with Nashville. The attack was made at seven o'clock in the morning. Of its effect Gen. Bragg writes: "The enemy was taken completely by surprise; general and staff-officers were not mounted; artillery horses not hitched, and infantry not formed; a hot and inviting breakfast of coffee and other luxuries, to which our gallant and hardy men 296 GENERAL BRAXTON BRAGG. had long been strangers, was found upon the fire unserved, and was left whilst we pushed on to the enjoyment of a more inviting feast-that of captured artillery, flying battalions, and hosts of craven prisoners, begging for the lives they had forfeited by their acts of brutality and atrocity." For two miles, through fields and forests, over ditches, fences, and ravines, Hardee routed and pushed the enemy; and it seemed that the day was decided with the breaking of Rosecrans' right wing. His line was thrown back entirely at right angles to his first position. But here the battle paused, and the enemy rallied all his energies for a desperate struggle. In front of the Confederate centre was an oval hill, not very high, but commanding in all directions, and exceedingly available. Upon this hill Rosecrans placed a crown of twenty guns, supporting it right and left and rear by large masses of infantry, and took his stand to contest what remained of the day. The position was well chosen, and desperately held; it proved impracticable for Bragg; two attempts were made to carry it by infantry, and were unsuccessful. Abandoning any further experiment of assault, Gen. Bragg brought up his artillery, and with a tremendous but ineffectual cannonade on both sides, the day ended. Of the results of the day Gen. Bragg telegraphed to Richmond: " We assailed the enemy at seven o'clock this morning, and after ten hours' hard fighting have driven him from every position except his extreme left, where he has successfully resisted us. With the exception of this point, we occupy the whole field. We captured four thousand prisoners, including two Brigadier-Generals, thirty-one pieces of artillery, and some two hundred wagons and teams. Our loss is heavy; that of the enemy much greater." The next day he sent the following dispatch: MURFREESBORO, January 1, 1863. The enemy has yielded his strong point and is falling back. We occupy the whole field and shall follow. * * * * God has granted us a happy New Year. BRAXTON BRAGG. But he was sadly mistaken in his interpretation of the wily movement of Rosecrans; for, instead of retreating, that commander GENERAL BRAXTON BRAGG. 297 had retired but a short distance in rear of his former position, to obtain a wider front. On the 2d January, one of the enemy's divisions recrossed Stone River, and took position on rising ground, which enfiladed Gen. Polk's line. It became necessary to defeat this movement, and a column of attack was formed under Breckinridge, in two lines of four brigades. The Confederates advanced confidently, and drove the division which threatened Polk's line, gaining the crest of rising ground overlooking the river. But across the river they encountered the remainder of Crittenden's corps, with a portion of those of Thomas and MlcCook, posted on commanding ground. The Federals in turn advanced, and drove back Breckinridge's division in considerable disorder, inflicting on it such heavy loss, that it is said two thousand Confederates were killed or wounded in half an hour. Bragg, perceiving the disaster, ordered up Anderson's brigade of Polk's corps in support. Advancing steadily through the broken infantry of Breckinridge's division, Anderson checked the pursuit and saved the artillery abandoned in the confusion, with the exception of four guns, which remained in the enemy's hands. Night put an end to the engagement, and the two armies reoccupied their former lines. The next day each army appeared to await an attack from its opponent. Satisfied, however, of his inability to dislodge the enemy from his intrenchments, and hearing of reinforcements to him, Gen. Bragg determined to withdraw from his front, and retire his army to Tullahoma. Of the necessity of this movement Gen. Bragg says: "On Saturday morning, the 3d January, our forces had been in line of battle five days and nights, with but little rest, having no reserves; their baggage and tents had been loaded, and the wagons were four miles off; their provisions, if cooked at all, were most imperfectly prepared with scanty means; the weather had been severe from cold and almost constant rain, and we had no change of clothing, and in many places could not have fire. The necessary consequence was the great exhaustion of both officers and men, many having to be sent to the hospitals in the rear, and more still were beginning to straggle from their commands-an evil from which we had so far suffered but little. During the whole of the day the rain continued to fall with little intermission, and the rapid rise in Stone River indicated that it would soon be unfordable. Late on Friday night, I had received the captured 298 GENGRAL BRAXTON BRAGG. papers of Maj.-Gen. McCook, commanding one corps d'armee of the enemy, showing their effective strength to have been very nearly, if not quite 70,000 men. Before noon reports from Brig.-Gen. Wheeler satisfied me that the enemy, instead of retiring, was receiving reinforcements. Common prudence and the safety of my army, upon which even the safety of our cause depended, left no doubt in my mind as to the necessity for my withdrawal from so unequal a contest." For many months nothing was done by the main army under Gen. Bragg, although detached commands were at work. It rested at Tullahoma and vicinity, and was soon stronger in numbers than when the battle of Murfreesboro was fought, owing to Gen. Bragg's vigorous measures to arrest deserters and reclaim absentees. The army was well clothed, healthy, and in fine spirits. During this interval of leisure, an interesting incident occurred in Gen. Bragg's life: the baptism of the commander in his camp. The ceremony was performed in an impressive manner by Bishop Elliot, who in view of a, congregation of about 3,000 of the troops, took the General's hand in his own and said, " Braxton, if thou hast not already been baptized, I baptize thee,"' etc. A writer in one of the newspapers, referring to the scene, remarked: "Gen. Bragg has thus set an example to his army which will not be without its influence. On visiting Gen. Lee's Army of Northern Virginia, I was struck with the high moral character which prevailed among the officers and soldiers, as well as the deep religious feeling that pervaded, especially in the lamented Gen. Jackson's corps. It will be a source of congratulation should Gen. Bragg succeed in producing the same beneficial result. There is no occasion for men becoming reckless and demoralized on entering the army, but on the contrary, a different feeling should prevail." Without introducing into the narrative minor affairs of Gen. Bragg's army, it is not until July 1863, that we take up the thread of its operations. It had been reduced for the defence of Vicksburg against the protest of its commander and that of Gen. Johnston; and with his flank now threatened by a superiour army under Rosecrans, who had occupied Hoover's Gap, Gen. Bragg thought it advisable to fall back to Chattanooga, which he did in the last days of July, establishing his headquarters first in Bridgeport, and then in the town. Around this place the Confederate army was GENERAL BRAXTON BRAGG. 299 now encamped; Rosecrans advancing upon it across the mountains on one side, and Burnside, commanding the Federal forces in East Tennessee, coming down the valley, by the way of Cumberland Gap, on the other. At this time there appears to have been great impatience in Richmond for a battle in the West, and another outcry of popular dissatisfaction with Gen. Bragg. To these expressions he replied in a letter to the War Department, dated August 8, 1863, in which he declared, that with all the reinforcements he could get from Johnston, he would not have more than 40,000 effective men; while Rosecrans had 60,000, and would be reinforced by Burnside with 30,000 more-making 90,000 against 40,000-and as a true patriot he was opposed to throwing away our armies in enterprises sure to terminate disastrously. Gen. Cooper, the Adjutant-General at Richmond, sent this response to the President, asking if Bragg should not be ordered to fight under such circumstances. But the President paused, and finally sent back the paper indorsed that "only a suggestion could be given to a Commanding-General to fight a battle; but to order him to fight when he predicted a failure in advance, would be unwise." Indeed, the decision was so much in favour of Bragg's protest, that it was determined to reinforce him from the Army of Virginia with Longstreet's corps, and enable him to give the battle he had so long declined on the score of inferiour numbers. On the 7th September, Gen. Bragg evacuated Chattanooga, as Rosecrans appeared to be making a flank movement towards Rome, Georgia, and occupying a line about ten miles south of Chattanooga, and fronting the east slope of Lookout Mountain, he determined to engage the enemy as he emerged from the mountain gorges. He issued the following address to his troops: HEADQUARTERS ARMY OF TENNESSEE, IN THE FIELD, LAFAYETTE, GA., Sept. 10. The troops will be ready for an immediate move against the enemy. His demonstrations on our flanks have been thwarted; and twice he has retired before us when offered battle. We must now force him to the issue. Soldiers, you are largely reinforcedyou must now seek the contest. In doing so, I know you will be content to suffer privations and encounter hardships. Heretofore you have never failed to respond to your General when he has 300 GENERAL BRAXTON BRAGG. asked a sacrifice at your hands. Relying upon your gallantry and patriotism he asks you to add a crowning glory to the wreaths you wear. Our credit is in your keeping. Your enemy boasts that you are demoralized, and retreating before him. Having accomplished our object in driving back his flank movement, let us now turn on his main force and crush it in its fancied security. Your General will lead you. You have but to respond to assure us of a glorious triumph over an insolent foe. I know what your response will be. Trusting in God and the justice of our cause, and nerved by the love of the dear ones at home, failure is impossible, and victory must be ours. BR AXTON BRAGG, General commanding. The great battle was preceded by a singular opportunity of advantage which Rosecrans unwittingly offered to his adversary, and which Gen. Bragg undoubtedly lost through the contumacy and delays of some of his division commanders. The enemy advanced, as he supposed in pursuit of a retreating and demoralized army, exposing himself in detail; and the centre corps, under Thomas, being in McLemore's Cove, immediately opposite Lafayette, at and near which Gen. Bragg had all his forces concentrated, was completely at the mercy of the latter. It was only necessary that Gen. Bragg should fall upon it with such a mass as would have crushed it. The attack was to be made by Gen. Hindman, and D. II. Hill was to move rapidly to join his forces; but delays occurred; Hill did not act in concert; a day was lost; and Thomas, perceiving his errour, effected his escape up the mountain. The next attempt of Bragg was to make a flank movement, turn the enemy's left, and get between him and Chattanooga. The movement commenced on the 19th September; but the enemy anticipated it, commenced the attack with Thomas' corps, and engaging the troops of Walker, Cheatham, and Cleburne, continued a doubtful conflict until night. Gen. Bragg prepared for a general action the next day, dividing his force into two commands, the left under Longstreet, the right under Polk-the latter being ordered to commence at daylight the attack, which was to be taken up in succession rapidly to the left. These orders were not promptly obeyed; Gen. Polk was GENERAL BRAXTON BRAGG. 301 dilatory, and excused himself by another alleged instance of D. H. Hill's disobedience of orders; and the battle was not commenced until ten o'clock, when Bragg, chafing under delays which the enemy was busily improving in strengthening his position, and exclaiming that his Generals would not obey him, directed one of his aides to ride along the line and order the company officers to take their men into action. The action opened by a forward movement of Breckinridge, followed and accompanied by Cleburne. These divisions were driven back with heavy loss, and the right wing of the Confederates was evidently in distress. Longstreet, however, held his ground on the left; and the battle fluctuated until the descending sun warned Gen. Bragg that if he hoped for victory he should improve the hours by a grand and decisive movement. The whole Confederate line was then revised and posted, and a forward movement in all its length ordered. The right swung round with an extended sweep, with its firm supports, and the left rallied once more to the charge of the works, before which it had suffered so severely in the morning. Never did troops move up to their work with more resolution; the daring Breckinridge, with his Kentuckians and Louisianians, and Cleburne, with his Arkansians and Alabamians, and Walker, with his South Carolinians, Mississippians, and Georgians, and Cheatham, with his Tennesseeans, all moved forward in one mighty tide, amidst the.thunders of some twenty batteries, and the roar of thousands of muskets and rifles. On the left, at the same time, Longstreet's veteran divisions, that had firmly held the day, gained the line that had been obstinately contested, and now swept on in magnificent array with the continuous shout of victory. The scene was one of surpassing sublimity and grandeur. Sweeping forward, as the flood of a mighty river, the attack carried everything before it, nothing being able to stand in the resistless line of its path. The enemy's works, which opposed such a stubborn resistance in the morning, succumbed before the on-moving torrent; and the brave men of Cleburne's division, which had been repulsed in the morning, had, by their extraordinary gallantry in the evening, the opportunity of avenging the experiences of the earlier part of the day. The whole field was carried triumphantly, and the enemy driven as chaff before the wind. As night fell, the troops were halted and the pursuit abandoned. 302 GENERAL BRAXTON BRAGG. Of the alleged neglect of Gen. Bragg to follow up his victory, a writer in the Richmond Wfhig, who has graphically described, and ingeniously criticised this battle, says: "Panic, confusion, disorder, became the condition of an army which had never before acknowledged defeat, and which for two days had been contesting every inch of ground with valour the most obstinate. And what did the Confederate commander do? Did he pursue an enemy thus demoralized, and furnished, by his not forming his line of battle at right angles with his actual line, with opportunity of retreat upon Chattanooga, whose possession was the object of the campaign —an enemy not only demoralized, but encumbered with heavy trains, and no mode of exit, save through two gaps of Mis. sionary Ridge, a mountain? No. Night had set in, and he deemed it prudent to halt, notwithstanding his men were eager for pursuit, and a brilliant moon furnished almost the light of day. Three hours were lost in the morning by Polk's failure to attack at daylight; and, therefore, the condition of the troops was such as to forbid the possibility of pursuit. But granting that reasons, substantive reasons, existed for not pursuing on Sunday night, what hindered the Commander-in-Chief from pursuing on Monday morning at daylight? Chattanooga was only ten miles from the b:attlefield, and unfortified; our pursuing cavalry could see the head of their column, and urged Gen. Bragg by repeated messages to pursue; that every hour's delay would be equal to the loss of a thousand men. Citizens along the road reported that many of their commands passed their dwellings in the utmost disorder, without arms or accoutrements, and many without hats, as a confused and routed mob, not as troops in column, everything in Chattanooga and on the road inviting rather than forbidding attack. Even if they had good defensive works, with the condition as reported above, by a prompt pursuit our army would have gone into Chattanooga with theirs, and thus broken the effect of their fire; and if such would have been the result of good defensive works, what might not the result have been without them, and the enemy panic-stricken because of the knowledge that none such existed? What hindered Gen. Bragg from pursuing is not known; but it is known that while pursuit seems to have been invited, he did not pursue, and not pursuing, what did he do on Monday morning? He first sent out detachments to the battle-field to GENERAL BRAXTON BRAGG. 303 gather up the fruits of victory, in arms, large and small, to be secured and sent to the rear, and caused the captured banners to be collected to be sent to Richmond, and prisoners to be counted and sent to the rear. He then ordered the troops under arms, and marched them down the Chattanooga road until they came near to Rossville, where Forrest and Pegram were thundering away with their batteries at the retreating enemy, there had them filed to the right, and thrown down the Chickamauga Creek, that they might rest from their fatigues and be in good position to move upon Burnside or flank Rosecrans, as further contingencies might dictate." The enemy's immediate losses in the battle were large. It was officially stated by Gen. Bragg that he captured over eight thousand prisoners, fifty-one pieces of artillery, and fifteen thousand stand of small-arms. But whatever the value of these fruits, and whatever the merit of the criticism we have just quoted above, it is certain that the victory won by Gen. Bragg, although in some respects the most brilliant of the war, was without substantial results, as it did not recover Chattanooga, and thus left the enemy with the key of Eastern Tennessee and Northern Georgia in his hands. After this battle it was proposed by Gen. Longstreet to cross the Tennessee and move upon Nashville; but Gen. Bragg rejected this plan of campaign, and determined to invest Chattanooga, and starve the enemy out. This difference of views was the occasion of an unfortunate and violent quarrel between Gen. Bragg and Gen. Longstreet, which, by its constant and fretful appeals to the War Department at Richmond, probably had some effect in leading to that ill-timed detachment of Longstreet's command to operate against Knoxville, which ultimately exposed Bragg to one of the worst defeats of the war. While Brargg's force at Missionary Ridge was reduced by Longstreet's expedition to take Knoxville, the enemy was pursuing a policy quite the reverse. Gen. Grant had been appointed by the government at Washington to take command of the Mississippi Department; and executing his favourite plan of superiour numbers, he had brought to Chattanooga two corps from the Army of the Potomac, and bcalled Sherman, with the Vicksburg army, from Memphis, at the very time Bragg was reducing his force, and meditating the side-operation of driving Burnside out of East Tennessee. 304 GENERAL BRAXTON BRAGG. On the 25th November, Grant prepared for his grand assault on Missionary Ridge, with not less than eighty-five thousand veteran troops. Although Bragg did not have half these numbers, the strength of his position might have compensated for this inferiority, had his troops fought with their usual spirit. On the conduct of this disastrous engagement, President Davis remarked with great severity in a message to Congress: " After a long and severe battle, in which great carnage was inflicted on the enemy, some of our troops inexplicably abandoned positions of great strength, and, by a disorderly retreat, compelled the commander to withdraw the forces elsewhere successful, and finally to retire with his whole army to a position some twenty or thirty miles to the rear. It is believed that if the troops who yielded to the assault had fought with the valour which they had displayed on previous occasions, and which was manifested in this battle on the other parts of the line, the enemy would have been repulsed with very great slaughter, and our country would have escaped the misfortune, and the army the mortification of the first defeat that has resulted from misconduct by the troops." On the night of the 25th November, Bragg was in full retreat, and all of his strong positions on Lookout Mountain, Chattanooga Valley, and Missionary Ridge, were in the hands of the enemy. His army was put in motion on the road to Ringgold, and thence to Dalton. He had lost six thousand prisoners, and forty pieces of artillery; but the enemy desisted from pursuit, and the campaign of 1863, in the West, may be said to have closed on the northern frontier of Georgia.x * The decline of Gen. Bragg's fortune was promptly insulted by the enemy, and was the occasion of the usual witticisms of the Northern journals. We copy the lines below, not for any merit we can possibly discover in the uncouth arrangement of words, but as a specimen of that large part of Northern literature in the war, which was occupied with libel, caricature, and scurrilous wit: HEADQUARTERS, TULLAHOMA, 1863. I hate, my boy Wheeler, old Abe's apparatus, Of hemp garlands twisted to choke our afflatus. Cease to rove where that Stanley the devil is playing, Nor scout near the spot where " Old Posy " is staying. Fort Donelson's sold to Uncle Sam, For " bloodhounds " can't butt with a Federal ram. GENERAL BRAXTON BRAGG. 305 In December, Gen. Bragg wrote to Richmond, asking to be relieved, and acknowledging his defeat; and he declared that he would have to fall still further back, if the enemy pressed him vigorously. Happily the enemy did not know this, for at the moment the letter was written, Grant was falling back to Chattanooga. In relirnquishing his command, Gen. Bragg exhorted his army in the usual styvle, appeared to forget all causes of recrimination, and declared that it had "the blessings and prayers of a grateful friend." He withdrew for some time from all military duty to recruit his health. But he soon appeared before the public again in the following appointment: ADJUTANT AND INSPECTOR-GENERAL'S OFFICE, RICHMOND, VA, February 24, 1864. Gen. Braxton Bragg is assigned to duty at the seat of government, and, under the direction of the President, is charged with the conduct of military operations in the armies of the Confederacy. By order. S. COOPER, Adjutant Inspector- General. This office has been much misunderstood, was popularly overrated, and by its high-sounding terms captivated public attention. IBut it was really nothing more than the same that had been given Gen. Lee before the battles of Richmond, a sort of supernumerary, not very honourable, and best described as " military adviser" of the President. The appointee shared something of the duties of the Secretary of War, but in all respects was subservient to the President. The Richmond Enquirer, which had very unfavourably criticised Gen. Bragg's campaigns, and considered that his mind had found an appropriate field of usefulness in this new appointment, had the following remarks, explaining the nature of the office, and defining its limits: "Gen. Bragg has been assigned to duty in Richmond, as consulting and advisory General. We regard My sedulous care is to make my escape, And drink myself tight with a " little more grape." You're rather Lowe-flung, and have shown the white rag, And I'm nearly played outYour old friend, BRAXTON BRAMG0. 20 306 GENERAL BRAXTON BRAGG. the appointment as one very proper, and believe that it will conduce to the advancement and promotion of the cause. Gen. Bragg has unquestionable abilities, which eminently fit him for such a responsible position. The country will be pleased to see his experience and information made use of by the President. His patriotism and zeal for the public service are fully recognized and appreciated by his countrymen. The duties of the commander-in-chief, who, under the constitution, can be no other than the President, are most arduous, and require much aid and assistance, as well as ability and experience. Gen. Bragg has acquired, by long service, that practical experience necessary to the position to which he is assigned by the general order published in to-day's Enqufirer. "An erroneous impression obtains as to the nature of this appointment of Gen. Bragg. He is not, and cannot be commanderin-chief. The constitution of the Confederate States makes the President the commander-in-chief. Gen. Bragg is detailed for duty in Richmond' under' the President. He does not rank Gen. Lee. nor Gen. Johnston. He cannot command or direct them, except'by command of the President.' His appointment has been made with the knowledge and approval of Gens. Cooper, Lee, Johnston, and Beauregard, all his superiours in rank, who, knowing and appreciating the usefulness and ability of Gen. Bragg, concur in his appointment by the President." The last field service of Gen. Bragg was in North Carolina. He was appointed to take command at Wilmington, at the time Fort Fisher was threatened by Porter's fleet, and a second expedition of land forces, under Gen. Terry. The enemy having effected a landing so as to flank Bragg's forces on the peninsula, he declined an attack, and withdrew to Wilmington, but not until he had heavily reinforced the garrison of the fort, which was left to make the decisive battle under Gen. Whiting. The result was that the fort was captured, and that Wilmington was subsequently evacuated; Gen. Bragg putting his little army, less than five thousand men, in motion to join Gen. Johnston, who was endeavouring to collect a force on the front of Sherman, who had made preparations for a movement on Goldsboro, in two columns, one from Wilmington, and one from Newbern, in conjunction with his main body, designing to concentrate there all of his forces. On the 8th March, 1865, Gen. Bragg struck the column moving from Newbern at a GENERAL BRAXTON BRAGG. 307 point near Kinston, and attacked it with his own troops and a small division of the Army of Tennessee, taking fifteen hundred prisoners. He was unable, however, to follow up his advantage; and the junction of Sherman and Schofield at Goldsboro was decisive of the campaign, the close of which was expedited by the news of Gen. Lee's surrender in Virginia, and involved the general conclusion of the war. Since the war Gen. Bragg has retired very closely from public attention, and is said to be cultivating a plantation in Alabama. From our brief narrative the reader will doubtless obtain some means of judging the much-vexed question of his generalship; for it is not to be denied that there is much in it open to criticism. But the biographer, who estimates the whole life of the man, would do wrong to confine it to such a question of ability, and not give credit for the virtues and affections which make up the sum of character, and are themselves titles to admiration and praise. Whether Gen. Bragg was or was not an able commander, it is certain that he was pure, incorruptible, fearless, and so ardent in his Southern patriotism that he never omitted a sentiment for his country in any order he ever wrote; and indeed he used such noble and appropriate language in these expressions that we are easily led to the imagination that he would have been distinguished as a politician, if his life had been inclined to civil employments. Much of his undeniable unpopularity in the army is to be ascribed to his extraordinary rigour and integrity as a disciplinarian, and, in this respect, he gave an example which, if followed by other Confederate commanders, would have been of more ultimate service to the cause than many victories in the field. With him desertion was the capital military crime, and not, as some practically made it, a sort of license of the volunteer soldier, to be checked by moral persuasions and patriotic appeals. He shot his men for acts of insubordination, which would have merited death in any well-regulated army. Many foolish and extravagant stories were told of his rigour. One of these, related by Mr. Foote in the Confederate Congress, with an abundance of comment, was, that he had executed three soldiers for firing into aflock of chickens on the line of their march! The facts were, that Gen. Bragg was making a movement at the time in close proximity to the enemy's lines; that the report of a musket endangered the safety of the whole army; that 308 GENERAL BRAXTON BRAGG. the troops had been so warned; and that the men who fired, and risked an alarm that put the whole army in peril, were instantly and properly executed. The personal appearance of the commander was unusually stern and military; he had few intimate friendships; and he sometimes gave offence to his officers by an occasional acerbity of manner. But whatever the fault of his head, or the unpleasantness of his exteriour, no one ever doubted that Gen. Braxton Bragg was one of the most single-minded patriots of the army, and would have freely given his life, on numberless occasions, to serve the cause of his country. Er A Ids AM We'll~~~~~~~~~~~~~::i r~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~::;':~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~Iain Israeli!~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~:1'lift~~~~~~~~~~ ~~~~~~~.~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~-~~~~A Ili;!!Hills~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~liiii~ jiFiji! ri:.:ii- i ii,, 1 2:~-;~ ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~M-W,Pi~~~. ~ j, JUS 0 MAJOR-GENERAL STERLING PRICE. CHAPTER XXVI. Anomaly of the Missouri Campaign. —Early Life of Sterling Price. —Governor of Missouri.-His Politics.-Formation of "The Missouri State Guard."-Personal appearance of the Commander.-His correspondence with Gen. Harney.-Affair at Booneville. —Gen. Price reinforced by Gens. McCulloch and Pearce. —Battlo of Oak Hill or Wilson's Creek. —Gen. Price's movement upon Lexington.-His success.-Designs against St. Louis.-Why they were abandoned.-Retreat of the Patriot Army of Missouri. —The State joins the Southern Confederacy.-Gen. Price's Proclamation at Neosho. WHEREVER the history of the American War is known, the names of Sterling Price and "The Missouri Guard" are remarkable. The romantic theatre on which he fought, the anomaly of the Missouri campaign, and its striking exceptions to all the ordinary rules and common apprehensions of military science, constitute a theme of unfailing interest and wondering criticism, peculiar and remarkable, even in a war replete with new operations and startling episodes. Sterling Price was a native of Virginia, nutrix leonurr; but all his adult honours are claimed by the noble State of Missouri, with the flower of whose manhood, led to battle, he adorned his reputation, binding up the fame of commander and of troops in a common story of heroism. Indeed, as subjects of admiration, the commander and his troops cannot be separated; and if he was a hero, so too were the unbought soldiers who fought under his banners, and gave an illustration of manhood unsurpassed in the war. He was born in Prince Edward County, Virginia, on the 14th September, 1809. At the proper age, after passing through a course of home training and schooling, he was sent to Hampden Sydney College, where he went through the then usual course of study. Upon returning home, or soon thereafter, in order to ac 310 MAJOR-GENERAL STERLING PRICE. quire a good knowledge of practical business, he engaged as a deputy in the Clerk's Office of his native county. Here he remained two years, and until he was twenty-one years of age. Of an enterprising disposition, he determined to emigrate to theWest. Missouri, as being chiefly peopled by Kentuckians and Virginians, seemed to him to afford the best opening and to promise the most congenial associations. He arrived in the State in the year 1830, when the city of St. Louis was but little more than a depot for the trade with the Indians, and when, with the exception of St. Genevieve, Vide Poche, St. Charles, and a few other villages founded by early French adventurers, the population of the State was extremely sparse, and scattered. He determined to settle in the central portion of the State-the region then known as the Boone's Lick County (so called after Daniel Boone, of historic renown, who died in that region), and now included in the counties of Howard and Chariton. Chariton became ultimately his permanent residence. Soon after his abode was fixed he received an appointment as Brigadier-General of the militia of the State-conferred in consequence of his known taste for military service. From his earliest manhood Gen. Price espoused the principles of the Democratic party-that Democracy which had Madison and Jefferson for its founders, and so many illustrious men since as its expounders. He was, in short, a Democrat who believed in the sovereignty of the State, the limitation of the action of the Federal Government to the powers expressly granted, and the sovereignty of the people within their respective States. During his life since, he has not departed from the creed of his youth. With these principles, and because of them, he was selected by his fellow-citizens, in the year 1836, to represent them in the General Assembly. In that body he was never noisy or demonstrative; but always the practical and useful member, taking care to understand the nature and bearing of all proposed legislation, and labouring to advance in all respects the public interest. He was again elected a representative in 1840 and 1842, and became the Speaker of the House each session, a position which he filled with ability, decision, dignity, and discretion. In 1844, he was elected to Congress. In this body he acted always with the Democratic party, keeping his seat until the occurrence of the war with Mexico. This event opened to him the field MAJOR-GENERAL STERLING PRICE. 311 of action for which he was most decidedly inclined, and certainly best qualified. He immediately resigned his seat in Congress, and raised a regiment for the war. The details of his operations in New Mexico and Chihuahua, where he had an independent command, are to be found in the official reports. He fought the enemy successfully at Cancada, Lambonda, Taos, and against largely superior forces. At Taos, with three hundred men, he captured the garrison, took 1500 prisoners and vast munitions of war. For these services he was promoted by President Polk to the rank of Brigadier-General. He then moved upon Chihuahua. At Santa Cruz de Rosales, he met and gave battle to Gen. Trias, who had a force of double his own numbers. The fight resulted in the capture of the enemy and all his munitions, which were considerable. A few days prior to this battle a treaty of peace with Mexico had been signed. This was indeed the last battle of the war. Upon his return to Missouri, Price's troops were mustered out at Independence. In his campaign he had undoubtedly shown considerable military abilities, and all those generous and magnanimous qualities which deeply attach the soldier to his leader and commander. At the next general election after his return from New Mexico, Gen. Price was made Governor of the State by a majority of over 15,000 votes. This was the more honourable in consequence of the peculiar circumstances under which he was nominated by the Democratic party. The position which Col. Benton, the oldest and by far the most distinguished leader in the party, assumed in relation to the power of Congress, over the subject of slavery, had divided the party into two sections, which were rapidly becoming more hostile to each other than to their common opponents, the Whigs. It was certain that if the party remained divided its whole power and usefulness as a segment of the great party of the nation would not only be neutralized, but that the minority of the people would actually wield all the influence which the majority should properly possess and enjoy. Under such circumstance thoughtful men in both divisions of the party saw the absolute necessity of a reunion. To effect this purpose a State convention was called.. In that body the two divisions were fully and fairly represented. In such cases it happens that dissensions are far more apt to be engendered by personal ambitions and jealousies than by party differences. The 312 MAJOR-GENERAL STERLING PRICE. important and indeed indispensable necessity was to find a gubernatorial candidate who could, without sacrifice of principle, inspire confidence in both sections, and to whose personal character none could take exception. Gen. Price was that man, and it is certain no one else in Missouri could have so fully united the party. As the Executive of the State all parties then and since have concurred in the conviction that he was the best the State ever had. Firm, dignified, calm, and deliberate, he did nothing hastily or in passion, or prejudice. In all that concerned the honour and the interests of the State he took care to inform himself thoroughly, and to act with energy and promptitude. There are few who do not now admit that all his recommendations for legislation were wise and prudent, and that in all cases where legislation was adverse to his views-especially in reference to the finances and to railroads-the consequences have been greatly detrimental to the State and people. He retired from this high position far more popular than when he entered upon it, giving an extraordinary and rare evidence of his merits. Upon the election of Abraham Lincoln, the State of Missouri called a convention, of which Price, being regarded as the ablest parliamentarian in the State, was elected President, on an avowal of sentiments of attachment and devotion to the Union. Indeed, on the first summons of the convention not a single secessionist could be found in it; and the almost universal sentiment of the State of Missouri was an unwillingness to rush into a dissolution of the Union, until every hope of a peaceful settlement of the question had vanished. Throughout the deliberations of the convention, of which he was President, and up to the very moment when he found the programme of that body was the abolition of slavery, and military coercion on the part of the General Government, Price had upheld the Union of the States, and the integrity of the Constitution, as one and the same thing, and indestructible so long as the organic law was sustained. Secession he ever maintained as a heresy; but the government he considered a contract between the States, to be broken by the inherent right of revolution. At this point he conceived the Constitution had been infringed, its obvious precepts annulled, the Southern States, as a consequence, to be oppressed, and their rights long recognized to be taken from them. He could not long hesitate to enlist his earnest nature on the side MAJOR GENERAL STERLING PRICE. 313 of right, when all efforts at adjustment had proved abortive, when the cry of blood was raised in the land, and when the Government at Washington had plainly put on the aspect and panoply of war. It was in May, 1861, after the development of the coercive policy of President Lincoln, that under a law of Missouri, the State Guard was formed, with Sterling Price as Major-General commanding. Although the new Major-General of Missouri had not received the benefit of a West Point education (a condition which President Davis, himself a graduate of that strait school, seemed to consider the sine qud non in the dispensation of his Executive favours), yet his strong native powers and quick presence of mind gave him aptitude for war, which was rapidly developed in the campaign through which he served. He had a commanding presence; his plain, hearty manners endeared him to the populace; and the strength and virtue of his personal character, the Cato-like purity of his life, gave him influence over all classes of men. He was over six feet in height, with a frame to match; full, but not portly, and as straight as a son of the forest. His carriage was marked with dignity, grace, and gentleness, and every motion bespoke the attitude and presence of the well-bred gentleman. He had a large head, covered with a growth of thick, white hair, a high, broad, intellectual forehead, florid face, no beard, and a mouth in whose latent smiles lurked the good-humour of the man, while its straight and clearly cut line bespoke the precise mind and the exacting will. Gen. Price promptly accepted the command of the Missouri troops tendered by Governor Claiborne F. Jackson, and issued immediate orders for organization. But before appealing to arms, he made earnest efforts for compromise and peace, in which he was met by Gen. Harney, of the Federal service, as far as the Washington Government would permit him to go. The infatuated ferocity of that government precipitated a war which lost Missouri to the North. The agreement with Gen. Harney was to secure the public peace of Missouri by a disbandment of forces, and on mutual recommendations to the citizens to abstain from violence. While Gen. Price proceeded to carry out his part of such agreement, the Federal Government abrogated it on their side. Captain, afterwards 314 MAJOR-GENERAL STERLING PRICE. Gen. Lyon, was placed in command of the Federal troops. Camp Jackson at St. Louis was captured, Jefferson City was marched upon, and evacuated by Price, who retired to Booneville. Here he prepared for resistance. Troops, volunteers, flocked in, improvised for the occasion, raw, undisciplined and unarmed, except with the common fowling-piece of the country, and such ammunition as could be hastily provided. From this place the little patriot command, after fighting with small losses a largely superiour Federal force, retreated, under Col. Marmaduke, towards southwestern Missouri-Gen. Price being prostrated by sickness, and removed to Lexington, whence he rejoined his command at Cowskin Prairie. At this rendezvous he raised and received recruits, until by the last of July, 1861, he had partially armed and equipped about six thousand men. Without a quarter-master, commissary, ordnance or medical bureau, no treasury, no arms, no ammunition, save the double-barrel shot gun and squirrel rifle, the powder-horn and shot-pouch of the sportsman, he organized this most unpromising force, with which to bid desperate defiance to the well-appointed armies of the United States. Here, however, the patriot army of Missouri was reinforced by some Arkansas State troops under Gen. Pearce, and by Brig.-Gen. McCulloch of the Confederate army, acting under the orders of Gen. Leonidas Polk, then commanding the Mississippi Department. Information was soon obtained here that the pursuing Federal columns, Lyon's, Sigel's, and others, had formed a junction at Springfield, where they numbered some 12,000 or 15,000 men, wellarmed, disciplined, and counting among them a heavy force of United States regulars of all arms. Gen. Price was at once for marching to meet this formidable force, in which view, however, he was obstructed by McCulloch, who claimed by his Confederate commission to be superiour in command. The latter seemed to distrust volunteers, to fear the nerve of the hardy Missourian, and laughed at the confident pretensions of the shot-gun and rifle, contrasting them with the regular soldier, and well-appointed arms and equipment.of the United States. Gen. Price, on the contrary, well knew the enterprise and spirit of the volunteer patriots around him; he well knew the effectiveness of "buck and ball;" he well knew the rough and broken country with its dense chapparal; he MAJOR-GENERAL STERLING PRICE. 115 well knew the vital importance of taking time by the forelock, and preventing a reinforcement at Springfield. He had faith in his own State, and hope and love of country and military prescience, animated him to consider defeat an impossibility. Forgetful of self; he relinquished to McCulloch the chief command (although Missouri had not yet joined the Southern Confederacy, and her troops were therefore independent of its authority), when he found that this sensitive and exacting commander made it the condition of joining in an attack upon the enemy. About the first of August, the heterogeneous army commenced its march towards Springfield. Not only were Price's men deficient in weapons, but when the march commenced, the commissary and quartermaster's departments, but recently organized, proved very indifferent, and it was seldom the men drew full rations. They made up for all deficiencies, however, by the scanty habits of their life, and by every crude expedient the imagination could suggest. They gathered corn wherever they could, pounded it between rocks until reduced to powder, and then made bread. Hogs were plentiful, as also beef cattle; and farmers, being friendly to the cause, willingly sold all things for Confederate paper, so that it much relieved the commissariat, and eased the line of march. McCulloch, with his small column, led the way; Pearce of Arkansas followed; and last came the hero and patriot, Sterling Price, with his ragged, half-fed, and ill-armed band of Missourians. On the 8th August, the Confederates and their allies camped at Wilson's Creek, about ten miles south of Springfield. McCulloch halted his advance on the right of the road, supported by Pearce, while Price was on the left of it; and thoughtless of danger-in fact, never dreaming of Lyon being in the vicinity at allthrew out no pickets. The next morning, when McCulloch was quietly taking his breakfast at Price's headquarters, a courier arrived from Gen. Raines, who held the extreme outpost on the North, announcing that the enemy were in sight and in great force. McCulloch seemed to doubt the accuracy of this report, and continued his breakfast coolly; another messenger in haste came in, and stated that a heavy body of the enemy were advancing on Gen. Raines, but that he would hold his position as long as possible. Still McCulloch seemed incredulous. Gen. Price said to him with much excitement: "Gen. McCulloch, have you no 316 MAJOR-GENERAL STERLING PRICE. orders to give'? " Turning to the courier, McCulloch said: " Go to Gen. Raines; tell him to ascertain all the facts, and report to me at headquarters." No longer able to restrain himself, Gen. Price struck his hand heavily upon the table, and in a voice of thunder said to his staff: "Gentlemen, to your horses!" Instantly all arose and hurried away. They had no time to lose, for hardly had they reached the open air before a shot from Sigel's batteries on the south, darted into the camp. It was a surprise on all sides of the camp. While McCulloch stemmed the storm on the right and rear, Lyon was pushing Price with great vigour in the centre and left. It was only by the most reckless devotion of his own person, his commanding cheers to his hardy woodsmen, and his repeated presence within fifty yards of the deadly muskets of the enemy, that Gen. Price was enabled to save the day on this part of the field. It ended in one of the most signal victories of the war, Gen. Lyon falling dead on the field, and the Federal loss in killed and wounded being fully one-half greater than that of the allies-Price and McCulloch. Shortly after the battle of Wilson's Creek, McCulloch decided to retire his force to Arkansas, refusing to unite in other enterprises of Gen. Price, who was now left alone to conduct the campaign in Missouri. From friendly refugees constantly arriving in camp, it was ascertained beyond a doubt that Fremont was strongly fortifying all important cities on the Missouri River, to serve as a safe base of operations, whence supplies could be easily transported into the interiour by wagon-trains or boats. Lexington, held by Colonel Mulligan and a heavy force, was known to be strongly fortified, and being on high ground, it commanded all approaches from the interiour, while the river was kept open for the transit of any number of troops from St. Louis. Price determined to march forward and attack it, but was informed that large bands of outlaws from Kansas, under General Jim Lane and others, were devastating the whole country on his left flank, and threatened to get in his rear. Suddenly diverging from his proper route, Price sent Raines and Parsons up in that direction, with a small force of determined men; and so secretly was the expedition conducted, that they unexpectedly came upon Lane at a creek called Drywood, and after a confused fight of some hours, drove the enemy from the field, pushed forward to their headquarters at Fort Scott, and captured it. MAJOR-GENERAL STERLING PRICE. 317 Joining the column under Price again, the army of five thousand effectives and five guns pushed forward towards Lexington, and arrived in the vicinity on the 13th September. It was the object to take Lexington, with its garrison of about 4,000 men, before it could be reinforced by Fremont. Gen. Price might have taken it by a charge, but he was content with a slower progress; and was quite satisfied to make one of the most brilliant captures of the Trans-Mississippi campaign, with a loss of only 74 men killed and wounded-fighting for two days and a half. Gen. Price bore a testimony to the heroic endurance of his army which deserves to be recorded. He said: " The victory has demonstrated the fitness of our citizen soldiery for the tedious operations of a siege as well as for a dashing charge. They lay for fifty-two hours in the open air without tents or covering, regardless of the sun and rain, and in the presence of a watchful and desperate foe, manfully repelling every assault and patiently awaiting my orders to storm the fortifications. No General ever commanded a braver or better army. It is composed of the best blood and the bravest men of Missouri." So far the bold and brilliant movements of the campaign in Missouri drew attention from more important theatres of the war, and constituted a theme of wonder and admiration that arrested the public mind, and was the occasion of criticism in all parts of the world. Price's men had marched and fought with an endurance and courage that rendered them worthy of the name of heroes. The thanks of the Confederate Congress were tendered to "Gen. Price and the Missouri Army under his command, for the gallant conduct they had displayed throughout their service, and especially for the skill, fortitude, and courage, by which they gained the brilliant achievement at Lexington." There had been no such phenomenon in the war: it was a new apparition of military science to see a man flying with a few hundred retainers across his State, an empire in itself, almost from one corner of it to another, before a victorious and thoroughly appointed army; raising in a few weeks a force of 5,000 men; arming, equipping, and feeding them, without resources, but from captured stores of the enemy; winning a great battle by his own genius and headlong courage; establishing his popularity in the hearts of his 318 MAJOR-GENERAL STERLING PRICE. command; marching back to his starting-point, and capturing an army and its entire outfit by an unconditional surrender. It had been Gen. Price's design not to repose on the victory of Lexington; but obtaining supplies and recruits, to sweep down upon St. Louis, uniting with Maj.-Gen. Polk and his Confederate forces. But the progress of this brilliant conception was unexpectedly checked:-first, by the order to Gen. Polk from the War Department for the Tennessee campaign; secondly by Price's failure to receive a large supply of ammunition from Brig.-Gen. McCulloch according to promise. He could not move upon St. Louis for the want of cooperation by Gen. Polk; he could not remain where he was, for the want of ammunition, threatened by Sturges on the north, and Fremont on the south. There were not three rounds of percussion-caps to the man. Hence he was forced to evacuate the place, and retreat towards Springfield, not even having time to organize fully ten or twelve thousand volunteers, who were then ready to enlist under his banner. On the 20th August, 1861, the Confederate Congress, at Richmond, passed an act, one section of which admitted the State of Missouri as a member of the Confederacy, upon an equal footing with the other States under the Constitution for the Provisional Government, upon condition that the said Constitution should be adopted and ratified by the properly and legally constituted authorities of the State. Another section recognized the Government, of which Claiborne F. Jackson was the chief magistrate, in Missouri, to be the legally elected and regularly constituted Government of the people and State, and authorized the President of the Confederate States, at any time prior to her full admission, to form with her a treaty of alliance, offensive and defensive. Gen. Price, with his army, entered the town of Neosho, in Newton county, early in November. On the second day of that month the Legislature had here assembled, by proclamation of Governor Jackson. The attendance was full; twenty-three members of the upper, and seventy-seven of the lower house being present, and with entire unanimity they passed an act of secession from the Federal Union, adopted the Provisional Constitution of the Confederate States, and initiated such measures as would perfect the union between their State and her sisters of the South. From Neosho, Gen. Price marched to Cassville, in Barry County, MAJOR-GENERAL STERLING PRICE. 319 and thence to McDonald County, in the extreme southwestern angle of the State. Here he rested and recruited his army, and then again moved northward. On the 30th November, from Neosho, he issued a stirring proclamation, calling volunteers to his camp. He called for fifty thousand men, according to the first summons of the Governor, and promised with this force to liberate Missouri surely and speedily. The language of the appeal was ardent, and characteristic of the man. "In the month of June last," he wrote, "I was called to the command of a handful of Missourians' who nobly gave up home and comforts to espouse in that gloomy hour the cause of your bleeding country, struggling with the most heartless and cruel despotism known among civilized men. When peace and protection could no longer be enjoyed but at the price of honour and liberty, your chief magistrate called for fifty thousand men to drive the ruthless invaders from a soil made fruitful by your labours, and consecrated by your homes. And to that call less than five thousand responded out of a male population exceeding two hundred thousand. One in forty only stepped forward to defend with their persons and their lives the cause of' constitutional liberty and human rights. Some allowances are to be made on the face of the want of military organization, a supposed want of arms, the necessary retreat of the army southward, the blockade of the river, and the presence of an armed and organized foe. But nearly six months have now elapsed * * * I must have fifty thousand men. Now is the crisis of your fate; now is the golden opportunity to save the State; now is the time for your political salvation. The time of the enlistment of our brave bands is beginning to expire. Do not hold their patience beyond endurance. Do not longer sicken their hearts by hopes deferred. Boys and small property-holders have in the main fought the battles for the protection of your property, and when they ask, where are the men for whom we are fighting, how can I explain, my fellow-citizens? I call upon you, by every consideration of interest, by every desire of safety, by every tie that binds you to home and country, delay no longer. Let the dead bury the dead. Leave your property to take care of itself. Come to the Army of the Missouri-not for a week, or a month, but to free your country. "' Strike, till each armed foe expires I Strike, for your country's altar fires I 320 MAJOR-GENERAL STERLING PRICE. Strike, for the green graves of your sires, God and your native land I' Be yours the office to choose between the glory of a free country and a just government, or the bondage of your children. I1 at least, will never see the chains fastened upon my country. I will ask for six and a half feet of Missouri soil on which to repose, for I will not live to see my people enslaved. Are you coming? Fifty thousand men of Missouri shall move to victory with the tread of a giant. Come on, my brave fifty thousand heroes-gallant, unconquerable Southern men I We await your coming." MAJOR-GENERAL STERLING PRICE. 321 CHAPTER XXVII. Gen. Price at the head of ten thousand men.-McCulloch refuses to cooperate.Admirable retreat of Price's army to Boston Mountains. -Hardihood of his troops. -A message from Gen. Halleck.-Gen. Van Dorn appointed Confederate Commander of the Trans-MississippL-Battle of Elk Horn.-Its importance. —Heroism of Gen. Price on the field.-The Missouri troops cross the Mississippi River. -Gen. Price's eloquent address to "the State Guard." THE response to Gen. Price's glowing appeal to the patriotism of Missouri, was not what the commander expected and required; but yet it was sufficient to inspire him with something of new hope. His command had suffered sadly for want of steady and persistent organization; it being mostly made up of volunteers who had hied to the camps in prospect of short service and a speedy return to their homes; and at one time it had been reduced by absenteeism to less than five thousand men, when Gen. Price was threatened on all sides: by Lane, from Kansas; by the forces from the north of Lexington, and by those coming out from St. Louis, by Rolla. Now, however, under the influence of fresh appeals, his forces ran up to more than ten thousand men, and with these he determined to move towards Springfield, and make another effort for the redemption of the State. He had again put himself in communication with McCulloch's forces, then under command of Cols. McIntosh and Hebert. His aim was to hold the State of Missouri, because of the richness of the country, and its great capacity of subsistence; because of the priceless value of the Granby Lead Mines; and because he most especially desired to confine the destroying tide of war to its limits, and leave Arkansas and the South free and unharmed. He could not do this unaided and alone. His force was too small to resist one of the best appointed armies ever put on foot by the United States. He argued the subject fully and repeatedly with McIntosh and Hebert, McCulloch then being at Richmond. He appealed to Albert Sidney Johnson, to the Richmond Government, and entreated the co-operating aid of the Confederate forces, there hoard 322 MAJOR-GENERAL STERLING PRICE. ed and rusting on the confines of Arkansas, while he was standing picket for the whole Trans-Mississippi Department. He expressed his willingness and ability to hold Missouri, and keep the Federal forces at bay; he exhibited the teeming granaries and meat supplies of the country; he urged the importance of holding the Granby Lead Mines; and he argued the rich returns the armies of the Confederacy would derive from the fearless yeomanry of Missouri. But these views were not taken by the Confederate authorities. Price was not reinforced; Curtis, Sigel, and Davis advanced; the little Army of Missouri was compelled to retreat, and Springfield and Granby fell into the enemy's possession, no more to be reclaimed. But the retreat was conducted with a skill and success worthy of all praise; and wherever the enemy came up with it he found a steadiness and ferocity, seldom the traits of a retreating column. Millions of stores, wagons and teams, lead and cattle, and other property were carried out by Price; for four days and nights he marched and fought, saving all his stores and losing but few of his men; and he exhibited an endurance and energy which astonished the enemy, and was the occasion of the remark, that "Old Price could beat the world running after a fight or away from one." With sullen steps he retired to the Boston Mountains, where he encamped, and where finally he was to be joined by McCulloch's forces, but not until the golden moment for an offensive movement had departed, and the enemy had increased the forces, and multiplied the toils, by which he held the State of Missouri. An officer of Price's army, describing this hard and painful retreat, writes: "Our sufferings during the campaign had been extreme, but setting the inconveniences aside, had tended to harden us, and make our limbs as tough as steel. Continually marching through non-inhabited districts, we had to depend upon Providence for supplies. Over mountains, through'gaps,' across rivers and creeks, our progress was toilsome and weary; but not more than a hundred names could be found upon the sick-list at any time during our frequent and rapid journeyings. Our cavalry led a hard life, incident to their daily duty. Among the mountains a,party of these'irregular' horse would watch all the roads, conceal their fires, and hang around the enemy with a pertinacious deter MAJOR-GENERAL STERLING PRICE. 323 mination that no man should stir without their knowledge, and at the least opportunity making a dash at the foe, capturing and destroying as they went, living as best they might, and doing whatever they pleased. As scouts, these men were invaluable, they were here, there, and everywhere; it was impossible to follow in their track. Their dress was of skins or anything that came to hand, and so long as grass was found for their hardy, wiry Indian horses, the riders cared little for food, dress, leisure, or relief from duty." It is said that about this period of the enemy's encouragement, when the Army of Missouri was compelled to retire to the Boston Mountains, Gen. Halleck, who had assumed command of the Western Department, sent a message to Gen. Price by a gentleman who was passing the lines. "Tell Gen. Price," he said, " that he had the advantage of me in Missouri, for he knew the country better than I did; but I have got him now where I want him, and expect to capture him, and whip his army soon." "When you go back," was Price's reply, " say to Gen. Halleck that he has not men enough in his army to capture me. And as to whipping my boys, tell him he may select one hundred of the best men in his whole army, and I will take the same number of mine, as they come, and without distinction. He shall lead his one hundred men, and I will lead mine; and we will go into an open field to fight it out; and the fate of the Southern Confederacy shall depend upon the result. Tell him that, will you!" No reply was ever made to the challenge. On his retreat to the Boston Mountains it was discovered, much to Gen. Price's gratification, that the government at Richmond had at last determined to cure the disagreement between himself and McCulloch by appointing Maj.-Gen. Earl Van Dorn to the command of all the Trans-Mississippi forces, giving him the direction of affairs there, and securing that unanimity so long desirable. A happy accord existed between Gen. Price and the new commander. Indeed a private correspondence had taken place between these two military chieftains, on the occasion of Van Dornas appointment by President Davis to take command in Arkansas and Missouri, which not only showed a spirit of mutual appreciation and compliment highly honourable to both, but developed a singular similarity of views (considering that the letter of each was written 324 MAJOR GENERAL STERLING PRICE. without knowledge of that of the other) with reference to the conduct of the war. When Van Dorn arrived to take command, a plan of attack was soon settled-a joint one by Price and McCulloch; the enemy then resting at Pea Ridge. The army, about 16,000 strong, was put in motion, encamped on the 5th March at Elm Springs, attacked Sigel next day at Bentonsville, and drove him out. Gen. Van Dorn, during the night, so.changed the plan of battle, as to allow McCulloch to attack with his force on the south, while Price was to move around on the north. It was a fatal errour. Price was on the north, McCulloch on the south, the enemy was between them, only three miles apart; yet in order for either to reach the other, twelve miles had to be travelled, by reason of the mountainous country. Price, with 7,300 men, McCulloch with 9,000, either weakened or pushed to extremity, could derive no aid in proper time from the other-an inferiour force surrounding a superiour one. Van Dorn rode up on the morning of the 7th, and informed Price of the change, who at once deeply regretted it, and urged its disadvantages. Van Dorn yielded; courier after courier was dispatched to McCulloch; but it was too late. He was already in action. In a few moments he and McIntosh, his second in command, were both killed, and there were none to direct the progress of the troops, who felt they were now pushing on to victory; the various colonels, in fact, did not stop to inquire who had succeeded to the command, but each was doing his best in his own way. The enemy were before them, and they neither knew nor cared for anything more; of strategy, they were almost, if not quite, ignorant; the men were in disorder, but still fought on, regiment mixed with regiment. Thinking that his orders would be obeyed, and not knowing that McCulloch and McIntosh were among the slain, Van Dorn pushed forward his centre and left as best he could, and after much hard fighting, drove the enemy, inflicting much loss. Curtis and Sturgis perceiving, however, the confusion on the rightwhere McCulloch had fallen, rallied their commands, and presented a formidable front. Here the battle was renewed, and a desperate action took place. Price, with his 7,000 veterans, who did not know how to retreat, continued to assail the unbroken Federals, now all united. During the whole day he drove them; MAJOR-GENERAL STERLING PRICE. 325 it was one continuous advance from point to point; and at night the army that had performed such miracles of valour slept in the encampment of the enemy of the same day, and fed from his commissariat supplies. But the victory which Price had plucked from circumstances so adverse and desperate, proved fruitless, and was bitter with disappointment. He was anxious to renew the battle the next day, and expressed to Van Dorn his confidence that he would make another Wilson's Creek affair, when he overran the enemy's odds on the soil of Missouri. The camps of the enemy had fallen into his hands, with many prisoners, stores, cannon, etc.; and the men were excited with their success. Van Dorn, however, surmised that reinforcements had reached the enemy in great number, and felt himself too weak to accept another engagement, should the enemy force one upon him. He therefore ordered the sick far to the rear, and, destroying so much of the booty as could not be transported, began to prepare for a retreat. Thus ended the battle of Elk Horn (it was called " Pea Ridge," by the enemy), with results adverse to the Confederates, and so important that it may be said to have decided the question of Confederate rule in Missouri. Whatever the errours that precipitated such results on the very heels of victory, it may be said that Price had no part or lot in them. The Missouri troops, from the noble veteran who had led them so long, down to the meanest private, behaved with a courage, the fire and devotion of which never, for a moment, slackened. The personal testimony of Gen. Van Dorn to their noble conduct, was a just and magnanimous tribute. He wrote to the Government at Richmond: "During the whole of this engagement I was with the Missourians, under Price, and I have never seen better fighters than these Missouri troops, or more gallant leaders than Gen. Price and his officers. From the first to the last shot, they continually rushed on, and never yielded an inch they had won; and when at last they received orders to fall back, they retired steadily and with cheers. Gen. Price received a severe wound in the action, but would neither retire from the field nor cease to expose his life to danger." Nor is this all the testimony to the heroism of Gen. Price on the field of Elk Horn. Some incidents are related by an officer of his conduct in the retreat, that show aspects of heroism more engaging 326 MAJOR-GENERAL STERLING PRICE. than even those of reckless bravery. "In the progress of the retreat," writes an officer, "every few hundred yards we would overtake some wounded soldier. As soon as he would see the old General, he would cry out:' General, I am wounded!' Instantly some vehicle was ordered to stop, and the poor soldier's wants cared for. Again and again it occurred, until the conveyances were covered with the wounded. Another one cried out:;General, I am wounded!' The General's head dropped upon his breast, and his eyes, bedimmed with tears, were thrown up, and he looked in front for some place to put his poor soldier. He discovered something on wheels in front, and commanded:'H alt! and put this wounded soldier up; by G-d, I will save my wounded, if I lose the whole army!'" The battle of Elk HIorn may be said to have terminated Price's splendid career as commander of "the Missouri State Guard." Shortly thereafter it was decided by the government at Richmond to remove the forces from the Trans-Mississippi district, and to unite the armies of Van Dorn and Price with such force as Gen. Beauregard already had at Corinth. The order for leaving the limits of their States was responded to by the Missouri and Arkansas troops with ready and patriotic spirit. Price had for a long time been held in disfavour by President Davis. But popular demand, army clamour, and Congressional urgency, were too great longer to withstand, and the Major-General's commission was ordered. On the occasion of this change of command and transfer of his theatre of operations across the Mississippi River, Price made to his troops the following extraordinary and admirable appeal. Comprehensive in its terms, Napoleonic in spirit, and glowing with patriotic fire, it challenges comparison with some of the military orders of the most celebrated commanders in history: HEADQUARTERS MISSOURI STATE GUARD, DES ARC, ARKANSAS, April 3, 1862. Soldiers of the State Guard: I command you no longer. I have this day resigned the commission which your patient endurance, your devoted patriotism, and your dauntless bravery, have made so honourable. I have done this that I may the better serve you, our State, and our country; that I may the sooner lead you back to the fertile prairies, the rich MAJOR-GENERAL STERLING PRICE. 327 woodlands, and majestic streams of our beloved Missouri; that I may the more certainly restore you to your once happy homes, and to the loved ones there. Five thousand of those who have fought side by side with us under the grizzly bears of Missouri, have followed me into the Confederate camp. They appeal to you, as I do, by all the tender memories of the past, not to leave us now, but to go with us wherever the path of duty may lead, till we shall have conquered a peace, and won our independence, by brilliant deeds upon new fields of battle. Soldiers of the State Guard! veterans of six pitched battles and nearly twenty skirmishes! conquerors in them all! your country, with its "ruined hearths and shrines," calls upon you to rally once more in her defence, and rescue her forever from the terrible thraldom which threatens her. I know that she will not call in vain. The insolent and barbarous hordes which have dared to invade our soil, and to desecrate our homes, have just met with a signal overthrow beyond the Mississippi. Now is the time to end this unhappy war. If every man will but do his duty, his own roof will shelter him in peace from the storms of the coming winter. Let not history record that the men who bore with patience the privations of Cowskin Prairie, who endured uncomplainingly the burning heats of a Missouri summer, and the frosts and snows of a Missouri winter; that the men who met the enemy at Carthage, at Oak Hills, at Fort Scott, at Lexington, and in numberless lesser battle-fields in Missouri, and met them but to conquer them; that the men who fought so bravely and so well at Elk Horn; that the unpaid soldiery of Missouri, were, after so many victories, and after so much suffering, unequal to the great task of achieving the independence of their magnificent State. Soldiers I I go but to mark a pathway to our homes. Follow me STERLING PRICE. 328 MAJOR-GENERAL STERLING PRICE. CHAPTER XXVYIIL Career of Gen. Price as a subordinate.-Mortality record of the Missouri Guard.Their participation in the battle of Corinth.-Battle of Helena.-Gen. Price's cherished idea of liberating Missouri.-His agreement with Gen. Fremont for the humanities of the war.-How the enemy violated it.-Gen. Price's last attempt to save Missouri.-His final retreat from the State.-Summary of the character of Gen. Price.-A defect in his military career.-Gen. Price as an exile. THE glowing anticipations with which Gen. Price joined the forces of Beauregard were never realized. It was an unfortunate promotion and an evil star that took Gen. Price across the Mississippi. From that day forward, he never held independent command, and his subsequent military career may be described as desultory. A pioneer in energetic thought and action, his was not a genius to prosper under the control of but the fewest men. His career as a subordinate was not wholly in eclipse; the universal acclaim of every battle in which he was an actor told of his bravery; he always did his part well when others failed, and invariably won his share of the action; but the general story was that of imperfect results, where he was not sustained, and the mistaken judgment or blundering vanity of his superiours interfered to hold him in check, and diminish his authority. That famous body of troops, the "Missouri Guard," became almost extinct in the multitude of battles it fought far away from its homes. Of the ten thousand gallant men whom Price led from Missouri, in April and May, 1862, not more than two thousand five hundred were left at the close of the year survivors of the casualties of battle and camps, fit for service. At Iuka Gen. Price won a victory, took a formidable battery with his " salamander brigades," and retired only when the enemy was reinforced to an extent that made further attack madness. At Corinth, although the Confederate arms were unsuccessful there, he alone won a fame equal to that of his greatest victories. Of his part in this action Gen. Price officially reports: "It was after nine o'clock (October 4, 1862) when my line became generally and furi MAJOR-GENERAL STERLING PRICE. 329 ously engaged with the enemy in his innermost and most formidable works, from which his infantry and artillery could jointly operate against my troops. Here, as in the previous actions, my artillery could not be effectively brought into action, and but few of the guns were engaged. The fighting, by my command, was almost entirely confined to the infantry. My men pressed forward upon the enemy, and, with heavy loss, succeeded in getting into the works, having driven him from them, capturing more than forty pieces of artillery, and forcing him to take refuge in the houses of the town, and in every place that would afford protection from our galling fire. He was followed and driven from house to house with great slaughter. In the town were batteries in mask, supported by heavy reserves, behind which the retreating enemy took shelter, and which opened upon our troops a most destructive fire at short range. My men held their positions most gallantly, returning the fire of the enemy with great spirit, until portions of them exhausted their ammunition and were compelled to retire. This necessitated the withdrawal of the whole line, which was done under a withering fire. The attack was not resumed, and we fell back to our supply train, the men being almost exhausted from exertion and want of food and water. Gen. Villepigue's brigade moved over to our assistance, but did not become engaged, as the enemy was too badly cut up to follow us. We fell back in order to obtain water, some six miles from Corinth, where we bivouacked for the night, bringing off all of our artillery and arms, save one rifled piece, which had been inadvertently driven into the enemy's line while going into battery before daylight in the morning, and had been left. We brought off, also, the two guns captured at the outer line of fortifications on the 3d. It is impossible for me to do justice to the courage of my troops in these engagements, nor can I discriminate between officers and commands where all behaved so nobly." It is scarcely necessary to follow in detail the career of Gen. Price to Farmington, and Abbeville, and Helena, and other fields of less important action. At Helena (July 4, 1863), he fought against his judgment, under the imperative orders of Gen. Holmes; and although the other commands failed, Price alone carried the enemy's position, and crowned with its valour "the Grave-Yard Fort," but at a sacrifice of life which he deplored, 330 MAJOR-GENERAL STERLING PRICE. accomplishing, as he foresaw, a success which could not be sustained, and a glory unproductive of substantial fruits. Fettered by the orders of such men as Pemberton and Holmes, subsequently cooperating with Gen. Kirby Smith, contributing to the Red River campaign, and containing the enemy on the borders of Arkansas, he was still the successful commander, in all the parts to which he was assigned, but unable to carry out his cherished idea of liberating Missouri and striking a blow on her soil. Wherever he went, wherever he camped, especially wherever he fought, the people cheered with a zest, and the soldier dared, and bled, and died, as he would do under few other leaders. BIut these distant and partial fields did not satisfy Price's ambition; to scourge the enemy from his native State he considered his appointed mission; and in the midst of other careers of glory his thoughts constantly reverted to his beloved Missouri, and the sensibilities of his heart were lacerated by the stories of her suffering under the rule of an enemy whose insolence and cruelty had exceeded all bounds, and scoffed every demand of justice and every cry of humanity. In his first campaign in Missouri, Gen. Price had endeavoured to put the war on the most civilized footing, to secure to all the people of the State the ordinary humanities attendant upon armed strite, and to confine the contest exclusively to the armies in the field. In pursuance of these views the following joint proclamation was issued-which, copied in full, claims entire and close attention as one of the most interesting texts of the war. To all Peaceably-disposed Citizens of the State of Missouri, greeting: WHEREAS, A solemn agreement has been entered into by MajorGenerals Fremont and Price, respectively commanding antagonistic forces in the State of Missouri, to the effect, that in future arrests or forcible interference by armed or unarmed parties of citizens within the limits of said State for the mere entertainment or expression of political opinions, shall hereafter cease; that families now broken up for such causes may be reunited, and that the war, now progressing, shall be exclusively confined to armies in the field; therefore, be it known to all whom it may concern: 1. No arrests whatever on account of political opinions, or for the merely private expression of the same, shall hereafter be made within the limits of the State of Missouri, and all persons who MAJOR-GENERAL STERLING PRICE. 331 may have been arrested and are now held to answer upon such charges only, shall be forthwith released. But it is expressly declared that nothing in this proclamation shall be construed to bar or interfere with any of the usual and regular proceedings of the established courts and statutes and orders made and provided for such offences. 2. All peaceably-disposed citizens, who may have been driven from their homes because of their political opinions, or who may have left them from fear of force and violence, are hereby advised and permitted to return, upon the faith of our positive assurances that while so returning they shall receive protection from both armies in the field, whenever it can be given. 3. All bodies of armed men acting without the authority or recognition of the Major-Gen. before named, and not legitimately connected with the armies in the field, are hereby ordered at once to disband. 4. Any violation of either of the foregoing articles shall subject the offender to the penalty of military law, according to the nature of the offence. This done and agreed at Springfield, Missouri, this first day of November, 1861. By order of MAJOR-GENERAL FREMONT. J.:. EATON, A. A. A. G. MAJ.-GEN. STERLING PRICE, by HENRY W. WILLIAMS, D. ROBERT BARCLAY, Commissioners. THere was a distinct and honourable pledge made by the enemy to conduct the war in Missouri on principles of humanity, and to forego all persecution for opinion's sake. How was it fulfilled, when Price's army was compelled to retire from the State, and the enemy's audacity was unbridled, and his true temper allowed to run its course? The flagitious story of his behaviour in Virginia and in the Valley of Mississippi, obtained new additions and surpassing illustrations of cruelty in the distant State of Missouri, and in the obscure departments of authority, where despotism ran riot almost without the chance of being discovered, or the risk of being 332 MAJOR-GENERAL STERLING PRICE. called to account. No "red tape" embarrassed the enemy's power here; no settled rules limited and contained it; the Federal authority and its partisans did what they pleased. The unhappy State was torn by crimes and excesses which no pen can describe. The habeas corpus was suspended; denunciations and arrests became the weapons of private malignity; Union men plundered and destroyed the homes of those whom they chose to denounce; arson, murder, confiscation, exile, were the penalties dealt out against men, women, and children, by vigilance committees; the assassin's dagger was unsheathed and held at the throat of every one who dared to sympathize with the South, or to protest against the worst excesses of despotic authority. Such was the realization to Missouri of a war which the enemy had solemnly engaged to conduct only against armies in the field, and for the exclusive object of the restoration of the Union. It was not until near the close of the war, that Gen. Price made his last desperate attempt to save Missouri, to relieve her from the reign of' terrour, and to "chase the Union army from the State." It failed. It commenced with a brilliant inroad; and in the last days of September, 1864, Price's little and adventurous army, under the command of Shelby, Marmaduke, and Fagan, had advanced towards Pilot Knob, and was moving north to the Missouri River. But the enemy was too numerous; and while Rosecrans pressed his rear, a body of 8,000 cavalry fell upon Price, who found it impossible to extricate himself without a battle, delivered against overwhelming odds. On the 23d October he was attacked, and defeated with great loss-Gens. Marmaduke and Cabell being taken prisoners, besides many officers and men. The following day Price was again attacked, near Fort Scott, and obliged hurriedly to retreat into Kansas. He then turned down to the south, and crossed the Arkansas River, above Fort Smith, in the Indian Territory. On the 8th December, 1864, his headquarters were at Washington, in the south part of Arkansas, his troops at that time greatly suffering from the weather, and sadly diminished by a campaign in which the casualties had been many, and the desertions yet more numerous. This event may be said to have terminated Gen. Price's military career. At the close of the war he was included in Kirby Smith's surrender; and preferring exile to the lot of submission MAJOR-GENERAL STERLING PRICE. 333 that the war had determined, he shortly thereafter left the country, and found refuge in Mexico. There he was for some time engaged in a scheme of colonization under the auspices of the Imperial Government, which, however, it is generally believed, proved a feeble and unsatisfactory enterprise. In the character of Gen. Price, as illustrated in our brief sketch, we remark simplicity, the charm of great earnestness, and a commanding influence over men. As a military man, he was apt, resourceful, and not without some strategic genius. But no commander-not even Stonewall Jackson-ever fought his troops more fiercely and in closer quarters with the enemy. Like the great warriour of Virginia, he cared but little for works of defence, and sought the contact of the bayonet. It is said that shortly after he had joined the Confederate army, then at Corinth, Gen. Beauregard conducted him around the lines of the camp, and with a good deal of pride exhibited and explained the strength of his fortifications. " What do you think of these works, Gen. Price?" "Why, General," answered Price, " to tell you the truth, I never saw but two of the kind before, and that was after our boys had taken them." We cannot fail to observe a defect in Gen. Price's military career, in the want of discipline in his command, painfully apparent in his last invasion of Missouri; but this appears to have been so common and inherent an affliction in all the armies of the Confederacy, and to have proceeded from so many causes beyond control-the individuality of the Southern soldier, the necessity of conciliating him in the peculiar circumstances of a service where there were so many hardships, so many appeals to return to suffering families, so many opportunities to desert in wild and impassable countries, where it was impossible to reclaim him-that it is scarcely to be urged personally against any commander, and cast as censure at his doors.* Price's men loved him, and never failed * An article in a recent review contains the following just remarks on the organization and spirit of the Southern armies: "The army of the late'Confederate States of America' was an eclectic, or excerpted system from the high military models of Austria, Prussia, France, and the United States. It was a beautiful and complete model of thorough scientific organization, full of interest and instruction to those who wish to learn how to make war terrible and destructive, and, above all things else that sprang from the master hand 334 MAJOR-GENERAL STERLING PRICE. him for want of affection and confidence. Many of them asserted that " they would rather die under his command than fight with any other." They had a number of familiar affectionate names by which their commander was designated, such as "Pap," "Dad," "The Old Tycoon," etc. There can be no better indication of popularity than the rude nicknames of the camp. Gen. Price had the charm of being accessible alike to all-the officer and the private; and was always ready with a kind and respectful word for of that directing and all-informing mind that stood at the head of the Southern revolution, attested its commanding genius. From Austria was taken the admirable organization of the grand field-staff; from Prussia, the firm and compact general military anatomy; from France, the model of its field ordnance, and scientific artillery theory and practice; and from the United States, its tactical economy, its infantry equipment and drill, its army regulations, and its theory of military manceuvre and strategic practice. "The organization of the Confederate army was a finished piece of military mechanism, methodical, harmonious, composite, in all pertaining to its exteriour, practical arrangement; but there was a fatal defect in its interiour, vital economy, a morbid, organic derangement, that defeated every hope of healthy bodily action, preyed upon the seat of life, and caused its ultimate dissolution. That disease was the absence of a rigid discipline. If it had possessed this one important quality, the battle of Sharpsburg would have declared the independence of the South. Gen. Lee crossed over into Maryland, a fortnight before the happening of that battle, with eighty thousand troops; but on that field he could only put his hand on thirty-five thousand of that number. N6t that this more than moiety of his army had wilfully deserted their colours; but allured from their commands by the profuse hospitality of the people of Maryland, they lingered behind the advancing army, thinking to rejoin it in time to share in its laurels. Such conduct the systems of Frederick and Napoleon pronounced desertion, and inflexibly punished with death. The great body of the, rank and file of the Southern army was composed of a social element that in the armies of other countries is seen only in positions of command and authority; and the officers elected from among themselves, and often their social and intellectual inferiours, left matters of authority and subordination to take care of themselves, while their only care was to make their reports correspond, from day to day. Under such a general relaxation of authority, discipline was impossible; and the Southern army was nothing more than an association of patriotic gentlemen, animated by the enthusiasm of a common cause, and regarding army regulations and discipline as designed only for a race of slaves. When once in battle, they fought with a dash, spirit, resolution, and desperation of valour such as has never been excelled by any soldiery in the world, ancient or modern. This idea is most forcibly illustrated by a remark that is said to have fallen from the lips of that rugged old hero, Gen. D. H. Hill, after the battle of Antietam, when, in speaking of the behaviour of his troops in that engagement, he said, he had but one fault to find of his Mississippians, and that was,' each man acted as if he thought himself a brigadier.' In the European sense of the word, there was no such thing known to the Confederate army as discipline." MAJOR-GENERAL STERLING PRICE. 335 every one. And yet he was fierce and energetic, with unlimited influence over his men. Of the hero in exile, an eloquent writer, from whom we have already drawn some incidents of G(en. Price's career, thus well and nobly discourses: " Gen. Price has gone to Mexico, if reports are true, with the purpose of making it his home and country —nay, not his country, for we hold it impossible that any man, with his brain and affections, can shake off both educated and natural patriotism. He cannot do it. His heart, like every great or brave heart, in the land we love, yet yearns for the glory and prosperity of the great nation from which he is said to have expatriated himself.'A poor, unmanly melancholy, sprang from change of fortune,' cannot so afflict his noble nature. Disappointed in his hopes he may be distrustful of his reception by former friends and neighbours, yea, doubtful of his pardon by the General Government. We do not so regard the prospect. Gen. Price has honestly and well taken a leading part in the great revolution the entire South stood so manfully to achieve. HIe has forfeited the respect of no one, save the blind partisan, or the bloodthirsty puritan. On the contrary he has won upon their sympathy and regard; for duty performed commends itself to the heart of every well-regulated child of Adam. Ile has committed no outrage, no act of his life can bring the blush of shame to his cheek, or disturb the most extravagant conscience. We differ with all those who look for refuge to another land, another nationality. The South staked her all upon the issue just decided. She lost. She is willing to pay the penalty, has paid it, and is still paying it. She has nearly resumed her old place in the government, and her soldiers have determined, under the wise policy of President Johnson, to accept, in loyal faith, his generous amnesty, faithfully to serve the United States, and strive to promote all solid ends of government, as freely, as fully, as manfully, as during the past four years they fought for separation. So we speak and feel, and so shall we act. Now is the day and the hour when such manhood as Gen. Price possesses this nation needs, in carrying out her new policy. Let him return. Let him go cheerfully to his old home, with form erect, that face blooming with honest pride, and, like Lee and Johnson, strike again for the national and social progress of his own, his native land. 336 MAJOR-GENERAL STERLING PRICE. 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