UNITED STATES OF AMERICA: A. D. 1862 (March).

Amendment of the Military Code.

Officers forbidden to surrender fugitive Slaves.

"As the formal orders of the government regarding the

treatment of slaves who sought refuge near the armies were not

always executed, Congress determined to give them a legal

sanction; and on the 25th of February and the 13th of March

both the Senate and the House of Representatives introduced a

new article in the military code, prohibiting officers, at the

risk of dismissal, from interfering to restore fugitive slaves

to their masters. Notwithstanding the powers with which the

government was thus armed, great difficulty was experienced in

applying this law in those regiments whose commanders openly

professed their sympathies in favor of slavery."

_Comte de Paris,

History of the Civil War in America,

volume 2, page 733._

UNITED STATES OF AMERICA: A. D. 1862

(March-April: On the Mississippi).

New Madrid and Island No. 10.

On the surrender of Fort Donelson to General Grant, Columbus,

on the Mississippi, was hastily abandoned by the rebels, who

fell back to Island Number Ten, thirty miles below, where

strong works had been erected. These it was hoped would

command the passage of the river. "Following the course of the

Mississippi, this island is about ten miles above New Madrid,

Missouri, which is 79 miles below Cairo; but on account of a

long bend in the river … the island is really further south

than New Madrid. New Madrid is at the most northerly part of

the bend, and its guns were so placed as to be able to fire at

vessels coming either way. Besides Fort Thompson, named after

Jeff Thompson, it was defended by several batteries and by six

gunboats, mounting heavy guns, which had come up the river

from New Orleans and were under the command of Commodore

Hollins. … As the land around New Madrid is very flat, these

gunboats could fire upon troops approaching the place by land.

On the same day when the flag of the Union was hoisted over

the deserted works of the Confederates at Columbus [March 4],

a Union army under General John Pope, who had been commanding

in eastern Missouri, appeared before New Madrid. Seeing that

he could do but little with his field artillery, he sent to

Cairo for heavy guns; and while waiting for these he built a

battery at Point Pleasant, about ten miles below New Madrid,

so as to blockade the river at that place and prevent supplies

from being sent up to the town. Meanwhile the Confederates

strengthened their works and reinforced the garrison with men

from Island Number Ten, while their fleet of gunboats was

increased to nine. Four heavy guns were sent from Bird's Point

to General Pope by the Cairo and Fulton Railway, which brought

them within 20 miles of where they were wanted. … On the night

of March 12 a thousand spades were at work within half a mile

of Fort Thompson, and at daylight the guns were in position

ready for action. Pope opened a cannonade at once on the

gunboats and on Fort Thompson, both of which replied

vigorously. The fight raged all day long; several of the gun

boats were disabled and the Union army was gradually shutting

in the Confederates on the land side, when their commander,

General McCown, seeing the danger of capture, left the place

in the night, during a heavy thunder-storm, and removed all

his troops to Island Number Ten. … General Pope lost 51 men in

killed and wounded during the day's bombardment; the loss of

the Confederates is not known, but is thought to have been

more than a hundred. About the time of the capture of New

Madrid, Commodore Foote sailed from Cairo with a fleet of

seven iron-clad gunboats, one wooden gunboat, and ten

mortar-boats, for the purpose of aiding General Pope in the

attack on Island Number Ten. He came in sight of the island on

Saturday, March 15, and on the next morning opened the

bombardment with the rifled guns of the Benton, his flag-ship.

{3457}

The mortar-boats, moored at convenient places along the shore,

soon took part in the firing, and rained bombs into the

Confederate works. … Commodore Foote kept up the bombardment

for many days, without doing much damage to the Confederate

works. But while he kept the enemy busy, General Pope had been

engaged in digging a canal across the swampy peninsula formed

by the bend of the river, so that vessels could go through to

New Madrid without having to pass Island Number Ten. … A large

number of men were employed, and after nineteen days of hard

labor a channel deep enough for light-draught vessels was cut

through. In the night of April 1 a few men from the gunboats,

aided by some of Pope's soldiers, landed on the Kentucky

shore, opposite Island Number Ten, took one of the batteries

by surprise and spiked its six guns. … A few nights afterward

the Carondelet [gunboat] ran safely by all the batteries at

midnight, during a heavy thunderstorm. … Two nights afterward

the Pittsburgh, another gunboat, performed the same feat, with

the same good fortune; and a few days later the Confederates

were astonished to see a fleet of transports laden with troops

and several floating batteries join the gunboats at New

Madrid. … The gunboats soon silenced the one-gun batteries on

the opposite side of the river below New Madrid," and the

Confederates, attempting to escape, were intercepted and

captured (April 7), both those on the mainland and those on

the Island.

_J. D. Champlin, Jr.,

Young Folks' History of the War for the Union,

chapter 16._

Said General Pope in his report: "It is almost impossible to

give a correct account of the immense quantity of artillery,

ammunition, and supplies of every description which fell into

our hands. Three generals, 273 field and company officers,

6,700 privates, 123 pieces of heavy artillery, 35 pieces of

field artillery (all of the very best character and latest

patterns), 7,000 stand of small-arms, tents for 12,000 men,

several wharf-boat loads of provisions, an immense quantity of

ammunition of all kinds, many hundred horses and mules, with

wagons and harness, &c., are among the spoils. Very few, if

any, of the enemy escaped, and only by wading and swimming

through the swamps. The conduct of the troops was splendid

throughout, as the results of this operation and its whole

progress very plainly indicate. We have crossed this great

river, the banks of which were lined with batteries and

defended by 7,000 men. We have pursued and captured the whole

force of the enemy and all his supplies and material of war,

and have again recrossed and reoccupied the camps at New

Madrid, without losing a man or meeting with any accident.

Such results bespeak efficiency, good conduct, high

discipline, and soldierly deportment of the best character far

more conclusively than they can be exhibited in pitched battle

or the storming of fortified places."

_Official Records,

series 1, volume 8._

"In the years since 1862, Island No. 10 … has disappeared. The

river, constantly wearing at its upper end, has little by

little swept away the whole. … On the other shore a new No. 10

has risen."

_A. T. Mahan,

The Navy in the Civil War: The Gulf and Inland Waters,

chapter 2._

UNITED STATES OF AMERICA: A. D. 1862 (March-May: Virginia).

The Peninsular Campaign.

McClellan before Yorktown.

"When Manassas had been abandoned by the enemy [see UNITED

STATES OF AMERICA: A. D. 1861-1862 (December-March: Virginia)]

and he had withdrawn behind the Rapidan, the Urbana movement

lost much of its promise, as the enemy was now in position to

reach Richmond before we could do so. The alternative remained

of making Fort Monroe and its vicinity the base of operations.

The plan first adopted was to commence the movement with the

First Corps as a unit, to land north of Gloucester and move

thence on West Point; or, should circumstances render it

advisable, to land a little below Yorktown to turn the

defenses between that place and Fort Monroe. The Navy

Department were confident that we could rely upon their

vessels to neutralize the Merrimac and aid materially in

reducing the batteries on the York River. … As transports

arrived very slowly, especially those for horses, and the

great impatience of the Government grew apace, it became

necessary to embark divisions as fast as vessels arrived, and

I decided to land them at Fort Monroe, holding the First Corps

to the last, still intending to move it in mass to turn

Gloucester. On the 17th of March the leading division embarked

at Alexandria. The campaign was undertaken with the intention

of taking some 145,000 troops, to be increased by a division

of 10,000 drawn from the troops in the vicinity of Fort

Monroe. … On the 12th of March I learned that there had

appeared in the daily papers the order relieving me from the

general command of all the armies and confining my authority

to the Department of the Potomac. I had received no previous

intimation of the intention of the Government in this respect.

… On my arrival at Fort Monroe on the 2d of April, I found

five divisions of infantry, Sykes's brigade of regulars, two

regiments of cavalry, and a portion of the reserve artillery

disembarked. Another cavalry regiment and a part of a fourth

had arrived, but were still on shipboard; comparatively few

wagons had come. … The best information obtainable represented

the Confederate troops around Yorktown as numbering at least

15,000, with about an equal force at Norfolk; and it was clear

that the army lately at Manassas, now mostly near

Gordonsville, was in position to be thrown promptly to the

Peninsula. … On my arrival at Fort Monroe I learned, in an

interview with Flag-Officer Goldsborough, that he could not

protect the James as a line of supply, and that he could

furnish no vessels to take an active part in the reduction of

the batteries at York and Gloucester or to run by and gain

their rear. He could only aid in the final attack after our

land batteries had essentially silenced their fire. I thus

found myself with 53,000 men in condition to move, faced by

the conditions of the problem just stated. Information was

received that Yorktown was already being reenforced from

Norfolk, and it was apprehended that the main Confederate army

would promptly follow the same course. I therefore determined

to move at once with the force in hand, and endeavor to seize

a point—near the Halfway House—between Yorktown and

Williamsburg, where the Peninsula is reduced to a narrow neck,

and thus cut off the retreat of the Yorktown garrison and

prevent the arrival of reenforcements.

{3458}

The advance commenced on the morning of the 4th of April, and

was arranged to turn successively the intrenchments on the two

roads; the result being that, on the afternoon of the 5th, the

Third Corps was engaged with the enemy's outposts in front of

Yorktown and under the artillery fire of the place. The Fourth

Corps came upon Lee's Mills and found it covered by the

unfordable line of the Warwick, and reported the position so

strong as to render it impossible to execute its orders to

assault. Thus all things were brought to a stand-still, and

the intended movement on the Halfway House could not be

carried out. Just at this moment came a telegram, dated the

4th, informing me that the First Corps [McDowell's] was

withdrawn from my command. Thus, when too deeply committed to

recede, I found that another reduction of about 43,000 …

diminished my paper force to 92,000, instead of the 155,000 on

which the plans of the campaign had been founded, … which

reduced the numbers actually available for battle to some

67,000 or 68,000. The order withdrawing the First Corps also

broke up the Department of the Potomac, forming out of it the

Department of the Shenandoah, under General Banks, and the

Department of the Rappahannock, under General McDowell, the

latter including Washington. … In our front was an intrenched

line, apparently too strong for assault, and which I had now

no means of turning, either by land or water. … Whatever may

have been said afterward, no one at the time—so far as my

knowledge extended—thought an assault practicable without

certain preliminary siege operations. … We were thus obliged

to resort to siege operations in order to silence the enemy's

artillery fire, and open the way to an assault. All the

batteries would have been ready to open fire on the 5th, or,

at latest, on the morning of the 6th of May; … but during the

night of the 3d and 4th of May the enemy evacuated his

positions. … Meanwhile, on the 22d of April, Franklin's

division of McDowell's corps had joined me by water, in

consequence of my urgent calls for reënforcements … [and, May

7th] disembarked near West Point and took up a suitable

position to hold its own and cover the landing of

reënforcements."

_G. B. McClellan,

The Peninsular Campaign

(Battles and Leaders, volume 2, pages 160-187)._

General Joseph E. Johnston, who assumed command of the

Confederate forces on the Peninsula, April 17, says in his

"Narrative": "I went to the Peninsula as soon as possible,

reaching General Magruder's headquarters early in the morning.

… That officer had estimated the importance of at least

delaying the invaders until an army capable of coping with

them could be formed; and opposed them with about a tenth of

their number, on a line of which Yorktown, intrenched, made

the left flank. This boldness imposed upon the Federal

general, and made him halt to besiege instead of assailing the

Confederate position. This resolute and judicious course on

the part of General Magruder was of incalculable value. It

saved Richmond, and gave the Confederate Government time to

swell that officer's handful to an army. … The arrival of

Smith's and Longstreet's divisions increased the army on the

Peninsula to about 53,000 men, including 3,000 sick. … I could

see no other object in holding the position than that of

delaying the enemy's progress, to gain time."

_J. E. Johnston,

Narrative of Military Operations,

chapters 4-5._

ALSO IN:

_J. C. Palfrey,

The Siege of Yorktown

(Massachusetts Military Historical Society Papers,

volume 1, pages 31-92)._

_Comte de Paris,

History of the Civil War in America,

volume 2, book 1, chapter 1._

UNITED STATES OF AMERICA: A. D. 1862 (March-June).

Appointment of Military Governors in Tennessee,

North Carolina, and Louisiana.

"By the Union victories in the spring of 1862 very

considerable areas of territory in States in rebellion came

under the control and occupation of the Union armies. … The

sudden change from Confederate to Federal authority involved

everywhere either a serious derangement or total cessation of

the ordinary administration of local civil law, and the

displacement from the occupied territory of State governments

and State officials who claimed to be exercising functions

under ordinances of secession, and yielding obedience to the

self-styled Confederate States. A similar displacement had

occurred in Virginia and in Missouri during the year 1861, but

in those States prompt remedies were available," by means of

popular movements, through delegated conventions, which

abrogated the rebellious and reinstated loyal State

governments in operation. The courses pursued in Virginia and

Missouri were not practicable, however, in other cases, and "a

substitute was found in the appointment of military governors

to represent and exert such State and local authority as the

anomalous conditions made practicable, and as the supreme

military necessities might allow. The first of these

appointments occurred in Tennessee. Nashville, the capital,

having been evacuated about February 23, 1862, President

Lincoln nominated, and the Senate confirmed, Andrew Johnson

(March 4, 1862) as military governor with the rank of

brigadier-general. … Conforming to this precedent, Mr.

Lincoln, through the Secretary of War, appointed Edward

Stanley military governor of North Carolina, 'with authority

to exercise and perform, within the limits of that State, all

and singular the powers, duties, and functions pertaining to

the office of military governor (including the power to

establish all necessary offices and tribunals, and suspend the

writ of habeas corpus) during the pleasure of the President,

or until the loyal inhabitants of that State shall organize a

civil government in conformity with the Constitution of the

United States.' … In like manner, soon after news was received

of the successes in the Gulf, Colonel G. F. Shepley (of the

12th Maine Infantry) of Butler's army was appointed military

governor of Louisiana, this selection being made because

General Butler had already designated him to act as mayor of

the city of New Orleans, and it was thought best to combine

both functions in the same individual."

_J. G. Nicolay and J. Hay,

Abraham Lincoln,

volume 6, chapter 16._

UNITED STATES OF AMERICA: A. D. 1862 (April: On the Mississippi).

Farragut's passage of the lower forts

and capture of New Orleans.

"About the close of the gloomy and disastrous year 1861, the

Government of the United States determined to regain control

of the Mississippi. … After long consideration, Farragut was

chosen as the naval officer to command in the Gulf. The story

of his southern birth, and of his steadfast loyalty to his

flag, is too well known to be here repeated. His formal orders

put him in command of the 'Western Gulf Blockading Squadron,'

and these were issued in January, 1862.

{3459}

But confidential instructions were also given him, by which he

was especially charged with the 'reduction of the defences

guarding the approaches to New Orleans, and the taking

possession of that city.' He was to be assisted by a

mortar-fleet of schooners, under commander D. D. Porter. … On

February 2d, 1862, Farragut sailed for the Gulf, in the

sloop-of-war Hartford, which was so long to bear his flag,

successfully, through manifold dangers. The Hartford was a

wooden screw-steamer, full ship-rigged, and of 1,900 tons

burthen. She was of comparatively light draught, and,

therefore, well suited to the service she was called upon to

perform. … The Hartford arrived at her rendezvous, Ship

Island, 100 miles north-northeast of the mouths _ of the

Mississippi, on February 20th. A military force, to co-operate

with Farragut's fleet, was sent out, under General B. F.

Butler, and arrived at Ship Island on March 25th."

_E. Shippen,

Naval Battles,

chapter 41._

"At a point about 30 miles above the head of the passes, where

the river makes its last great bend—the lowest favorable

locality for defense before reaching the Gulf—the United

States Government had erected two forts, St. Philip on the

left or north bank, and Jackson a little farther down stream

on the right. … The Confederate Government had early taken

possession of these forts, and put them in complete order.

When Farragut's fleet appeared before them, Fort Jackson, with

its water battery, mounted 75 guns, and St. Philip about 40. …

Just above the forts lay a rebel fleet of 15 vessels, under

Commodore J. K. Mitchell, including the iron-clad ram Manassas

and an immense floating battery covered with railroad iron,

called the Louisiana. Just below Fort Jackson the Confederates

had obstructed the river with a heavy chain, brought from

Pensacola. … The task that lay before Farragut was, to break

through the obstructions, pass between the forts, conquer the

rebel fleet, and then steam up to New Orleans, lay the city

under his guns, and demand its surrender. For its

accomplishment he had 6 sloops-of-war, 16 gunboats, 21

schooners, each carrying a 13-inch mortar, and 5 other

vessels. The fleet carried over 200 guns. … The schooners

sailed up partly, or were towed by steamers, and on the

morning of the 18th of April they had all reached their

positions, ready to open fire. … For six days and nights the

mortars kept up an unremitting fire, mainly on Fort Jackson,

throwing nearly 6,000 shells. The Confederates acknowledged a

loss of 14 killed and 39 wounded by the bombardment. …

Farragut's patience was sorely tried by this delay. He had

never had much faith in the mortars, and now it was evident,

as he had anticipated, that almost the only practical effect

of the bombardment was, to give the enemy long warning of the

attack by the ships. … Having decided to run by the forts, he

confided to his trusted Fleet Captain, Bell, the dangerous

mission of proceeding with the gunboats Pinola and Itasca to

make a passage for his fleet through the chain obstructions. …

A sufficient opening was made for the fleet to pass through,

in spite of the heavy fire to which the party were subjected.

… Farragut had made up his mind to run by the forts at the

close of the fifth day's bombardment; but the necessity of

repairing damages to two of his vessels delayed him

twenty-four hours longer. He had intended to lead the column

in his flag-ship Hartford; but in the final disposition he

gave that post to Captain Theodorus Bailey, at his own earnest

request, who hoisted his red flag on the gunboat Cayuga. … The

attempt to pass was to be made in the night, April 23-24;

and, as the moon would rise about half past 3 o'clock in the

morning, the fleet were warned to expect the signal for

sailing at about 2 o'clock. … Lieutenant Commanding Caldwell

sent up in the Itasca to examine the obstructions and find

whether the passage was still open. At 11 o'clock he gave the

signal that it was, and about the same time the enemy opened

fire on him, sent down burning rafts, and lighted the immense

piles of wood which they had prepared on the shore near the

ends of the chain. … It was half past 3, the hour of moonrise,

before all was ready. In the light of the blazing rafts and

bonfires, moon or no moon made little difference now. …

Captain Bailey led off with his division of 8 vessels, whose

objective was Fort St. Philip, and all of them passed through

the opening in the cable. Both forts opened fire upon his

flag-ship, the Cayuga, soon after she had passed the hulks.

Five minutes later she was pouring grape and canister into St.

Philip, and in ten minutes more she had passed beyond range of

that work, to find herself surrounded by 11 rebel gun-boats.

Three of them attempted to board her at once. An 11-inch shot

was sent through one of them at the close range of 30 yards,

and she immediately ran aground and burned up. The Parrott gun

on the forecastle drove off another; and Bailey was preparing

to close with the third, when the Oneida and Varuna, which had

run in close to St. Philip, thus avoiding the elevated guns of

the fort, while they swept its bastions with grape and

scrapnel, came up to the assistance of the Cayuga. The Oneida

ran under full steam into one of the rebel ships, cut her

nearly in two, and left her to float down stream a helpless

wreck. She fired right and left into the others, and then went

to the assistance of the Varuna, which was ashore on the left

bank, hard pressed by the Governor Moore and another, said to

be the Manassas. The Varuna was rammed by them both, and sank

at the end of 15 minutes; but in that time it is claimed that

she put three 8-inch shells into the Governor Moore, and so

crippled her with solid shot that she surrendered to the

Oneida, and drove five 8-inch shells into another, which sent

her ashore. Still another of her shells exploded the boiler of

a rebel steamer. The Pensacola steamed steadily but slowly by,

firing with great deliberation and regularity. … The

Mississippi was fought regularly in line, like the Pensacola,

but escaped with light losses. She encountered the ram

Manassas, which gave her a severe cut on the port quarter

below the water-line, and disabled her machinery. But she

riddled the ram with shot, boarded her, and set her on fire,

so that she drifted below the forts and blew up. The Katahdin

ran close to the forts, steamed by rapidly, and got near the

head of the line, where she put a few good shots into the

iron-clad Louisiana. The Kineo ran by close under St. Philip,

and then assisted the Mississippi in handling the ram

Manassas; but she was afterward attacked by three rebel gun

boats at once, and, her pivot-gun carriage becoming injured,

she withdrew and continued on up stream.

{3460}

The Wissahickon ran ashore before she reached the forts, got

off, passed them, and above ran ashore again. Most of these

operations were carried on in the darkness occasioned by the

thick smoke, lighted, however, by the lurid flashes of more

than 200 guns. The Hartford, bearing Flag-Officer Farragut,

led the second division of the fleet. … In attempting to avoid

a fire-raft, she grounded on a shoal near St. Philip. At the

same time the ram Manassas pushed a raft upon her port

quarter, and in an instant she was on fire. A part of the crew

went to 'fire quarters' and soon subdued the flames, while the

working of her guns was steadily continued, and she was then

backed off into deep water. This movement turned the ship's

head down stream, and it was with some difficulty that she was

turned around against the current; but this was finally

accomplished, and she continued to steam up the river, firing

into several of the enemy's vessels as she passed. Among these

was a steamer full of men, apparently a boarding-party. She

was making straight for the Hartford when Captain Broome's

gun, manned by marines, planted a shell in her, which

exploded, and she disappeared. … The Brooklyn got out of her

course, ran over one of the hulks, and became entangled in the

raft, where she suffered a raking fire from Fort Jackson, and

a pretty severe one from St. Philip. Scarcely was she

disentangled and on her way up stream when she was butted by

the Manassas, which, however, had not headway enough to damage

her much, and slid off in the darkness. Then she was attacked

by a large rebel steamer, but gave her the port broadside at

fifty yards and set her on fire. Groping along through a black

cloud of smoke from a fire-raft, she came close abreast of St.

Philip, into which she poured such tremendous broadsides that

by the flashes the gunners were seen running to shelter, and

for the time the fort was silenced. The Brooklyn then passed

on, and engaged several of the enemy's gunboats at short

range. One of these, the Warrior, came under the port

broadside, when eleven 5-second shells were instantly planted

in her, all of which exploded, setting her on fire, and she

was run ashore. The Brooklyn was under fire an hour and a

half, and her losses were almost as severe as those of the

Pensacola. The Richmond, a slow ship, brought up the rear of

the second division, steaming steadily and working her guns

with great regularity. … The Sciota, carrying Fleet-Captain

Bell, led the third division. She steamed by the forts, firing

as she passed, and above them burned two steamboats. … The

Iroquois passed within 50 yards of Fort Jackson without

injury, but was subjected to a terrible raking cross-fire from

St. Philip, and was also raked by the McCrea. … Her losses

were heavy. The Pinola passed up in line, firing her 11-inch

pivot-gun and Parrott rifles at the flashes of Fort Jackson's

guns, which at first were all that could be seen; then she

emerged from the cloud of smoke, stood over toward St. Philip,

and in the light of the blazing rafts received the discharges

of its 40 guns. She was the last vessel that passed the forts,

and got up in time to put one or two shells into the gunboats

of the enemy. The Kennebec got out of her course, became

entangled in the rafts, and did not get free till it was broad

daylight and too late to attempt a passage. The Itasca,

arriving in front of Fort Jackson, received a shot in her

boiler, which made it impossible for her to proceed, and was

turned down stream. The Winona got astray among the hulks, and

lost so much time that when she came within range of Fort

Jackson it was daylight, and the fleet had passed on. The

first three or four shots from the fort swept away the entire

crew of her rifled gun, save one man. Still she kept on, until

the lower battery of St. Philip opened on her at less than

point-blank range; this was too much for her, and she

prudently headed down stream and ran out of the fire. Thus was

accomplished a feat in naval warfare which had no precedent,

and which is still without a parallel except the one furnished

by Farragut himself, two years later, at Mobile. Starting with

17 wooden vessels, he had passed with all but 3 of them,

against the swift current of a river but half a mile wide,

between two powerful earthworks which had long been prepared

for him, his course impeded by blazing rafts, and immediately

thereafter had met the enemy's fleet of 15 vessels, two of

them iron-clad, and either captured or destroyed every one of

them. And all this with a loss of but one ship from his own

squadron."

_L. Farragut,

Life of Farragut,

chapters 18-19._

Commander Porter, who kept up the mortar fire while Farragut

was forcing his way, says of the battle: "No grander or more

beautiful sight could have been realized than the scenes of

that night. From silence, disturbed now and then only by the

slow fire of the mortars,—the phantom-like movements of the

vessels giving no sound—an increased roar of heavy guns began,

while the mortars burst forth into rapid bombardment, as the

fleet drew near the enemy's works. Vessel after vessel added

her guns to those already at work, until the very earth seemed

to shake from their reverberations. A burning raft added its

lurid glare to the scene, and the fiery tracks of the

mortar-shells, as they passed through the darkness aloft, and

sometimes burst in mid-air, gave the impression that heaven

itself had joined in the general strife. The succeeding

silence was almost as sudden. From the weighing of the

anchors, one hour and ten minutes saw the vessels by the

forts, and Farragut on his way to New Orleans, the prize

staked upon the fierce game of war just ended."

_D. D. Porter,

Naval History of the Civil War,

page 185._

"General Lovell, who was in command at New Orleans, had come

down the river in a steamboat to observe the operations and

was very nearly captured; he hastened back to the city to

withdraw his forces. When the news spread through the streets

that the Federal fleet had passed the forts and had destroyed

the Confederate flotilla, a strange scene followed; a scene

impossible, perhaps, in any other American city under parallel

circumstances. The brave, active, fighting men of New Orleans

were far away in the armies of the South; but they had left

behind a slinking swarm of human vermin. … These, when they

saw a hopeless panic seize the good people of the city, poured

forth from their dens and began an indiscriminate pillaging of

houses, shops, and storage-sheds. Thus while the better class

of citizens were frantically setting fire to the cotton (some

12,000 bales) the cut-throats and ruffians, the hardened women

and even the lawless children, were raging from place to

place, back and forth, here and there, wildly plundering and

aimlessly destroying. … All the public materials, consisting

of army supplies, were heaped up in the middle of the streets

and burned.

{3461}

General Lovell withdrew his soldiers on the evening of the

24th, leaving the city at the mercy of the Federal fleet,

which at 1 o'clock on the following day steamed up the river

and anchored in the middle of the stream not far from the foot

of Canal Street. … The mob which lately had been committing

such foul deeds, now swayed back and forth in the streets,

hooting, yelling and cursing, urging the people to resist the

landing of the Federals. Commodore Farragut demanded the

formal surrender of the city, but the mayor was powerless. He

could not surrender the city while the people were controlled

by an unreasoning mob. Consequently, on the 20th, a detachment

under command of Fleet Captain H. H. Bell was sent ashore to

take possession of the public buildings."

_M. Thompson,

The Story of Louisiana,

chapter 11._

"The success was almost beyond price to the Union Government

from its moral importance on both sides of the Atlantic. As to

the material advantage won, it may be best judged of by the

statement of the well-known Confederate writer, Mr. Pollard: …

'It was a heavy blow to the Confederacy. It annihilated us in

Louisiana; separated us from Texas and Arkansas; diminished

our resources and supplies by the loss of one of the greatest

grain and cattle countries within the limits of the

Confederacy; gave to the enemy the Mississippi River, with all

its means of navigation, for a base of operations.' … In

calling the capture of New Orleans 'one of the most remarkable

triumphs in the whole history of naval operations' he [Mr.

Welles, Secretary of the Navy] is fully justified."

_C. C. Chesney,

Essays in Military Biog.,

page 167-168._

ALSO IN:

_D. D. Porter, J. R. Bartlett and others,

The Capture of New Orleans

(Battles and Leaders, volume 2)._

_A. T. Mahan,

Admiral Farragut,

chapter 7._

_Official Records,

series 1, volume 6._

UNITED STATES OF AMERICA: A. D. 1862 (April-May: Alabama).

General Mitchell's expedition.

The division of Buell's army commanded by General Ormsby M.

Mitchell left Nashville with the other divisions of that army,

late in March, but took the road to Murfreesboro, while the

latter marched toward Pittsburg Landing. On the 4th of April

General Mitchell marched from Murfreesboro to Shelbyville, 26

miles distant. "On the 7th he advanced to Fayetteville, 27

miles farther, and the next forenoon, the 8th, 15 miles

beyond, he crossed the State line of Alabama. Continuing his

march six miles farther, and being within ten miles of

Huntsville, Alabama, he halted for the artillery and infantry

to come up." At an early hour the next morning he entered the

town, taking it completely by surprise. "Before the close of

the day 100 miles of the Memphis and Charleston railroad were

in his possession, stretching in one direction as far as

Stevenson, and in the other as far as Decatur. … From Decatur

he pushed on at once to Tuscumbia. Thus, without the loss of a

single life, General Mitchell placed his army midway between

Corinth and Chattanooga, prevented the destruction of a fine

bridge at Decatur, opened communication with General Buell,

and also the navigation of the Tennessee. The occupation of

Huntsville also cut off all communication between the east and

west by the Memphis and Charleston railroad. … This extension

of General Mitchell's lines to hold the railroad rendered his

situation precarious. Soon the enemy began to gather in force

and threaten him. … He was raised to the rank of a

major-general, and ordered to report directly to the [war]

department, and his force was constituted an independent

corps. But he got no reënforcements, he was left in such a

condition that he at first hardly had anything to report but

that he had been gradually driven from those positions, the

gaining of which had made him a major-general." Subsequently

he advanced upon Chattanooga; but that important position was

not secured. A little later General Mitchell was transferred

to Port Royal, South Carolina.

_W. J. Tenney,

Military and Naval History of the Rebellion,

chapter 15._

It was in connection with General Mitchell's expedition that

the thrilling episode of the railroad raid in Georgia

occurred, narratives of which have been published by one of

the participants, Reverend William Pittenger, first under the

title of "Capturing a Locomotive," and afterwards with the

title "Daring and Suffering," and also as "The Great

Locomotive Chase." Volume Two of "Battles and Leaders of the

Civil War" also contains the story, entitled "The Locomotive

Chase in Georgia," preceded by General Buell's critical

account of Mitchell's entire operations.

UNITED STATES OF AMERICA: A. D. 1862

(April-May: Tennessee-Mississippi).

The bloodless and bootless conquest of Corinth.

"General Halleck arrived at Pittsburg landing on the 11th of

April and immediately assumed command in the field. On the

21st General Pope arrived with an army 30,000 strong, fresh

from the capture of Island Number Ten in the Mississippi

River. He went into camp at Hamburg landing five miles above

Pittsburg. Halleck had now three armies: the Army of the Ohio,

Buell commanding; the Army of the Mississippi, Pope

commanding; and the Army of the Tennessee. His orders divided

the combined force into the right wing, reserve, centre, and

left wing. … I [General Grant] was named second in command of

the whole, and was also supposed to be in command of the right

wing and reserve. … Preparations were at once made upon the

arrival of the new commander for an advance on Corinth. …

Corinth, Mississippi, lies in a south-westerly direction from

Pittsburg landing and about 19 miles away as the bird would

fly, but probably 22 by the nearest wagon-road. It is about

four miles south of the line dividing the States of Tennessee

and Mississippi, and at the junction of the Mississippi and

Chattanooga Railroad with the Mobile and Ohio road which runs

from Columbus to Mobile. … Corinth was a valuable strategic

point for the enemy to hold, and consequently a valuable one

for us to possess ourselves of. We ought to have seized it

immediately after the fall of Donelson and Nashville, when it

could have been taken without a battle, but failing then it

should have been taken, without delay, on the concentration of

troops at Pittsburg landing after the battle of Shiloh. In

fact, the arrival of Pope should not have been awaited. There

was no time from the battle of Shiloh up to the evacuation of

Corinth when the enemy would not have left if pushed. … On the

30th of April the grand army commenced its advance from Shiloh

upon Corinth. The movement was a siege from the start to the

close.

{3462}

The National troops were always behind intrenchments, except

of course the small reconnoitring parties sent to the front to

clear the way for an advance. Even the commanders of these

parties were cautioned, 'not to bring on an engagement.' … For

myself, I was little more than an observer. Orders were sent

direct to the right wing or reserve, ignoring me, and advances

were made from one line of intrenchments to another without

notifying me. My position was so embarrassing in fact that I

made several applications during the siege to be relieved. …

On the 28th of May, General Logan, whose command was then on

the Mobile and Ohio railroad, said to me that the enemy had

been evacuating for several days, and that if allowed he could

go into Corinth with his brigade. … Beauregard published his

orders for the evacuation of Corinth on the 26th of May and

fixed the 29th for the departure of his troops, and on the

30th of May General Halleck had his whole army drawn up

prepared for battle and announced in orders that there was

every indication that our left was to be attacked that

morning. Corinth had already been evacuated and the National

troops marched on and took possession without opposition.

Everything had been destroyed or carried away. The Confederate

commander had instructed his soldiers to cheer on the arrival

of every train, to create the impression among the Yankees

that reinforcements were arriving. There was not a sick or

wounded man left by the Confederates, nor stores of any kind.

Some ammunition had been blown up—not removed—but the trophies

of war were a few Quaker guns, logs of about the diameter of

ordinary cannon, mounted on wheels of wagons and pointed in

the most threatening manner towards us. The possession of

Corinth by the National troops was of strategic importance,

but the victory was barren in every other particular. …

General Halleck at once commenced erecting fortifications

around Corinth on a scale to indicate that this one point must

be held if it took the whole National army to do it. … They

were laid out on a scale that would have required 100,000 men

to fully man them. … These fortifications were never used. …

After the capture of Corinth a movable force of 80,000 men,

besides enough to hold all the territory acquired, could have

been set in motion for the accomplishment of any great

campaign for the suppression of the rebellion. In addition to

this fresh troops were being raised to swell the effective

force. But the work of depletion commenced."

_U. S. Grant,

Personal Memoirs,

chapter 26 (volume 1)._

ALSO IN:

_M. F. Force,

From Fort Henry to Corinth

(Campaigns of the Civil War, volume 2),

chapter 8._

_A. Roman,

Military Operations of General Beauregard,

chapter 24 (volume 1)._

_Official Records,

series 1, volume 10._

UNITED STATES OF AMERICA: A. D. 1862 (April-June).

Abolition of Slavery in the District of Columbia

and in the Territories.

On the 16th of December, 1861, Mr Wilson, of Massachusetts,

introduced in the Senate of the United States a bill for the

immediate emancipation of the slaves in the District of

Columbia; "for the payment to their loyal owners of an average

sum of $300; for the appointment of a commission to assess the

sum to be paid; and the appropriation of $1,000,000. This bill

was reported back on the 13th of February, 1862, with

amendments. On the 24th he introduced a bill which, he said,

was supplementary to that already before the Senate, to repeal

the act extending the laws of Maryland over the District, and

to annul all those statutes which gave the cities of

Washington and Georgetown authority to pass ordinances

discriminating against persons on account of color. On the

12th of March it came up for debate in committee of the whole.

The debate on these resolutions, the bill, and other cognate

measures exhibit elements of interest hardly found in any

other session of the American Congress on record. It was

emphatically a new departure. … No important change was made,

and on the 3d of April, 1862, the bill introduced by Mr.

Wilson more than three months before was passed by a vote of

29 to 14. The bill was taken up in the House the next week,

and gave rise to a brief but brilliant debate. … The bill …

passed the House by a vote of 92 to 38, and received the

approval of the President on the 16th day of April, 1862. The

President, in his message accompanying his approval of the

bill, had stated some objections to it. These objections were

that certain classes, such as married women, minors, and

persons absent from the District, were not sufficiently

protected and provided for; and he suggested that these

defects should be remedied by additional legislation"—which

was done. "On the 24th of March, 1862, Mr. Arnold, of

Illinois, introduced a bill into the House of Representatives

to render freedom national and slavery sectional. It was

referred to the Committee on Territories, was reported on the

1st of May, with an amendment, and made the order of the day

for the 8th. It provided that freedom should be the

fundamental law of the land, and that slavery should no longer

exist in all places under the direct and exclusive control of

the Federal government. It prohibited slavery in all

Territories, then or thereafter existing; in all places

purchased by the government, with the consent of the

legislatures of the several States, for forts, magazines,

arsenals, doek-yards, and other needful buildings; in all

vessels on the high seas, and on all national highways, beyond

the territory and jurisdiction of the several States. … The

difficulties, … real or seeming, constitutional or other, were

too great to secure the united action of the friends of the

underlying principle of the bill as reported by the committee.

Mr. Lovejoy, therefore, moved a substitute restricting its

action entirely to the Territories. The substitute was

accepted, and the bill as thus amended was carried by a vote

of 85 to 50. The preamble was so amended as to read, 'An act

to secure freedom to all persons within the Territories of

the United States.' In the Senate, on the 15th of May, Mr.

Browning, reported the bill from the Committee on Territories

with an amendment that, from and after the passage of the act,

there should be neither slavery nor involuntary servitude in

any existing Territory, or in any Territory thereafter formed

or acquired. It was, substantially, the application of the

principle of the ordinance of 1787 to all the territory then

possessed or thereafter to be acquired. On the 9th of June the

Senate proceeded to its consideration, adopted the amendment,

and passed the bill by a vote of 28 to 10. The House agreed to

the Senate amendment, and the bill thus amended was passed on

the 17th, and approved by the President on the 19th of June."

_H. Wilson,

History of the Rise and Fall of the Slave Power in America,

volume 3, chapters 21 and 24._

ALSO IN:

_M. Tremain,

Slavery in the District of Columbia

(University of Nebraska: Seminary Papers Number 2)._

{3463}

UNITED STATES OF AMERICA: A. D. 1862 (May).

Passage of the Homestead Act.

"The homestead bill, or the granting of free homes from and on

the public domain, became a national question in 1852. The

Free Soil Democracy, at Pittsburg, Pa., August 11, 1852, in

National Convention, nominated John P. Hale, of New Hampshire,

and George W. Julian, of Indiana, for President and

Vice-President, and adopted the following as the 12th plank or

resolution in their platform: 'That the public lands of the

United States belong to the people, and should not be sold to

individuals, nor granted to corporations, but should be held

as a sacred trust for the benefit of the people, and should be

granted in limited quantities, free of cost, to landless

settlers.' Thereafter it became a national question until its

passage in 1862, and was in the platforms of political

parties. It was petitioned for and against. Public sentiment

was aroused. It was a serious innovation and would cause an

almost entire change in the settlement laws. Instead of the

public lands being sold for cash, for profit, or being taken,

first, under the pre-emption system, which eventuated in cash

purchases, they were to be given to actual settlers who would

occupy, improve, and cultivate them for a term of years, and

then receive a patent free of acreage charges, with fees paid

by the homesteader sufficient to cover cost of survey and

transfer of title. … The rich and fertile lands of the

Mississippi Valley were fast filling up with settlers.

Agricultural lands in the Middle States, which, after the year

1824, were bought for $1.25 per acre, now sold at from $50 to

$80 per acre. Former purchasers of these Government lands in

the Middle, Western, and Southern States, were selling their

early purchases for this great advance, and moving west, to

Iowa, Wisconsin, Minnesota, and Missouri, and there again

taking cheap Government lands under the pre-emption laws. The

western emigration caused a rush—a migration of neighborhoods

in many localities of the older Western States. Following the

sun, their pillar of fire, these State founders moved

westward, a resistless army of agents of American

civilization, and there was a demand for homes on the public

lands, and a strong pressure for the enactment of a law which

should confine locators to small tracts, and require actual

occupation, improvement, and cultivation. A fierce political

battle now ensued, beginning in 1854, and continuing until

1862, the year of the passage of the law. The demand of the

settlers was incessant and constant." Mr. Galusha A. Grow, of

Pennsylvania, made himself the special champion of the measure

in Congress. On the 1st of February, 1859, a bill embodying

its principles was carried in the House, but was not permitted

to reach a vote in the Senate. The slaveholding interest was

almost solidly against it. In March, 1860, a similar bill was

again passed by the House. The Senate substituted a bill

granting homesteads to actual settlers at twenty-five cents

per acre, instead of free of cost. After protracted

conferences, the House was forced to accept the Senate bill,

with slight amendments. But if the enemies of the measure had

so nearly lost their control of Congress, they still owned the

President—Buchanan—and he killed it by a veto. Then came the

rebellion and civil war, absorbing all minor questions, and

nearly two years went by before the law which opened the

public lands freely to all actual settlers was adopted. It

became a law by the signature of President Lincoln on the 20th

of May, 1862. The following are the essential provisions of

the Act: "That any person who is the head of a family, or who

has arrived at the age of twenty-one years, and is a citizen

of the United States, or who shall have filed his declaration

of intention to become such, as required by the naturalization

laws of the United States, and who has never borne arms

against the United States Government or given aid and comfort

to its enemies, shall, from and after the first January,

eighteen hundred and sixty-three, be entitled to enter one

quarter-section or a less quantity of unappropriated public

lands, upon which said person may have filed a pre-emption

claim, or which may, at the time the application is made, be

subject to pre-emption at one dollar and twenty-five cents, or

less, per acre; or eighty acres or less of such unappropriated

lands, at two dollars and fifty cents per acre, to be located

in a body, in conformity to the legal subdivisions of the

public lands, and after the same shall have been surveyed:

Provided, That any person owning or residing on land may,

under the provisions of this act, enter other land lying

contiguous to his or her said land, which shall not, with the

land so already owned and occupied, exceed in the aggregate

one hundred and sixty acres. … That the person applying for

the benefit of this act shall, upon application to the

register of the land office in which he or she is about to

make such entry, make affidavit before the said register or

receiver that he or she is the head of a family, or is

twenty-one or more years of age, or shall have performed

service in the Army or Navy of the United States, and that he

has never borne arms against the Government of the United

States or given aid and comfort to its enemies, and that such

application is made for his or her exclusive use and benefit,

and that said entry is made for the purpose of actual

settlement and cultivation, and not, either directly or

indirectly, for the use or benefit of any other person or

persons whomsoever; and upon filing the said affidavit with

the said register or receiver, and on payment of ten dollars,

he or she shall thereupon be permitted to enter the quantity

of land specified: Provided, however, That no certificate

shall be given or patent issued therefor until the expiration

of five years from the date of such entry; and if, at the

expiration of such time, or at any time within two years

thereafter, the person making such entry—or if he be dead,

his widow; or in case of her death, his heirs or devisee; or

in case of a widow making such entry, her heirs or devisee, in

case of her death—shall prove by two credible witnesses that

he, or she, or they have resided upon or cultivated the same

for the term of five years immediately succeeding the time of

filing the affidavit aforesaid, and shall make affidavit that

no part of said land has been alienated, and that he has borne

true allegiance to the Government of the United States; then,

in such case, he, she, or they, if at that time a citizen of

the United States, shall be entitled to a patent, as in other

cases provided for by law:

{3464}

And provided, further, That in case of the death of both

father and mother, leaving an infant child or children under

twenty-one years of age, the right and fee shall inure to the

benefit of said infant child or children; and the executor,

administrator, or guardian may, at any time within two years

after the death of the surviving parent, and in accordance

with the laws of the State in which such children for the time

being have their domicil, sell said land for the benefit of

said infants, but for no other purpose; and the purchaser

shall acquire the absolute title by the purchase, and be

entitled to a patent from the United States, on payment of the

office fees and sum of money herein specified. … That if, at

any time after the filing of the affidavit, … and before the

expiration of the five years aforesaid, it shall be proven,

after due notice to the settler, to the satisfaction of the

register of the land office, that the person having filed such

affidavit shall have actually changed his or her residence, or

abandoned the said land for more than six months at any time,

then and in that event the land so entered shall revert to the

Government.' … This original homestead act has been amended

several times. … The principal amendments were in the nature

of extension of its privileges, and the limit of 80 acres of

land of the double minimum class, $2.50 per acre, within

certain road limits, has since been done away with by acts of

March 3, 1879, July 1, 1879, and June 15, 1880; there now

being but one class of agricultural lands, so for as regards

the minimum quantity in homestead entries. The act of June 8,

1872, was known as the soldiers' and sailors' homestead act.

It gave honorably discharged soldiers and sailors from the

Army and Navy of the United States lands under the homestead

act in any locality, and deducted from the five years'

residence which was required to make title their term of

service in the Army and Navy during the war of the Rebellion.

One year's residence and cultivation, however, were necessary.

… The soldiers' additional homestead provision was to give

those soldiers who had had the benefit of the homestead act,

to the extent of a quantity under 160 acres, an additional

amount, so as to make their allowance 160 acres."

_T. Donaldson,

The Public Domain,

chapter 27._

UNITED STATES OF AMERICA: A. D. 1862 (May).

General Hunter's Emancipation Order,

rescinded by President Lincoln.

Major General David Hunter, having lately succeeded to the

command at Hilton Head, South Carolina, issued, on the 9th of

May, 1862, a General Order (No. 11), declaring martial law in

Georgia, Florida and South Carolina, and adding: "Slavery and

martial law in a free country are altogether incompatible; the

persons in these States … heretofore held as slaves are

therefore declared forever free." This order was rescinded by

President Lincoln in a Proclamation, dated May 19, in which he

used the following language: "Whether it be competent for me,

as Commander-in-Chief of the Army and Navy, to declare the

slaves of any State or States free; and whether at any time,

or in any case, it shall have become a necessity indispensable

to the maintenance of the Government, to exercise such

supposed power, are questions which, under my responsibility,

I reserve to myself, and which I cannot feel justified in

leaving to the decision of commanders in the field."

_E. McPherson,

Political History of the United States during

the Great Rebellion,

pages 250—251._

ALSO IN:

_J. G. Nicolay and J. Hay,

Abraham Lincoln,

volume 6, ch. 5._

UNITED STATES OF AMERICA: A. D. 1862 (May: South Carolina).

Employment of the freed Negroes as armed soldiers.

The negroes within the Union lines in South Carolina, at

Hilton Head and elsewhere, were placed under the charge, at

first, of agents appointed by the Treasury Department; but

disagreements arose between these agents and the military

authorities, and the former were recalled. "These several

agents had been replaced by a superior officer of the staff,

General Saxton, who was himself placed under the orders Of

General Hunter with the rank of a military commander. By this

action the government at Washington sustained Hunter in his

conflict with the agents Of the Treasury Department—a

conflict originating in very serious causes, for it affected

the question of slavery in its most vital points. … Mr.

Cameron [Secretary of the Treasury] had authorized General

Sherman to organize the negroes into squads and companies. The

latter had at first only been employed in manual labor, such

as the construction of forts, roads and wharves; but Hunter,

on taking Sherman's place, saw that he could give a much wider

interpretation to the Secretary's instructions. He substituted

muskets for the pick-axes used by the detachments of negro

laborers organized by his predecessor; and, instead of making

them dig the earth, he had them taught military exercises. Nor

did he stop here; but wishing to increase the number of these

new soldiers, he gathered all the adult negroes residing on

the adjoining islands at Hilton Head on the 12th of May, in

order to induce them to enter the military service. … The

civil agents complained bitterly of the trouble this measure

had created among the people entrusted to their charge, and

thence sprung the quarrel which Mr. Lincoln cut short by

deciding in favor of Hunter. The protection granted to

fugitive slaves was the first logical consequence of the war,

their enrolment in the Federal armies was the second. As

untimely and impolitic as was the proclamation by which Hunter

had taken upon himself to free the slaves outside of his

jurisdiction, the creation Of the first negro regiment was an

act skilfully conceived. It was essentially a military act; it

raised and ennobled the freedman by entrusting him with arms;

its legality was unquestionable from the moment that the

President approved of it, for there was no law to prevent him

from enlisting colored volunteers. In short, it showed to the

Confederates that the Washington government was determined not

to allow itself to be any longer paralyzed by the vain hope Of

reconciliation. … But notwithstanding the success of this

first experiment, considerable time elapsed before the Federal

government concluded to follow Hunter in this direction."

_Comte de Paris,

History of the Civil War in America,

volume 2, book 7, chapter 3._

ALSO IN:

_G. W. Williams,

History of Negro troops in the War of the Rebellion,

chapter 5._

{3465}

UNITED STATES OF AMERICA: A. D. 1862 (May: Virginia).

The Peninsular Campaign: The Battle of Williamsburg

and the slow advance to the Chickahominy.

On the evacuation Of the rebel works at Yorktown, "our columns

followed on in pursuit, McClellan remaining in Yorktown, busy

with questions of transportation. The enemy under Longstreet

had awaited our approach at Williamsburg. Hooker first

attacked, having been brought to a stand by a work known as

Fort Magruder, and kept up a heavy pounding all the forenoon

[May 5). Kearny came to his rescue when Hooker's men were all

but spent. Hancock moved around the enemy's left, seized some

abandoned redoubts, and made a brilliant diversion. But there

was no cooperation in our attack; no one on the field was in

supreme command, and the day was fruitlessly spent in partial

blows. The enemy retreated at night. Our loss was 2,200;

theirs in all probability less."

_T. A. Dodge,

Bird's-eye View of our Civil War,

chapter 11._

"General Johnston says [' Narrative,' p. 124]:

'We fought for no other purpose than to hold the ground long

enough to enable our baggage-trains to get out of the way of

the troops. This object was accomplished without difficulty.

There was no time during the day when the slightest

uncertainty appeared.' He also says that Longstreet's and

Hill's divisions slept on the field; that what deserves to be

called fighting ceased two hours before dark, yet the

Confederates held the field until the next morning, when they

resumed their march. … There may be a little rose-color about

these statements, but the substantial facts seem to be

accurately stated. … General McClellan made no pursuit after

Williamsburg, for reasons which he who will may find stated in

his Report; and we may pass on with the single additional

remark that the battle of Williamsburg was unnecessary, for

the position might have been turned by a movement by our

right. This was actually accomplished by Hancock, after Hooker

had met with all his heavy loss; and it might as well have

been done before as after. … The three weeks which followed

the battle of Williamsburg were so devoid of incident that it

seems to be sufficient to say that the Confederates moved up

the Peninsula in two columns. The right column, composed of

the divisions of Smith and Magruder, followed the road by New

Kent Court House, and in three marches reached the Baltimore

Cross Roads, 19 miles from Barhamsville. The left column,

composed of the divisions of Longstreet and D. H. Hill,

reached in the same number of marches the Long Bridges. The

army remained five days in this position, facing to the east.

… The iron-clad Virginia [better known as the Merrimac] was

destroyed on, or just before, the 14th of May. This event

opened the James River to our navy; and, to be ready to meet

an advance up that river as well as from the direction of West

Point, the Confederate forces were ordered to cross the

Chickahominy on the 15th May. On the 17th their army encamped

about three miles from Richmond, in front of the line of

redoubts constructed in 1861. … During this period the weather

was generally fine, cool and breezy, but gradually tending

towards heat. … McClellan sent out cavalry reconnoissances

from Williamsburg on the 5th and 7th May. … The advance of the

main body began on the 8th; and on the 10th headquarters were

at Roper's Church, 19 miles from Williamsburg, with all the

troops which had arrived by land, except Hooker's, in the

vicinity of that place. … By the 15th, headquarters, and the

divisions of Franklin, Porter, Sykes, and Smith, reached

Cumberland on the Pamunkey. … On the 19th of May, headquarters

and the corps of Porter and Franklin moved to Tunstall's

Station on the railroad, five miles from White House. On the

20th, Casey's division forded the Chickahominy, where Bottom's

Bridge had been, and occupied the opposite heights. Bottom's

Bridge was immediately rebuilt. … On the 22d, headquarters

moved to Cold Harbor. On the 24th, we carried the village of

Mechanicsville, but the enemy destroyed the bridge on which

the Mechanicsville Turnpike crossed the river. On the same day

our left advance secured a position at Seven Pines, the point

of junction of the Nine-Mile Road with the Williamsburg road,

which last road crosses the Chickahominy at Bottom's Bridge. …

It is difficult to account for, or justify, the slowness of

McClellan's march. The distance from Williamsburg to the

middle of a line drawn from Bottom's Bridge to Cold Harbor,

measuring by the road, is about 40 miles. That from West Point

to the same point, measuring in the same way, is considerably

less. One might almost say that, in the three weeks which

McClellan took to accomplish this distance, he might have

marched his army all the way in order of battle, bridging

streams, felling trees, making roads, and supplying his army

as he advanced. 'I had hoped,' he says, 'by rapid movements to

drive before me, or capture, the enemy on the Peninsula, open

the James River, and press on to Richmond, before he should be

materially re-enforced.' What was there to hinder his making

the attempt? Instead of that he followed him at the average

rate of rather less than two miles a day."

_F. W. Palfrey,

After the fall of Yorktown

(Massachusetts Military Historical Society Papers,

volume 1, pages 95-114)._

ALSO IN:

_J. E. Johnston,

Narrative of Military Operations,

chapter 5._

_Report of Joint Commission on the Conduct of the War,

38th Congress 2d session, volume 1._

_Official Records,

series 1, volume 11, part 1._

UNITED STATES OF AMERICA: A. D. 1862 (May: Virginia).

Evacuation of Norfolk by the Rebels.

Destruction of the Merrimac.

"The movement of our grand army up the Peninsula, in

connection with Burnside's successes and captures in North

Carolina, had rendered the possession of Norfolk by the Rebels

no longer tenable. … General Wool, commanding at Fortress

Monroe, having organized an expedition designed to reduce that

important city, led it thither on the 10th; finding the bridge

over Tanner's Creek on fire, but no enemy to dispute

possession of Norfolk, which was quietly surrendered by its

Mayor. The Navy Yard and Portsmouth were in like manner

repossessed; the Rebels, ere they left, destroying every thing

that would burn, partially blowing up the Dry Dock, and

completely destroying their famous iron-clad known to us as

the Merrimac. They left about 200 cannon. … Two unfinished

iron-clads were among the vessels fired by the Rebels ere they

left."

_H. Greeley,

The American Conflict,

volume 2, page 127._

{3466}

UNITED STATES OF AMERICA: A. D. 1862 (May: Virginia).

The Peninsular Campaign: Fair Oaks, or Seven Pines.

"On the 25th of May General McClellan issued a general order,

which was read throughout the camps, directing the troops, as

they advanced beyond the Chickahominy, to be prepared for

battle at a moment's notice, and to be entirely unencumbered,

with the exception of ambulances; to carry three days rations

in their haversacks, leaving their knapsacks with their

wagons, which were on the eastern side of the river, carefully

parked. … The divisions from the corps of Generals Heintzelman

and Keyes were among the first to cross the Chickahominy. They

took a position on the right bank somewhat advanced therefrom.

The right wing rested near New Bridge, the centre at Seven

Pines, and the left flank on the White Oak Swamp. General

Sumner's corps remained on the east side of the river. On the

30th the Confederate General Johnston made arrangements for an

attack upon the Federal army, for the purpose of cutting off,

if possible, the corps of Generals Heintzelman and Keyes

before they could be joined by General Sumner. He selected the

divisions of Generals Longstreet, Huger, G. W. Smith, D. H.

Hill, and Whiting. His plan was that Generals Hill and

Longstreet should advance by the road to Williamsburg and make

the attack in front, and that General Huger should move on the

road to Charles City and attack in flank the troops assailed

by Generals Hill and Longstreet. General Smith was ordered to

the junction of the New Bridge Road and the Nine Mile Road,

and to be in readiness to fall on the right flank of General

Keyes and to cover the left of General Longstreet. The forces

of Generals Hill, Longstreet, and Smith were in position early

on the morning of Saturday, May 31, and waited until afternoon

for General Huger to get into position. Prince de Joinville,

who was a competent spectator, thus describes ['Campagne de l'

Armèe du Potomac, Mars-Juillet, 1862'] the scenes which

followed this attack: 'At the moment it was thus attacked the

Federal army occupied a position having the form of a V. The

base of the V is at Bottom's Bridge, where the railroad

crosses the Chickahominy. The left arm stretches toward

Richmond, with this railroad and the road from that city to

Williamsburg. There stood the left wing, composed of four

divisions echeloned, one behind the other, between Fair Oaks

and Savage stations, and encamped in the woods on both sides

of the road. The other arm of the V, the right, follows the

left bank of the river; that is the right wing. There are

these five divisions and the reserve. Should one desire to

communicate from one extremity to the other of those two

wings, going by Bottom's Bridge, the way is very long, not

less than 12 or 15 miles. In an air line the distance, on the

contrary, is very trifling, but between the two arms of the V

flows the Chickahominy. It was to connect both arms, in the

space between them, that the construction of 3 or 4 bridges

had been undertaken, only one of which was serviceable on the

31st of May. It had been built by General Sumner, nearly half

way between Bottom's Bridge and the most advanced point of the

Federal lines. It saved the army that day from a disaster.'

The other bridges were not ready. They were structures of

logs, and time was required to build them. The approaches were

always bad, and the tedious labor of corduroying long

distances was necessary. 'It was against the left wing of the

army that every effort of the enemy was directed. That wing

had its outposts at Fair Oaks station, on the York river

railroad, and at a place called Seven Pines, on the

Williamsburg road. There the Federals had thrown up a redoubt

in a clearing, where a few houses were to be seen, and

constructed abatis, to increase the field for sharpshooting of

the troops posted there. The rest of the country was

completely covered with woods. The previous day there had been

a frightful storm, with torrents of rain, and the roads were

frightful. All at once, about one o'clock in the afternoon,

the weather being dark and gloomy, a very spirited fusilade is

heard. The pickets and sentries are violently driven in; the

woods which surround Fair Oaks and Seven Pines are filled with

clouds of the enemy's sharpshooters. The troops rush to arms

and fight in desperation; but their adversaries' forces

constantly increase, and their losses do not stop them. The

redoubt of the Seven Pines is surrounded, and its defenders

die bravely. … Meanwhile Heintzelman rushes to the rescue with

his two divisions. As at Williamsburg, Kearney arrives in good

time to reëstablish the fight. Berry's brigade, of this

division, composed of Michigan regiments and an Irish

battalion, advances firm as a wall into the midst of the

disordered mass which wanders over the battle field, and does

more by its example than the most powerful reënforcements.

About a mile of ground has been lost, 15 pieces of cannon, the

camp of the division of the advance guard, that of General

Casey; but now we hold our own. A sort of line of battle is

formed across the woods, perpendicularly to the road and the

railroad, and there the repeated assaults of the enemy's

masses are resisted. The left cannot be turned, where is the

White Oak Swamp, an impassable morass; but the right may be

surrounded. At this very moment, in fact, a strong column of

Confederates has been directed against that side. If it

succeeds in interposing between Bottom's Bridge and the

Federal troops, which hold beyond Savage's Station, the entire

left wing is lost. It will have no retreat, and is doomed to

yield to numbers; but precisely at this moment—that is to say,

at 6 o'clock in the evening—new actors appear on the scene.

General Sumner, who has succeeded in passing the Chickahominy,

with Sedgwick's division, over the bridge constructed by his

troops, and who, like a brave soldier, has marched straight

through the woods to the sound of the cannon, arrived suddenly

on the left flank of the column with which the enemy is

endeavoring to cut off Heintzelman and Keyes. He plants in the

clearing a battery which he has succeeded in bringing with

him. … In vain Johnston sends against this battery his best

troops, those of South Carolina—the Hampton Legion among

others. In vain he rushes on it himself; nothing can shake the

Federals, who, at nightfall, valiantly led by General Sumner

in person, throw themselves upon the enemy at the point of the

bayonet, and drive him furiously, with frightful slaughter and

fear, back as far as Fair Oaks Station. Night put an end to

the combat. On both sides nothing was known of the result of

the battle but what each one had seen with his own eyes. …

Evidently Johnston had flattered himself, in throwing all his

forces on the four divisions of the left wing, that he could

annihilate them before any aid could come to them from the

main body of the army on the left bank of the Chickahominy.

For the moment he had recoiled before the energetic resistance

of those four divisions, and also before the furious and

unforeseen attack of Sumner's troops.

{3467}

No doubt he had counted on the terrible storm of the previous

day to have swelled the Chickahominy so as to render the

establishment of a bridge impossible, or to sweep away in its

overflowing waters those already established; but the

capricious river baffled his plans, as it did some hours later

those of his adversaries. The effect of the deluge was not

immediate; the rise in the water delayed its appearance 24

hours. Was this unhoped-for delay turned to account with all

desirable activity on the part of the Federals? That is a

question which will remain always in dispute. … It was not

until 7 o'clock in the evening that the idea of securing all

the bridges without delay, and causing the whole army to cross

at daybreak to the right bank of the Chickahominy, was

entertained. It was now too late. Four hours had been lost,

and the opportunity—that moment so fleeting, in war as in

other circumstances—had gone. The rise, on which Johnston had

vainly counted, and which had not hindered Sumner from

crossing, came on during the night. The river rose suddenly

from two feet, and continued to swell with rapidity, carrying

away the new bridges, tearing up and sweeping off the trees

which formed the planking of Sumner's bridges, and covering

the entire valley with its overflowing waters. Nothing could

cross. At the earliest dawn of day the combat was resumed with

great fury on the left bank. The enemy came on in a body, but

without order or method, and rushed upon the Federals, who,

knowing that they were inferior in numbers and without hope of

being supported, did not attempt to do more than resist and

hold their ground. They fought with fierce determination on

both sides, without any noise, without any cries, and whenever

they were too hardly pressed they made a charge with the

bayonet. … Toward midday the fire gradually diminished, then

ceased. The enemy retreated; but the Federals were not in a

position to pursue them. No one then knew what a loss the

Southerners had just suffered in the person of their

commander, General Johnston, who was severely wounded. It was

to his absence that was owing, in a great measure, the

unskilful attacks against the Federal army in the morning. …

Who can say what would have been the result if at this moment

the 35,000 fresh troops left on the other side of the

Chickahominy had appeared on the flank of this disordered mass

after having successfully crossed the bridges?'"

_W. J. Tenney,

Military and Naval History of the Rebellion,

chapter 19 (quoting and translating from

Prince de Joinville's "Campagne de l'Armée du Potomac")._

"After this battle of Seven Pines—or Fair Oaks, as the

Northern people prefer to call it—General McClellan made no

step forward, but employed his troops industriously in

intrenching themselves."

_J. E. Johnston,

Narrative of Military Operations,

page 142._

ALSO IN:

_G. W. Smith,

Two days of Battle at Seven Pines

(Battles and Leaders, volume 2, pages 220-263)._

_Official Records,

series 1, volume 11, part 1._

_W. Allan,

The Army of Northern Virginia in 1862,

chapter 7-8._

UNITED STATES OF AMERICA: A. D. 1862 (May-June: Virginia).

Stonewall Jackson's second campaign in the Shenandoah Valley.

Winchester.

Cross Keys.

Port Republic.

"At the time the Army of the Potomac was toiling painfully up

the Peninsula towards Richmond, the remaining forces in

Northern Virginia presented the extraordinary spectacle of

three distinct armies, planted on three separate lines of

operations, under three independent commanders. The highland

region of West Virginia had been formed into the 'Mountain

Department' under command of General Fremont; the Valley of

the Shenandoah constituted the 'Department of the Shenandoah'

under General Banks; and the region covered by the direct

lines of approach to Washington had been erected into the

'Department of the Rappahannock,' and assigned to General

McDowell. … The Administration, growing more easy touching the

safety of the capital, determined, in response to General

McClellan's oft-repeated appeals for re-enforcements, to send

forward McDowell's corps,—not, indeed, as he desired, to

re-enforce him by water, but to advance overland to attack

Richmond in co-operation with the Army of the Potomac. … After

numerous delays, the time of advance of this column was at

length fixed for the 26th of May, a date closely coincident

with the arrival of the Army of the Potomac on the

Chickahominy. The head of McDowell's column had already been

pushed eight miles south of Fredericksburg; and McClellan, to

clear all opposition from his path, sent forward Porter's

corps to Hanover Junction, where he had a sharp encounter with

a force of the enemy under General Branch, whom he repulsed

with a loss of 200 killed and 700 prisoners, and established

the right of the Army of the Potomac within fifteen miles, or

one march, of McDowell's van. McDowell was eager to advance,

and McClellan was equally anxious for his arrival, when there

happened an event which frustrated this plan and all the hopes

that had been based thereon. This event was the irruption of

Stonewall Jackson in the Shenandoah Valley. The keen-eyed

soldier at the head of the main Confederate army, discerning

the intended junction between McDowell and McClellan, quickly

seized his opportunity, and intrusted the execution of a bold

'coup' to that vigorous lieutenant who had already made the

Valley ring with his exploits." Jackson, who had been resting

for a time in a position between the south fork of the

Shenandoah and Swift Run Gap, was joined, on the 30th of

April, by Ewell's division from Gordonsville, and by other

re-enforcements, which "raised his force to about 15,000 men.

Banks' force, reduced by the detachment of Shields' division,

sent to General McDowell, to about 5,000 men, was posted at

Harrisonburg. Fremont was at Franklin, across the mountains;

but one of his brigades, under Milroy, had burst beyond the

limits of the Mountain Department, and seemed to be moving to

make a junction with Banks, with the design, as Jackson

thought, of advancing on Staunton. Jackson determined to

attack these forces in detail. Accordingly, he posted Ewell so

as to hold Banks in check, whilst he himself moved to

Staunton. From here he threw forward five brigades, under

General Edward Johnson (May 7), to attack Milroy. The latter

retreated to his mountain fastness, and took position at a

point named McDowell, where, re-enforced by the brigade of

Schenck, he engaged Johnson, but was forced to retire on

Fremont's main body at Franklin. Having thus thrown off Milroy

eccentrically from communication with Banks, Jackson returned

(May 14) to destroy the force under that officer." Banks

retreated down the Valley, followed by Jackson, who diverged a

little to capture a garrison of 700 men at Front Royal.

{3468}

On the 24th, Banks made a stand on the heights of Winchester

and gave fight, "till, being assailed on both flanks, he

retired hastily to the north bank of the Potomac (May 25),

making a march of 53 miles in 48 hours. Jackson continued the

pursuit as far as Halltown, within two miles of Harper's

Ferry, where he remained till the 30th, when, finding heavy

forces converging on his rear, he began a retrograde movement

up the Valley. The tidings of Jackson's apparition at

Winchester on the 24th, and his subsequent advance to Harper's

Ferry, fell like a thunderbolt on the war-council at

Washington. The order for McDowell's advance from

Fredericksburg, to unite with McClellan, was instantly

countermanded; and he was directed to put 20,000 men in motion

at once for the Shenandoah Valley, by the line of the Manassas

Gap Railroad. … In vain he pointed out that it was impossible

for him either to succor Banks or co-operate with Fremont; …

that it would take him a week or ten days to reach the Valley,

and that by this time the occasion for his services would have

passed by. In vain General McClellan urged the real motive of

the raid—to prevent re-enforcements from reaching him."

McDowell moved from the east and Fremont from the west,

converging on Strasburg. "The two columns moved rapidly; they

had almost effected a junction on the 31st; but that very day

Jackson, falling back from Harper's Ferry, slipped between the

two, and made good his retreat up the Valley. … The pursuers

did their best: they pushed on, Fremont following in the path

of Jackson up the Valley of the Shenandoah; while McDowell

sent forward Shields' division by the lateral Luray Valley,

with a view to head him off when he should attempt to break

through the gaps of the Blue Ridge." On the 8th of June

Ewell's division of Jackson's army "repulsed Fremont, while

Jackson held Shields in check. Early next morning, drawing in

Ewell and concentrating his forces, Jackson threw himself

across the river, burned the bridge to prevent Fremont from

following; fell upon Shields' advance, consisting of two

brigades under General Tyler, and repulsed him, capturing his

artillery. The former of these affairs figures in history as

the battle of Cross Keys, and the latter as the battle of Port

Republic. In this exciting month's campaign, Jackson made

great captures of stores and prisoners; but this was not its

chief result. Without gaining a single tactical victory he had

yet achieved a great strategic victory; for by skilfully

manœuvring 15,000 men he succeeded in neutralizing a force of

60,000. It is perhaps not too much to say that he saved

Richmond."

_W. Swinton,

Campaigns of the Army of the Potomac,

pages 122-128._

ALSO IN:

_J. D. Imboden,

Stonewall Jackson in the Shenandoah

(Battles and Leaders, volume 2, page 282-301)._

_J. E. Cooke,

Stonewall Jackson: a Military Biography,

part 2, chapters 8-17._

UNITED STATES OF AMERICA: A. D. 1862 (May-July: On the Mississippi).

The first undertakings against Vicksburg.

"New Orleans once secured and handed over to General Butler,

Farragut pushed up the Mississippi, and in the course of the

next two months the Union flag was hoisted at Baton Rouge,

Natchez, and every town of importance as high as Vicksburg.

This city, strong by its natural position on high bluffs

sloping gently landward, and already partly converted into a

fortress by intrenchments heavily armed, was now (since the

surrender of Memphis on the 6th of June) the only point of

importance held by the Confederates on the banks of the great

river. It at once, therefore, assumed an importance well

warranted by its later history. Summoned on the 18th of May to

evacuate the place, General M. L. Smith, who held it, gave a

decided refusal; and Farragut found it necessary to await once

more the arrival of Porter's flotilla, which was not brought

up and reported ready until the 27th of June. On the 28th a

general attack took place, Farragut succeeding in taking two

of his three frigates and six gun-boats above the batteries,

but producing no effect on the defences. 'The enemy leave

their guns for the moment,' says his hasty report, 'but return

to them as soon as we have passed, and rake us.' About 50 men

were killed and wounded on board, and the Brooklyn frigate,

with two gun-boats, forced to retreat below the place. The

bombardment continued at intervals, pending an application to

General Halleck at Corinth for a corps of his army to aid the

fleet, and the result of an experiment (the first of three)

made to cut a ship canal through the isthmus opposite

Vicksburg, and leave the Federal ships an independent passage.

On the 15th of July their possession of the river was suddenly

challenged by a large ram, the Arkansas, which the

Confederates had been fitting on the Yazoo, a considerable

stream entering the Mississippi just above Vicksburg. … Her

plating, however, proved to be weak, and her machinery very

defective." The career of the Arkansas was brief and harmless.

In August she was knocked to pieces by the shells of the

Essex, "whose commander had taken charge of the Lower

Mississippi on the departure of Farragut. The latter officer,

in compliance with orders from Mr. Welles, had abandoned his

contest with the Vicksburg works on the 20th of July, and made

down stream for New Orleans, whence he proceeded with his

squadron to carry on operations along the coast of Texas,

where the chief posts were (for the time) recovered to the

Union by his detachments in the course of a few weeks. 'All we

want,' he wrote on the 15th of October, 'is a few soldiers to

hold the places, and we will soon have the whole coast. It is

a more effectual blockade to have the vessels inside instead

of outside.'"

_C. C. Chesney,

Essays in Military Biography,

pages 169-171._

ALSO IN:

_L. Farragut,

Life of David G. Farragut,

chapter. 20._

_D. D. Porter,

Naval History of the Civil War,

chapter 21._

_R. B. Irwin,

History of the 19th Army Corps.

chapters 2-3._

UNITED STATES OF AMERICA: A. D. 1862 (May-December: Louisiana).

New Orleans under General Butler.

The army which accompanied Farragut's naval expedition against

New Orleans, to assist its operations and to occupy the city

and the lower Mississippi region when taken, was placed under

the command of General Benjamin F. Butler. It consisted

nominally of 18,000 men, but is said to have actually mustered

less than 14,000. It was composed of regiments which had been

raised by Butler in New England especially for the enterprise,

his preparations having commenced as early as September, 1861.

These troops were partly gathered at Ship Island, in the Gulf,

some time before Farragut made ready his fleet; the remainder

were at the rendezvous in good time, and the whole were in

waiting, on board transports, at the passes, when Farragut

carried his fleet past Forts Jackson and St. Philip.

{3469}

"General Butler … now proceeded to execute his part of the

duty. He brought his forces into the rear of St. Philip,

Porter keeping up a bombardment. On the 27th of April the

garrison had become so demoralized as to refuse to fight any

longer. The forts were therefore surrendered on the next day.

… On the 1st of May New Orleans 'was formally occupied by

United States troops. The loss on the national side in

achieving this great victory was 40 killed and 177 wounded. …

General Butler now entered on the difficult task of governing

New Orleans. Its population, though greatly diminished to

strengthen the Confederate armies in the Border States—a cause

of bitter complaint to the inhabitants—still numbered about

140,000. Almost one half of it was of foreign birth. Perhaps

no city in the world had in its lower classes a more dangerous

and desperate population. There was a wide-spread hope that a

French force would soon come to their help. By firmness,

strict yet considerate, he controlled the municipal

authorities; by severity he put down the mob. He was a terror

to tricky tradesmen, a benefactor to the starving poor. He

cleaned the streets, enforced sanitary regulations, and kept

out yellow fever. He put an effectual stop to the operations

of Confederate agents, who were illicitly obtaining supplies

for their cause. … He arrested Mumford, the person who had

hauled down the national flag at the Mint [where it had been

raised by one of Farragut's officers before the arrival of the

troops], brought him before a military commission, convicted

and executed him." This execution of Mumford (by hanging) drew

from the Confederate President, Davis, a proclamation

denouncing Butler as "an outlaw and common enemy of mankind";

directing that, if captured, he should be immediately hung;

declaring the commissioned officers of his command "not

entitled to be considered as soldiers engaged in honorable

warfare, but as robbers and criminals"; and ordering that "no

commissioned officer of the United States taken captive shall

be released on parole before exchange until the said Butler

shall have met with due punishment for his crimes." "Some

women of New Orleans, relying on the immunity of their sex,

gratified their animosity by insulting national officers in

public places. One of them ventured so far as to spit in the

face of an officer who was quietly walking in the street.

Hereupon was issued 'General Order No. 28' [known as 'the

Woman Order,' which gave notice that] … 'hereafter, when any

female shall, by word, gesture, or movement, insult or show

contempt for any officer or soldier of the United States, she

shall be regarded and held liable to be treated as a woman of

the town plying her vocation.' … The feeling of personal

hatred to Butler grew daily more and more intense. He was

accused of improper tampering with the banks, speculating in

sequestrated property, and, through the agency of his brother,

carrying on illegal but profitable transactions in sugar and

cotton. In South Carolina a reward of $10,000 had been offered

for his assassination. Throughout the Confederacy he received

an ignominious surname, and was known as 'Butler the Beast.'

The government felt constrained to send a commission to New

Orleans to investigate his transactions. Its conclusion was

that he had evidently acted 'under a misapprehension, to be

referred to the patriotic zeal which governs him.'" In

December General Butler was recalled and General Banks was

sent to take his place.

_J. W. Draper,

History of the American Civil War,

chapter 52 (volume 2)._

ALSO IN:

_B. J. Lossing,

Field Book of the Civil War,

volume 2, chapter 13._

_J. Parton,

General Butler in New Orleans,

chapters 11-32._

UNITED STATES OF AMERICA: A. D. 1862 (June: On the Mississippi).

The capture of Memphis.

The naval fight before the city.

After the evacuation of Corinth by Beauregard, "Fort Pillow,

40 miles above Memphis, was no longer of any account, for the

Union army could take it from the rear. The Confederates,

therefore, spiked the guns, burned their barracks and what

supplies they could not take away; and the Confederate

gunboats went down the river to Memphis, where several of the

boats had been built. Commodore Montgomery commanded the

fleet. He had eight vessels. … Fort Pillow evacuated! It was

astounding news to the people of Memphis. They learned it at

noon, June 5th. The merchants closed their stores. Some of

them began to pack their goods. Some of the citizens jumped on

board the cars and fled from the city. The Confederate fleet

made its appearance. 'I shall retreat no farther,' said

Commodore Montgomery; 'I shall fight a battle in front of the

city, and to-morrow morning you will see Lincoln's gunboats

sent to the bottom.' The dawn is breaking when I step from the

Benton, the flag-ship of Commodore Davis [commanding the Union

river fleet], to the tugboat Jessie Benton. … The Union fleet

is at anchor three miles above the city. 'Drop down below the

city and see if you can discover the Confederate fleet,' is

the order to the captain of the Jessie Benton. We sweep around

the majestic bend of the river and behold the city. The first

rays of the sun are gilding the spires of the churches. A

crowd of people is upon the levee—men, women, and children—who

have come out to see the Union fleet sent to the bottom. …

Suddenly a vessel with a black cloud of smoke rolling from the

chimneys shoots into the stream. It is the Little Rebel,

Commodore Montgomery's flag-ship. One by one the other vessels

follow, forming in two lines of battle. In the front line,

nearest the city, is the Beauregard, next the Little Rebel,

then the Price and Sumter. In the second line, behind the

Beauregard, is the Lovell, then the Thompson, Bragg, and Van

Dorn. … There are five gunboats in the Union fleet. The Benton

is nearest the Tennessee shore, then the Carondelet,

Louisville, St. Louis, and Cairo. There are also two rams—the

Queen City and Monarch. The rams are river steamers, with

thick oak sides; they carry no cannon, but on each boat are

100 riflemen. 'Round to; head down stream; keep in line with

the flag-ship,' was the order which we on board the Jessie

Benton carried to each boat of the line." In the fight which

followed, and which is graphically described by the

eye-witness here quoted, the Price and the Beauregard were run

down by the rams; the Little Rebel, the Lovell, the Thompson

and the Bragg were destroyed by shot and shell; the Sumter

driven ashore, and the Van Dorn alone escaped. On the Union

side, only the ram Queen City was disabled.

{3470}

"In an hour's time the Confederate fleet was annihilated. … It

is not known how many men were lost on the Confederate side,

but probably from 80 to 100. Colonel Ellet was the only one

injured on board the Union fleet. … The victory opens the

Upper Mississippi from Cairo to Vicksburg."

_C. C. Coffin,

Drumbeat of the Nation,

chapter 10._

UNITED STATES OF AMERICA: A. D. 1862 (June: Virginia).

The Peninsular Campaign: McClellan fortifying and Lee

preparing for a bold attack.

"When McClellan crossed the Chickahominy it was thought he

would advance immediately upon Richmond. This expectation was

disappointed, however, for instead of advancing he began to

fortify his position. The right wing rested on the

Chickahominy a little below New Bridge, and the left extended

to the White Oak Swamp, embracing a front of about four miles,

nearly parallel with that of the Confederates. The opposing

lines were separated by an interval but little exceeding a

mile, but each was obscured from the other's view by the

intervening forest. The picket-lines were often within close

musket-range of each other. … The strength of the Confederate

force was always greatly overestimated by McClellan, and his

frequent and urgent calls for reinforcements exposed his want

of confidence in his own strength. General Lee [who took

command of the Confederate army June 1, General Johnston being

disabled], knowing this uneasy, insecure feeling of his

antagonist, and McDowell's force, which had always been a

thorn in his side, being about this time withdrawn from

Fredericksburg for the support of Banks and Shields in the

Valley, prepared … to assume the offensive. He conceived the

bold plan of crossing the Chickahominy, and, attacking the

Federal right wing, to force it back and seize McClellan's

line of communication with his base of operations. This plan

being successfully executed, the Federal general would be

compelled to save his army as best he could by retreat.

Preparatory to the execution of this plan General J. E. B.

Stuart was ordered to make a reconnoissance in the rear of the

Federal position. This officer, with a force of about 1,000

cavalry, executed his instructions with great boldness and

success. He made the entire circuit of the Federal army and

gained much important information, … captured many prisoners

and destroyed Federal stores to the value of $7,000,000. … His

design being confirmed by Stuart's successful reconnoissance,

Lee proceeded to organize a force requisite for the

accomplishment of his proposed enterprise. The troops that

could be conveniently spared from North Carolina, South

Carolina, and Georgia were ordered to Richmond. … At the same

time General Jackson was ordered to withdraw secretly from the

Valley and proceed with such expedition as would enable him to

reach Hanover Junction by the afternoon of the 25th of June.

In order to mask his designs from the Federals, Lee directed

Whiting's division and Lawton's brigade to proceed to

Staunton, apparently with the view of reinforcing Jackson, but

really under orders to return immediately and join that

general on the 25th at Hanover Junction. This movement further

strengthened McClellan in his opinion of Lee's vastly superior

force, and completely blinded him in regard to the real

intentions of that general. General Lee determined to attack

the Federal right wing on the morning of the 26th of June."

_A. L. Long,

Memoirs of Robert E. Lee,

page 169._

UNITED STATES OF AMERICA: A. D. 1862 (June-July: Virginia).

The Peninsular Campaign: The Seven Days Battle and Retreat.

Mechanicsville.

Gaines' Mill.

Savage Station.

Glendale.'

Malvern Hill.

"Since the battle of Fair Oaks the Second Corps (Sumner) had

remained on the right bank of the Chickahominy, where it had

been followed in the month of June by the Sixth Corps

(Franklin). So that only the Fifth Corps (Porter) remained on

the left bank, recently reënforced by McCall's division. All

the efforts of the enemy were made there, and there the great

seven days' contest commenced. On the 26th of June, A. P.

Hill, preceding Jackson by twenty-four hours, endeavored to

force the passage of Beaver Dam Creek, defended by the

Pennsylvanians under McCall. He was repulsed with considerable

loss on the Mechanicsville road. But, during the night, Porter

was compelled to fall back to a position more tenable against

a force become much superior to his own, Jackson and

Longstreet having united against his lines. On the 27th, then,

the Fifth Corps, with about 25,000 men, was assailed by 70,000

Confederates on Gaines' Mill Heights, and defended itself

there obstinately, until our own cavalry came fatally to the

enemy's aid. Unskilfully handled and roughly repulsed, it fell

back in disorder on our lines, where it put everything into

confusion, artillery and infantry. The Confederates, coming on

at the charge, finished the overthrow, and the Fifth Corps

would have been destroyed if the coming of the night had not

enabled our decimated troops to cross to the right bank of the

Chickahominy, destroying the bridges behind them. [This

battle, called Gaines' Mill by the Federals, was named Cold

Harbor, or Chickahominy, by the Rebels.] … As soon as Porter

had crossed safely on the 28th, the general retreat commenced.

Keyes crossed White Oak swamp first, and took position to

protect the passage of the immense army trains and the great

herds of cattle. Then, on the 29th, after having repulsed a

cavalry attack, he continued his way towards the James, where

he arrived on the 30th, at the same time that Porter reached

Haxall's Landing. Much less favored, the three other corps

suspended their march only to fight and ceased to fight only

to march. But all this was done without any general system, in

the absence of superior supervision, and of orders in

accordance with circumstances. On the 29th the enemy crossed

the Chickahominy to unite all his force on the right bank;

Franklin advised Sumner, and the two, acting together, fell

back on Savage Station, where they took up position, with the

intention, aided by Heintzelman, of repelling the dangerous

attack which menaced them. But Heintzelman, adhering to his

general instructions, after destroying the material of the

railroad, the provisions, munitions of war, arms and baggage

that there was neither time nor means of carrying away,

hastened to cross White Oak swamp, uncovering Sumner's left.

The latter learned of the retreat of the Third Corps only from

a furious attack by the enemy on the very side which he

believed protected by Heintzelman. He did not the less sustain

the shock with an unshakable solidity, and fought all the

afternoon with four divisions without being broken at any

point.

{3471}

The enemy, worn out by the useless attacks, retired at

nightfall. Then only did he receive any news from McClellan;

under the form of an order to Sumner to fall back, along with

Franklin, to the other side of White Oak swamp, abandoning our

general hospitals at Savage Station, and the 2,500 sick and

wounded in them. On the Morning of the 30th, Jackson presented

himself, to cross the swamp after us. He found the bridge

destroyed, and endeavored to force a passage at several

points. He was everywhere repulsed and kept in check the whole

day by the obstinate resistance of Franklin, while farther on,

towards the James, Longstreet was held by Heintzelman and

McCall, who prevented him from cutting our army in two at

Glendale. This was not done without hard fighting. The

Confederates, arriving by the New Market road at a right angle

to the Quaker road, which was our line of march, struck, in

the first place, the Pennsylvania reserves, broke their line,

outflanking it on the right and on the left, captured a

battery of artillery, and pushed resolutely on through that

dangerous breach. They then struck Hooker's division, which

threw them obliquely on Sumner's Corps. Soon afterward,

Kearney occupied the vacant space, and, as on the evening

before, the sun set with the rebels unsuccessful. [This day's

battle is variously named after Glendale, New Market,

Frazier's Farm, and Nelson's Farm.] But, the same evening,

Franklin, left without orders, and seeing his position was

becoming more and more dangerous, abandoned White Oak swamp

and fell back towards the James. At that news, which was

promptly sent to him from several directions, Heintzelman sent

in vain to headquarters to ask for instructions. Left to his

own devices, he concluded that the wisest course was to follow

the retrograde movement, and retreated with his corps. Sumner

still remained, and, seeing himself left alone and without

support, he decided, in his turn, to do as the others had

done. On the morning of the 31st, he arrived on the Malvern

Heights, where the three corps, the Second, Third, and Sixth,

found themselves united, not, as has been benevolently said,

by the wise combinations of General McClellan, but by the

fortunate inspiration of the commanders, who had received no

orders to that effect. 'At daylight,' said General Sumner, in

his testimony before the Congressional committee, 'I called on

General McClellan, on the banks of the James. He told me that

he had intended that the army should hold the position it had

the night before, and that no order for retreat had been sent;

but that, since the rest of the army had fallen back, he was

glad that I had done the same.' It was found that the plateau

of Malvern Hill was admirably formed for a defensive position.

General Humphreys, of the corps of topographical engineers,

was ordered to examine the position, and he traced a

formidable line with the left resting at Haxall's Landing on

the James, where it was protected by the gun-boats, while the

right was thrown back on some fields covered with thick woods,

and cut up by marshy streams. The summits and slopes of the

plateau were bristling with cannon, sweeping the plain over

the heads of our infantry deployed in front of them. In that

position, the army awaited a last attack. The enemy played

there his last card, and lost the game. … He tried his fortune

and gave battle July 1. On every point his columns were thrown

back in disorder, crushed in every attack by the double fire

of artillery and infantry. Dash was not enough now. On this

occasion, the enemy was compelled to acknowledge himself

beaten and incapable of pursuing us any further. But our men

were slow to believe in success. On receiving the order, a few

hours later, after night had put an end to the contest, to

retire to Harrison's Landing, they naturally concluded that we

were not strong enough to hold out long against the enemy. …

Worn out by fatigue and fighting, exhausted by privations and

by vigils, discouraged, and suspecting that it was not fortune

alone that had betrayed them, they dragged themselves along

without order … during that last night march, which had all

the character of a rout."

_R. de Trobriand,

Four Years with the Army of the Potomac,

chapter 13._

"If McClellan deserves sharp criticism for not having sooner

made up his mind, and still more for his failure to discover

and use the absence of the Confederates in his front, where

his advance in mass, according to General Magruder's

officially expressed opinion, 'would have insured his success,

and the occupation of the works about Richmond, and

consequently the city,' his character as a commander never

shone so brightly as in the hour of disaster and danger, when

Porter's wing was driven in upon his centre. The ill-success

of his campaign as a whole has caused his conduct at this

crisis to be done scant justice to. But there is no military

reputation in the world which would not be increased by the

manner in which that retreat to the James was conducted from

the moment it began."

_C. C. Chesney,

Essays in Military Biog.,

page 114._

ALSO IN:

_W. Allan,

The Army of Northern Virginia in 1862,

chapters 12-17._

_A. S. Webb,

Campaigns of the Civil War,

volume 3: The Peninsula, chapter 9._

_F. J. Porter, W. B. Franklin, D. H. Hill, and others,

The Seven Days' Fighting

(Battles and Leaders, volume 2)._

_G. B. McClellan,

Complete Report,

part 2._

_Official Records,

series 1, volume 11, parts. 1-2._

_Report of Joint Committee on the Conduct of the War

(Senate Reports, 37th Congress,

3d session, volume 2, part 1)._

UNITED STATES OF AMERICA: A. D. 1862

(June-October: Tennessee-Kentucky).

Ineffective dispersion of Western armies.

Failure to secure Chattanooga and Vicksburg.

Bragg's invasion of Kentucky.

The race for Louisville.

Battle of Perryville.

End of Buell's campaign.

"We left the Federals in possession of Corinth and Memphis,

the army of Beauregard disappearing in the depths of

semi-tropical forests where the Tombigbee takes its source,

and Montgomery's ships lying at the bottom of the Mississippi.

See, UNITED STATES OF AMERICA: A. D. 1862

(APRIL-MAY: TENNESSEE-MISSISSIPPI)

and (JUNE: ON THE MISSISSIPPI).

The part to be played by the Federal fleets was fully laid

out; Farragut, by ascending the river, and Davis, by

descending it, were to endeavor to join hands and destroy all

the obstacles which still obstructed its course. What, in the

mean time, was the large army encamped at Corinth going to do?

It had allowed Beauregard to escape at the very moment when it

felt sure of crushing him; but it could yet strike some

decisive blows either to eastward or westward, the

Confederates being nowhere sufficiently numerous to make any

strong opposition.

{3472}

Eastward, Mitchell had forced open the way to Chattanooga and

approached the gap which opens south-east of that town, before

which, at a subsequent period, so much blood was shed at the

battles of Chickamauga and Missionary Ridge. He was master of

the passes of the Tennessee, and the Federals, stationed at

Corinth, could reach Chattanooga much more speedily than their

adversary encamped at Tupelo. They might probably conquer by

the same stroke the whole upper course of the river which

waters this town. Westward, the Federals could sweep both

sides of the Mississippi, cause all the Confederate works

which defended them to fall, and perhaps prevent the enemy

from erecting the formidable citadels of Vicksburg and Port

Hudson, the capture of which, at a later period, cost so dear.

… Everything … was in favor of prompt and vigorous action. But

Halleck divided his army, and, notwithstanding the resources

he had at his disposal, allowed his adversaries to forestall

him everywhere. … The army of the Ohio left Corinth on the

10th of June, and Buell was ordered to proceed with it in the

direction of Chattanooga, where Mitchell was beginning to be

sorely pressed; but this movement was slowly executed.

Sherman, at the head of his own division and that of Hurlbut,

proceeded toward Memphis, dropping detachments of troops as

far as Holly Springs to cover his left flank. The rebuilding

of the Mobile Railway, which had been completely destroyed by

the enemy, was a considerable undertaking. Begun on the 9th of

June, it was only finished on the 26th. The Confederates had

profited by this delay. The new general-in-chief, Braxton

Bragg [who had superseded Beauregard], had boldly divided his

army and abandoned the position of Tupelo, which Halleck still

believed him to occupy. He had determined to cover at once the

two points we have already indicated as being of the greatest

importance for the future of the war, Chattanooga and

Vicksburg. He proceeded toward the first with all the old army

of Johnston, consisting of the corps of Hardee and Polk, as

rapidly as the difficulties of communication in that portion

of the Southern States allowed. He had the merit and good

fortune to reach Chattanooga before Buell. It was not too

soon, for a few days previous, the 7th of June, the Federal

General Negley, with his single brigade and some cannon, had

nearly taken possession of this city by surprise. Bragg found

it of great advantage to transfer the war to the vicinity of

Chattanooga. Master of this position, indeed, he could menace

either Tennessee or Kentucky, Nashville or Louisville and

wrest from the Federals all the conquests they had achieved

during the last few months by taking them in rear. He was also

drawing near Virginia."

_Comte de Paris,

History of the Civil War in America,

volume 2, book 2, chapter 3._

"Halleck soon leaves for Washington to assume supreme control

of the Union forces from the War Department. Grant is left in

command of the Army of the Tennessee, Buell of the Army of the

Ohio, Pope of the Army of the Mississippi. Everyone is without

definite instructions; there is no one head; and the Western

armies are practically put upon the defensive. Rosecrans

succeeds Pope, who is transferred to Virginia, and to Grant's

lot now fall the armies of the Mississippi and Tennessee,

42,000 effectives, with which to keep open his communications

with Buell and guard the railroad from Memphis to Decatur.

While Grant and Sherman devote their energies to the line of

the Mississippi, Buell is ordered to regain East Tennessee,

where the loyal population is in extreme suffering. Mitchell's

[General O. M. Mitchell] capture of Huntsville [in Alabama,

which he surprised, by a remarkable forced march, from

Nashville, in April], and some hundred miles of the Memphis

and Charleston Railroad, which he had held, together with all

territory north of the Tennessee river, had been full of

possibilities. Had he but received the authority, he might

readily have anticipated Bragg in taking possession of

Chattanooga, and have saved much subsequent blood and

treasure. For this town is the key to that entire strategic

field. … Buell supposed that Bragg would attempt to turn his

right in order to obtain possession of Nashville. He therefore

concentrated the bulk of his force at Murfreesboro. Thomas,

then commanding a wing of the Army of the Ohio, whose military

intuitions were as keen as his judgment was reliable, … was

shrewd enough to recognize Bragg's crossing of the Tennessee

river as a threat to invade Kentucky. Not so Buell, to his

sorrow. By a sudden movement, Bragg steals a march around

Buell's left, through the Sequatchie Valley [August 28], and

marches straight toward Louisville, while Kirby Smith turns

Cumberland Gap, defeats Nelson at Richmond, and makes for

Cincinnati. … Thoroughly alarmed, as is also the country,

Buell at once swings his left in pursuit of Bragg, while he

endeavors to retain his grasp on Nashville with his right.

Bragg has the shorter line and the start. But he is delayed a

day or two [September 16-17] by the capture of Mumfordsville,

and by scattering his forces instead of pushing home. This is

a serious fault on Bragg's part. He fairly holds success in

his hand, but forfeits it by this delay. After some rapid

marching and manœuvring, Buell enters Louisville just ahead of

his opponent. The authorities in Washington have lost all

confidence in Buell. He is summarily relieved from command and

Thomas appointed to succeed him. But this magnanimous soldier,

though far from always agreeing with the methods of his chief,

declines the proffered honor, and, at his earnest

solicitation, Buell is reinstated. The Army of the Ohio

marches out to meet Bragg, with Thomas second in command.

Bragg expects to defend the line of the Kentucky and Duck

rivers, but divides his forces, leaving Kirby Smith near

Frankfort. Buell makes a demonstration upon Bragg's

communications. After some cautious feeling, Buell comes upon

Hardee with only 15,000 men, at Perryville, where, had he at

once attacked, he could have punished Bragg severely for this

division. But, owing to lack of water, one-half of Buell's

army is distant from the field, and he in turn pays the

penalty of lack of concentration. Polk joins Hardee, and the

latter [October 8] falls heavily upon McCook, who holds

Buell's left, and bears him back. But he cannot break the

Union centre; and after a stubborn conflict Bragg retires,

leaving to our forces the field. Our left has not been

engaged. The loss is nearly 5,000 men on either side, a

quarter of the numbers actually engaged. On being followed up,

Bragg retreats through Cumberland Gap, and leaves Kentucky and

Tennessee once more in our possession. His retreat ends only

at Chattanooga.

{3473}

What Bragg expected to obtain in Kentucky was a vast accession

of recruits and horses, as did Lee in Maryland. Both fell

short of their calculations, though Bragg carried off a goodly

train of supplies. Forgetful of what he had really done, the

South was bitter in its criticism of Bragg's failure to hold

Eastern Tennessee and Kentucky. … Halleck now insists that

Buell shall undertake a campaign in East Tennessee, still

occupied by the enemy. But Buell alleges the utter

impossibility of subsisting his troops so far from the

railroad; and again concentrates at Nashville. Here he is

relieved [October 30] and General Rosecrans is appointed to

the command."

_T. A. Dodge,

Bird's-Eye View of Our Civil War,

chapter 15._

ALSO IN:

_D. C. Buell, J. Wheeler, and others,

The Perryville Campaign

(Battles and Leaders, volume 3)._

_T. B. Van Horne,

History of the Army of the Cumberland,

chapters 12-15 (volume 1)._

_J. B. Fry,

Operations of the Army under Buell._

_Official Records,

series 1, volume 16._

UNITED STATES OF AMERICA: A. D. 1862 (July).

Three hundred thousand more.

On the 2d of July, 1862, the President issued his proclamation

calling for 300,000 volunteers.

UNITED STATES OF AMERICA: A. D. 1862 (July).

Land-grant for agricultural and mechanical Colleges.

See EDUCATION, MODERN: AMERICA: A. D. 1862.

UNITED STATES OF AMERICA: A. D. 1862 (July).

Prescription of the Ironclad Oath.

See IRONCLAD OATH.

UNITED STATES OF AMERICA: A. D. 1862 (July).

The fitting out of the Rebel cruiser, Alabama, at Liverpool.

See ALABAMA CLAIMS: A. D. 1862-1864.

UNITED STATES OF AMERICA: A. D. 1862 (July).

Confiscation of the property of rebels,

giving freedom to their slaves.

Immediately on the assembling of Congress at its regular

session in December, 1861, "Mr. Trumbull of Illinois

introduced a bill, providing that the slaves of all who had

taken up arms against the United States should 'become forever

thereafter free, any law to the contrary notwithstanding.' …

On the 25th of February it came up for general debate, which

was very extended. … Divergences of views, even among those

who had been most prominent and pronounced in their

antislavery action, and the general drift of the discussion,

seemed to preclude any reasonable hope of agreement upon any

motion or measure then before the Senate. It was therefore

moved by Mr. Clark of New Hampshire to refer the whole matter,

the original bill, and all motions, amendments, and

substitutes, to a select committee. This, too, gave rise to a

sharp debate. … The motion was carried by a vote of 24 to 14;

and the committee, consisting of Clark, Collamer, Trumbull,

Cowan, Wilson, Harris, Sherman, Henderson, and Willey, was

appointed. Mr. Trumbull declining, Mr. Harlan was appointed in

his place. The committee reported 'a bill to suppress

insurrection, and punish treason and rebellion'; and on the

16th of May it came up for consideration. Its main provision

was that at any time after the passage of the act, the

President might issue his proclamation that the slaves of

persons found, 30 days after the issuing of the proclamation,

in arms against the government, will be free, any law or

custom to the contrary; that no slave escaping from his master

shall be given up, unless the claimant proves he has not given

aid or comfort to the Rebellion; and that the President shall

be authorized to employ persons of African descent for the

suppression of the Rebellion. … The bill was further debated,

but did not reach a vote. In the House a substantially similar

course was pursued. On the first day of the regular session

Mr. Eliot of Massachusetts introduced a resolution

confiscating the property and freeing the slaves of those

engaged in the Rebellion. It did not, however, come up for

consideration till the close of the following week. … A motion

was finally made and carried to refer the whole subject to a

select committee of seven, consisting of Olin, Eliot, Noell,

Hutchins, Mallory, Beaman, and Cobb. Mr. Olin was excused, and

Mr. Sedgwick of New York was appointed in his place. On the

14th of May Mr. Eliot from the committee reported two

bills,—the one confiscating Rebel property, and the other

freeing the slaves of Rebels,—and opened the debate on 'the

twin measures of confiscation and emancipation.' … On the 26th

of May Mr. Eliot closed the debate, and the two bills he had

reported from the special committee were brought to a vote.

The first, or that providing for the confiscation of Rebel

property, was passed by a strong majority. The second, or that

freeing the slaves of Rebels, coming up for action, the first

business was the disposal of the several amendments that had

been offered. The amendments having all been voted down, the

original bill was lost by a vote of 74 to 78. That vote was,

however, reconsidered and the bill was recommitted. On the

18th of June Mr. Eliot moved a substitute for the bill

reported by the committee, which was accepted by the House,

and the bill, as thus amended, was passed by a vote of 82 to

54. The gist of this bill consisted in the provision, that all

slaves of persons found in rebellion 60 days after the

President shall issue his proclamation should be free; and the

President should appoint commissioners to carry its provisions

into effect. The House confiscation bill was taken up in the

Senate on the 23d of June. An amendment was moved by Mr. Clark

combining confiscation and emancipation. The amendment was

sharply debated, but was adopted on the 28th. The bill as

amended was adopted by a vote of 28 to 13. The bill as thus

amended was taken up in the House on the 3d of July, and the

House non-concurred in the Senate's amendment. … A committee

of conference was appointed, which reported, on the 11th, in

substance the Senate amendment. The report was accepted by

both bodies, … and the President gave it his approval on the

17th. It provided that all slaves of Rebels coming into the

possession or under the protection of the government should be

deemed captives of war, and made free; that fugitive slaves

should not be surrendered; that no person engaged in the

military or naval service should render fugitives on pain of

being dismissed from the service; and that the President might

employ persons of the African race for the suppression of the

Rebellion in such manner as he might deem best."

_H. Wilson,

History of the Rise and Fall of the Slave Power in America,

volume 3, chapter 25._

ALSO IN:

_J. G. Blaine,

Twenty Years of Congress,

volume 1, pages 373-377._

_E. McPherson,

Political History of the United States during the Rebellion,

pages 196-203._

{3474}

UNITED STATES OF AMERICA: A. D. 1862 (July-August: Virginia).

The end of the Peninsular Campaign.

The army at Harrison's Landing.

Results of the Seven Days fighting.

Withdrawal from the Peninsula.

"On reaching Harrison's Landing there were scarcely 50,000 men

in the ranks, but on the 4th of July, when the corps

commanders made their reports, it was found that the net

losses of the army since the 20th of June amounted to 15,249

men, of whom 1,582 had been killed, 7,700 wounded, and 5,958

missing. This last figure comprised, besides prisoners, all

the soldiers who had been left on the field of battle, whose

fate, whether killed or wounded, could not be ascertained; to

this number may be added, without exaggeration, 6,000 sick or

lame who had gone to the hospital in consequence of the

excessive fatigues of the preceding days. McClellan therefore

found himself with about 84,000 men under arms, not counting

those who had just joined him. The losses of Lee's army during

the seven days amounted to 20,000 men, to which number must

also be added at least 5,000 rendered unfit for active service

by the same causes which had operated with his adversaries;

this army, therefore, had undergone a diminution of 25,000

men. This was more than one-fourth of its effective force on

the 26th of June. An interlude was to follow this great

struggle. While McClellan was fortifying himself at Harrison's

Landing, Lee, hampered like himself by the difficulty of

subsisting his army, was obliged to fall back as far as the

environs of Richmond. … In the estimation of those who did not

allow themselves to be troubled by foolish alarms and were not

blinded by party prejudices, McClellan's situation was far

from bad. … Planted on the James, McClellan could, either by

ascending this river or by seizing upon Petersburg, strike

much deadlier blows at Richmond than when his army lay across

the Chickahominy, far from any water communication. Such was

the position of the two armies about the 7th of July. On this

day the steamer coming from Fortress Monroe landed a passenger

at Harrison's Landing, whose dress, as simple as his manners,

did not at first attract any attention, but in whom people

soon recognized President Lincoln. He had come to consult with

the commander of the army of the Potomac about the measures to

be adopted under those grave circumstances. … On the occasion

of his interview with McClellan at Harrison's Landing, the

latter had so thoroughly demonstrated the importance of that

position that [the President] went back fully determined to

allow the chief of the army of the Potomac full freedom of

action. But General Halleck … claimed for himself, as

commander-in-chief [lately so appointed], the exclusive

direction of all the armies in the field, and Mr. Lincoln,

conscious of his own incompetency, submitted to this new

authority." Measures taken during July for placing the army of

the Potomac again upon the offensive were altered on the 3d of

August, when Halleck gave orders to McClellan to transfer his

army with all possible expedition to Aquia Creek, on the

Potomac, for the support of General Pope and the Army of

Virginia.

_Comte de Paris,

History of the Civil War in America,

volume 2, book 1, chapter 4

and book 3, chapter 1._

ALSO IN:

_J. G. Nicolay and J. Hay,

Abraham Lincoln,

volume 5, chapter 24._

UNITED STATES OF AMERICA: A. D. 1862 (July-August: Virginia).

The beginning of Pope's campaign: Cedar Mountain, or Cedar Run.

"While Lee and McClellan were resting, important events were

taking place at Washington and in Northern Virginia. The

Federal administration, satisfied of the impolicy of the

separate departments and independent commands which they had

organized in that region, had determined to unite under one

leader the three armies of Banks, Fremont, and McDowell, which

Jackson had beaten or baffled in succession. … Their united

armies were henceforth to be styled the Army of Virginia,

while McClellan's forces continued to be known as the Army of

the Potomac. General John Pope, whose deeds and still more his

dispatches in the West, had given him some reputation, was

called to Washington and placed at the head of the new army.

General Pope was assigned to command on the 26th of June. …

The unification of these commands under Pope was followed by

another and still more important change of the same kind. The

dissatisfaction of the Federal administration with General

McClellan had been steadily growing for many months. This

officer's caution often exposed him, and sometimes not

unjustly, to the charge of timidity. … No doubt other causes,

such as his moderation and his conservative political views,

rendered him distasteful to the progressive radicals who at

this time predominated in Mr. Lincoln's cabinet; but it must

be confessed that McClellan's military conduct was not such as

to inspire confidence or diminish antagonisms, and it, alone,

is sufficient to account for the manner in which he was

treated by his government. … After the Seven Days' Battles,

the Federal government called General Halleck from the West …

and placed him in chief command of the armies of the United

States, the position from which McClellan had been deposed in

March. The order assigning General Halleck was dated July 11,

but the latter did not arrive in Washington and enter upon his

duties until Ju]y 23. By this appointment it was designed to

give a common head to the two armies in Virginia, and insure

the cooperation of McClellan and Pope. The first great

question that presented itself to Halleck was, what to do with

McClellan's forces, and on the day after assuming command he

left Washington to visit this army. The visit seems to have

satisfied him of the propriety of withdrawing the Army of the

Potomac at once from the Peninsula, and of placing it on the

line of the Rappahannock. … During the month of Ju]y, while

McClellan was resting at Westover, General Pope, though in

Washington, was not idle. Having devoted some days to the

reorganization and equipment of his command, he directed the

concentration of the mass of his forces at the eastern base of

the Blue Ridge Mountains in Rappahannock County, from which

position he could cover the approach to Washington, or

threaten the flank of any columns going toward the Shenandoah

Valley, while he prepared for an aggressive campaign. …

General Lee on July 13 ordered Jackson with the veteran troops

of his own and Ewell's division to Gordonsville to oppose

Pope's advance. The force thus sent numbered about 11,000 men.

Robertson's brigade of cavalry, which was already in Pope's

front, added 1,000 or 1,200 more. General Lee remained with

some 65,000 men between McClellan and Richmond. General

Jackson reached the vicinity of Gordonsville on July 19. His

arrival was opportune. The Federal reconnoitring parties had

already advanced through Culpeper to the Rapidan, and on July

14 Banks had been ordered to send forward all his cavalry

under Hatch to seize Gordonsville."

_William Allan,

The Army of Northern Virginia in 1862,

chapter 20._

{3475}

"After ascertaining that the enemy were in large force under

General Pope … Jackson applied to General Lee for

reinforcements. The division of A. P. Hill was immediately

sent to him, and, with this accession to his small army,

Jackson had no intention of remaining idle or of awaiting an

attack from so powerful a foe, but determined to strike a blow

himself before the enemy had time to concentrate all their

forces. He therefore advanced towards them on the 7th of

August. Before taking this step, it was observed that he was

much in prayer, but this was his custom previous to every

battle. … Pope's army was gathering in all its strength at

Culpepper Court-House, and on the 9th of August Jackson's

little army came in contact with his advance-guard about six

miles from the Court-House, on the borders of a little stream

called Cedar Run. Here hostilities began by a furious

cannonade on both sides, lasting two hours, when, about five

o'clock in the afternoon, the infantry of both armies became

hotly engaged. The conflict was fierce and stubborn, but the

overwhelming numbers of the enemy swept down with such

impetuosity that the weaker party were forced to yield, and it

looked as if it were doomed to destruction. Ewell, Early, A.

P. Hill, Winder, and other commanders all fought their bravest

and best—the gallant Winder receiving a mortal wound—and

still they were pressed back. 'It was at this fearful moment,'

says his late chief-of-staff, Dr. Dabney, 'that the genius of

the storm reared his head, and in an instant the tide was

turned, Jackson appeared in the mid-torrent of the highway, …

he drew his own sword (the first time in the war), and shouted

to the broken troops with a voice which pealed higher than the

roar of battle: "Rally, brave men, and press forward! Your

general will lead you! Jackson will lead you† Follow me!" This

appeal was not in vain, and the Federals, startled by this

unexpected rally, were driven from the field. They afterwards

made an attempt to retrieve the fortunes of the day, which

they had so nearly won, by an assault from a magnificent body

of cavalry, but even this was repelled, and the troopers

driven in full retreat.' … This battle of Cedar Run [called

Cedar Mountain by the Unionists] Jackson himself pronounced

the most successful of his exploits. … In this battle the

Confederates had between eighteen and twenty thousand men

engaged, while the Federals, according to their own returns,

had thirty-two thousand. Jackson, however, had one

incalculable advantage over the enemy, which he gained by his

promptitude in seizing and holding Slaughter's Mountain—an

elevation which commanded all the surrounding plains, and

enabled him to overlook the whole scene of action. … It was to

the advantage of this position as well as the bravery of his

troops that he was indebted for his complete success. By this

victory Pope received such a blow that he was deterred from

making another advance until he could gather reinforcements.

Burnside's corps was withdrawn from North Carolina and sent on

to Culpepper Court-House, and it was believed that McClellan's

remaining forces would be recalled from James River and sent

also to swell the ranks of the grand 'Army of Virginia,' as

the command of Pope was called. At all events, General Lee was

convinced that McClellan was incapable of further aggression,

and that the most effective way to dislodge him from the

Peninsula was to threaten Washington! He therefore determined

to move his army from Richmond to Gordonsville. He began his

march on the 13th, and four days after, on the 17th, McClellan

evacuated the Peninsula and removed his troops to the

Potomac." Pope's army was withdrawn behind the Rappahannock.

"General Lee now ordered Jackson to cross the Rappahannock

high up, and by a forced march go to Manassas and get in

Pope's rear. Other divisions were sent to Pope's front, and

the two hostile armies marched along on either side of the

stream, opening fire upon each other whenever the opportunity

offered. Jackson continued his march up stream until he

reached Warrenton Springs, on the 22d, where he found the

bridge destroyed, but he passed Early's brigade over on a

mill-dam, and took possession of the Springs. Before other

troops could be crossed to his support, a sudden and heavy

rainfall swelled the river so as to render it impassable, and

Early was thus cut off from his friends and surrounded by the

enemy. His situation was one of extreme peril, but he managed

to conceal his troops in the woods, and hold his foes at bay

with artillery, until Jackson had constructed a temporary

bridge, and by the dawn of the morning of the 24th the gallant

Early, with his command, had recrossed the river without the

loss of a man. While a fierce artillery duel was going on

across the river between A. P. Hill and the enemy, Jackson

left the river-bank a few miles, and marched to the village of

Jeffersonton. He was thus lost sight of by the Federals, and

to Longstreet was given the task of amusing Pope by the

appearance of a crossing at Warrenton Springs. Jackson was now

preparing to obey Lee's order to separate himself from the

rest of the army, pass around Pope to the westward, and place

his corps between him and Washington at Manassas Junction.

_Mrs. M. A. Jackson,

Life and letters of General Thomas J. Jackson,

chapter 17._

ALSO IN:

_G. H. Gordon.

History of the Campaign of the Army of Virginia,

chapters 1-3._

_W. C. Bryant and S. H. Gay,

Popular History of the United States,

volume 4, chapter 19._

UNITED STATES OF AMERICA: A. D. 1862

(July-September: Missouri-Arkansas).

Warfare with the Rebel Guerrillas.

"Since the autumn of 1861, General J. M. Schofield, Lyon's

second at the battle of Wilson's Creek, had been in command of

the militia of Missouri, and in June, 1862, that State was

erected into a separate military district, with Schofield at

its head. He was vigilant and active; but when Curtis withdrew

to the Mississippi, and left Arkansas and Southern Missouri

open to the operations of guerrilla bands, then numerous in

the western part of the former State, he found his forces

inadequate to keep down the secessionists in his district.

When Price crossed the Mississippi, early in May, he sent back

large numbers of Missourians to recruit guerrilla bands for

active service during, the summer, and these, at the middle of

July, were very numerous in the interior, and were preparing

to seize important points in the State. To meet the danger,

Schofield obtained authority from the Governor to organize all

the militia of the State.

{3476}

This drew a sharp dividing line between the loyal and disloyal

inhabitants. He soon had 50,000 names on his rolls, of whom

nearly 20,000 were ready for effective service at the close of

July, when the failure of the campaign against Richmond so

encouraged the secessionists in Missouri that it was very

difficult to keep them in check. Schofield's army of

volunteers and militia was scattered over Missouri in six

divisions, and for two months a desperate and sanguinary

guerrilla warfare was carried on in the bosom of that

Commonwealth, the chief theater being northward of the

Missouri River, in McNeill's division, where insurgent bands

under leaders like Poindexter, Porter, Cobb, and others, about

5,000 strong, were very active." They were also aided by

incursions from Arkansas, under Hughes, Coffey and other

leaders. The encounters were many and fierce. At Kirksville,

August 6, and Chariton River, four days later, the loyal

forces achieved considerable victories; at Independence (which

was captured) August 11, and at Lone Jack, about the same

time, they suffered defeat. These were the principal

engagements of the month. With the cooperation of General

Blunt, commanding in Kansas, the Arkansas invasion was driven

back. Missouri was now somewhat relieved, but the Confederates

were gathering in force in Arkansas, where they were joined by

conscripts from Southern Missouri and a large number of troops

from Texas. Their entire number was estimated to be 50,000 at

the middle of September, with General T. C. Hindman in chief

command. … So threatening was this gathering that Schofield

took the field in person, and General Curtis succeeded him in

command of the District of Missouri." Schofield's vanguard,

under General Salomon, encountered the enemy at Newtonia,

September 30, and was defeated; but the Confederates retreated

before the united forces of Schofield and Blunt and "were

chased about 30 miles into Arkansas."

_B. J. Lossing,

Field Book of the Civil War,

volume 2, chapter 20._

ALSO IN:

_Comte de Paris,

History of the Civil War in America,

volume 2, book 4, chapter 3._

UNITED STATES OF AMERICA: A. D. 1862 (August).

Draft of Militia for nine months.

By proclamation, August 4, the President ordered a draft of

300,000 militia, for nine months service unless sooner

discharged.

UNITED STATES OF AMERICA: A. D. 1862 (August).

President Lincoln's "policy" explained to Horace Greeley.

"Executive Mansion, Washington, August 22, 1862.

Hon. Horace Greeley.

Dear Sir:

I have just read yours of the 19th, addressed to myself

through the New York 'Tribune.' If there be in it any

statements or assumptions of fact which I may know to be

erroneous, I do not, now and here, controvert them. If there

be in it any inferences which I may believe to be falsely

drawn, I do not, now and here, argue against them. If there be

perceptible in it an impatient and dictatorial tone, I waive

it in deference to an old friend whose heart I have always

supposed to be right. As to the policy I 'seem to be

pursuing,' as you say, I have not meant to leave anyone in

doubt. I would save the Union. I would save it the shortest

way under the Constitution. The sooner the national authority

can be restored, the nearer the Union will be the Union as it

was.' If there be those who would not save the Union unless

they could at the same time save slavery, I do not agree with

them. If there be those who would not save the Union unless

they could at the same time destroy slavery, I do not agree

with them. My paramount object in this struggle is to save the

Union, and is not either to save or to destroy slavery. If I

could save the Union without freeing any slave, I would do it;

and if I could save it by freeing all the slaves, I would do

it; and if I could save it by freeing some and leaving others

alone, I would also do that. What I do about slavery and the

colored race, I do because I believe it helps to save the

Union; and what I forbear, I forbear because I do not believe

it would help to save the Union. I shall do less whenever I

shall believe what I am doing hurts the cause, and I shall do

more whenever I shall believe doing more will help the cause.

I shall try to correct errors when shown to be errors, and I

shall adopt new views so fast as they shall appear to be true

views. I have here stated my purpose according to my view of

official duty; and I intend no modification of my

oft-expressed personal wish that all men everywhere could be

free.

Yours, A. Lincoln."

_Abraham Lincoln,

Complete Works,

volume 2, page 227-228._

UNITED STATES OF AMERICA: A. D. 1862 (August: Virginia.)

General Pope's campaign: Stonewall Jackson's movement

into the rear of the Federal Army.

"By the capture of Pope's papers [effected in a raid of

Stuart's cavalry to the Federal rear] Lee gained an accurate

knowledge of the situation of the Federal army. Acting on it,

he ordered Jackson to advance his corps to Jeffersonton and

secure the bridge over the Rappahannock at Warrenton Springs.

… Jackson, on arriving at Jeffersonton in the afternoon of the

22d, found that the bridge on the Warrenton turnpike had been

destroyed by the Federals. … On the 23d Lee ordered

Longstreet's corps to follow Jackson and mass in the vicinity

of Jeffersonton. The headquarters of the army was also moved

to that place. … General Longstreet made a feint on the

position of Warrenton on the morning of the 24th, under cover

of which Jackson's corps was withdrawn from the front to the

vicinity of the road from Jeffersonton to the upper fords of

the Rappahannock. Jackson was then directed to make

preparations to turn the Federal position and seize their

communications about Manassas Junction. Longstreet continued

his cannonade at intervals throughout the day, to which the

Federals replied with increasing vigor, showing that Pope was

massing his army in Lee's front. It was the object of Lee to

hold Pope in his present position by deluding him with the

belief that it was his intention to force a passage of the

river at that point, until Jackson by a flank movement could

gain his rear. Longstreet, on the morning of the 25th, resumed

his cannonade with increased energy, and at the same time made

a display of infantry above and below the bridge. Jackson

then, moved up the river to a ford eight miles above; crossing

at that point and turning eastward, by a rapid march he

reached the vicinity of Salem. Having made a march of 25

miles, he bivouacked for the night. Stuart's cavalry covered

his right flank, the movement being masked by the natural

features of the country. The next morning at dawn the march

was resumed by the route through Thoroughfare Gap. The

cavalry, moving well to the right, passed around the west end

of Bull Run Mountain and joined the infantry at the village of

Gainesville, a few miles from the Orange and Alexandria Railroad.

{3477}

Pressing forward, still keeping the cavalry well to the right,

Jackson struck the railroad at Bristoe Station late in the

afternoon, where he captured two empty trains going east.

After dark he sent a detachment under Stuart to secure

Manassas Junction, the main depot of supplies of the Federal

army. The cavalry moved upon the flanks of this position,

while the infantry, commanded by Trimble, assaulted the works

in front and carried them with insignificant loss, capturing

two batteries of light artillery with their horses and a

detachment of 300 men, besides an immense amount of army

supplies. The next morning, after effectually destroying the

railroad at Bristoe, Jackson … moved his main body to

Manassas, where he allowed his troops a few hours to refresh

themselves upon the abundant stores that had been captured.

About 12 o'clock the sound of artillery in the direction of

Bristoe announced the Federal advance. Not having

transportation to remove the captured supplies, Jackson

directed his men to take what they could carry off, and

ordered the rest to be destroyed. General Ewell, having

repulsed the advance of two Federal columns [at Bristoe

Station], rejoined Jackson at Manassas. The destruction of the

captured stores having been completed, Jackson retired with

his whole force to Bull Run, and took a position for the

night, a part of his troops resting on the battle-field of the

previous year. Pope, … upon learning that Jackson was in his

rear, … immediately abandoned his position on the Rappahannock

and proceeded with al despatch to intercept him before he

could be reinforced by Lee. His advance having been arrested

on the 27th by Ewell, he did not proceed beyond Bristoe that

day. Lee on the 26th withdrew Longstreet's corps from its

position in front of Warrenton Springs, covering the

withdrawal by a small rear-guard and artillery, and directed

it to follow Jackson by the route he had taken the day before.

… The corps bivouacked for the night in the vicinity of Salem.

On the morning of the succeeding day, the 27th, a messenger

appeared bringing the important and cheering news of the

success of Jackson at Bristoe and Manassas. … Thoroughfare Gap

was reached about noon of the 28th. It was quickly found to be

occupied by a Federal force. Some slight attempt was made to

dislodge the enemy, but without success, as their position

proved too strong, and it seemed as if the movement of the

Confederate army in that direction was destined to be

seriously interfered with. Meanwhile, nothing further had been

heard from Jackson, and there was a natural anxiety in regard

to his position and possible peril. … Under these critical

circumstances General Lee made every effort to find some

available route over the mountains," and had already succeeded

in doing so when his adversary saved him further trouble.

"Pope … had ordered McDowell to retire from the Gap and join

him to aid in the anticipated crushing of Jackson. McDowell

did so, leaving Rickett's division to hold the Gap. In evident

ignorance of the vicinity of Longstreet's corps, this force

was also withdrawn during the night, and on the morning of the

29th Lee found the Gap unoccupied, and at once marched through

at the head of Longstreet's column. … Pope had unknowingly

favored the advance of the Confederate commander. His removal

of McDowell from his position had been a tactical error of

such magnitude that it could not well be retrieved. … The

cannonade at the Gap on the 28th had informed Jackson of Lee's

proximity. He at once took a position north of the Warrenton

turnpike, his left resting on Bull Run. … About three o'clock

the Federals bore down in heavy force upon Ewell and

Taliaferro, who maintained their positions with admirable

firmness, repelling attack after attack until night. The loss

on both sides was considerable. … Jackson, with barely 20,000

men, now found himself confronted by the greater part of the

Federal army. Any commander with less firmness would have

sought safety in retreat. But having heard the Confederate

guns at Thoroughfare Gap, he knew that Lee would join him the

next day. Therefore he determined to hold his position at all

hazards. By the morning of the 29th … Hood's division had

reached the south side of the mountain, and early in the day

was joined by the remainder of Longstreet's corps, by way of

the open Gap. While these important movements were in

progress, Pope had resumed his attack upon Jackson. … On the

arrival of Lee, Pope discontinued his attack, and retired to

the position which the year before had been the scene of the

famous battle of Bull Run, or Manassas."

_A. L. Long,

Memoirs of Robert E. Lee,

chapter 11._

ALSO IN:

_R. L. Dabney,

Life and Campaigns of General Thomas J. Jackson._

_G. H. Gordon,

History of the Campaign of the Army of Virginia,

chapters 4-10._

_W. B. Taliaferro,

Jackson's Raid around Pope

(Battles and Leader, volume 2, pages 501-511)._

UNITED STATES OF AMERICA: A. D. 1862 (August-September: Virginia).

The end of General Pope's campaign: Groveton.

Second Bull Run.

Chantilly.