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T-J-? "" "'".-'"" ,. - ' - ' ' - " . - f - , ' ' ft . dbxf ' JK -. i"'?: ' mBtv'T.j T, , j f -il L" " ?rs---. Sj- "TO CARE FOR HIM WHO HAS BORNE THE BATTLE, AND FOR HIS WIDOW AND ORPHANS." ESTABLISHED 1S77 N1W SERIES. WASHINGTON, D. 0., THURSDAY, AUGUST 30, 1888. YOL. YnFN0..QI0Lim 368. ijs .A3S-rs5srZSa&'t!i3X WSSSPJi zr .rfsri r - ii.izrxip--?iijLjb-r2rf-Tri'.Ar . tf --. . t-ii3. ..r-ijs ",:: '..:::. .. .. ,x ' j,1,.,1 js.i.,iimsi i ,s ., :, ? ', THE liosfc rmy. ih . . Scoute aai HgMwg Aureatures of Two Boys in M3B80ITSI ASTD ARKANSAS iHT 3SW, '62. A. Neutrality that was Like trie Handle of a Jug. 02,5' fOU THE "WAR. ST ZMMCAS W. E3IOX, AbOmt of MTIe Boy Tiwveters." "Tfce Tombr Kfanrofe, "The VoyceoftbeVirfcn,M "Fulton MNi Steam Nvitkn," "DWte Battle Shiee Vaterioo," "Marao Pete foe Boys and Girl:," coramraa tax. aul xxbbse kbstes.) Chapter L EAjarr Aan jack outbreak: of tks irjutttTmrn to joflist. (g ETS go Md enlist ! " Perhaps they won't . take us,M was the re ply. ""Wall, there's noth ing like trying," re sponded the first speaker. "Nothing ventured, nothing "Thsfs so," said the other. "Ana if we cant go for soldiers, perhaps they'll find us I useful about the camp i for some thing else." This conversation took place between !two boys of Dubuque, I Iowa, one pleasant morning early in the year 186L They were Jade Witeoo mad Harry Fulton, neither of whom hod yet seen his 16th birthday. They were the sons of industrious and respectable parents, whose houses stood not far apart en one of the humbler streets of that ambi tions city ; they had knows each other for 10 yeats or wore, had gone to school together, played together, and at the time of which? we jo writing they were working side by side in the auae shop. The war lor the destruction of the Union en the one hand aad its preservation on the ether had ast began. The election of Abraham Lincoln to the Presidency had aiarsMd the 5ou tbern States, who regarded It as a menace to their beloved system of aero" slavery. In consequence of his elec tion the Southern leaders endeavored to withdraw their States from the Union, and one after aeother had passed ordinances af Secession. South Carolina was the first to secede, her action being taken on the 90th of December, fire weeks after the Presi dential election. Ten other States followed her example and united with South Carolina in Aarming the Confederate States of North America, choosing Jefferson Davis as their test President. Then followed the demand for the surrender of the forts and other property of the United States in the region In rebellion. PSmi Sumter was taken after a Moodtem ftaht, in which the Urst gun was teed by the South; other States seceded, and then came the uprising of the North in de fease of the Union. Am if by the wand of a magician the whole North was transformed into a vast military oamp, where only a few days before nothing was to he seen aare the arm and arms of peace and industry. Becruillng offices were opened in every city and almost in every village. Squads were formed into companies, sompaniee into regiments and regiments into brigades with a celerity that betokened ill for the cause of Secession. The Korth had been taunted oyer and over again that it was more intent upon money-making than any thing else, and nothing could provoke it into aught. It hud been patient and long-sufier-tug, hut the point of exasperation had been foachei, and the men of the Northern States were now about to show of what staff they wore made. The President issued a call for 75,000 men to serve for three mouths, and Hit call was responded to with alacrity. And it was in me recruiting that iermed a part of this re sponse that our story opens. Jack and Harry went to the recruiting affioe, which was on one of the principal atveets of Dubuque and easy to find. Over the doorway an immense flag the flag of the Natfen was waving in tbe morning breeze, sad in front of the door was an excited group of men disenssiug the prospects for tbe future, aad particularly the chances of war. " It'll he over in a mouth," said one, aud wefi all be back here at home before our Mdistment time's up," "Yes; the South 11 he cleaned out in no lime said another. "Those fellows are good on the brag, but when they look into the muzzles of Northern muskets they'll yvtrn tail and run.' "Dont be so sure of that," said s third. "The South may be wrong in all this busi ness, but tbuyll give us all the fighting we want " You'd better go and fight for Jeff Davis." was the retort which fallowed. " We don't want any fellows like you around ns." "That we dou't yon bet," said another, &nd the sentimeut was eehood by fully half the listeners. "You're all wrong," persisted the man who had just spoken. "Don't misnnder taad me; Pm just as good a Union man as anybody, and Pm goiag to fight for the Union, but I don't want anybody to go off half-cocked, and think we're going to lick the South out of their boots in no time; be aa M A ft IB.-L. imm: my J(wvm3m if i . yrfBraK 2&tM&S8Sk P zm r &&& cause we can't do it. We're going to win in this fight; we're twenty millions nnd they're eight, and we'vo got most of the manufac turing and Uxq men who know how to work with their hands. Eut the Southerners are Americans like ourselves, and can fight just as well as we can. They think they're right, and thinking so makes a heap of dif ference when you go in for war. They'll do their level best, jnst as we shall." "Perhaps they will," was the reply, "but we'll make short work of 'em." "All right," responded the other, "we won't lose our tempers over it; but anybody who thinks the war will be over in three months doesn't appreciate American fighting ability, no matter on which eide of the line it is found." This mode of putting the argument si loneed tome of his opponents, particularly when he followed it up by showing how the Southern regiments in the Mexican war cov ered themselves with glory side by side with the Northern ones. But the loudest of tho talkers refused to be silenced, and continued to taunt him with boing a sympathizer with the rebellion. At tb&.outbreak of th6 war a great deal of this kind of talk was to be heard on both sides, men in the North declaring that the South would be conquered and the war Deummdtg up Eeceuits. ended in three months, while people at the South boasted of the ability of one Southern man to whip three Northerners. When the armies fairly met in the field and steel clashed against steel all this boasting on both sides was silenced, and Nortb and South learned to respect each other for their sol dierly qualities. One of tho greatest of mili tary mistakes is to hold your enemy in con tempt, and to this mistake is due some of the disasters of the early days of the war. And the lesson maybe carried further. One of the greatest mistakes in the battle of life is to underrate those who oppose you or the hindrances that lie in your path. Al ways regard your opponent as fully your equal in everything, and then use your beat endeavors to overcome him. Do your best at all times, and you have more than an even chance of success in the long run. Jack and Harry listened a few moments to the debate among the men in front of the recruiting office, and then made their way inside. A man in the uniform of a Captain was sitting behind a desk taking the names of those that wanted to enli3t, and telling them to wait their turn for ex amination. In a few moments a man came out from an inner room, and then a name was called and its owner went inside. "Don't think yonll get in there, sonny," said a man who observed the puzzled look of Jack as he glanced toward the inner door. " What are they doing in there? " queried Jack encouraged by the friendly way in which he had been addressed. "They're putting the recruits through their paces," was the reply; "examining 'em to see whether they'll do for service." "How do they do it?" "They Btrip a man down to his bore skin," was the reply, "and then they thump him and measure him, to see if his lungs are sound; weigh him and take bis hight, make him jump, try his yes, look at his teeth; in fact, they put him through very much ae you've seen a horse handled by a dealer who wanted to buy him. They've rerueed a lot of men here that quite likely theyll be glad to take a few months from now." And so it was. The first call for troops was responded to by far more men than vere wanted to fill the quota, and the recruiting officers could afford to be very particular in their selections. Subsequent calls for troops were for three years' service, and as the number under arms increased recruiting be came a matter of greater difficulty. Men that were refused at the first call were gladly accepted in later ones. Before the end of the first year of the war more than 661,000 men were under arms in the North. Jack and Harry walked up to the desk where the officer sat as soon as they saw he was unoccupied. "Well, my boys, what can I do for you ? " said the Captain oheerily. Jack waited a moment for Harry to speak, and finding he did not do so, broke the ice himself with "We want to onlist, General." The youth was unfamiliar with the in signia of rank, and thought he would be on the safe side by applying the highest title he knew of. The gilded buttons and shoulder straps dazzled his eyes, and it's no wonder that he thought a man with so much orna mentation was deserving of the highest title. "Captain, if you please," said the officer, smiling; "but I'm afraid you're too young for us. How old are you? " " Coming 16 "both answered in a breath. The Captain shook his head as ho an swered that they were altogether too young. "Couldn't wo do something else?" queried Harry, eagerly. "We can drive boraes and work about the camp." " If you ever go for a soldier," replied the Captain, "you'll find that the men do their own camp work, and don't have servants. Perhaps we can give you a chance at the teams. Here, take this to the Quarter master," and he scribbled a memorandum, suggesting that the boys might bo handy to have about camp and around the horses. They couldn't be enlisted, of course, but ho liked their looks, and thought they could afford to feed the youths, anyhow. Tho boys eagerly hastened to the Quar termaster, whom they had some difficulty in finding. He questioned them closely, and finally said they might go with the regiment when it moved. It was not then ready for the field, and he advised the boys to stay at home until the organization was complete and the regiment received orders to march to the seat of war. The parental permission was obtained with comparatively little difficulty, as the fathera of both the youths were firm believ ers in tho theory of a short war, without any fighting of consequence; they thought the outing would be a pleasant affair of two or three months at farthest. Had they foreseen the result of the call to arms, and especially the perils and privations which were to befall Jack and Hfirry, it is proba ble that our heroes would have been obliged to run away in order to carry out their in tention of going to the field. And possibly their ardor would have been dampened a little, and they might have thought twice before marching away as they did when the regiment was ordered to the front and the scene of active work in the field. Chaptee II. BT. LOUIS AND CAMP JACKSON. While Jack and Harry are waiting im patiently for the order that will give them a taste of military life, we will leave them for a while and go down the Mississippi Eiver to the great city of St. Louis. The Slate of Missouri was one of those known as the "Border States," or lying on the border between North and South. It was the most northerly of the slaveholding States west of the Mississippi Eiver, and the system of slavery did not have a strong hold upon her people. Probably the majority of her native-born citizens were in favor of slavery, or only passively opposed to it, but it contained 200,000 residents of German birth, and these almost to a man were on the eide of freedom. When the question of Secession was submitted to the popular vote the State, by a majority of 80,000 votes, re fused to secede; but the Governor and nearly all the rest of the State authorities were on the side of Secession, and deter mined to take Missouri out of the Union in Bpite of the will of the people. Gov. Jackson was in full sympathy with the Secession movement, and with the reins of power in his hands he made the most of his opportunities. Gen. Sterling Price, who commanded the Miesouri State Militia, was equally on the side of slavery and . its off spring, Secession, though at first he opposed the movement for taking the State out of the Union, and was far more moderate in his councils than was the Governor and others of the Slate officials. Earnestly op posed to these men were Francis P. Blair, jr., and other unconditional Union men, most of whom lived in St. Louis, and had for years been fighting the bat tle of freedom on behalf of the Stale. They believed and constantly argued that Missouri would be far better off as a free State than a slave one, while the opponents of Blavery in the Eastern and ex treme Northern States had based their argu ments mainly on the gronnd of justice to the black man. The Free-State men of Mis souri gave the rights of the negro a second ary place, and sometimes no place at all, but confined themselves to showing that tho State would be better off and more prosper ous under freedom than under Blavery. They had a good knowledge of human na ture, similar to that displayed by the author of the old maxim that " Honesty is the best policy." " Be honest," he would say, " be cause it is the best policy to be bo, and let the question of right or wrong take care of itself." All through the month of April, 1861, the f T553 Scenes in tiie Steeets. plotting to take Missouri out of the Union was carried on by the Secession party, and at the same time there was counter-plotting on the part of the Union men. The Seces sionists, having the aid and sympathy of the State authorities, had the advantages on their side, and were not slow to use them. They organized forces under the name of minute men, and had them constantly drilling and learning the duties of soldiers. Later, under an order issued by the Governor, they formed ja camp of instruction, under com mand of Gen. D. M. Frost, in the suburbs of St. Louis, with the openly-declared inten tion of 'capturing the United States Arsenal, which stood on the bank of the' river just below the city. At the same time the Union men were equally active, and, nnder the leadership o Blair, those who were ready to fight for the preservation of tho Nation wero organized into a military force called the Home Guards. While the plotting was going on and matters were progressing toward actual warfare, Capt. Nathaniel Lyon, who com manded at the Arsenal, caused the garrison to be strengthened, sent away the superflu ous arms and ammunition to a place of greater safety, armed the Home Guards, and on the 10 th of May surprised tho Secession ists by marching out in force and capturing Camp Jackson, the camp of instruction Al ready mentioned. In order to have good reason for making tho capture, Capt. Lyon visited Camp Jack son in disguise and rent through it from one end to the other. What he found in the camp gave him sufaciuii reason for action. Here it is : When the State of Louisiana seceded from the Union the United States Arsenal at Baton Eonge was seized by the State au thorities, who took forcible possession of the arms and munitions of war that they found there. When he was planning to feSa 7sh -C" J4j WW-r- -yi -Ml J In the Eeceuiting Office. capture the Arsenal at St. Lonis, Gov. Jack son found that he needed some artillery with which to open fire from the hills that command tho Arsenal, which is on low ground on the bank of the river. Gov. Jackson sent two officers to the Con federate Capital, Which was then at Mont gomery, Ala,, to make an appeal to Jefferson Davis for artillery from the lot taken at Baton Eouge, and explain for what it was wanted. President iavia granted the re quest, ordered tho commandant at Baton Eouge to deliver the artillery and ammuni tion as desired, and ho wrote at the same time to Gov. Jackson as follows : After lenriiitiK aa well as I could from the gentlemen accredited to me whiti was must needed for tlienttack on the Arsenal, I have direct ed that Capts. Greeno and Duke should befur nislied with two 12-pound howitzers and two 32 noundereuriH, with the proper ammunition for each. These, from thecouinmiittini; hill, will he effect ive against the garrison and to break the inclosing walls of the place, i concur with you in the great importance of capturing: the Arsenal urn! securing itHsuppliea. Wtj look, anxiously and hope fully for the day whan the star of Missouri shall bo added to the consteltntion of the Confederate States of America. With tho beat wishes 1 am, very respectfully, youre, Jeki'eoson Davw. The cannon and ammunition reached St. Louis on the 8th of May, and were imme diately sent to Gamp Jackson. The nego tiations for them had been known to Blair and Lyon, and as soon as they learned of the arrival of tho material which would be so useful in capturing the arsenal, they deter mined to act. Capt. Lyon, as before stated, went in disguise through the camp on the 9th, saw with his own eyes the cannon and ammunition, learned that they had come from Baton Eouge, and was told for what purpose they were intended. Here was the stolen property of the United States in the hands of the enemies of the Government, and intended to be used for further thefts by violence. There could be no doubt of his .duty in the matter, except in the mind of a-Seccasionist or hia sympa thizer. By the Secessionists the capture of Camp Jackson was looked upon as a great outrage, for which the Union men had no authority under the Constitution and laws either of the United States or of the State of Mis souri. It was a peculiar circumstance of the opening months of the rebellion, and in fact all through it, that tha rebels and their sympathizers were constantly invoking tha Constitution of the United States wherever it could be brought to bear against the sup porters of the Government; so much was this the case that in time it came to be al most a certainty that any man who prated about the Coustitutiou was on the aide of the rebellion. The men who were ready to violate it were those who constantly sought to shield therafcelvca behind it. As an illustration of this state of affaira, may be cited the letter of Gov. Jackson in reply to the proclamation of President Lin coln calling for 75,000 troops for three months, " to maintain the honor, the integ rity and the existence of our National Union, and the perpetuity of popular Government; and to repossess the forts, places, and property which have been seized from tho Union." Missouri was cnlled upon for four regi ments of militia as her quota of the 75,000. Gov. Jackson replied to the President that he considered the requisition "illegal, un constitutional and revolutionary in its ob jects, inhnman and-diabolical, and cannot bo complied witb.'? At the same time he was going on with preparations for carrying tho State out of the Union contrary to the desires of a majority f ite inhabitants, aa if they had. no rtght3 that ho was bound to re spect! Aa before stated, the Arsenal at St. Louis is completely dominated by the Tange of hills beyond it, and a military force having possession of these hills would have tho Arsenal in its control. The Secession leaders laid their plans to take possession of these hills in order to eapture the Arsenal. Learn ing of their intentions, Capt. Lyon threw up a line of defenseive works in the streets outside tho walls of the Arsenal, whereupon the Secessionists invoked the local laws and endeavored to convince him that he hod no right to do anything of the kind. The Board of Police Commissioners ordered him to keep his men inside the walla of the Arsenal, but ho refused to do so, and for this he was loudly denounced as a violator of the law. There were about 700 men in Camp Jack son, under command of Gen. Frost. Capt. Lyon had issued arms to several regiments of the Home Guards of St. Louis, in spite of the protest of the Police Commissioners, who considered his action in doing eo highly improper. These regiments, added to the Eegular soldiers composing the garrison at the Arsenal, gave Capt. Lyon a force of six or seven thousand men, with which he marched out on Friday, the 10th of May, aurrounded Camp Jackson, and demanded its onrrender. Under the circumstances Gen. Frost could do nothing else than surrender, which ho did at once. The militia stacked their arms and were marched out on their way to the" Arsenal. A short distance from the camp they were halted for some time, and during the halt a large crowd of people collected, nearly all of them bqing friends of tho prisoners or sympathizers with Se cession. Most of the Home Guards were Germans, and during the halt they were reviled with all the epithets with which the tongues of the Secession sympathizers were familiar. These epithets comprised all the profanity and vulgarity known to the English lan guage in its vilest aspects, and added to them was the opprobrious name of " Dutch black guards," which was appiied in consequence of ono of the companies calling itself Die Schicartze Garde. Without orders some of the soldiers fired on the jeering mob; the fire passed along the line until several com panies had emptied their rifles, and 28 peo ple fell, killed or mortally wounded, among them being three prisoners. Then the firing ceased as suddenly a3 it began, and the pris oners were marched to the Arsenal. On the 11th all the captured men were liberated on their parole not to bear arms against the United States. One officer, Capt. Emm6tt McDonald, refused to accept release on this condition, and like a true Secession ist sought his remedy through the. Constitu tion and the laws of the country. It took a long time to secure it, but eventually ho was liberated on a technicality, went South and joined the Southern cause, and was killed in battle not long afterward. " What has all this to do with Jack and Harry ? " the impatient read asks. We shall very soon find out. Chaptee ILL ; SZCE33ION IDEAS OF NECTTEALITT. For some days before the affair of Camp Jackson it had been rumored in Dubuque that the Iowa troops would Boon be ordered to march into the neighboring Stato of Mis souri. There was great excitement when, on the morning of the 11th of May, the particulars of the occurrence of the day before in St. Louis were published. Jack read about it in the morning paper nnd then hurried to Harry's house as fast as his young feet could carry him. "This moans business," said Jack, aa he quickly narrated to Harry what he had read. "So it does," was the response; "we'll surely be off before many days. Lot's go to camp." Away they went and found as they ex pected that everybody expected to move to the front very shortly. "We are pretty nearly ready for orders," said the Quarter master, "and you'd better come here twice a day, if not oftener, to make sure that you don't get left. Watch the newspapers and fl jrT m 41 A f I fJp u UNIFOE3IJED AND EEADY. see what happens in Missouri for the next few days, as it will havo a good deal to do with our movements." The boys did as they were directed, and what was more they went to a tailor and bought suits resembling those worn by the soldiers. They were not entitled to receive uniforms from tho Quartermaster, as they had not been enlisted or regularly employ ed, and, therefore, their outfits were paid for out of their own pockets. But the clothes thoy wanted were not costly, and therefore their outfits did not cost them much. There was more news of importance the next day, and if the excitement was great in Dubuque, it was nothing to that in St. Louis, where another Dhooting affair had taken place. According to the histories of the time, it occurred in this wise: A regiment of the Home Guards was marching from the Arsenal to its barracka, which lay at tho other side of the city, and while on its way it encountered a dense mul titude which blocked the street. The sol diers were hooted at and reviled as they had been on the previous day at Camp Jackson. The crowd being almost wholly composed of Secessionists, many of whom were armed with pistols, a pistol-shot was fired at the soldiers, whereupon the latter opened fire, killing eight men and wounding several others. Then the regiment continued to its barracks and was not further molested. A rumor went around among the Seces sionists that the Germans had threatened to kill everybody who did not agree with them, and a general massacre was seriously feared. The Police Commissioners and the Mayor asked to have tbe Home Guards sent away from the city, and though Gen. Harney, the Commander of the Department, promised to comply with their r- ;aest, ho was boob convinced by Blair and Lyon that is could not bo done without giving the city into the hands of the Secessionists. Then came a rumor that the Homo Guards had refused to obey tho orders of Gen. Harney, and were about to begin the destruction of the city and the murder of its inhabitants. Peeseouting Union A panic followed, and on the 12th and 13th of May thousands of women and children were Bent out of the city f the ferryboats were crowded to their utmost capacity, and extra steamboats wero pressed into service to convey the people to places of safety. Quiet was not restored until two companies of Eegular soldiers were brought into the city and Gen. Haruey had issued a procla mltfotrin which he -pledged his faith as a soldier to preserve order and protect all un offending citizens. This brought back nearly all the fugitives, but there were some who never returned, as they feared the torrible "Dutch blackguards" would revolt against their officers and deluge the streets of St. Louie with blood. Jack and Harry read with great interest the account of these happenings in the neighboring State, and wondered how they would all end. They also read the editorial comments of tho newspapers, but could not understand all they found there. So they strolled down to camp and ques tioned one of tho soldiers, an intelligent printer from one of the newspaper offices. " One thing we want to know," said Jack, "is what is meant by States rights ? " "That's what tho South is going to war about," was the reply ; " or at any rate that is the pretext of the leaders, though I've -no doubt it is honestly believed by the great mass of the Southern people." " What is it, anyway ? " "Well, it is the idea thafc the General Gov ernment of the United States has no power to coerce or control a State against the lat fer's will." " Does that mean," said Harry, " bat if a State wants to go out of the Union she has a perfect right to do so, and there's no power or right in the General Government "to stop her?" " Yes, that's what it means," was the re ply. "The States rights argument is that the States that wero dissatisfied with the election of President Lincoln had a perfect right to secede or step out of the Union, and the Union had no right to forca them, to stay in or come back." " Thank you," said Harry ; " I think I un derstand it now. And how is it with the Border States, like Missouri, and the Stato sovereignty they're talking about?" "The .States-rights men in Missouri claim that the National Government has no right or authority to call for troops from Missouri to aid in putting down rebellion in the seceded States; that Gov. Jackson did right in refusing such troops when the President called for them ; that the National Government has no right to enlist troops in Missouri to take part in the war, and that it must not be permitted to mareh its troops into or across or through any part of the State in order to reach tbe States in rebel lion against the National authority." " In other words," said one of the boys, " they want the State of Missouri to bo en tirely neutral in tho wax to take no part in it either way ? " "Thafs what they say," replied the printer, with a smile. "But look here," exclaimed Harry; "haven't I read that the Seeeseionists in Missouri seized the United States Arsenal at Liberty, in the western part of the State, aud took possession of all the cannon, Bmall arms and ammunition they found there ? " "Yes." "And haven't I read about how they planned to capture the St. Louis Arsenal, and Jeff Davis sent them some artillery and ammunition for that purpose, and wrote them a letter saying exactly what the can non were to be used for, and how they were to be placed on the hills behind the Arsenal in order to batter down the walls?" (Continued ou 2d mice J MiJN. ARMY OF MffljL bait qw botj, sok Failure . to ReinXoro Pope's Army. TABDI M0V2O3rm Lukewarxrves of 3ncy Otfti crs of Rsuctk. ST BW. V. N eeneiaalag an. ar&. cle on the second bat tle of Ball Sun, pub IJebediatae January number of the 0hiry MafozHU for 1863, the following words wera used: "The trassae tiona at Alexandria and in Washington nL city during the so -at Centerrille during fi part of them, are aa closely connected with these battteg and had nearly aa much to de with theresuhaasany part of the operations intheleM." Psrthis reason I purpose now to give a careful hiatory of them, aa being essential a any thorough understanding of that eampaigxx, and especially of the battle of Bull Ens. la. the article for the Century and more fully in. two articles for Thb Natiokai. Txtbces I gave the organisation of the Army of Vir ginia, and I merely repeat the substance briefly. This Army of Virginia was made by bringing together the troops under Mc Dowell, Fremont and Banks, which wera scattered about from Fredericksburg to ths Shenandoah Valley, and whfeh up to that time had had no official relation or harmony of action with each other. THE FOECS ACTUALLY DISP03AE13 when I first assumed command numbered only about 28,000 men, King's Division being kept at Fredericksburg by order of the Gov ernment. Several of the eorps and many of tho divisions and brigades were badly organ ized, and to a considerable degrss deraex&l ized and discouraged. During the eoneeo tration of this foree east of the Blue Eidgs, Gen. McClellau was attacked in front of Eichmond and driven back en the James Eiver, his base of supplies on the Pamunkej Eiver and lines of communication iherawith being threatened and then occupied by tha enemy. When he had reached Harrison's Land ing, and his condition was known, fee plans for the operations of the Army of Virginia to relieve him were determined. It was decided, for reasons quite fully esl forth in my former article, to withdraw hia army from the Peninsula and unite it witk the army under my command along the lina of the Eappahannoek. FIDELITY OF COMXANDLNG 0FFICSE3. The purpose to unite these two armies having a powerful and resolute enemy, undes able commanders, interposed between them, ready to strike in either direction as mighi seem most judkious, involved one of tha most hazardous and difficult operations of the war. It demanded from the ferce is, front of Washington the greatest energy and activity, and foreed upon it such extreme danger and difficulty as an army is very in frequently exposed to. It demanded equally from the army which was to be withdrawn from the James River the same energy and activity, and a seal also which is not always found in a commander who does not will ingly perform the duty imposed upon bfiy by the orders of his Government. Unless these conditions on the part of both armies . are faithfully fulfilled, the chances ate alto gether against the success of such an opera tion. Whether the Government was right or wrong in expecting this fidelity in iia commanders, even when its orders were not satisfactory to them, I leave to the decision of the army itself and to the pubiie sense of the country. As the enemy pushed his iorees to tha north with great energy and speed to crush the troops in front of Washington beera they could be reinforced by Gee.XcCleHan'a army from the Peninsula, the Arnr. of Vir ginia necessarily bore the brunt of all th fighting; whilst the army of Gen. McClel lau, exposed to no danger and not attacked, at any point during its withdrawal, had nothing to do except urge ibrward by all possible means its movement to Alexandria and unite with the Army of Virginia with the least possible delay. That army was holding back the enemy by continual fight ing and marching, and with the constant rifck of being overwhelmed by very sujjeriGS forces. How the Army of Virginia under my com mand performed its part in this operation X have tried to recount in a fbrmer article, and it now remains to tell how the army under Gen. McClellan fulfilled the part which was assigned to and expected of it. MCCIJtLIJLN'S TABBY MOYXX2KT3. It does not fall properly within the prov ince of this paper to recount in detail or to discuss Gen. McClellaa's tardy movements in the withdrawal of his army from Harri son's Landing to make its junction with tho army under my command in front of Wash ington. It will suffiee to say that id re ceived the orders to embark his army by tho 4th of August, and that the first corps of that army did not move from its camps until Aug. 14. On the 9th Gen. Halleek tele graphed him that the enemy was massing his forces in frout of Gen. Pope and Gen. Burnside to crush them and moTe forward i&WML Wmwj: 4mJ fjACZr2 ,U.JU ii4r &gZi&&jL jfe--tos'ag