ARMY OPERATIONS. 



137 



been repaired, he destroyed the property of 

 the United States before retiring. This con- 

 sisted of some 200 railroad cars, 5 locomotives, 

 and a large quantity of fixed ammunition, ord- 

 nance stores, &c. The enemy, however, ob- 

 tained great spoil. On the same day, Sun- 

 day, Sept. 1, Fredericksburg was evacuated by 

 Gen. Burnside. Falmouth Station was burned, 

 and a quantity of commissary stores. The 

 bridge erected in place of the old railroad 

 bridge, the wire bridge, and the boat bridge 

 were destroyed. The evacuation of Aquia 

 Creek followed. 



Gen. Pope states that by the reports of the 

 commanders of corps of his army it consisted, 

 on the 1st of September, of less than 60,000 

 men. The position taken by his orders on this 

 day was as follows : The division of Gen. Couch 

 and one brigade of Gen. Sumner's corps were at 

 Fairfax Court House. Gen. Hooker was posted at 

 or in front of Germantown, and had command 

 of his own troops and those at Fairfax. Gen. 

 McDowell's corps was stationed on the "Warren- 

 ton turnpike about two miles west of Fairfax. 

 Gen. Reno was pushed north of the turnpike 

 at a point about two and a half miles east of 

 Centreville, and supported by Gen. Kearny's 

 division of Gen. Heintzelman's corps. 



Late in the afternoon, the Confederates, com- 

 posed of infantry and cavalry, approached Ger- 

 mantown by the Little River turnpike, and were 

 met by Gen. Hooker at that place and by Gen. 

 Reno farther west. The conflict raged for an 

 hour, when they concentrated their force on 

 the left of Gen. Reno's line, which was com- 

 manded by Gen. Stevens. Their intention was 

 to turn his left flank. Gen. Stevens was soon 

 killed by a bullet through his head, and his 

 troops were driven back. The Confederate 

 force now began to advance on the main body 

 of Gen. Reno, which was short of ammunition, 

 when the division of Gen. Kearny lame up 

 and took the position occupied by the troops 

 of Gen. Stevens. Night had now set in, ren- 

 dered thickly dark by a thunder storm. The 

 rain fell in torrents, and the position of the 

 contending armies was revealed only by the 

 flashes of lightning. At this tune, Gen. Kear- 

 ny, anxious to know the nature of the ground 

 upon which he expected so soon to fight, rode 

 out to examine it. Inadvertently he passed the 

 line of his own pickets and approached those 

 of the Confederate force, when he was shot by 

 one of them. He was soon missed from his 

 camp, and not being found. Gen. Birney took 

 command of the division. During the next 

 day, his body was brought in under a Confed- 

 erate flag of truce. Thus two most valuable 

 oflicers and brave soldiers were slain in this 

 conflict. After Gen. Birney had taken com- 

 mand, he ordered a bayonet charge to be made 

 by Col. Egan. commanding the 1st and 40th, and 

 Col. Ward, of the 38th New York regiments, be- 

 fore which the Confederate force retired. 



By morning, on the 2d of September, the 

 whole of Gen. Pope's army was massed behind 



Difficult Creek, between Germantown, Flint 

 Hill, and Fairfax. Ou that day orders were is- 

 sued by the general-in-chief for the Army of Vir- 

 ginia to fall back within the defences of Wash- 

 ington. The object of the general-in-chief in 

 giving this order was "to reorganize the differ- 

 ent corps, to get the stragglers back into the 

 ranks, and to supply deficiencies of ammuni- 

 tion, clothing, &c." This movement was exe- 

 cuted on the 2d and 3d of September. During 

 these days might be seen on the roads leading 

 to Alexandria and the fortifications around 

 Washington, the worn and bleeding fragments 

 of the once proud armies of the North, as they 

 straggled in from their fifteen bloody days of 

 fighting and retreating. There were the rem- 

 nants of the decimated regiments of Maine, 

 New York, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Ohio, 

 and Michigan stragglers belonging to every 

 army corps, wounded, weak, and dispirited, re- 

 tiring before a victorious enemy to obtain 

 safety in the fortifications. Many of them had 

 fought their way up the peninsula, contesting 

 almost every inch from Williarusburg against 

 bullets and bayonets until they stood in sight 

 of the spires of Richmond at a distance of four 

 miles, and then were required to abandon their 

 position and withdraw. 



The Confederate force which was repulsed 

 near Centreville, on Monday night, September 2, 

 moved toward Vienna, about twelve miles west 

 from Washington, for the purpose of making a 

 demonstration near the Chain Bridge, and the 

 fords of the Potomac above Washington. The 

 chief object in this movement was to divert 

 the attention of the Federal officers from what 

 Gen. Lee was doing elsewhere. The with- 

 drawal of the army of Gen. Pope left the field 

 clear for the Confederate army to follow it, 

 and assault the strong fortifications of Wash- 

 ington, or to pass over the Potomac into Mary- 

 land. The assault upon the fortifications of 

 Washington was not to be thought of. But 

 the invasion of Maryland might be followed by 

 such a welcome from the mass of the citizens, 

 and such cooperation, as to enable Gen. Lee 

 not only to hold a portion of the State, but to 

 attack Washington in the rear, and perhaps in- 

 vade Pennsylvania. In any event it would be a 

 demonstration to the Federal Government, and 

 to nations in Europe, of the vigorous energy 

 and strength of the Confederate Government. 

 Accordingly, on the 31st of August, while Gen. 

 Pope was resting his exhausted forces at Cen- 

 treville, Gen. Lee drew off the main body of 

 the Confederate army and moved to Leesburg. 

 Thence he moved to the Potomac, near Point 

 of Rocks, and crossed at Noland's Ford, five 

 miles below, and at a ford three miles above on 

 the 5th. His force consisted of the divisions 

 of Gens. Longstreet, Jackson, Ewell, A. P. Hill, 

 and D. H. Hill. It proceeded along the eastern 

 slope of the Catoctin Mountains, in the direc- 

 tion of Frederick, Maryland. On the night of the 

 6th the advance reached White Oak Springs, 

 about three miles from that city, which is fifty 



