SPALDING SPARKS. 



553 



glers revelling in an unwasted region ; but resolute, 

 inured to war, and confidently awaiting the contest 

 that it knew to be decisive of the campaign, in a po- 

 sition chosen by its leader. McClellan's army num- 

 bered over 70,000, but the Confederate army was pro- 

 tected ou both flanks by the Potomac, on which they 

 rested respectively, while the Antietam flowed along 

 its front, the ground consisting of meadows, corn- 

 fields, and patches of forest. The creek was crossed 

 by four bridges, all save the northernmost strongly 

 guarded. McClellan's plan of attack was to throw 

 his right over the unguarded bridge upon the 

 enemy's left, and, when he had thus drawn their 

 main force to that flank, to cross with his centre and 

 left and fall upon the enemy's right. Toward even- 

 ing Hooker led his corps across the upper bridge, 

 but little more than a skirmish ensued till the lines 

 rested. He had, however, developed McClellan's 

 plans and thus given Lee time to make his disposi- 

 tions to meet it. The only change he thought it 

 necessary to make was to place Jackson's fresh troops 

 in the position on his left. McClellan during the 

 night sent Mansfield's corps across the creek to join 

 Hooker and had Sumner in readiness to follow in 

 the early morning. 



The dawn of the 17th saw the two armies standing 

 ready for a great conflict in which there could be no 

 strategy, but which must be decided by sheer fight- 

 ing. The battle began at sunrise in the woods bor- 

 dering the Sbaqwburg road to Hagerstown by an 

 attack by Hooker on Jackson's position in front, 

 which was also enfiladed by artillery from across the 

 creek. Jackson's lines at length broke, but when 

 Hooker attempted to follow he was met by masses 

 of troops and artillery fire, and forced to halt. 

 Mansfield was mortally wounded when advancing to 

 support him, but his corps moved on. Hooker him- 

 self was severely wounded and borne from the field. 

 Sumner's corps came next on the field, and with 

 comparative ease drove back the half-defeated Con- 

 federate divisions, and took possession of the ground 

 they had held around a little Dnnker church. His 

 whole line now moved forward as if to sure victory, 

 when two divisions brought from the Confederate [ 

 right wedged themselves into a gap in his lines. 

 Sedgwick's division, which formed the right of the 

 line, was flanked on its left and driven out of the 

 woods across the clearing into the eastern woods. 

 The Confederates, satisfied with this, failed to pur- 

 sue farther but retired to their position. Fighting 

 of a similar character went on all forenoon. Ono 

 striking episode was a race between a New Hamp- 

 shire and Confederate regiment for the occupation 

 of a commanding piece of ground, the two running 

 in parallel lines and firing at each other as they ran. 

 Tlie New Hampshire men won the prize. Franklin 

 did not participate in the fight till noon, having just 

 then arrived from the southern (Crampton's) gap of 

 South Mountain, and was at once despatched across 

 the creek to aid Hooker. He came just in time to 

 check an advance of fresh troops from the Confeder- 

 ate right. 



But while boMi parties thus strove gallantly on the 

 Union right, Porter and Burnsid<-, in command of 

 the centre and left, remained unaccountably supine. | 

 So early as 8 A. M., the latter had been ordered to ! 

 carry the bridge on his front and assail the Confed- j 

 erate right. Though the command was more than I 

 once and urgently repeated, he did not succeed in j 

 crossing till 1 p. M., and, even after effecting this, two 

 more hours were lost before he carried the ridge I 

 commanding Sharpsburg and captured the enemy's 

 battery there. Then A. P. Hill's division, 2000 

 strong Lee's last reserve came up from Harper's 

 Ferry and, uniting with the Confederate forces on 

 the left, retook the battery and drove Burnside from 

 the height. This concluded the battle. The strug- 

 VOL. IV.-2 K. 



gle ceased, not because a victory had been won, or 

 because night had fallen, but because both sides 

 had suffered so severely that neither was disposed to 

 renew it. The reason why the Unionists, with their 

 vast superiority in numbers, failed to carry a great 



j victory is self-evident. The corps commanders, or, 

 rather, some of them, did not act in concert, and the 



; attack was made in driblets. The Union preponder- 

 ance in force was thus neutralized. At any one point 

 Lee was able to meet an attack with a force as strong 



I as that making it. 



Gen. McClellan reported his entire loss at 12,- 

 469, of whom 2010 were killed ; Lee's may be set 



! down at 13,533. McClellan says " about 2700 of 

 the enemy's dead were counted and buried upon the 

 battle-field." Three Confederate generals were 

 killed and 8 wounded. Of regimental and brigade 

 losses may be cited that of the 16th Connecticut 

 (which here saw service for the first time), which 

 went in 940 strong and came out 51)8, and that of 

 Mi-Laws' Confederate brigade, which went in with 

 1150 men and came out with 596, losing 5 out of 

 its 6 regimental commanders. Hay's brigade lost 

 even more in proportion. McClellan reported over 

 C()00 prisoners taken, 13 guns, and 39 flags, while he 

 himself had not lost a gun or a color. 



Sept. 18lh, there was no fighting, and when, on 

 the 1'Jth, McClellan prepared to renew the strug- 

 gle he found that Lee had left the field and with- 

 drawn into Virginia by the ford at Shepheidstown. 



(J. H.) 



SPALDIXG, MARTIN JOHN (1810-1872), Kornan 

 Catholic archbishop, was born in Marion County, 

 Ky., May 23, 1810. He graduated at St. Mary's 

 College, Lebanon, Ky., in 1826, studied theology, 

 and went to the Propaganda College in Rome. Ho 

 was ordained priest in 1834, nnd was made pastor of 

 the cathedral at Bardstown. In 1838 he took charge 

 of St. Joseph's theological seminary there, and in 

 1840 he removed to Lexington, Ky., but in the next 

 year returned to his original post. In 1848 he was 

 made coadjutor to Bishop Flaget of Louisville, and 

 in 1850 succeeded to the bishopric. While coad- 

 jutor he introduced some religious orders, and whilo 

 bishop built a handsome cathedral at Louisville. 

 He attended the plenary council at Baltimore in 1852. 

 In 1864 he was promoted to be archbishop of Balti- 

 more, and he died there, Feb. 7, 1872. Archbishop 

 Spalding was noIed for his literary activity. In 1835 

 he began to publish the (. J (itlilic Advocate and was 

 connected with it till 1858, when he established 

 the Louisville Guardian. His review of Dr. Merlo 

 D'Aubigu^'s Hiftory rf lite Reformation, issued in 

 1844, was enlarged into a History of the Protestant 

 Reformation (2 vols., 1860). He also published Eirh/ 

 Catholic Missions in Kentucky (1846) ; Evidences if 

 Catholicity (1847); Life of ' Bishop Flaget (1852); 

 Papal Infallibility (1870). 



SPARKS, JARED (1789-186C). noted for his ser- 

 vices to American history, was born at Willington, 

 Conn., May 10, 1789. " After getting a common 

 school education he worked on a farm, then learned 

 carpentry, and at times taught school. His eager- 

 ness to learn procured him friends, especially among 

 the ministers, who helped him forward in pursuit 

 of knowledge. At the age of 20 he entered Phillips' 

 Exeter Academy, and two years later went to Har- 

 vard College. Though his student-course was inter- 

 rupted by teaching in Maryland, where he also saw 

 service in the militia against the British invasion, he 

 graduated in 1815. Again he taught school at Lan- 

 caster, Mass.. and then returned to Harvard to study 

 theology. In 1817 the college authorities made him a 

 tutor in mathematics and natural philosophy, and he 

 also assisted in editing the North American Review. 

 In May, 1819, being now thirty years of age, he was 

 ordained pastor of a Unitarian church in Baltimore, 



