The Sun.
London, England, 1861-08-06 00:00:00

THE SUN, LONDON, TUESDAY EVENING, AUGUST 6, 11861,

day of it, and all the vehicles and horses that could
be procured were in requisition for the scene of ac-
tion. This curiosity was aroused by the story that 1
M'Dowell had been actually ordered to make an
attack on Manassas, and that General Scott had
given him till 12 o'clock to be master of Beaure-
gard's lines. If General Scott ordered the attack
at all I venture to say he was merely the mouth-
piece of the more violent civilians of the Govern-
ment, who mistake intensity of feeling for military
strength. The consequences of the little skirmish
at Bull's Run, ending in the repulse of the Fede-
ralists, were much exaggerated, and their losses
were put down at any figures the fancy of the in-
dividual item who was speaking suggested. " I
can assure you, Sir, that the troops had 1,500 killed
and wounded ; I know it." I went off to the
head-quarters, and there General Scott's side in-
formed me General M'Dowell's official report gave
6 killed and 37 wounded. The livery keepers stuck
to the 1,500 or 2,000. The greater the number hors
de combat the higher the tariff for the hire of
quadrupeds. All I could do was to get a kind of
cabriolet, with a seat in front for the driver, to
which a pole was affixed for two horses, at a Derby-
day price, and a strong led-horse, which Indian ex-
periences have induced me always to rely upon in
the neighbourhood of uncertain fighting. I had to
enter into an agreement with the owner to pay him
for horses and buggy if they were " captured or
injured by the enemy," and though I smiled at his
precautions they proved not quite unreasonable. The
master made no provision for indemnity in case of
injury to the driver, or the coloured boy who rode
the saddle-horse. When I spoke with officers at
General Scott's head-quarters of the expedition, it
struck me they were not at all sanguine about the
result of the day, and one of them said as much as
induced me to think he would advise me to remain
in the city if he did not take it for granted it was
part of my duty to go to the scene of action. An
English gentleman who accompanied me was
strongly dissuaded from going by a colonel of cavalry
on the staff, because, he said, " the troops are green,
and no one can tell what may happen." But my
friend got his pass from General Scott, who was
taking the whole affair of Bull's Run and the pres-
sure of the morrow's work with perfect calm, and
we started on Sunday morning—not so early as we
ought perhaps, which was none of my fault—for
Centreville, distant about 25 miles south-west of
Washington. I purposed starting in the beautiful
moonlight, so as to arrive at M'Dowell's camp in
the early dawn, but the aides could not or would
not give us the countersign over the Long-bridge,
and without it no one could get across till after
five o'clock in the morning. When M'Dowell
moved away he took so many of the troops about
Arlington that the camps and forts are
rather denuded of men. I do not give, as may
be observed, the names of regiments, unless in special
cases—first, because they possess little interest, I
conceive, for those in Europe who read these letters ;
and, secondly, because there is an exceedingly com-
plex system—at least, to a foreigner—of nomencla-
ture in the forces, and one may make a mistake be-
tween a regiment of volunteers and a regiment of
State militia of the same number, or even of regu-
lars in the lower figures. The soldiers lounging
about the forts and over the Long-bridge across the
Potomac were an exceedingly unkempt, " loafing"
set of fellows, who handled their firelocks like pitch-
forks and spades, and I doubt if some of those who
read or tried to read our papers could understand
them, as they certainly did not speak English, The
Americans possess excellent working materials,
however, and I have had occasion repeatedly to re-
mark the rapidity and skill with which they con-
struct earthworks. At the Virginia side of the
Long-bridge there is now a very strong tete de pont
supported by the regular redoubt on the hill over
the road. These works did not appear to be strongly
held, but it is possible men were in the tents near at
hand, deserted though they seemed, and at all events
reinforcements could be speedily poured in if neces-
sary.
Th. lour and weary way was varied by different
pickets along the road, and by the examination of
our papers and passes at different points. But tne
country looked vacant in spite of crops of Indian
corn, for the houses were shut up, and the few in-
digenous people whom we met looked most blackly
under their brows at the supposed Abolitionists.
This portion of Virginia is well wooded, and undu-
lating in heavy regular waves of field and forest ;
but the roads are deeply cut and filled with loose
stones, very disagreeable to ride or drive over. The
houses are of wood, with the usual negro huts ad-
joining them, and the specimens of the race which I
saw were well dressed and not ill-looking. On
turning into one of the roads which leads to Fairfax
Court-house and to Centreville beyond it the distant
sound of cannon reached us. That must have been
about 9.30 a.m. It never ceased all day ;at least,
whenever the rattle of the gig ceased the booming
of guns rolled through the woods on our ears. One
man said it began at 2 o'clock, but the pickets told
us it had really become continuous about half-past 7
or 8 o'clock. In a few minutes afterwards a body of
men appeared on the road, with their backs towards
Centreville and their faces towards Alexandria.
Their march was so disorderly that I could not have
believed they were soldiers in an enemy's country—
for Virginia hereabout is certainly so—but for their
arms and uniform. It soon appeared that there
was no less than an entire regiment marching away,
singly or in small knots of two or three, extending
for some three or four miles along the road. A
Babel of tongues rose from them, and they were
all in good spirits, but with an air about them I
could not understand. Dismounting at a stream,
where a group of thirsty men were drinking and
halting in the shade, I asked an officer " Where are
your men going, sir 9" " Well, we're going home,
sir, I reckon, to Pennsylvania." It was the 4th
Pennsylvania Regiment, which was on its march, as
I learnt from the men. " I suppose there is se-
vere work going on behind you, judging from the
firing 9" " Well, I reckon, sir, there is." " We're
going home," he added after a pause, during which
it occurred to him, perhaps, that the movement
required explanation—" because the men's time is
up. We have had three months of this work."
I proceeded on my way, ruminating on the feel-
ings of a General who sees half a brigade walk
quietly away on the very morning of an action, and
on the frame of mind of the men, who would have
shouted till they were hoarse about their be-
loved Union—possibly have hunted down any poor
creature who expressed a belief that it was not the
very quintessence of everything great and good in
government and glorious and omnipotent in arms—
coolly turning their backs on it when in its utmost
peril because the letter of their e4ntghagpeemneenetylbvoaunnida
1..
.let uPst'rbileaaPrs the
oruOre of the excellence
werethem rnigo
hftu,rhthuet
difficult.
most of
0f There
the
of three months' servi 2e volunteers. And so we left
them.
The road was devious and
for
were few persons on their way,
Senators and Congress men were on before us.
Some few commissariat waggons were overtaken at
intervals. Wherever there was a houseby the road.
side the negroes were listening to the firing. All 1
at once a terrific object appeared in the wood above
the trees—the dome of a church or public building,
apparently suffering from the
iin shocks
the of
most a n
violent earth-
quake, a r t h -
quake, and heaving to and fie
manner. In much doubt we approached as well es
the horses' minds would let us, and discovered that
the strange thing was an inflated balloon attached
to a car and waggon, which was on its way to en-
able General M'Dowell to reconnoitre the position
he was then engaged in attacking —just a day too
late. The operators and attendants swore as horri-
bly as Anna's warriors in Flanders, but they could
not curse down the trees, and so the balloon seems
likely to fall into-the hands of the Confederates.
About 11 o'clock we began to enter on the disputed
territory which had just been abandoned by the
Secessionists to the Federalists in front of Fairfax
Court-house. It is not too much to say that the
works thrown up across the road were shams
and makebelieves, and that the Confederates
never intended to occupy the position at all, but
sought to lure on the Federalists to Manassas
Gap, where they were prepared to meet them.
Had it been otherwise the earthworks would
have been of a different character, and the troops
would have had regular
am
bivouac huts of branchese
efpstraeneed. instead
bivouac

JULY 22.
I sit down to give an account—not of the action
yesterday, but of what I saw with my own eyes,
hitherto net often deceived, and of what I heard

with my own ears, which in this country are not so

much to be trusted. Let me, however, express an

opinion as to the affair of yesterday. In the first
place, the repulse of the Federalists, decided as it
vas, might have had no serious effects whatever be-
yond the mere failure—which politically was of more

consequence than it was in a military sense—but for
. .

the disgraceful conduct of the troops. The retreat
on their lines at Centreville seems to have ended in
ae 'wavily route—a miserable, causeless panic.
scandalous behaviour on the part of soldiers I
should have considered impossible, as with some
experience of camps and armies I have never even
in alarms among came
followers seen the like of it,
How far the disorganisation of the troops extended
I know not ; but it was complete in the instance
of more than one regiment
without officers, Washingtonthis morn-
ing is crowded with soldiers who
have fled from Centreville, and with three months'
men," who arc going home from the face of the
enemy on the expiration of their term of enlist-
ment. The streets, in spite of the rain, are crowded
by people with anxious faces, and groups oe waver.
ing politicians are assembled at the corners, in the
hotel passages, and the bars. If in the present site
of the troops the Confederates were to make a
march across the Potomac above Washington, turn-
ing the works at Arlington, the Capitol might fall
into their hands. Delay may place that event out
of the range of probability.
The North will, no doubt, recover the shock.
Hitherto she has only said, " Go and fight for the
Union'' The South has exclaimed, "Let us fight
for our rights." 'the North must put its best men
into the battle, or she will inevitably fail before the
energy, the personal hatred, and the superior fight-
ing powers of her antagonist. In my letters, as in
my conversation, I have endeavoured to show that
the task which the Unionists have set them-
selves is one of no ordinary difficulty, but in
the state of arrogance and supercilious confi-
dence, either real or affected to conceal a sense of
weakness, one might as well have preached to the
Pyramid of Cheops. Indeed, one may form some
notion of the condition of the public mind by ob-
serving that
,journals conducted avowedly by men
of disgraceful personal character—the be-whipped
and bo-kicked and unrecognised pariahs of society
of New York—are, nevertheless, in the very midst
ofrepulse and defeat, permitted to indulge in ridi-
ious rhodomontade towards the nations of Europe,
Baia to move our laughter by impotently malignant
attacks on " our rotten old monarchy," while the
stones of their bran new republic are tumbling
about their ears. It will be amusing to observe
the change of
tone, for we can afford to observe
and be amused atthe same time.
On Saturday
army M night I resolved to proceed to Gene-
ral 'Dowell's m
it was obvious to me that
the repulse at Bull's n
General directed the the orders of the
excesses of his sol-
diery indicated sero us defects
e .
in his army--not
more serious, however, thanhad reason to believe
existed. How to get out was the difficulty. The
rumours of great disaster and repulse
had spread
through the city. T.he livery-stable ke
"Pera, with
one exception, refused. to send out horses to the
scene of action—at lc :ast the exception told me so.
Senators and CungreE men were going to make a

--- ,
troops of the enemy did not wish to be cut off, and I negroes, who looked as if they could afford to part
so they had cut down trees to place across the road, 1 with it as cheaply as men do who are dealing with
and put some field-pieces in their earthworks to other people's property. Buggies and waggons
command it. On no side could Richmond be so (Anglice, carriages), with cargoes of senators were
well defended. The Confederates had it much at overtaken. The store carts became more nume-
heart to induce their enemy to come to the strongest ' rous. At last Centreville appeared in sight—a few
place and attack them, and they Succeeded in doing houses on our front, beyond which rose a bald hill,
so. But, if the troops behaved as ill in other places the slopes covered with bivouac huts, commissariat
as they did at Manassas, the Federalists could not , carts, and horses, and the top crested with specta-
have been successful in any attack whatever. In tors of the fight. The road on each side was full of
order that the preparations at Manassas may be traces of Confederate camps ; the houses were now
understood, and that General Beauregard, of whose all occupied by Federalists. In the rear of the hill
character I gave some hint at Charleston, may be was a strong body of infantry—two regiments of
known at home as regards his fitness for his work, foreigners, mostly Germans, with a battery of
above all as an officer of artillery and of skill in light artillery. Our buggy was driven up to the
working it in field or in position, let me insert a top of the hill. The coloured boy was despatched
description of the place and of the man from a to the village to look for a place to shelter the
Southern paper :
horses while they were taking a much required
`4Manassas Junction, Virginia, June 7. feed, and to procure, if possible, a meal for him-
-4‘ This place still continues the head-quarters of the army
self and the driver. On the hill there
of the Potomac. There are many indications of an in-
were carriages and vehicles drawn up as if they
tended forward movement, the better to invite the enemy were attending a small country race. They were
to an engagement, but the work of fortification still con-
tinues. By nature the position is one of the strongest that
afterwards engaged in a race of another hind. In
could have been found in the whole State. About half- one was a lady with an opera glass ;in and around
way between the eastern spur of the Blue Ridge and the and on others were legislators and politicians.
Potomac, below Alexandria,it commands the whole country There were also a few civilians on horseback, and
between so perfectly that there is scarcely a possibility of on
the
slope of the hill a regiment had stacked
its being turned. The right wing stretches off towards
arms, and was engaged in looking at. and comment-
the head-waters of the Occoquan, through a wooded country,
which is easily made impassable by the felling of trees. The ing on the battle below. The landscape in front
left is a rolling table-land, easily commanded from the was open to the sight as far as the ranges of the
successive elevations, till you reach a country so rough and Alleghenies, which swept round from the right in
so rugged that it is a defence to itself. The key to the blue mounds, the colour of which softened into vio•
whole position, in fact, is precisely that point which Gene- let in the distance. On the left the view was cir-
ral Beauregard chose for his centre, and which he has for- cumscribed by a wood, which receded along the
tified so strongly that, in the opinion of military men, 5,000
side of the hill on which we stood to the plain be-
men could there hold 20,000 at bay. The position, in fact,
low. Between the base of this hill, which rose
is fortified in part by Nature herself. It is a succession
of hills, nearly equidistant from each other, in front of about 150 ft. above the general level of the country,
which is a ravine so deep and so thickly wooded that it is and the foot of the lowest and nearest elevation of
passable only at two points, and those through gorges which the opposite Alleghenies extended about five miles,
50 men can defend against a whole army. It was at one as well as I could judge, of a densely-wooded coun-
of these points that the Washington Artillery (of New Or- e
try, ' dotted at intervals with green fields and
leans) were at first encamped, and though only half of the
etches of cleared lands. It was marked by easy
battalion was then there, and we had only one company of P
infantry to support us, we slept as soundly under the pro- longitudinal undulations, indicated by the form of
tection of our guns as if we had been in a fort of the the forests which clothed them, and between two of
amplest dimensions. Of the fortifications superadded here the more considerable ran small streams, or " runs,"
by General Beauregard to those of Nature, it is, of course, as they are denominated, fromethe right to the left.
not proper for me to speak. The general reader, in fact, ,
Close
at hand a narrow road, descending the hill,
will have a sufficiently precise idea of them by conceiving
went straight into the forest, where it was visible
a line of forts some two miles in extent, zigzag in form,
with angles, salients, bastions, casemates, and everything now and then among the trees in cream-coloured
that properly belongs to works of this kind. The strength patches. This road was filled with commissariat
and advantages of this position at Manasses are very much waggons, the white tops of which were visible for
increased by the fact that 14 miles farther on is a position two miles in our front.
of similar formation, while the country between is admir- On our left front a gap in the lowest chain of the
ably adapted to the subsistence and intrenchment of troops
hills showed the gap of Manassas, and to the left
in numbers as large as they can easily be manoeuvred
on the real battle-field. Water is good and abundant, and nearer to us lay the
"Junction" of the same
forage such as is everywhere found in the rich farming name, where the Alexandria Railway unites with
districts of Virginia, and the communication with all parts the rail from the west of 'Virginia, and continues
of the country easy. Here, overlooking an extensive plain, the route by rails of various denominations to
watered by mountain streams which ultimately find their Richmond. The scene was so peaceful a man might
way to the Potomac, and divided into verdant fields of
well doubt the evidence of one sense that a great
wheat and oats, and corn, pasture and meadow, are the head-
quarters of the army of the advanced forces of the Potomac. contest was being played out below in bloodshed,
They are South Carolinians,Louisianians, Alabamians, Mis- or imagine, as Mr. Seward sometimes does, that
sissippians, and Virginians, for the most part; the first two, it was a delusion when he wakes in the morning
singular enough, being in front, and that they will keep it and finds there is a civil war upon him. But
their friends at home may rest assured. Never have I seen the cannon spoke out loudly from the green bushes,
a finer body of men—men who were more obedient to disci-
and the plains below were mottled, so to speak,
pline, or breathed a more self-sacrificing patriotism. As
by puffs of smoke and by white rings from bursting
might be expected from the skill with which he has chosen
his position, and the system with which he encamps and shells and capricious howitzers. It was no re-
moves his men, General Beauregard is very popular. I view that was going on beneath us. The shells
doubt if Napoleon himself had more the undivided confi- gave proof enough of that,. though the rush of the
deuce of his army. By nature, as also from a wise policy, shot could not be heard at the distance. Clouds of
ho is very reticent. Not an individul here knows his
dust came up in regular lines through the tree tops
plans or a single move of a regiment before it is made, and
where infantry were acting, and now and then their
then only the colonel and his men know where it gees to.
There is not a man here who can gig e anything like a satis- wavering mists of light blue smoke curled up, and
factory answer how many men he has, or where his exact the splutter of musketry broke through the boom-
lines are. For the distance of 14 miles around you see tents ing of the guns. With the glass I could detect now
everywhere, and from them you can make a rough estimate and then the flash of arms through the dust clouds
of his men; but how many more are encamped on the by in the open, but no one could tell to which side the
roads and in the forests none can tell. The new-comer,
troops who were moving belonged, and I could only
from what he sees at first glance, puts down the numbers at
about 30,000 men; those who have been here longest esti- judge from the smoke whether the guns were fired
mate his force at 40,000, 50,000, and some even at 60,000 towards or away from the hill. It was evident that
strong. And there is the same discrepancy as to the quantity the dust in the distance on our right extended be-
of his artillery. So close does the General keep his affairs yond that which rose from the Federalists. The
to himself that his left hand hardly knows what his right view towards the left, as 1 have said, was inter-
hand doeth, and so jealous is he of this prerogative of a
commanding officer that I verily believe, if he suspected rupted, but the firing was rather more heavy there
than on the front or right flank, and a glade was
his coat of any acquaintance with the plans revolving
within him, he wouM cast it off." pointed out in the forest as the beginning of Bull's
It was noon when we arrived at Fairfax Court- or Poole's Run, on the other side of which the C0n-
h..... 0. poor ,1110.13...£ turn. fl(1 or 40 straggling focloratpe crprp hia in force. though they had not
wooden and brick houses, deriving its name from made any specific reply to the shells thrown into
the building in which the Circuit Court of the county their cover early in the morning, There seemed to
is held, I believe, and looking the reverse of flourish- be a continuous line, which was held by the enemy,
ing—and one may remark, obiter, that the state from which came steady solid firing against what
of this part of Virginia cannot be very prosperous, might be supposed to be heads of columns stationed
inasmuch as there is not a village along the road up at various points or advancing against them. It was
to this point, and no shops or depots, only one mill, necessary to feed the horses and give them some rest
one blacksmith and wheelwright. The village was after a hot drive of some 26 or 27 miles, or I would
held by a part of the reserve of M'Dowell's force, have proceeded at once to the front. As I was watch-
possibly 1,000 strong. The inhabitants were, if ing the faces of the Senators and Congressmen, I
eyes spoke truth, Secessionists to a man, woman, thought I had heard or read of such a scene as this
and child, and even the negroes looked extra black, —but there was much more to come. The soldiers
as if they did not care about being fought for. A who followed each shot with remarks in English or
short way beyond this village, Germantown, the German were not as eager as men generally are in
scene of the recent excesses of the Federalists, watching a fight. Once, as a cloud of thick smoke
afforded evidence in its blackened ruins that Gen. ascended from the trees, a man shouted out, "That's
M‘Dowell's censure was more than needed. Let me good; we've taken another battery; there goes the
interpolate it if only to show that Gen. Beaure- magazine." But it looked like and I believe was the
gard and his rival are at least equal in point of explosion of a caisson. In the midst of our little re-
literal power as masters of' the English tongue : connaissance Mr.Vizetelly, who has been living and,
" Head-quarters Department of Virginia, indeed, marching with one of the regiments as artist
Fairfax Court-house, July 18,
" GENERAL ORDERS, No. 18. of the Illustrated London News, came up and told
us the action had been commenced in splendid style
"It is with the deepest mortification the General Com- by the Federalists, who had advanced steadily,
manding finds it necessary to reiterate his orders for the the Confederatesbefore them—a part
driving
preservation of the property of the inhabitants of the dis-
plan as I firmly believe, to bring them under the
trict occupied by the troops under his command. Hardly - '
had we arrived at this place when, to the horror of every range of their guns. He believed the advantages
right-minded person, several houses were broken opot, and on the Federalist side were decided, though won
others were in flames, by the actof some of those who, it has with hard fighting, and he had just come up to
been the boast of the loyal, came here to protect the oppressed Centreville to look after something to eat and drink,
and free the country from the domination of a hated party. and to procure little necessaries, in case of need, for
The property of this people is at the mercy of troops who, his comrades. His walk very probably saved his
we rightly say, are the most intelligent, best educated, and
life. Having seen all that could be discerned
most law-abidinz, of any that were ever under arms. But do
not, therefore, the acts of yesterday cast the deepest stain through our glasses, my friend and myself had
upon them ? It was claimed by some that their particular made a feast on our sandwiches in the shade of the
corps were not engaged in these acts. This is of but little mo- buggy ;my horse was eating and resting, and I was
ment; since the individuals are not found out, we are all forced to give him half an hour or more before I
alike disgraced. Commanders of regiments will select a corn- mounted, and meantime tried to make out the plan
missionedoffieer as a provost marshal, and ten men a i a police
of battle, but all was obscure and dark. Suddenly
force under him, whose special and sole duty it shall be to
preserve the property from depredations, and to arrest all up rode an officer, with a crowd of soldiers after
wrongdoers of whatever regiment or corps they may be. him, from the village. " We've whipped them on
Any one found committing the slightest depredation, kill- all points !" he shouted, " We've taken their batte-
lug pigs or poultry, or trespassing on the property of the in-
habitants, will be reported to head-quarters, and the least 'ties, and thy're all retreating !" Such an uproar as
followed. The spectators and the men cheered
that will be done to them will be to send them to the Alex-
again and again, amid cries of "Bravo r " Bully for
andria gaol. It is again ordered that no one shall arrest,
or attempt to arrest, any citizen not in arms at the time, or us i„ ,o Didn't I tell you so ?" and guttural "hocks"
search or attempt to search any house, or even to enter the from the Deutschland folk and loud " hurroos" from
same without permission. The troops must behave them- the Irish. Soon afterwards my horse was brought
selves with as much forbearance and propriety as if they up to the hill, and my friend and the gentleman I
were at their own homes. They are here to fight the ene- have already mentioned set out to walk towards the
mies of the country, not to judge and punish the unarmed
front—the latter to rejoin his regiment if possible,
and defenceless, however guilty they may be. When ne-
, that will be done by the proper person. the former to get a closer view of the proceedings.
cessary
"Bd of General M'Dowell, As I turned down into the narrow road, or lane,
y comman
" JAMBS B. FRY, Assistant-Adjutant-General.,, already mentioned, there was a forward move-
The chimney stacks being of brick are the sole ment among the large four-wheeled tilt waggons,
remains of the few good houses in the village. Here which raised a good deal of dust. My attention
our driver made a mistake, which was the rather was particularly called to this by the occurrence of
persisted in that a coloured chattel informed us we a few minutes afterwards. I had met my friends
could get to Centreville by the route we were pur-
n the road, and after a few words rode forward at
o
suing, instead of turning back to Germantown, as a long trot as well as I could past the waggons and
we should have done. Centreville was still seven through the dust, when suddenly there arose a
miles ahead. The guns sounded, however, heavily tumult in front of me at a small bridge across the
from the valleys. Rising above the forest tops ap-
peared the blue masses of the Alleghenies, road, and then I perceived the drivers of a set of wag-
knew Manassas was somewhere on an outlyingeopen
and we gons with the horses turned towards me, who were
of the ridges, which reminded me in colour and endeavouring to force their way against the stream of
form of the hills around the valley of Baidar. A vehicles setting in the other direction. By the side of
the new set of waggons there were a number of com-
assuredly no descendant of Madame Esmond, told
us that we were "
Virginian who came out of a cottage, and who was missariat men and soldiers, whom at first sight I
took to be the baggage guard. They looked excited
going wrong right away." There
and alarmed, and were running by the side of the
was, he admitted, a by-road somewhere to the left
horses—in front the dust quite obscured the view.
front, but people who had tried its depths had re- At the bridge the currents met in wild disorder.
turned to Germantownwith the conviction that itled " Turn back ! Retreat!" shouted the men from the
to any place but Centreville. Our driver, however, front, " We're whipped, we're whipped ;" They
wished to try "if there were no Seghesers about ?' cursed and tugged at the horses' head, and struggled
c, What did you say ?" quoth the Virginian. " 1 with frenzy to get past. Bunning by me on foot
want to know if there are any Secessionists there." was a man 'with the shoulder-straps of an officer.
t)hisetiNmee, pourettitnypbuaffdisy,
i, secessionists !") in a violent surprise, as if he had " Pray what is the matter, sir ?" "It means we're
whipped, and that's a fact," he blurted
and centinued his career. I observed
Beauregard and Lee were pounding away on our that he carried no sword. The teamsters of the ad-
s heardir.reeolf
Secessionists, them
indeed t imre, i nAhnids
al ilfle
left front some six or seven miles off. The horses vancingbk waggons now caught up the cry. " Turn
retraced their steps, the coloured youth who be-
the
—turn your horses" was the shout up the whole
strode my charger complaining that the mysterious e,hand, backing, plunging, rearing, and kicking,
arrangement which condemns his race to slavery horses which had been proceeding down the road
rev
was very much abraded by the action of that spi-
Thoseersebd front and went off towards Centreville.
rited quadruped, combined or rather at variance ehind, them went madly rushing on, the
with the callosities of the English saddle. From drivers
rl being quite indifferent whether glory or dis-
Germantown onwards by the right road there was
tg
eace
midsted the way, provided they could find it. In
nothing very remarkable. At one place a group of h of this extraordinary spectacle an officer,
soldiers were buying " Secession money" for 001318 escorted by some dragoonsrode through the ruck
..,

with a light cart in charge. Another officer on foot,
with his sword under his arm, ran up against me.
"What is all this about ?" "Why we're pretty badly
whipped. We're all in retreat. There's General
Tyler there badly wounded." And on he ran. There
came yet another, who said, " We're beaten on all
points. The whole army is in retreat." Still there
was no flight of troops, no retreat of an army, no
reason for all this precipitation. True, there were
many men in uniform flying towards the rear, but
it did not appear as if they were beyond the pro-
portions of a large baggage escort. I got my
horse up into the field out of the road, and
went on rapidly towards the front. Soon I met
soldiers who were coming through the corn, mostly
without arms ; and presently I saw firelocks, cook-
ing tins, knapsacks, and greatcoats on the ground,
and observed that the confusion and speed of
the baggage-carts became greater, and that
many of them were crowded with men, or
were followed by others, who clung to them. The
ambulances were crowded with soldiers, but it did
not look as if there were many wounded. Negro
servants on led horses dashed frantically past; men
in uniform, whom it were a disgrace to the profes-
sion to call " soldiers," swarmed by on mules,
chargers, and even draught horses, which had been
cut out of carts or waggons, and went on with har-
ness clinging to their heels, as frightened as their
riders. Men literally screamed with rage and fright
when their way was blocked up. On I rode, asking
all "What is all this about ?" and now and then,
but rarely, receiving the answer," We're whipped,"
or, " We're repulsed." Faces black and dusty,
tongues out in the heat, eyes staring—it was a most
wonderful sight. On they came like him—

" —who having once turned round goes on,
And turns no more his head,
For ho knoweth that a fearful fiend
Doth close behind him tread."
But where was the fiend ? I looked in vain. There
was, indeed some cannonading in front of me and in
their rear, but still the firing was comparatively dis-
tant, and the runaways were far out of range. As I
advanced the number of carts diminished, but the
mounted men increased, and the column of fugitives
became denser. A few buggies and light waggons
filled with men, whose faces would have made up " a
great Leporello" in the ghost scene, tried to pierce
the rear of the mass of carts, which were now solidi-
fied and moving on like a glacier. I crossed a small
ditch by the roadside, got out on the road to escape
some snake fences, and, looking before me, saw there
was still a crowd of men in uniforms coming along.
The road was strewn with articles of clothing—fire-
locks, waist-belts, cartouch-boxes, caps, greatcoats,
mess-tins, musical instruments, cartridges, bayonets
and sheaths, swords and pistols—even biscuits, water
bottles, and pieces of meat. Passing a white house
by the road side, I saw, for the first time, a body of
infantry with sloped arms marching regularly and
rapidly towards me. Their faces were not blackened
by powder, and it was evident they had not been
engaged. In reply to a question a non-commissioned
officer told me in broken English " We fall back to
our lines. The attack did not quite succeed." This
was assuring to one who had come through such a
scene as I had been witnessing. I had ridden, I
suppose, about 3 or 31 miles from the hill, though
it is not possible to be sure of the distance ; when,
having passed the white house, I came out or' an
open piece of ground, beyond and circling which
was forest. Two field pieces were unlimbered and
guarding the road ; the panting and jaded horses
in the rear looked as though they had been hard
worked, and the gunners and drivers looked worn
and dejected. Dropping shots sounded close in
front through the woods ; but the guns on the left
no longer maintained their fire. I was just about
to ask one of the men for a light when a sputtering
fire on my right attracted my attention, and out of
the forest or along the road rushed a number of
men. The gunners seized the trail of the nearest
piece to wheel it round upon them ; others made for
the tumbrils and horses as if to fly, when a shout
was raised " Don't fire ; they're our own men ;" and
in a few minutes on came pell-mell a whole regi-
ment in disorder. I rode across one and stopped
him. " We're pursued by cavalry," he gasped ;
" They've cut us all to pieces." • As he spoke a
shell burst over the column ; another dropped on
the road, and out streamed another column of
men, keeping together with their arms, and closing
up the stragglers of the first regiment. I turned,
and to my surprise saw the artillerymen had gone
off, leaving one gun standing by itself. They had
retreated with their horses. While we were on
the hill I had observed and pointed out to my
companions a cloud of dust which rose through the
trees on our right front. In my present position
that place must have been on the right rear, and
it occurred to me that after all there really might
be a body of cavalry in that direction, but Murat
himself would not have charged these waggons in
that deep, well-fenced lane. If the dust came, as
I believe it did, from field artillery, that would be a
different matter. Any way it was now well estab-
lished that the retreat had really commenced, though
I saw but few wounded men, and the regiments
which were falling back had not suffered much loss.
No one seemed to know anything for certain. Even
the cavalry charge was a rumour. Several officers
said they had carried guns and lines, but then they
drifted into the nonsense which one reads and hears
everywhere about " masked batteries." One or two
talked more sensibly about the strong positions of
the enemy, the fatigue of their men, the want of a
reserve, severe losses, andthe bad conduct of certain
regiments. Not one spoke as if he thought of re-
tiring beyond Centreville. The clouds of dust rising
above the woods marked the retreat of the whole
army, and the crowds of fugitives continued to steal
away along the road. The sun was declining, and
some 30 miles yet remained to be accomplished ere
I could hope to gain the shelter of Washington. No
one knew whither any corps or regiment was march-
ing, but there were rumours of all kinds—" The 69th
are cut to pieces ;" " the Fire Zouaves are destroyed,"
and so on. Presently a tremor ran through the
men by whom I was riding, as the sharp reports DI
some field-pieces rattled through the wood close at
hand. A sort of subdued roar, like the voice of dis-
tant breakers, rose in front of us, and the soldiers,
who I think were Germans, broke into a double,
looking now and then over their shoulders. There
was no choice for me but to resign any further re-
searches. The mail from Washington for the Wed-
nesday steamer at Boston leaves at 2.30 on Monday,
and so I put my horse into a trot, keeping in the
fields alongside the roads as much as I could, to avoid
the fugitives, till I came once more on the rear of the
baggage and store carts, and the pressure of the
crowd, who, conscious of the aid which the vehicles
would afford them against a cavalry charge, and fear
ful, nevertheless, of their proximity, clamoured and
shouted like madmen as they ran. The road was now
literally covered with baggage. It seemed to me as
if the men inside were throwing the things out pur-.
posely. " Stop," cried Ito the driver of one of the
carts, "everything is falling out." "-- you,"
shouted a fellow inside, " if you stop him I'll blow
your brains out." My attempts to save Uncle
Sam's property were then and there discontinued.
On approaching Centreville a body of German in-
fantry of the reserve came marching down and
stemmed the current in some degree, they were
followed by a brigade of guns and another battalion
of fresh troops. I turned up on the hill half a mile
beyond. The vehicles had all left but two—my
buggy was gone. A battery of field guns was in
position where we had been standing. The men
looked well. As yet there was nothing to indicate
more than a retreat and some ill-behaviour among
the waggoners and the riffraff of different regi-
ments. Centreville was not a bad position properly
occupied, and I saw no reason why it should not be
held if it was meant to renew the attack, nor any
reason why the attack should not be renewed, if
there had been any why it should have been made.
I swept the field once more. The clouds of dust
were denser and nearer. This was all. There was
no firing—no musketry. I turned my horse's head,
and rode away through the village, and after I got
out upon the road the same contusion seemed to
prevail. Suddenly the guns on the hill opened,
and at the same time came the thuds of artillery
from the wood on the right rear. The stampede
then became general. What occurred at the hill I
cannot say, but all the road from Centreville for
miles presented such a sight as can only be wit-
nessed in the track of the runaways of R. utterly