Richmond enquirer. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1815-1867, 1861-10-04
Army OF the Potomac.
sSlxu,sllISc GnoUND BEFORE AND AROUND iR
LISGToN HEIGHTS.

Whatever may be the movements OF our
army or thuse Of the eneuIy hear the Potomac,
il seems quite evident that, for some time at
least, the country in that section must he eli
object Ct considerable interest 10 all, because
it is very probable that somewhere in that
region another engagement Of greaer or less
irnIortancc, may yet ID" tonight The
following skctcl: Ct he country, therefore, he.
tween Falls Church and Fairfax Court. house
will he found interesting. 1t is furnish
cd to tho New Orleans 'Picayune," by a
correspondent who writes from Fairfax
Courthouse, the prcsen; headquarters cf the
Confederate forces:
From Fairfax to Alexandria direct, or nearly
so, is a number Of very good roads, the prin-
cipal Of which is the continuation Of the
Warrenton and Cuntrcville turnpike. BY this
road the enemy advanced in greatest numbers,
in the march Of tho grand army ION to Rich.
muna," and by thai they fled in greatest con-
fusion. 1t is called the Middle Turnpike. TO
the right Of this is what is known ny the Old
Braddock Road; TO the left, that which runs
through Falls Church 10 = junction with the
Alexandra and Leesburg turnpike. The dis.
lance iy the shortest of these roads is about
nine miles; by the others, ten and twelve
respectively. Most Of it is through a very
broken, and. considering its long cultivation.
lensrly wooded country, admirably adapted
for campaigning and field engagements. Espc.
cially is this the case with the region which
stretches of to the right Of our lines, towards
| the lower Potomac. Everywhere it is well
walrrnd by cool SI,riugs and ~rivulcts, beside
which the thirsty soldier can recliuc At mid day.
and intcrspcrscd with orchards well loaded
| with lruit, cultivated fields and furm houses,
where he can drive way shHrp hunger, and
enjoy i nights sweet repoSc. In the hcp!cs
| sions, also, furncrl by the numerous streams
which from this rcsifm inl their way into The
Potomac, are extensive meadow lands, how
better termed hay fields, beside which, in well
watercd pastures, numerous herds Of cattle,
the property Of dsaIftcsed fugitives, Craze.
Unfortunately, in the ncighburins pine wu"is
which skirt almost every field, the enemy find
c~xccllcnt ambush but it is, on tn: other
hand, fortunate ior us that in order ID reach
these covers h: must march in force n long
distance. lhroIsh an open country, exposed to
| our lire.
The extreme tight Of this country. anil
where it presents the hest front to Alexandra,
is nuw held by a deach,pent Of the Washing
ton Artillery, under Lieut.. S1uires and Sergts.
Owen and GllbraiilL Their present cncamp-
men: bears the poetic name Of AsI'in Hill, but
of course the artillery is in constant motion,
oilrntimc:i within range Of the guns of Fort
Ellsworth. 1t is ahout two miles from Mason's
Hill. 1t is not so high as either of the other
hills to the left, occupied by our forces, but it
commands 4 better position towards AlcXan-
dria, Shutters Hill, and the Notifications there
on. 1t is, moreover, on the dircctcSt road
which leads into the main street Of the city of
Alexandria. This read was formerly one of
tie fashionable Sunday drives OF the .ileyan-
driaaa, who generally put up at Bant0n's tay-
cru, in the neighborhOod. The cncmy's pick
cts arr about 500 yards from ours, or Il mile
and Il half from Aspin Hill. Their rendezvous
is about two miles oil, and directly in front OF
the hill. They arc usually about 400 strong,
this side their fertilization, just enough to do
the picket duty. When the artillery advance,
indeed, on any road, the picke,s usually fall
back under cover Of the guns Of the fort, never
attempting to maintain their ground except by
permission Of rs.
To the left Of .Asiin Hill is Nason's Hill,
wherein is the residence Of Capt. Mason Of the
Confederate Navy. anl 4 brother Of Senator
Mason, Of Virginia. Ii is 4 handsome emi.
hence, we'll shaded with chcstnnts, bnt from it
Washington can be Seen even at tn. base Of
the Capitol aud the shipping ia the Navy
Yard.
To The lief! Of this and separated from it by
., Irn,l l,1I H., ,r,oJ1nI g, ~ TIIf
whore the division If Gen. Tyler was en-
camped on the advance of the enemy. 1t is ON
the Middle Turnpike, about half a mile from
Falls Church. It has Z long sweep, both up
a!ni down the turnpike, which is n broad, good
road, some sixty feet in width. In front is 4
narrow belt Of timber which could easily he
lellcd in case Of necessity.
About a mile in front Of this hill is MunSnn's
Hill, which is also occupied by us. The
country between is well cultivated and was
thictly settled. \ large portion cf The people,
however, became c"mmittcd to The Northern
army during its %advancr.. and fled with il, lcav.
ing their houses and farms u%n0ccnpird. Not
so, however, one spirited old lady who, with
i bucket OF liot water IN one hand aud a lallr
in the other, gave liIn invaders too warm Il IT,.
ccplion to he again Disturbed. :Sl.r still main.
lalns her grOlinl in reare.
1t is from Munson'S Hill that wc have the
best view Of the notifications recently erected
on the Seminary grounds in front OF .Alcxan-
Iria. Even the l0ol:hn!tS and eInbrasurts Of
the works can bc distinctly seen with the
naked eye, the outlines If the breastwOrks,
squads drilling, walking, loungine or talking
over the fortunes Of the day. In front, cover
ed by 4 wide belt Of wonhs, is the rendezvous
Of their pickets, which are from 800 to 500
yards distant from orr lines. The most fre-
qucntcd part Of their lines, however, il con-
the principal ruat! lcalin. towards us. This
point is, ri colrS', very much exposed, and Il
few days ago they, III consequence, construct
ell a huge portable harricadr. which they run
up the roai as far 81; prudent. discharge their
pieces, and then retreat 10 re. load.
To the let: nj Murson's Hill is Upton's Hell,
also occupied By us, as well as the 1.oudnln
and Hampshire Railroad, which runs near by.
This last, indeed, has been Of no usc to the
enemy since the militery train was fired into
near Vienna in the early part Of Jnnc. II
runs directly out Of Alexandria, only about
three miles distant. From the ncighboring
heights can be seen the shipping on the Pnto-
mac and the houses on tlIe diner side, III Wash.
ington city and beyond.
Still further tn the left, and overlooking the
Chain Bridge, are MortiImer's Hill and
Ronckc's Heights. Several clumps of trees,
however, conceal the Bridge from view
Through these also are tho approaches to AR.
lington Heights, where the enemy have been
so busy Of late in constructing extensive ali.
BATS. This telling of trees also srrGri The
double purpose Of opening mp the country fur
the sweep Of their guns, and preventing sur
prise.
1t is impossible for yon, without actually
Seeing it. to conceive HE extreme anxiety and
Nervousness nj the cnemc, MS clearly exhibit
cd 10 us on these, our lo"k"uts, all along the
line of their exposed situation. 4 few nights
ago, for example, we had occasion to send mp
a few rncketS from various portions of orr
lines. The enemy saw them. and Immediately
had all their guns, great and small, .shotted.-