Daily intelligencer. [volume] (Wheeling, Va. [W. Va.]) 1859-1865, 1861-08-28

praise, though many competitors are now
putting in claims for at least equal honor.
There are various statements in reIers
enee to the conduct OF the regular cavalry
aud inf1ntry. This regular officers admit
that at one time the cavalry gave way,
but they did not break or fly; they We're
rallied, drew up in'line again, and showed
front To the enemy, The regular officers
declare that it was the infantry which
saved the retreat, covertngEit steadily in
conjunction with the Germans ;rand losses
of the United States marines argue that
they had large share of the enemyis tire.
The artillery who lost their guns speak,
as artillery will do under the circumstNn-
ces, of the infantry which deserted them;
and the general officers, who must after all
be the best judges, bear strong testimony
to the good services and general steadiuess
of the regulars engaged in the action.
When the statements in the American
papers are compared with the facts, am
aware itwill be necessary to rely little
on "character,P in asking faith for what l
report. IheTe Ipas not bGyOnet charge
F., made 6y the .federdlist infantry during the
/. day there l0as not a charge Of any &iHd
Z made by the confederate ca1atTy upon any
regiment Of their enemy 1hit the latter broke.
s. There tras not a haHd-to-hand encounfTe be-
thceet Gny regiments. iTaere toGs not a single
,s6attery chaEgeG'. or taken By the federaiists.
I There tsGs no masked batteries in play Gy the
former. There t1GS no dHnihildtioR of rebel
horse by ZoudUeS, Fire or other. a vol
! ley fred by one battalion emptied three
saddles among body of horse who ap-
( peared at some distance, and tue infantry
which performed the execution then re-
tired! There were no desperate struggles
except by those who wanted to get away.
\ The whole matter in plain English amounts
to this. The Federalists advanced slowly
but steadily, under the fire of their artil-
lery, driving the enemy, who rarely show
ed out of cover, in line before them, and
gradually forced them back on the right
aud center for mile and halt towards
Manassas. as the enemy fell back they
used their artillery also, and there was
good deal of pounding at long range with
light field guns, and some heavier riiled
ordnance, the line on both sides being
rarely within 800 yards of each oth-
er On one occasion the regiments on the
right were received by n musketry fire
from the enemy which induced them to fall
back, but they were rallied and led for
ward toward the front. Tile ConfederGieS
again gGee qrGy, aud The EederaIists dduanced
once more. Again The line of the enemy dp-
psdred IN front, Gnddeiirered IRE. Tile Zou-
ares, as Mey are called, and Me .Eisuenth
Net0 York, lViieh tOere on The flank, JeI into
confusion not to be rallied, and eVeHtltdl(y re-
tired from the feiR IN disorder, to use tie mild
est term, '0ith a contagious effect on their COM
rddeS and tsith the loss Of the guns sChich they
trsre sJpporLiHg. Nothing icouLd, or could,
or did stop them. In vain were they
reminded of their solemn oatbs to
'.avenge Eilsworth's DEATH" Their flag
was displayed TO the winds, it had lost its
attractions. They ran in all directions
with n speed which their fortune favored.
81 tell the tale us it was toldto me- by one
who had more to do with them, and had
better opPertuhity of witnessing slIeir con-
duct than had, for, as l have already sta
ted in n previous letter, was late on the
ground, and had not been able to see much
ere the retreat was ordered. Though was
well mounted, and had left Washington
with heintentiou of returning early that
night, found that fugitives had preceded
me i'll masses all the way, and when
crossed the Long Bridge about IL o'clock
/ was told that the city was full of those
who had returned from the fight. But, if
the miserable r0ut and panic of the feder-
| alists have produced such deplOrNble re-
suits to their cause, they have still much
to be thankful for. Had the coutcderHtes
been aware of their success, and followed
up their advantage early on Monday morn
ing, there was no reason on earth why
they should not have either got into Wash
ingtOn or compelled the whole of the fed
eralist army that kept together and could
not escape, as it WAS all on one road, to sur
render themselves prisoners, with all they
possessed. If the statements in the
ftai1u uF,R l.,
correct, the rebels could have easily spared
10000 men for that purpose, with a re-
serve of 10000 or $4,000 in their rear
The chain bridge, the fords above the falls,
was open to thcm--at least, there could be
but little or no opposition from the dis
organized forces, The columns moving
round from Fairfax to their left by KieuuI
would have been able certainly to cross
at MatildGville; others could have got over
at the Falls, and still there would have
been enough to permit Beauregatd to oc-
cupy Manassas, and to send on heavy
column to cover Alexandria and to shut
up tue federalists in the earthwOrks and
tete de poHt, if not to wrest them from
troops deeply affected by the rout they.
were Witnessing. If the confederates had
tue cavalry of which so much has been
said, they were scandalOusly handled. A
detOur by cross-road from Ceutrcville
to the Germantown road would have
tplaced the horse in the rear of the
retrenting mass in half au hour, aud
it is not two much to say TINT mass
would have thrown itselfon the mercy of
the pursuers. IfBeauregard or Lees force
was small, as they say, and suffered us
much as the federalists aver, the hightis
the more incOmprehensible. But still tits
very strange that the victors should not
have been awnre of their victory-that is,
of the utter route which followed their re-
pulse. The attempt to form line on the
TOP of Centreville, only partially success
full as was, might have imposed on the
enemy, and saved Mcdowell from the pur-
suit which he did his best to avert. The
journals, which at first boasted of the