Memphis daily appeal. [volume] (Memphis, Tenn.) 1847-1886, 1862-09-16
che second sastIe Of sTanassus.

fourbE CE,Saiurdav the 30tk uitimo. tor som
tine tbs S8ports reached US IN such shape iha
we were utterly unable to form even an approx
mate aea Of tha situsiion, much less to max
an accurate estimate of it. The statement ofte
( reiterated, that Gus forces occupied a position
1 coincident wiik the encmy's lines during the en
! gag8meBt last year, and that the Federal troop
! held the ground then occupied by ours, appears
/ entirely inconsistent with the assertion tha
the defeated army had Tetreated to Centervilie
/ aud subsequently, fallen back en- Alexandra
BEING naiurslY disinclned 70 imagine salts
/ tory 0F "a sUhten aneSn movement On the part 0
she enemy, i appeared to rs as If the only theor1
I remaining to account for a practicable retreat o
/ the enemy toward Alexandria, was to suppos
/ that they had succeeded IN forcing their wal
I through our lines But tbis suppOsition was de
fsstea by the report, often aud emphatieally re
psaied, that ths Federal forces had been driver
/ from the field ia total rout. To reconcile these
/ apparent contradictions was & task We could no
venture to assume before receiving information
more precise and deGuite IN It's character. W.
l hays as yet only a m0agTe account VI the gres
/ battle, &ua still more meagTe intelligence re
I spsctmg tho fierce c0mbats by which 1t was pre-
ceded, but we are at last enabled to form tol
erab,y accurate idea OF the general plan Of the
action. and Of the relative situation Of the con.
tending armies
1t viii be remembered that General Jaekson's
CORPS after being delayed Ia its efforts 10 cross
the Rappahsnnock, finally effected its object ol
getting IN the rear Of Pope7s army, by making
E wide 66tour to the lefs OF Warrenton, which
placed is between Bull Run mountain and the
Blue Ridge. Is then turned again to the right
or east, passed Bub Run mountain through
Thor0ughtare gap, and gained the Orange and
Alexendris railroad st MenessaS junction and
Bristow Station. AT the lstter place General
Ewel's division WAS attacked By General Pope,
Fh0 was endeaTorins 70 clear way for effect
ng speedy junctsn with McClellan's columns,
advancing IA his relief from Alexandra. Our
advance thus became entaRgls1 with tine forces
Of both Pope and Mcclellan, and being unable
to bear sp against 50 great weight, having &C
c0mplshed the destruction of vast amounts of
tue enemy's stores at Manassas and other points,
and having succeeded in preventing the threat
ened concentration of TIE enemy's forces before
our Own were prepared to meet them, General
E6eli Vs5 compelled to fall back upon the re-
majndeT of Jsekson's corps, then in the neigh
bofho0d OF Sudleys mill, on Bull Run his
movement, while it effected junction Of our
forces, likewise permitted a combination Of the
eneDys. Mcclellan, finding the road clear, i'm
medistely united with Pope, probably near
Manassas Junction, and the combined army,
then includiag Bmnsids's and Cox's corps, sd-
vanCed 20 attack Lee, who, by this time, had
MESSED the main body Of his forces on the line
OF the unfinished branch Of the Manassas Gap
railroad Thus or position was, in fact, nearly
identical with that occupied by the enemy is the
battle of the 2ist Of July, 1861; while the
enemy advanced TO the attack over the ground
then held by the Con5ederates
But, Is viii be ssen by q glance at the map,
that, IN both cases, the ensmy occupied the
r0ads leading to Alexandria. General Lees
forces formed q line running from SudIey's mill,
.sH. y , Al L -
ton, and extending around to the old battlefield
But lhis line does not, anywhere, touch the main
Alexandra road whiSh, passing through Center
vile, crosses Bull Run ct the stone bridge, some
distance IA ir0Ht of General Lees position and
continues dn to WauentoR, passing the extreme
lslt OF cur line Il follows, therefore, that ad-
vanciug 70 the attack, the enemy could use the
roa6s leading from Manassas, and the main road
coming down from Centeryille Of course
when lhey were beaten and pat to fight, their
object woRid be 70 take the post direct route 10
A.ezHLdria, aud this route would Lead them
.lrooRl CeEterVIle, and not back 10 Manassas
j .!.ieii5n. Aud this, in effect, tool, place. Ali
accounts caucgr in representing tlat tba Federal
iyuy lsd i.1u he field in the direction OF Cen
.8rVl-e. from that moment ali is iaY0lYed in
iouot except that ye know, from positive infOr-
nation tIat our troops pursued the flying enc
my. SD that, ON Tuesday they had passed on
through Centerville and beyond Fairfax Court
House. We likewise know that Winchester
has been evacUated, and that, therefore, there is
nothing between our forces and tina Potomac,
except ihe remusnt Of the Federal army, crouch
ing behind lheir works at Arlington. II would
NOS surprise us, st any moment. to hear that
0enerai Lee bad crossed the Potomac at some
point aBoys Washington either at Leesburg, or
Point Of Rocks, or Ha5Bsr's Ferry.
Under ordinary circumstances, such move
ment might be attended with danger. Il might
be perlous to leave an army in a position ike |
Abingdon, whence i: might again advance and /
.areaten cur communications, if not resume its /
designs on Richmond. Bur General Lees essi- 1
sate CT tke enemy's character appears to con.
sttute ali Important element 10 his combinations /
% n9 ether principle can ne account for the /
brilliant, but aUdacious movement by which he /
p oelphafed his army upon the rear of one great
body OF tie enemy, al the same time Offering de- /
dance to another a flank movement across the !
Potomac, especially considering the beaten, dis /
]rgenizsd, aud Gispirited condition of the Fed I
lral forces, could uoi be attended with half as
much danger as tho recent extraordinary opera
IONS between Manassas end Washington There
Z, probably, nothing more to be feared now from
he trembling mass Of fugitiYes covering behind
be turthcations Of Arlington than was appre
-ended rom McClellan's amy at WestOver
.iieF Is disastrous defeats before Richmond
g'be late Affair near 1siuiken's Bend.
On ast Friday evening the intelligence was
Touglit in by the scouts 70 Colonel Henry Gray,
the forces opposite this city, that
he enemy had been committing raids into tie
plantations near Milhksu's Bend. 4 desach-
nent OF fifty men re immedistelg sent out
Inder command Of Lieutenant I. w. Abney, Of
he 3Jth Louisiana regiment, who arrived On the
IVer opposite ihe enemy's gUnboats st 3 o'clock,
) d., and took position 10 watch their move
nents ieT minutes ster5 o'clock the enemy
landing force. They marched to
hs number Of about 6fy along the ievee until
within ono hUDdTed yards Of whers our men lay
,0pcsslsd, when they were informed Of our posi-
ion by negro who discovered the locality of
,DT troops. They then balted--the eommand
vas given to IRE on our side, when our old dou-
llebafrels beei@d forth one Simultaneous blaze
i deadly bah and shot The enemy fred two
6unds at Us, snd Aed in dismay to their gun
,0ais The shells then commenced coming SO
lot and las hom Tie gUnboats thas our forces
we're compelled TO change position. The num-
ier o. tie enemy killed is not known, il not being
ight enough % ascertain, and the shelling from
he beats not allowing our men to remain longer
n the position No one lost or hurt on our side.
-he enemy are reported to have lost Eve men
illsd. The guhbosts sbelled ths woods ia the 1.
leighborhood sor half Day without ascertain
ne the position Of orr men - PicksbHfg Hhig.
Running tsse EsIscIsasle-- Matters at Nas-
sau,E. r.
Says the New York Heral,l, Of the 9th:
ItappsaTs by lasa adviees from Nassau, N p,
hat British bark from Liverpool, deeply laden
ailh arms and ammunition, arrived there on the
22d nit, and that large steamer hsd Just left /
port with a similar cargo, with the intention Of I
running the blockade At Charleston
Our informant states that three British ships /
were then lylpg Ia the harbor awaiting cargoes 4
Of cotton, which was arriving in considerable |
quantities, three vessels loaded With It having /
arrived within lew days, and that the Nash /
Vile was daily expected vi ih q cargo from War
saw sound. lie reports the warehouses at Mas !
sau as beiDg vel stored eilh arms and amnaa
milton, awaiting shipment % rebel ports.
~ The passage Of the IhoFoughfsre Gap By /
General La1gstreet, la the face Of force Of two
thousand Of the en0my, is one Of Che most re-
mafzable incidents Of the late operations in