Weekly national intelligencer. [volume] (Washington [D.C.]) 1841-1869, 1864-07-21
NATIONAL INTELLIaENoER,
THE STRENGTH or THE INVASION.

should be any room for such disouSsion''
strongest possible proof thatth nunO'i :.
In our Immediate presence was con-
From the best information we can sslu
near. 70 "a that the statements we onginahy iaue
IN The subject have not been invalidated by the ad
ditiopa evidence brought to light, since tue alsap
pearance of the enemy from our front mas enaoi'1
the people of Maryland, residing IN the VICINITY
10 make report on the number OF the invaders "ho
pass. ID beneath their observation
We stated on Thursday last that the NUMBER
of the troops actually engaged in the TENT on rof'
Stevens was not Judged by competent observers y
have exceeded five hundred n en-. ms Is ti'0
force which laid Washington under siege, lot
there was no actual attack on the defences at any
other point; and yet such was the impression mere
produced that no attempt was made une'i i"'e -
Tuesday the 18th instant, to feel the real stfens'n
of the invading force at that or any other poih1,
It has never been doubted by us that the sinai
force engaged in the demonstration on FORT Que
yens was only the advance guard OF stronger
force lying behind it, or near 1T, and ready 10 0e
revealed on the approach of our troops put no at
tack having been made by our troops until late on
the second day of the city's investment there was
no occasion for manifestation OF the tuli strength
of the enemy in this direction The siege was
sufficiently established for the time by the I'VE
hundred"
We learn automatically that the headquarters OF
Gen Early, the commander Of the invading forces,
were on the farm of Mr. Riggs, adjacent to that Of
Mr.. Blair; and the number of the Confederate
+ba Tsrn IL
mated by witnesses, and from the marks lett py
the enemy, to have been between one and TWO
thousand - -. = - s.-.s..rs
At Beltsville about five hundred men made theiI
appearance and interrupted the telegraphic ana ran
road communications with Baltimore for tbirty-slx
hours. The whole number operating IN tins oil
rection is judged by our informant to have been
about seven or eight hundred troopers with two
pieces of artillery.
There were still other bodies operating IN other
directions on the outskirts of the city, and these
several detachments represent, as near as We can
now estimate, about four thousand men, being
portion Of the eight thousand men who, as we
stated on Friday last we're engaged IN the expedl
ton, according to the information furnished to us
at that time from what we believed to be reliable
source the letter of Confederate officer writing
in the confidence of friendship to kinsman IN
this CITY. We were then in some doubt whether
1t was meant to embrace in this number the
whole expedition engaged in the Invasion OF Ma
ryand or only that part of it which, sitter the bat
te If Monocacy, was detached IN this direction to
emuse a2d distract our authorities while their
comrades were ,nakipg off towards the Potomac
fords with their booty We hope soon to gain
some definite intelligence on this point when we
can make a more accurate approximation to the
entire force enlisted in the recent invasion. The
Richmond papers, in reciting the successes OF the
expedition, will doubles, shed some light on Its
numerical strength
Those who assert the recent presence of large
force in Maryland, reaching the number Of thirty
five or forty thousand Mr.. Wilkeson is alone in
the estimate of fifty thousand overlook some
palpable considerations which are opposed to this
idea, and an one of which should induce rational
people to practice great caution in making such
assertions.
In the first place, with all the sdmitted want of
military vigilance in Washington, it is impossible
to believe that force of such magnitude could
make descent on Maryland and on the capital in
such stealthy manner really to take our mill
tary administration by surprise. The intrusion Of
mouse into ones dwelling may escape notice, but
the entrance Of an elephant does not come without
observation The larger the number of the enemy
the worse for the credit Of the military admin
istration which was surprised by its approach.
In the second place, the invading force not only
did not compass, but did not even attempt any
thing worthy of thirty-fvc thousand men; and GER
taiply it will not be pretended that the cnemy's
haIdihood was any where represscd by the bodness
and vigor Of our forces in resisting his advance.
He went where he pleased throughout the State
without serious inconvenience or molestation-
doing, however, only what ten thousand men could
more successfully do than thirty-fve thousand
because Of the greater celebrity of movement in
~ smaller bodies
In the third place, who supposes that Gen Lee
oan spare, at this crisis Of the war, thrtyfve thou
sand men from his operations in Petersburg and
Richmond
And, in the fourth place. who supposes that our
military administration would think it safe TO pur-
sue the retreating enemy with the sm all force sent
.r