Maryland free press., 1867-06-06
l. C. BOYD, Publisher.
VOLUME 2.

=
VOLUME q
;, Maryli+''l. That calm and admirable paper viii
preSeii a terrible contrast in history to the bru
tai HeXlattrtion order'' of Gen. Pope in Cul
slpePper, which the very authorities in Washing
TON had TO disown. Lee declared to the people
n that he had come TO aid them Sin retaining the
4 rights of which they bad been despoed," but
no new ty yranny would be imposed-no citizen
II :coerced by martial law; to each and all would
hsaccorded the right '.to decide his destiny
4 freeIy, and without constrant." A
I When that paper was made public, a few
4 cheers arose, few haloes resounded then fol-
j lowed an .ominous silence. No enthusiasm was
/ eXhibited:-only few recruits appeared-it was
obvious thatSthe dream of thousands rushing to
the southerHHag was complete halucinationg
IF the result disappointed the great commandr
er of the Confederates, he did not show it. That
invinciole calmness which characterized him new.
er changed. He knew what he co uld depend
upon, and to that he turned-his old Army of
Northern Virginia. F
4 And yet only about one-half Of that army was
at his ORDERS fact which it is resolutey essen
] tial to remember in following the events which
we are about TO record. That is the kev-note,
and well beg that it will be kept in view. Nearly
half of Lees army was still imping along, bare
footed and exhausted, far in the rear, the Vir-
| ginia side. Not once, but n hundred times, has
| the statement been made that these men were
stragglers, intending desertion. That statement
is an injustice TO the brave soldiersof the army.
The immense marches and desperate combats of
the last month had exhausted them Barefooted
and IN rags, unfed, worn out, they dragged their
feet along, trying to keep up. And they would
nave arrived but for one circumstance Nc
Clellan's rapid advance uncovered the fords near
Leesburg;erossing these, the "stragelers' would
have found Mcclellan not Lee. In fact, General
Lee issued an order forbidding it, and thus these
twenty thousand or more unfortunate, not GRIM
inal, men, who filled the fields of Londoun, or
crouch on the heights near Leesburg, were
PORTED al and stgmatiscd as straggiers.
So it then appeared ami their stronger COM
rades even, who had been able to keep up join.
ad in the statement. BAt.tima sets every thing
right. The causes ofSthe larger part of that
struggling" are now known. 1t was hunger,
exhaustion bleeding feet, and wounds which
prevented the majority Of Those brave men from
being present at the bitter wrcstle at Sharps-
burg.
Lee was loft with about s)rsv th ous,n1 m m,
of all arms TO oppose MGellan's one hundred
thonsand men, then advancing. ~
The marShlIing of that army WIS one of the
most marvellous phenomena of the war. IN the |
lst day of September, Gen. Pope was drfea ted
his forces dsorganiZcd and demoralzed beyond |
the power of wordS-and the Government at
Washington was looking every momeq tsfor the
coming of Lee, as it had looked after the Manas-
sas of Jnlv, 1861, for thescomi1g of Beauregard.
Read the federal documents relating to that
period, and Seeswhat was thought of Mcclellan
in reality. They thwartel him. dtnounced him,
professed TO despSe him. anl removed him, to
pat Pope in his place, ,sbut when the dark hour
came, they cried 'Protect The capital you on
~ can do itP; 1t is trne sfhlt the axe of the
headsman was even thenSbeing sharpenel for
him. When he had perfected the great crime of
Lee, his bead wis 70 roll, and voice
was to cry alt ud from the Bureau of War-al
voice marvelously resembling that Of Mi Gen.
EIaIeck
: 80 perish all who oppose our policy" "a
Z Meanwhile, however, tn. services of the s'lll@s
fnl soldier were needcd-were Indispensable =
The country confdad in hn. The troops ado
red him. He summoned the mcns to return 10
their standards; T. ev oheycd him with alacrftf,
hetook the hetd of the army and advanced up
"nsl'ee. To have believed on tlcls, Of Sep
lepher that this was p 'ssihe, would hlve been
toFill into the flntu 'tie. In a wesK TIE world
hadssnly to look and see. NJ. Cle!lahhai uMfler
hlnisH ariy one hundred thousanI troops. and
@ithoutsa scrap of orders beyond. Rrotect the
capital, began an offensive clmptign in the di-
re .tion of Pennsylvania
~ uie l4t!l, as we nave sald, he hal reached
Frederick City. His advance hal struck Lees
rear-lhe adversaries were IN view OF each Duh
ef-the taandsrS OF battle again resonnd d..
Lee had ffileh back from Frederick, and his
gray columns were deiins through the passes
of the South sA0HAtlms. What did he design
W ere snose raggtti sen 'henrrS, tranlring on g-
"a e, WIN tieir -F,ght mLskets anu exrlaimlng
. iFennsYIVania J. Pennsylv tat - as they had
exclaimed Maryland! Maryland r'-wcre the
,Nf't i
.e'efahs 0. IN, army deceived III their antlclpa-
tIons, and had Lee brought them thithcr only,
- - Soine s'i"' 10 capture Harper Ferry The
thins w;lSlnrrcdble, AMI remains incredible to-
day. Little doubt exists now that his object
,henssin September, 1862, WIS the same as inf
! ! 4ns, ioo5-nainslsssiO advance into Pennsyl-
xh9la .a1 Keeping his communications by the
,7'lep4hu Dab kNl slEEW the Federal army aSI
'AH 's fess M gase hing on a battle,eF,i
ieteat tfana p'grs.e hls dpHpneht, and dictate
Eeare at aitiIh0fe a1 Waskihgton. asss5ss5ssE
General Esp IiihE IMAM 1:tiled, sometimes to
A|.iH W Is during the illf04rtss of
NJ |