The Yakima herald. [volume] (North Yakima, W.T. [Wash.]) 1889-1914, 1891-09-24

NANeANEa
close at hand to spring an attack. Stone.
wall was the central figure Of that circle,
and like the foemen Of Bozzarls at Misso.
lonRhi, be
Woke to hear his sentries shrek,
To armsi They comei
Kissing bis babe and bidding his wife to
hasten from the scene that must soon be-
come battlefield, he rode to the front to
Join his troops. When next his wife saw
him he was on his deathbed, and in the
meantime had become the hero Of the most
renowned military feat Of the war-the
flank attack on Hooker's army at Chan
cellorsville.
1t was no ordinary crisis that called
jackson from his repose, not even for war.
The Union army, led BY Fighting Joe"
Hooker, was crossing to the attack, some
miles distant from Lees camps, intending
to march around and strike in the rear.
II outnumbered Lees force two TO one. Il
was necessary for jackson TO change front
or turn away from the river heights back
to the interior, and while doing so to still
guard the heights. The Union general
wanted TO get possession Of the heights
without fighting bloody battle on their
slopes, and had taken a roundabout course
to get the Confederates to abandon them.
Jackson controlled four divisions Of about
1000 men. He knew that Hooker could
easily set apart 10000 or more out of the
10000 men in blue to attempt the heights
on the river front while the remainder as
sailed the Confederate rear, and so he left
one division to defend the heights and
with the other three hurried westward To
meet the main Union columns. These had
crossed north Of Fredericksburg and had
literally gone around Lee.
Hooker had In fact set apart one corps,
the Sixth, under SedRwick, 1900 strong. To
cross at Fredericksburg and offer direct
attack, and on May I, after two days Of
bloodless maneuver, the situation was q
deadlock. Neither side would strike the
opening blow for fear Of getting the worst
Of it. Jackson had stationed one division
on the river heights facing eastward
against Sedgwick, and his other three d.
visions lay across Hooker's pathway Eve
miles In the interior at a place called Taber-
nacle Church. With Jackson at this point
were two divisions Of another corps led by
Lee In person. Hooker's main body was
strung out still TO the westward five miles
from Tabernacle Church to Wilderness
Church. One good road leading to Fred
ericksburR intersected both the Union and
Confederate positions. Reference to the
diagram will show that the Confederates
were between the two Union fires on May
I. On May Q Hooker was between two
Confederate fires, and on this sudden re-
versal hangs Stonewall's remarkable fame.
On the morning Of the I'd Jackson's three
divisions disappeared from Tabernacle
Church and started westward across the
long front Of Hooker's vast army. The
narrow space between Jacksons route and
HOOker's outposts was patroled by the
watchful eyes Of Jeb Stuart's troopers,
In order that no chance reconnaissance
from the Union lines should reveal the
mysterious march. Skillful guides were at
the head Of the column to point out by.
roads and concealed ways that would
shorten the distance and insure secrecy.
At one point the column ran into one Of
Hooker's outposts, a fight ensued, and the
movement Of the Confederates westward
was fairly disclosed and reported to Union
headquarters. jackson then turned his
column farther south to avoid another col
lision and pressed on, making a march Of
fifteen miles in all and bringing up square
ly on Hooker's right rear at Wilderness
Church.
1t was 0 o'clock in the afternoon, May
2 Twenty-four hours had changed the
face Of things. Hooker and his 10000
were now beset by enemies on the east and
on the west, and in spite Of all were un-
warned Of the blow about to fall The
march Of Confederates westward as re-
ported from the scene Of the little fight on
the Union outposts was believed by the
Union general to be a retreat from Fred.
ericksburg toward Richmond. Hooker had
sent bis cavalry corps away on a wild ride
along the railroads between those two cit
les, and hence the eyes Of the army were
absent. There was no scouting, no recon
nOitering, no alert up-and-a-dOing spirit
at Union headquarters. In this lay Jack
sons opportunity, for had Hooker inter