The National tribune. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1877-1917, 1891-11-26
THE QUAKER SCOUT.


Landing on the james River; and Gen.
Pope was beginning his campaign, which
| eliminated in the second Bull Run battle.
Alter the seven days fight Mcclellan had
been ordered to return with the remains of
his magnificent army to join Gen. Pope in
the
DEFENSE OF WASHINGTON,
| which return movement was executed 40
tardily as to give Gen. Lee time to eoHeen-
trate all of his army upon Pope and force
him back step by step until ne had driven
him nearly back to the old Bull Run battle
ground before any of McCIcllan's troops
came to his assistance.
Then the running fight with Jackson took
! place Pope following Jackson from Warren
ton Junction, by Bristow Station and Ma
nassas Junction, TO Centerville.
While that was going on the troops under
Mcclellan were being landed, mostly at
/ Alexandria, where / was waiting, expecting
to be called on for service as guide; but
after waiting until after Franklin's Corps
| 1.-THE last) was landed, and finding that he
was ordered into camp on Shutters Hill, just
west of Alexandria, as reserve, and finding
/ was not called on / started out in the
country on my own hook on my general
/ orders.
passed the night at Union mans house
near Chantilly, the same night that Jack
son was at ConteryiIle, and early in the
morning, hearing the cannonading going on
over there, four OF us Union men made our
way cautiously in that direction, to find out,
If we could, what was going on. We got to
Centerville about 10 O'Clock in the morning.
and found the fight still going on up toward
Smiley Mills, but beyond the Cub Run
woods, 80 that we could see nothing Of the
! fight except the smoke rising above the
/ trees, and could hear the noise Of cannon
and siuall-arms
With my spy-glass, that I procured after
/ MOsby had carried Oft my biz one from Cedar
Grove in the Summer of 1861, swept it
around, examining the old battle-ground,
until it was directed about Manassas juno
tim, where observed several detachments
/ OF troops, all dust-b -begrimed, so that eould
not tell who they were, moving in different
4 directions about the forts, when all Of a
sudden they all charged on our little forts
there and ran our men
OUT OF THEN PELL-MELL.
1 Then ] knew that those troops must be reb-
els. l watched them, and they soon took
up their line Of march to Blackburn's Ford,
ON Bull Run.
4 The head Of their column soon crossed the
ford and headed straight for Centerville,
/ where we stood, and it seemed to me clear
that they We're making for where we stood
to get possession Of Centeryille, in between
Pope and Washington, and that if success
ful would capture Washington aud drive
Pope up TO the mountains.
1t seemed to me so clear that made the
mental inquiry: What can do to prevent
it?" Almost instantly the answer ran
through By mind, Go and tell Gen. Frank
| lin"
1t was so sudden and unexpected that /
had to think bit where Gen. Franklin was.
Then il came to me that yesterday he was
ordered up into camp as reserve at Alex
andria. / told my companions that must
go TO Alexandria right away, and they
started for their homes, while / started on
my mission. Bat had gone but a few rods
when / met Major Of artillery from Union
Mills, with two guns and his complement of
men, and he, seeing me going away, ordered
my arrest. I showed him my pass and told
HIM was a bearer of dispatches for Gen.
Franklin, but ali to no purpose.
lie said he would not let me 90; that /
might be a rebel spy for all he knew and he
stole that pas He kept me prisoner down
behind the hill, where 1 could see nothing
that was going on until about o'clock in
the afternoon, when he came and told me,
You may 20 now"
That was all that he said. / did not
tarry, but put spurs to my horse and was st
Franklin's headquarters when the sun wac
about an hour high. having gone % miles
in about two hours.
] / told Gen. Franklin what had seen and
where i had seen It He wanted to know
why i had not come sooner, as, he said, he
had been hearing the guns all day, and had
u =
aid, but could not; bat now, he said, with
this information l can go, and
WILL MARCH AS FAR AS CAN
tonight, and want you to join me in the
morning. Franklin marched to Annandale
(eight miles that night. Next day about
noon | overlook him marching through
Fairfax Courthouse. We hurried along on a
quick march, hearing the cannon all the
time, until we got to CenterviIle, and while
the troops were still marching on the turn
pike toward the fight Franklin and his staff
and / rode off to the point of the hill, a
little to the left, to see what we could of
what was going on, as from there we could
overlook the whole ground where the fight
was.
We had hardly got the gage Of our sur
rOundings when Franklin called our atten-
tiOn to large body of troops marching down
the Warrenton turnpike from Groveton
toward the Stone Bridge. They were so
DUST -begrimed and showed no cOlors that