The times. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1890-1903, 1898-03-27
Col. Mosby Argues That Il Was Not
Due to Disobedience of0rders,
BUT MISTAKE OF A MOVEMENT
On the Part of Longstrcct and HUI
Oh June 23rL and 2tth which
Was Photographed TO Hooker
and Precipitated Battle.

street and Colonel Charles Mafshdia Cor
onel Robert StriDling published a reply
in The Times In which ne says: Il
General L.ongstrect ard Colonel Marshall
have gone outs de OF the TecorI3. ard
made statements that can be de-'0n-
str,ted 10 be impossibl'ities, they tnust
De held respons be tor them, AMI not
Gen. Lees report. which contains no such
assertion" The inference Us that had
held Gen. Lees report respons bic Tor
statements made by LOngsucet ana Mar
shall. which were shown 10 be absurdlIes
As / did not mention General Lee re-
port. 20 is hard 10 see how IT was
held responsible for anything il was
Colonel Suibliur-not I-who called at
tcntlon 10 the fact that q letter OF Cen
eral Lees contradlcts his report. ! pub
isbod the letter 20 contradict Marshall
and Ioncstreet ] made no comparison
fctween the letter and ;ha report Long
stree. ard Marshall had .aij That o"ths
TO Tie absence of the cavalry General
Ice al Chamhelsburg al not know that
HooRcr's army was north Of the Potomac
until late at n'rht ou june 9th. spy
brought the news that 30 had reached
Frederick Cite and that Meade was IN
command They say that General Lee
was surprised hv the Information. that
he thought Fooker's army was sun IN
virginia They I'D NOT eXplain how Gem
eral Ice could have supposed that Hooker
would stay IN Virginia while the tonied-
oratss were ravaging pennsylvania. or
why 10 was that when General lee was
in Maryland. ~ did not move East and
capture WASHINGTON and Baltimore II he
thought no hostile force was in front Of
him. II HOOKER had rot crossed the Po-
tonac tho ROAD was open 20 Washington
The order putting Meade in command
was kept n secret and NOT published 20
the army until the afternoon OF June 18th
The nearest way from Frederick city
70 Chambersburc is az least nifty miles
over the South Mountain Glue Rids0:
every road and bypath was closely pa
troiled and pIcketed. 10 is clear that II
General Ice got the news on the night
" the 2sth n must have been BROUGHT
by carrier pigeon. Longstrcet ana Mar
shall say a Texan ala t. The romance
recalls the legend Of the Flying Dutch
man.
did not reply 10 Colonel Striblings
letter. because when Il appeared I was
sick IN a hospital. and d.d not read IT
Tor nearly year afterward Having
heard that II has raccnuv been published
in the Southern Historical Magazine. !
have determined TO put an answer on re-
cord.
ROCKERS WHEREABOUTS.
proved By the diary of Colonel Free
mantle-an English officer who was
guest at Longstreot's hc7dQuarto s-th7'
at Greenwood on the 30th, a spy did
come IN and they heard that Hook had
been superseded. Colonel Marshall req
resented General Lee as greatly sur
prised 10 hear at Chambershurg mat tn
Northern army was following him and
that he Immediately couniermanded or
ders be had Just issued 10 move ON Har-
risburc. / admit that General Lees re-
port saws so. II IS u1ders' God that
Colonel Marshall wrote General Lees re-
ports. ] pers 1nally know that General
lee wrote his own confidential dis
patches
This may account for the discrepancy
between the following lattor TO Ewell AMI
the report Colonel Marshall's failure %
refer 90 The letter in his elaborate ad-
dress on the campaign IL confession OF
his inability TO explain 1t consistently
with General Lees Ignorance OF the
Whereabouts of Hooker:
Headquarters Army Of Northern Viz
Finia Chamhersbrg. june 2S. 1sGS-':3O
\ NJ
Lieutenant General r. S Ewell. Com
L'uNllNE corps.
GenCral.-I wrote YOU last night stating
that General Hooker wa eportad have
crossed the Potomac ana g. adyancinr
~ way Of M1cle'own. the heed OF is
column being al that point In Frederick
county. ] directed YOU IN that tier 10
move your forces 20 this point. II yo1
Rave not already PROGRESSED on the road
and n YOU have no good reason aCains
A. ] dcsir. you 90 move Ga tho direction
Of Gettysburg VIA Iod'er burg. whore
you will have turnpike most Of thc wa -.
and you can then join your divisions TO
Early's which S. east OF Tho mountains
] think II preferable 10 keep on the east
ride of the mountains. whom YOU COM
TO Heidi rsburg you can either move d.
rectly ON Gettysburg or turn down 10
Cashtown Your trains and heavy ar
tii ary you can send. ~ YOU think proper
on the road TO Chambers burg. Bu, II
the roads which your troops take are
good they had better follow YOU
r. f. LEE.
General
This letter does not state the De tina
tion. but only the route on which Ewell
corps was 20 march.
The July report says: NO report had
been received that the Federal army had
crossed the Potomac and the absence Of
TIE cavalry rendered 10 impossible 90 ob-
tain accurate Information. Prepare
tions were now made 10 advance on Har-
r.sburg. but on the night Of the 18th. in
formation was received from a scout that
the Federal army having crossed the Po-
tomac was advancing northward, and
that the head Of the column had reached
South Mountain Accordingly Long
street and IIil were directed 20 proceed
from Chambsrsbure 10 Gettysburg, 10
which point General Ewell Was also I'm
structeo 10 march from Carlisle This
report was published in the Richmond
papers almost as soon as u was written,
and was tho authority FOR much hostile
criticism Of Stuart.
CALVARY NOT NECESSARY.
General Lee with Lougstreet crossed
the Potomac at WiliamspOrt on the 18th:
Hooker WIS crossing lower down the
river ON the same day. iiiil crossed at
steuherdstown below on the 2ith. Hook
., Immediately threw forward three corps
20 hold the South Mountain passes. Cen
eral lee spent two days In Maryland,
although it Is only ten miles WIDE there.
lie was evidently waiting FOR Hooker 10
eel over the river ard develop his inten-
tiors. on the 26th General Lee was in
parersfown. about ten miles by the pike
from South Mountain. his headquarters
were rear the state lire that night.
There Was a cavalry skirmsh that DAY AZ
Doonsi GRO IL was not necessary 90 have
a cavalry corps 20 discover the presence
81 Inc enemy. one man could have done
n AS well as a thousand. l.ongs,reet and
IAN each had SIGNAL CORPS. What were
thov there for2 Kershaw's brirade was