Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1902-10-08

to each other to be within supporting dis
tance
General Pope, July IA. 1862. issued an ad-
dress to the army. which. by reason OF It's
unhappy suggestiveness and It's clarion
promises. did little to commend Its author
to some of the corps and division command
ers under him. In the first place. he was a
orders. and tho tone Of his address to
the army was at least loud" and 1t
grated on those officers who had been hight
ing the enemy in the Shenandoah valley
and the plain Of eastern Virginia The Ia
nous address follows:
General Pope's Address.
Headquarters, Army Of Virginia,
washington. D. c.. July IA. 1862.
ITO the Officers and Soldiers Of the Army
Of hirginia:
by special assignment of the President
| OF the United States l have assumed COM
| mand of this army l have spent two
| weeks in learning your whereabouts, your
condition and your wants; IN preparing you
| for active operations and in placing you In
positions from which you can act promptly
| and to the purpose. These iabors are
nearly completed and 1 am about to join
you In the field
| Let US understand each other have
como to you from the west, whore we have
| always seen the backs OF our enemies;
| from an army whose business 1t has been
| to seek the adversary and to beat him when
| no was IOunQ, whose pOllCy has DSch de~
| tack and not defense. In but one instance
| has tho enemy been able to place our
| western armies in defensive attitude. l
presume that I have been called here to
pursue tho same system and to lead you
| against the enemy. 1t is my purpose to do
| SO, and that speedily. 1 am sure you long
for an opportunity to win tho distinction
you are capable Of achieving. That oppor-
| time I desire you to dismiss from your
mind certain phrases which I am sorry to
| find so much In vogue among you L hear
| constantly of taking strong positions and
| holding them Of lines Of retreat and Of
bases Of supplies Let us discard such
! ideas. The strongest position soldier
he can most easily advance against the
| enemy. Let us study the probable lines OF
retreat of our opponents and leave our own
to take care Of themselves. Let Us look
| before us and not behind Success and
glory are in the advance. disaster and
| shame lurk in the rear. Let US act on this
understanding, and 1t Is safe to predict
| that your banners shall be inscribed with
| many a glorious deed and that your names
Will be dear to your countrymen forever..
Major General, Commanding"
| In the light Of Developments there is ono
| sentence in that proclamation which verges
| on the tragic. It Is "let us study the prob
l able lines Of retreat Of our opponents and
leave our own to take care Of themselves"
| Perhaps the great cause contributing to
| tho failure of Pope at the second Bull Run
! was that while he was on the Rappahan-
| mock, Jackson moved around his right
\ flank. crossed in his rear, tore up tho
railroad between Pope and Washington and
destroyed train loads Of supplies at Manas-
| sas. tho result being. as Pope has said. that
| tho Union army fought the battle OF the
second Bull Run with slim rations for the
men and no forage for tho cavalry and
artillery horses.
On the Rappahannock.
% \
to the army General Pope went to the
front. Following closely upon this event
came McClelan's change OF base to Harri-
sons Landing. the concentration of Jack
sons corps in front of Pope at Gordons-
VILE the battle Of Cedar mountain and
the assignment Of General Halleck as gem
eral-i chief of the army.
The engagements at Rapddan station,
Clark's mountain. Brandy station, Kappa
hammock station, Raccoon ford, Beverly
ford, Stevensburg, White Sulphur Springs.
Waterloo bridge, Bristoe, Bull Run bridge
and Gainesville were fought in rapid sue
cession. all being preliminary to the mighty
collision Of ponderous hosts on the fields
between Bull run and the Manassas Gap
railroad, which had been Redeemed with
brave blood in the preceding summer.
jackson had gained Popes rear and Long
street was fanking his right to join Jack
son. The Army Of Virginia was in peril
and Washington was once more seriously
threatened Gen. Pope fell back from the
line of the Rappahannock river and aban-
doned his communication with Fredericks-
! burg at his left. In his own language his
plan was ITO concentrate my whole force
in the direction Of Warrenton and Gaines
Vile, to cover tho Warrenton pike and still
confront the enemy rapidly marching to my
right" Gen. Pope sent to Gen. Halleck for
reinforcements and according to Pope Hal
leck on August % notified him that heavy
reinforcements would begin to arrive at
Warrenton Junction (Calverton) tomorrow"
august pa. There was confusion and mis-
understanding between Washington and
Pope. Between August % and August q
Heintzelman's corps Of the Army of the
Potomac had reached Warrenton Junction
from Alexandria, and Porter's corps Of the
same army had come up from Fredericks-
burg Pope says that August 20 he found
| himself outfianked on the right by the
| main body Of Lees army, while Jackson's
corps had passed through Thoroughfare
Gap and had struck the supply depot at
Manassas.
Pope Withdraws East.
At this time august 26) Pope was holding
the line of the Rappahannock his left being
| In touch with Burnside at Fredericksburg
and his right reaching to Waterloo bridge
| on the upper Rappahannock. or as it ls
called on the war maps, Hegeman's river
/ The corps of Sigel and Mcdowell were at
Warrenton, Banks was at Fayetteville,
Reno was on ln6 pike three miles east OF
Warrenton. Porter was near Bealton sta
ton and HeintZelman was at Warrenton
Junction. All this country is west Of the
Bull Run battlefeids. the Rappahannock
river and Bull run being approximately
parallel about thirty miles apart Long
street extended from Pope's right at Water
| loo bridge to Orleans out beyond the Union
right Jackson,S command extended from
Bristoe station, on the Orange and Alex
andria railroad to Gainesville on to the
washington Wafrenton pike, this line being
| behind Gen, Pope.
August 2S Gen, Pope in reply to a dis
patch to Gen. Halleck, received the follow
| ing from Washington:
| maj. Gen. Pope:-Not the slightest dis
| satisfaction, has been felt in regard to your
| operations on the Rappahannock The main
| object has been accomplished in getting the
| troops from the peninsula, although they
| have BEEN greatly delayed by storms.
| Moreover. the telegraph has been interrupt
| ed, leaving US for a time ignorant of the
| progress Of the evacuation. If possible to
attack the enemy in flank, do 80, but the
| main object now is to ascertain his posi-
| ton Make cavalry excursions for that
| purpose, especially toward Front Royal
| II possible to get In his rear, pursue with
| vigor.
| (Signed) III. W. HALLECK,
4 nr,1s t., 1tf-