Page images
PDF
EPUB
[ocr errors]

CHAPTER XVII.

THE TARDINESS OF M'CLELLAN.-HOW THE CONFEDERATES AVAILED THEMSELVES OF IT.THEIR CONCENTRATION OF FORCES AT RICHMOND.-STRENGTH OF THESE FORCES.-POSITION OF THE TWO ARMIES. THE CHICKAHOMINY AND THE ROADS CROSSING IT.-BATTLE OF SEVEN PINES."-FAILURE OF GEN. HUGER TO ATTACK.-GALLANT CHARGE OF THE TROOPS OF LONGSTREET AND HILL.-GEN. JOHNSTON WOUNDED. THE AFFAIR OF THE NEXT DAY.-IMPORTANT CHANGE OF MILITARY COMMAND.-SECRET HISTORY OF THE ATTEMPT TO LIMIT THE MILITARY POWER OF PRESIDENT DAVIS.-A PLAN OF CONFEDERATE POLITICIANS.-PLOT AGAINST THE PRESIDENT'S POWER. THE NEW OFFICE OF COMMANDING-GENERAL OF THE CONFEDERATES.-HOW MADE NOMINAL BY PRESIDENT

DAVIS. GEN. ROBERT E. LEE APPOINTED TO THIS OFFICE.-HIS APPEARANCE AND MANNERS. THE SEVEN DAYS' BATTLES AROUND RICHMOND.-LEE'S PLAN OF OPERATIONS.— JACKSON'S WITHDRAWAL FROM THE VALLEY MASKED.—BATTLES OF MECHANICSVILLE AND BEAVER DAM.-REPULSE OF THE CONFEDERATES AT BEAVER DAM CREEK.-JACKSON FLANKS THE ENEMY'S POSITION.—M'CLELLAN'S RETREAT TO GAINES' MILLS.-ITS STRATEGIO DESIGN.--EXTRAORDINARY STRENGTH OF THE NEW POSITION.-GEN. LEE WAITING FOR THE GREAT BATTLE.-BATTLE OF GAINES' MILLS.—HEROIC FIGHT OF HILL'S DIVISION. -THE ENEMY GAINS GROUND.-AN URGENT MESSAGE TO LONGSTREET.-JACKSON APPEARS. FINAL CHARGE OF THE DAY.-ITS FIERCE GRANDEUR.-VICTORY OF THE CONFEDERATES.-M'CLELLAN RETREATS TOWARDS THE JAMES RIVER.-FAILURE OF MAGRUDER AND HUGER TO INTERCEPT HIM.-THE GREAT ERROUR WHICH THEY COMMITTED.—BATTLE OF SAVAGE STATION.-M'CLELLAN CROSSES WHITE OAK SWAMP.-FAILURE OF HUGER'S ATTACK.-ANOTHER OPPORTUNITY LOST.-BATTLE OF FRAZIER'S FARM.-HILL AND LONGSTREET'S TROOPS ONLY ENGAGED.—BATTLE OF MALVERN HILL.-M'OLELLAN'S POSITION ON THE HILL.-HIS NUMEROUS ARTILLERY.-THE ATTACK OF THE CONFEDERATE LEFT NOT SUPPORTED.-MAGRUDER'S IMPETUOUS AND DESPERATE CHARGE. THE SUBLIME SCENERY OF THE CONTEST.-FAILURE OF THE ATTACK.-M'CLELLAN CONTINUES HIS RETREAT TO HARRISON'S LANDING.-FRUITS OF THE CONFEDERATE SUCCESS.-GEN. LEE'S EXPLANATION OF M'CLELLAN'S ESCAPE.-ESTIMATE OF THE VICTORY BY LEE AND STONEWALL JACKSON.

-RICHMOND ERECT AND EXULTANT.

THE tardiness of McClellan afforded opportunity to the Confederates to recruit their forces, to realize the results of the conscription law, and to assemble before Richmond the largest army they were ever able to put on a single field in any time of the war. The enemy had had the start in the preparation of many months. He delayed the advance upon Richmond, hesitating which line to adopt, when an advance upon either of the proposed lines could hardly have failed of success. A month was lost before

[blocks in formation]

the advance was begun. Another month was occupied in the siege of Yorktown, where McClellan was held in check by eleven thousand men. Three weeks more were taken up in the cautious advance across the Peninsula. Thus three full months were lost by the Federal army before it was fairly in the neighbourhood of Richmond, and every day of these months was employed by the Confederates in enlarging their resources of defence.

Having reached the Chickahominy, McClellan threw a portion of his army across the river, and, having thus established his left, proceeded to pivot upon it, and to extend his right by the right bank of the Pamunkey, so as to get to the north of Richmond. While conducting this manœuvre and delaying an attack, the Confederate army was rapidly receiving reinforcements, and drawing troops from distant points to make a decisive battle. Huger's army, from Norfolk, united with Johnston before Richmond; forces, under Branch, in North Carolina, were rapidly brought forward by rail; and even as far as Charleston, troops were withdrawn to match Johnston's numbers as far as possible with those of the enemy. And in this instance the match of numbers was probably closer than ever before or afterwards in the great conflicts of the war. With Jackson's command in the Valley which it was intended to put on the Richmond lines at the proper moment, the force defending the Confederate capital may be estimated at about ninety thousand men; and McClellan's, considering his losses on the Peninsula, could scarcely be more than one hundred and twenty or thirty thousand men.

In the last days of May the position of the two armies around Richmond is described by the Chickahominy. This stream, tracing through heavy forests and swamps east of Richmond from a north-westerly to a south-easterly direction, formed the respective fronts of the two armiesthe Confederates occupying the western, the Federals the eastern banks. The line occupied by the enemy was nearly a right line from north-west to south-east. His forces were stretched from a short distance above New Bridge, where his right rested, to Bottom's Bridge, which constituted his left. The line was about ten miles long. Across it ran five roads in the following order, from west to east: the Brook turnpike; the Mechanicsville turnpike, (Mechanicsville being a village on the north side of the Chickahominy); the Nine Mile road; York River railroad; the Williamsburg road; the Charles City road; and the Darbytown road.

Before the 30th of May, Gen. Johnston had ascertained that McClellan had thrown his left forward to a point within six miles of Richmond, a mile in front of a point locally designated the "Seven Pines," where Casey's division was posted. Couch's division was encamped in his rear, his right resting in front of Fair Oaks station, about six miles due east of Richmond. Gen. Keyes commanded both divisions. In front there was

a heavy forest, and a screen of dense undergrowth. A terrific thunder storm had taken place on the night of the 29th of May, and floods of rain spirting in broad jets, had so swollen the Chickahominy in Keyes' rear, that Johnston indulged the prospect of having to deal with no other troops than those of this corps. In these circumstances, on the morning of the 30th May, he moved out to annihilate the enemy's left.

BATTLE OF SEVEN PINES.

Gen. Johnston's plan of battle was to embrace an attack at three points Gen. D. H. Hill, supported by the division of Gen. Longstreet, (who had the direction of operations on the right,) was to advance by the Williamsburg road, to attack the enemy in front; Gen. Huger, with his division, was to move down the Charles City road, in order to atack in flank the troops who might be engaged with Hill and Longstreet; Gen. Smith was to march to the junction of the New Bridge road and the Nine Mile road, to be in readiness either to fall on Keyes's right flank, or to cover Longstreet's left.

The greater part of the day was lost in vain expectation of Huger's movement-the most important part of the design, as it was to take the enemy's flank and insure his destruction. The movement was disappointed, as Huger could not cross the swollen stream in his front. At a late hour in the afternoon Longstreet determined to move upon the enemy with his own and Hill's division, and accomplish whatever results were possible in the far-spent day. Gen. Johnston remained with Smith on the left, to observe the field.

Through the thick woods, on marshy ground, in water in many places two feet deep, Longstreet's regiments moved on, brushing off occasionally a cloud of skirmishers that disputed their passage. As they came upon the enemy's works, a sheet of fire blazed in their faces. It was sharp, rapid work. Some of the regiments crept through the low brushwood in front of the redoubt, and, at a given signal from the flanking parties, made a rush for the guns, cleared them, and, entering pell-mell into the earthwork, bayonetted all who opposed them. Line after line of the enemy's works was carried; the victorious career of the Confederates swept through his successive camps and entrenchments; and as night fell he had been driven about two miles, and had left a track of retreat through swamp and water red with carnage.

On the left, where Johnston commanded in person, the enemy held his position until dark; Smith's division, with a portion of Whiting's, failing to dislodge him. On this part of the field Gen. Johnston was disabled by a severe wound in the shoulder.

BATTLE OF SEVEN PINES.

281

The work of carnage in a few hours of daylight had been terrible The Confederate loss was more than four thousand. That of the enemy was stated in Northern journals to have exceeded ten thousand. McClellan officially states it at 5,739. The visible fruits of our victory were ten pieces of cannon, six thousand stand of arms, one garrison flag, four stand of regimental colors, a large number of tents, besides much camp equipage and stores. On the following day, June 1, the enemy, having thrown across the Chickahominy two additional divisions, under command of Gen. Sumner, attacked the brigade of Gen. Pickett, which was supported by that of Gen. Pryor. The attack was vigorously repelled by these two brigades, the brunt of the fight falling on General Pickett. This was the last demonstration made by the enemy. This action, really of no consequence, was magnified in McClellan's dispatches as "the Battle of Fair Oaks," thus giving to the Northern public a new and most undue "sensation" to counteract the defeat of the previous important day.

It must be admitted that the Confederate public was but little affected by the victory of Seven Pines. It was a splendid feat of arms; but it accomplished no important results, and the ground which it gained was unimportant, and was speedily abandoned. Had Huger obeyed orders, Johnston might have demolished the enemy; as it was, McClellan's left was routed and demoralized, and we had gained nothing more substantial than a brilliant battle, when it had been intended to have embraced an attack at three points, and probably all along the line, if the enemy had accepted it.

The disabling wound, which Gen. Johnston had received, was the occasion of an important change of military commands. The Confederate Congress had some time ago passed a bill creating the office of commanding general, who should take charge of the military movements of the war. This measure was one of great significance, as the early attempt in the Confederacy to abolish the bipartite character of the Executive office, and to supply two agents for the management of the war.

The merits of the proposed reform were long a theme of discussion in the Confederacy. The President in his Executive capacity was the servant of Congress, and, therefore, could have nothing of the dictator in his action; but as "Imperator," or commander-in-chief of the army and navy, he might be almost despotic in the exercise of his powers. The army regulations would be his "Constitution;" but with the power to fill courtsmartial with his creatures, his authority would be limited very much by his own will, and all appeals from their decisions would be from him the Imperator to him the civil magistrate. The theory of such a power was evidently on the verge of despotism. Abolish the habeas corpus, and the President, with his full bipartite powers, would be an autocrat, if he had the tact to be so without raising the anger of the people until he estab

lished himself on firm grounds. Experience in the old Union had suf ficiently taught the Confederates what little safety to public liberty was to be expected from the representatives of the people, when Executive patronage was brought to bear; and indicated the additional lesson that even where the Executive officer had not sufficient ability to be dangerous, he might become the tool of a proscriptive and tyrannical party.

After the first battle of Manassas, a certain adviser of President Davis, who had some experience of the Congress at Montgomery, and knew the numerous efforts to shape the action of the government in favour of local interests, drew his attention to the bipartite nature of his office, and urged him to assume more of the Imperator, as the best and speediest manner of concentrating our forces for decisive action. From a conscientious regard to the advisory power of Congress, President Davis then declined to do this. How could he, as the executive officer of Congress, do it? Were not the two offices in one person clearly antagonistic? The consequence was, that before the end of the first year of the war it was manifest that a clear head and a vigorous will were wanting in the administration of military matters. The conclusion came to be almost unanimous in the public mind that the civil and military affairs of the Confederacy could not be conducted by one head, and should be separated into two distinct offices. It was argued that this plan involved the least danger to public liberty; that the civil and military powers being, each, in the control of one clear head and strong hand, would probably be most effectually exercised in the accomplishment of our independence, and that the two heads would not be as likely to unite for any end injurious to the public liberty as a Cabinet of weak, plastic characters, put in place and held in hand by

one man.

In consequence of these views, a plan was matured by several leading Confederate politicians, having for its object the division of the Executive powers between a civil ruler, who should carry out the designs of Congress and watch over the liberties of the people and the safety of the Constitution, and a military leader, Imperator, or commander-in-chief, who should be entrusted with the conduct of the war, and look to Congress and the Executive for the means to carry out his plan.

The scheme was this: Gen. R. E. Lee was to be commander-in-chief and have the army of the Potomac; Johnston to be entrusted with the war in the Valley of the Mississippi East; Price in Missouri; Kirby Smith in Louisiana and Texas; Bragg in the South; Beauregard in the South-east, while Jackson, Longstreet, Hill, Whiting, and the other promising officers were to carry out their views. The commanders of divi sions, above named, were to constitute a board of advisers to Congress, and each to be entrusted with discretionary powers in his own district.

President Davis was probably aware of the details of this early plot

« PreviousContinue »