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LITTLE MAC.

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to the army, shared in the feeling. "Come back, Little Mac," was the almost universal cry, as he rode by for the last time. His picture was pinned up in barracks, songs in his honor were sung around every camp-fire, and the health of Little Mac was drunk at every feast. For a long time after his removal from command the soldiers kept up a firm faith that he would yet come back to lead them. But it was not to be. Though McClellan had done noble duty in building up the army and making it ready for the great work it had yet to do, and though he was very able in planning campaigns, he was wanting, his enemies said, in executive ability—that is, the power of carrying out his plans and making them a success. Mr. Lincoln, it is said, had long felt this, but was loth to remove him, and it was not until after the seemingly unnecessary delay in following up the enemy after Antietam that he finally concluded to do it. The President never gave any reason for doing it, but he was doubtless influenced by Mr. Chase and Mr. Stanton, both of whom were jealous of McClellan's popularity, and by the opinion of General Halleck, who had shown much opposition to McClellan, as he had also to Grant in the West. But the friends of McClellan say, on the contrary, that he was right in refusing to move after the battle of Antietam, and that Halleck was wrong in saying that all the supplies he asked for had been sent to him. This seems to be true, for even when the army finally moved, many of the men were obliged to march to Warrenton barefoot. The feeling in regard to Halleck's action in the matter is shown in the following squib, which went the rounds. of the newspapers at the time:

"A QUESTION WHICH MAJOR-GENERAL HALLECK WON'T ANSWER. If before Corinth you lay thirty days, Pleasing the foe with masterly delays,

CHAPTER XXV.

FREDERICKSBURG.

BURNSIDE'S NEW PLAN.-THE MARCH TO FREDERICKSBURG.-LEE HOLDS THE HILLS.-PONTOON BRIDGE-BUILDING. SHARPSHOOTERS.-THE TOWN SHELLED.-A DANGEROUS CROSSING. THE GRAYBACKS HUNTED OUT OF THEIR HOLES.-A BRAVE DRUMMER-BOY.-THE ARMY CROSSES THE RIVER.-BATTLE OF FREDERICKSBURG.-HOOKER'S GALLANT ASSAULT. -BURNSIDE RETREATS.-CONFEDERATE HOPES.-BURNSIDE RESIGNS, AND HOOKER TAKES COMMAND OF THE ARMY.-WINTER QUARTERS.-SAD CONDITION OF THE CONFEDERATES.—— THE LADIES AT WORK.-CONFEDERATE MANUFACTURES.-WOODEN SHOES.-SOUTHERN BOOKS.-A HOME-MADE CHRISTMAS.-PICKET TALKS.-MY MOTHER! MY MOTHER-JACKSON'S RESIGNED!

EE had sent about half his army, under Longstreet, to Culpepper to head off McClellan's advance toward Richmond in that direction, but had kept Jackson in the Shenandoah Valley so as to still threaten Maryland. McClellan was just about moving between these two parts of the Confederate army when he was deprived of the command. If he had been permitted to do this, it probably would have proved fatal to Lee, for he would have been unable to combine his forces in time to oppose the Union army, which, says McClellan, was never"in such excellent condition to fight a great battle.

Burnside, who took command on the 10th of November, acted still more cautiously than McClellan. His army had then grown to one hundred and twenty-five thousand men, but instead of moving forward to bring on a battle with Lee, as McClellan had intended to do, he spent several days in reorganizing it, and then made an entirely new plan of operations. His plan was to march to Fredericksburg, and then to move from there toward Richmond. Lee saw through his design, and while the Union army marched toward Fredericksburg on the upper side of the Rappahannock, the Confederates moved in the same direction on the other side. Burnside had several days the start, and the advance of his army, under Sumner, reached Falmouth, nearly opposite Fredericksburg, on the 17th of November. The bridges had been destroyed, but there were several fords, and Sumner wanted to cross at once and take possession of the heights behind the town; but Burnside did

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PONTOON BRIDGES.

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not think it best to do it so soon. The consequence was that before the end of November Lee's army had possession of all the hills, and had strongly fortified them, so that it was impossible for the Union army to take them without fighting a great battle.

By the 10th of December Burnside was ready to cross the river, and during the night of that day about a hundred and fifty cannons were posted on Stafford Hills to protect the men who were to build the pontoon bridges-that is, floating bridges built on flat-bottomed boats, or anything which will bear up a road platform. The engineers began to work during a heavy fog early the next morning, but the Confederate riflemen, who were posted behind stone houses and walls along the river, soon discovered them and kept up so hot a fire that they could not work. It was soon seen that little could be done unless the sharpshooters could be driven away, and at ten o'clock the batteries were opened on the town. Fifty rounds were fired from each gun, but it was so foggy that for a long time no one could see that any damage was done; but by and by columns of smoke rising above the mist showed that the town had been set on fire by the shells. Another effort to build the bridges failed, and at last volunteers were called for to cross over in boats and drive out the riflemen. A Michigan and a Massachusetts regiment were selected for the dangerous duty. The men ran down the steep river-bank and hid for a while behind the piles. of lumber collected there to build the bridge with, exchanging shots with the sharpshooters opposite, whom they could now easily see. In a few minutes they made a rush for the pontoon boats, twenty-five or thirty men getting into each, and pushed off. The oarsmen bent to their oars, while crack! crack! crack! went the rifles all along in front of them. But the men stooped low, and in a few minutes the boats were under the shelter of the opposite side. Another rush up the opposite bank, and the graybacks scampered out of their holes like so many rats, and away they went through the streets followed by the bluebirds. Many of them got away, but more than a hundred were sent back on the pontoon boats as prisoners.

Among those who crossed to attack the sharpshooters was the drummer of the Michigan regiment, who was just twelve years old that day. He jumped into one of the boats with the

rest, with his drum slung on his back, but his captain ordered him back, saying, "You are too small for such business."

"May I help push off the boat, Captain?" asked the boy. "Yes," was the answer.

But the boy, not to be cheated out of going, purposely clung to the side of the boat when it slid off into the stream, and was dragged into the water, and the men had to take him in. Several in his boat were killed, and as he went up the river-bank his drum was torn in pieces by a piece of shell, but he bravely seized a musket belonging to one of his dead comrades and

SCENE IN FREDERICKSBURG AFTER THE BOMBARDMENT.

fought until the Confederates were all driven out of their hiding-places. He was much praised for his gallantry, and was given a beautiful new drum; but friends who took an interest in him procured his release from the army, gave him a home, and had him educated.

The bridges were now finished, and on the 11th and 12th the army crossed the river. General Franklin had meanwhile built two more bridges further down the river, near the site of the house where George Washington lived in his childhood, and marched a great part of his troops over, and during the night of December 12 the Army of the Potomac lay on its arms

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BOMBARDMENT OF FREDERICKSBURG.

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ready to open the battle in the morning. Fredericksburg presented a sad appearance. Many buildings had been badly damaged during the bombardment, several houses were still smoking, and the streets were filled with furniture, which had been

carried out of the dwellings after they had been set on fire by the shells. The few inhabitants who remained in their houses had taken refuge in their cellars, and fortunately none had been killed.