opposed him. Many men of influence in the councils of the nation publicly assailed him, vigorously denounced his lethargy and incapacity, and some even went so far as to question the purity of his motives by expressing doubts of his loyalty. CHAPTER VIII. PRESIDENT'S WAR ORDERS. PENINSULAR PLAN On the very day of this conference the new Secretary of War, Mr. Stanton, entered upon the administration of the War Department, and it was not long before its organization exhibited a new spirit and a more active vitality. McClellan's hitherto predominating influence at the War Department perceptibly waned, and he was soon made to experience in his personal and official intercourse that the tone had changed from the hearty welcome of the personal friend to the masterful accentuation of the official superior. Very soon after Secretary Stanton had entered upon the duties of his office General McClellan orally laid before him his plan of campaign by the lower Chesapeake, and was thereupon directed to submit it to the President. The latter at once disapproved it, and shortly afterward, of his own volition, and, it is said, without consulting either his Cabinet or the general in chief, issued, January 27th, General War Order No. I, as follows: "Ordered, that the 22d day of February, 1862, be the day for a general movement of the land and naval forces of the United States against the insurgent forces. That especially the army at and about Fortress Monroe, the Army of the Potomac, the Army of Western Virginia, the army near Munfordville, Ky., the army and flotilla at Cairo, and the naval force in the Gulf of Mexico, be ready to move on that day. "That all other forces, both land and naval, with their respective commanders, obey existing orders for 186 the time, and be ready to obey additional orders when duly given. "That the heads of departments, and especially the Secretaries of War and of the Navy, with all their subordinates, and the general in chief with all other commanders and subordinates of land and naval forces, will severally be held to their strict and full responsibilities for prompt execution of this order." This was followed by the President's Special War Order No. 1, January 31st, outlining the plan of campaign that he had adopted for the Army of the Potomac : "Ordered, That all the disposable force of the Army of the Potomac, after providing safely for the defense of Washington, be formed into an expedition for the immediate object of seizing and occupying a point upon the railroad southwestward of what is known as Manassas Junction, all details to be in the discretion of the commander in chief, and the expedition to move before or on the 22d day of February next." † Per Notwithstanding the explicit language of these orders and the high authority which promulgated them, McClellan inquired of the President whether the special order relating to the Army of the Potomac was to be regarded as final, or whether he might be permitted to submit in writing his objections to the plan proposed and his reasons for preferring his own. mission having been granted, McClellan submitted to the Secretary of War, February 3d, a long letter, which, while it did not convince the President, had a most important influence upon the events that followed in practically nullifying the special war order of the President. He begins his letter with a review of the critical condition of the army and the capital when he took command, July 27th, and the measures he adopted for * Official War Records, vol. v, p. 41. + Ibid. 188 the security of the latter and for the organization, drill, and discipline of the troops. He contrasts the present security with the past dangers, and asserts that he now has a well-drilled and reliable army, animated by the highest spirit and capable of great deeds. He displays his insistent habit of mind by referring to his earlier papers wherein he had asked for an effective and movable force far exceeding that now on the banks of the Potomac, and calls attention to the fact that he has not now the force he asked for. He confesses that he had always looked beyond the operations of the single Army of the Potomac, even when in a subordinate position, for the prospects of a barren victory had never been satisfactory to him (and in this we see the same traits that impelled him to submit plans of campaign to General Scott very soon after he had been assigned to the command of the Ohio militia). So that when he was placed in command of all the armies of the United States he immediately turned his attention to the whole field of operations, and not till then was he aware of the absence of any general plan nor of the utter disorganization and want of preparation that he found to pervade the Western armies, and in this respect he acknowledges he made a great mistake. To remedy this grave defect he sent, with the approval of the Executive, competent generals to command in Kentucky and Missouri, with instructions looking to a prompt forward movement, but time was required to create and organize these armies and supply them with arms, clothing, artillery, and transportation. He had then hoped that a general advance could have been made during the good weather of December, but notwithstanding the commendable work of his generals this was found not to be possible, and he acknowledges that he was disappointed in his hope. Defining the true policy of the war to be to make full preparation, and then by striking at the heart to seek the most decisive results, he says that it was his wish to gain possession of the East Tennessee Railroad as a preliminary movement, and to follow it up by a nearly simultaneous attack on Nashville and Richmond.* So far his letter may be regarded as an apologetic vindication of the six months' delay of the armies of the Union, submitted as a necessary prelude to an analysis of the two plans of campaign-the principal purpose of his letter. Of these he says: 66 Two bases of operation seem to present themselves for the advance of the Army of the Potomac : "I. That of Washington-its present position-involving a direct attack upon the intrenched positions of the enemy at Centreville, Manassas, etc., or else a movement to turn one or both flanks of those positions, or a combination of the two plans. 66 The relative force of the two armies will not justify an attack on both flanks; an attack on his left flank alone involves a long line of wagon communication, and can not prevent him from collecting for the decisive battle all the detachments now on his extreme right and left. 66 Should we attack his right flank by the line of the Occoquan, and a crossing of the Potomac below that river and near his batteries, we could, perhaps, prevent the junction of the enemy's right with his center (we might destroy the former); we would remove the obstructions to the navigation of the Potomac, reduce the length of wagon transportation by establishing new depots at the nearest points of the Potomac, and strike more directly his main railway communications." t Having thus eliminated the attacks upon the right and center, he then proceeds to point out the difficulties attending the movement against the enemy's left flank. These are in substance that the fords of the Occoquan are watched, batteries placed in their rear, and troops arranged to oppose a considerable resistance to a passage of that stream; that the enemy, he is informed, is intrenching a line from Union Mills toward Evans * Official War Records, vol. v, p. 42 et seq. + Ibid., p. 43. |