scene which followed, says, "everything seemed lost. Regiments and brigades broke and fled; batteries dashed to the rear in headlong flight."

Orders were given to Jackson to cover the retreat, and directions were sent to Richmond to get the public property ready for removal. But this success was not followed up, and the Union army resumed its march towards the James.

The troops reached the vicinity of James River on the 1st of July, and were massed on Malvern Hill. Here was high, open table land, a mile and a-half long by three-quarters of a mile wide, crossed by several roads. Porter's corps held the left, Heintzelman and Sumner the center, and Keys the right. The left flank was protected by the gun-boats on James River. Here, after their terrible march through the White Oak Swamp, the gallant Army of the Potomac, with spirit yet unbroken, and with the ability yet to conquer, prepared to meet the whole rebel force. As the weary troops lay down to rest that night upon Malvern Hill, after five days of incessant fighting and marching, they knew the strength of their position and felt the ability yet to go into Richmond. They looked for the morning, to wipe out the mortification of their retreat. With the morning came most fierce and persistent attacks upon this position; charge after charge was repulsed. The whole field was strewn with rebel dead and wounded. After being brought up again and again to the assault, and as often driven back with fearful slaughter, the rebels retired.

The next morning, the rebel army was in no condition to withstand an attack. General Trimble, of the rebel army, says: "at dawn the next morning, I found the whole army in the utmost disorder." An attack by the unbroken Union forces would inevitably have defeated it. But when the rebel army awoke, and looked up that hill from which they had been so often repulsed, the grim batteries and gleaming muskets, and glorious banners had disappeared. The Union general had retreated from victory which seemed to invite his approach. McClellan had turned his back on victory and Richmond.

Many high-spirited officers like Kearney, and gallant soldiers begged permission to follow the discomfited Confederates into Richmond. McClellan, so far from following up this success, retired to Harrison's Landing, and thus ingloriously closed the Peninsular Campaign.

The faults of this campaign have been settled by the judgment of the brave officers and soldiers who took part in it, and have ceased to be the subject of partisan controversy. No troops ever fought better than the Army of the Potomac. No troops were ever worse handled by a commanding general.

The fatal errors of McClellan were- First, A month unnecessarily wasted at Yorktown. Second, A tardy pursuit after the success at Williamsburg, in a battle fought without his knowledge and against his wishes. Third, Long delay and hesitation at the Chickahominy-failure to strike when Jackson was away, and before reënforcements arrived. And yet, in spite of these faults, victory, and the capture of Richmond was often within the reach of a bold, decided movement, and especially at Fair Oaks, and at Malvern Hill. Indeed the seven days' battles show that the rebels could not, at any time, have withstood a vigorous and persistent attack by the entire Army of the Potomac. The Union loss in the campaign was 15,249; the rebel loss, 19,000.

At Harrison's Landing, McClellan encamped, and began 'calling for reenforcements. He wanted 50,000 men; on the 3d of July, "100,000 men, rather more, than less." To these calls, the President patiently replied:

"I understand your position as stated in your letter, and by General Marcy. To reenforce you so as to enable you to resume the offensive within a month or even six weeks, is impossible. In addition to that arrived and now arriving from the Potomac (about 10,000 men, I suppose,) and about 10,000 I hope you will have from Burnside very soon, and about 5,000 from Hunter a little later, I do not see how I can send you another man within a month. Under these circumstances, the defensive, for the present, must be your only care. Save the army first, where you are, if you can; and secondly, by removal, if you must. You, on the ground, must be the judge as to which you will attempt, and of the means for effecting it. I but give it as my opinion, that

with the aid of the gun-boats and the reënforcements mentioned above, you can hold your present position; provided, and so long as you can keep the James River open below you. If you are not tolerably confident you can keep the James River open, you had better remove as soon as possible. I do not remember that you have expressed any apprehension as to the danger of having your communication cut on the river below you, yet I do not suppose it can have escaped your attention.

"A. LINCOLN."

"P. S.-If at any time you feel able to take the offensive, you are not restrained from doing so.'

The postscript must have been read with a grim smile by those war-worn veterans, Sumner, Kearney, Heintzelman and others. Lincoln's keen sense of the ridiculous could not have overlooked the irony of the words-"If at any time you feel able to take the offensive, you are not restrained from doing so."

This whole campaign illustrates Lincoln's patience, forbearance, fidelity to, and kindness for, McClellan. His misfortunes, disastrous as they were to the country, did not induce the President to abandon him. Indeed it was a very

difficult and painful thing for him ever to give up a person in misfortune, even when those misfortunes resulted from a man's own misconduct.

Raymond's life and State papers of Lincoln, p. 295–6.

CHAPTER XVI.

MILITARY OPERATIONS TO THE CLOSE OF 1862-POPE-MCCLELLAN-BURNSIDE.

GENERAL POPE ASSUMES COMMAND OF THE ARMY OF VIRGINIA — HIS ADDRESS-LEE ATTEMPTS TO OVERWHELM HIM-MCCLELLAN ORDERED TO JOIN POPE- HIS DELAY-ORDERED TO HASTEN - HE LINGERS - POPE OVERWHELMED BY NUMBERS AND DRIVEN BACK TO WASHINGTON-IS RELIEVED-MCCLELLAN AGAIN IN COMMAND-LEE CROSSES INTO MARYLAND-MCCLELLAN PURSUES-BATTLES OF SOUTH MOUNTAIN-ANTIETAM-PRESI DENT VISITS THE ARMY-URGES MCCLELLAN TO ATTACKMCCLELLAN DELAYS HE IS RELIEVED OF COMMAND-FAILURE -BURNSIDE-FREDERICKSBURG- -MOVEMENTS IN THE WEST - BATTLE OF PERRYVILLE CORINTH VICKSBURG STONE RIVER.

AT

T this period, while at Harrison's Landing, Major General McClellan found time to write and dispatch to President Lincoln, a long letter of advice upon the general conduct of the administration, civil and military.

The President seemed to think there was plenty of practical work for the General to do in his own camp, and on the 8th of July, he visited the camp on the James. He found there, an army of 86,000 effective men. The great discrepancy between the sum of losses of the army of the Potomac, and its present and aggregate number, was accounted for by the statement of McClellan on the 13th of July, that 38,000 were absent on leave by authority!

The successes at the West, as contrasted with the failures at the East, failures attributable not to a difference in the soldiers themselves, but to a difference in leadership, suggested whether by transferring to the East, some of those successful

Western Generals, better results might not follow the unsurpassed fighting of the army of the Potomac. Halleck, on the 11th of July, had been called to the position of Generalin-Chief, and returning to Washington, entered upon his duties on the 23d of July.

General John Pope, the son of Judge Nathaniel Pope, District Judge of Illinois in whose courts President Lincoln had long practiced law, was one of the most brilliant and rising young officers of the West. He had evinced great generalship at Island No. 10, and at New Madrid. Mr. Lincoln of course knew Pope well, and rejoiced in his fame, and he was also a favorite of General Halleck. He was called to Washington, and arrived about the 20th of June.

The President having seen the disastrous consequences of having too many generals, and the lack of unity of purpose and of concert between the forces of Banks, Fremont and McDowell, resolved to consolidate the Departments of the Shenandoah, the Mountain Department of Fremont, and the Department of the Rappahannock; and in pursuance of this determination, on the 27th of June, he issued an order creating the Army of Virginia, under command of General Pope; the army of General Fremont, to constitute the First Army Corps, the army of General Banks, the Second, and that of General McDowell, the Third. Thereupon General Fremont asked to be relieved, on the ground, that as General Pope was his junior in rank he could not consistently with his honor serve under him, and his request was granted.

On the 14th of July, General Pope assumed command and issued an address to his arm y. In this address he said:

"I have come to you from the West, where we have always seen the backs of our enemies-from an army whose business it has been to seek an adversary, and beat him when found; whose policy has been attack and not defense. In but one instance has the enemy been able to place our Western armies in a defensive attitude. I presume I have been called here to pursue the same system, and to lead you against the enemy. It is my purpose to do so, and that speedily. I am sure you long for an opportunity to win the distinction you are capable of achieving; that opportunity I shall endeavor to give you. In the meantime, I desire you to dismiss certain phrases I am sorry to find much in vogue amongst you.