BATTLES OF CROSS-KEYS AND PORT REPUBLIC.

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moments more, and he was in precipitate retreat. Four hundred and fifty prisoners were taken in the pursuit, and what remained of the enemy's artillery.

While the forces of Shields were in full retreat, Fremont appeared on the opposite bank of the south fork of the Shenandoah, with his army, and opened his artillery with but little effect. The next day withdrawing his forces, he retreated down the Valley. The battle of Port Republic closed the campaign of the Valley. It had been fiercely contested by the enemy, and the Confederate loss was quite one thousand in killed and wounded. But the termination of the campaign found Jackson crowned with an almost marvellous success. In little more than two weeks, he had defeated three Federal armies; swept the Valley of Virginia of hostile forces; thrilled Washington with alarm; and thwarted whatever plan the enemy might have entertained, in other circumstances, of environing Richmond by large converging armies.

On the 12th of June Jackson encamped near Weyer's Cave. Here the pious commander paused, to hold divine service in his army in commemoration of his victories. He was to be here but a few days before receiving orders to move towards Richmond, and to join in the impending contest for the capital.

CHAPTER XVII.

THE TARDINESS OF M'CLELLAN.-HOW THE CONFEDERATES AVAILED THEMSELVES OF IT.

แ

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' M.LIS.-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'CLELLAN'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 ATTACT.-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

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.

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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 ca:np 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