Siege of Washington, D.C Part 4

These men could do good service in the field as infantry; and, in an evil hour, it was decided to send them to Grant's army for that purpose.

Then the great question arose, how were their places to be supplied?

How were the forts to be defended, in case of attack, without them?

It would not do to strip the defenses of all troops, and leave the forts without garrisons. If we did, the enemy would surely find it out, for Was.h.i.+ngton was full of his spies, and we should come to grief. The President, the cabinet, and all the generals, had resolved, from the first, that that this must never be done, under any contingency.

But what, at the time, was considered a happy thought, seized on the government. I have said a happy thought, my son, but it was a very unwise one. Let the future historian record it, for it is recorded in the dispatches, as well as in the acts of the government.

Yes, my son, it was resolved, first, that Richmond should fall in an hundred days, or at least during the summer; second, that to insure the fall of Richmond within that time, the experienced troops, then in the fortifications of Was.h.i.+ngton, should be sent to the Army of the Potomac; third, that to replace these and other garrisons, a call should be made on some of the States for 100,000 militiamen, to serve for one hundred days. To the end of developing this grand idea, all the old artillery regiments were sent away to Grant. And their places were filled by an equal number of "hundred days' men,"

nice and fresh, fresh and green, mostly from the State of Ohio.

I have no doubt, my son, that it will seem strange to you, as it will to all intelligent readers hereafter, that raw troops should have been called to defend the capital in the fourth year of a great war. But the War Department carried on the war according to this method then. The result is not just now very pleasant to contemplate; but it was what ordinary foresight might have predicted. Our error was the enemy's opportunity, and he quickly proceeded to take advantage of it. Was.h.i.+ngton was in danger, and Was.h.i.+ngton might have been captured with but little trouble had the enemy sent the right man to command his troops. How near it came being lost, and how accidentally it was saved, I shall record hereafter, for the benefit of the future historian.

CHAPTER XI.

ALARMING SYMPTOMS OF THE ENEMY'S APPROACH.

I KNOW you will be anxious to see a portrait of the distinguished general who was first a.s.signed to the defense of Was.h.i.+ngton during the siege. And here I have presented you with a very clever one.

This general, McDowell McCook, chanced to be in the city, when the government, becoming alarmed, placed him in command, and sent him out to defend the capital. This was unfortunate for the poor gentleman, and he at once became alarmed at finding himself in such a position, and so near the War Department. The poor man knew nothing of the defenses, much less of the roads. And to make the matter worse he had no troops to command. What was a general to do under such circ.u.mstances? Although this distinguished general had seen some service, and served his country well in the West, he was in no way qualified to fill the position now a.s.signed him. And I am inclined to accept this as a reason why the government selected him.

But before I proceed further, my son, I must instruct you as to what happened in the Shenandoah Valley just about this time, and which, of right, should const.i.tute a part of the siege of Was.h.i.+ngton. The troops in the valley had been commanded by no less than four unfortunate generals. Patterson, Banks, Milroy, and Siegel, the last from Germany. Of the many misfortunes of these generals, the historian who comes after me will give you a more enlarged account than I have time or s.p.a.ce to do at present. Heaven knows, they were manifold.

When, then, Grant moved against the enemy with the Army of the Potomac, General Franz Siegel was put at the head of a column at Winchester, and marched up the valley with a great flourish of trumpets. This German general was in high feather then, and declared he would drive the rebels before him, like so many chickens, and never stop until he got them all cooped up in Richmond. But the rebels were not inclined to submit to this cooping process. Indeed, they soon discovered that this General Franz Siegel was not so much of a general after all, and that he had an eccentric way of moving his troops. So when he had driven them, as he supposed, to Newmarket, they turned upon him in a very angry manner, gave him battle, defeated him, and forced him back in disorder. This was unfortunate for Siegel, and more unfortunate for his German admirers, who declared him to be the greatest general of modern times. But he had fought this battle so badly that the government for once made up its mind that it would be wisdom not to let him try his hand at another.

Major-General David Hunter was fixed upon as the right man to reform Siegel's disordered army and correct his mistakes. Hunter had patriotism enough, and no man doubted his courage. He was earnest in the defense of right, even zealous in the cause of his country, and quick in the punishment of traitors, with whom he was not in very high favor. The general took command of this disordered army, and so managed as to get a little discipline and some degree of order into it. Now, it has always seemed to me, my son, that you could put a general to no more severe trial than to place him at the head of an army demoralized by the inefficiency of his predecessor and expect him to fight battles and gain victories. And yet General Hunter did this and to the satisfaction of the country. Had he been less active with the torch, his reward in history would have been much higher.

Well, my son, the general marched with his army, and reorganized it as he marched. And he met the enemy, and he fought him, and fought him well, and whipped him well, and drove him back up the valley, to the very gates of Lynchburg. But there, my son, he stopped. His supplies had given out, and the enemy had detached a large force, and sent it to reinforce the rebel army at Lynchburg. Our great Chief of Staff at Was.h.i.+ngton had promised that this should not be done, without timely notice being sent to Hunter. But it was done, and done without any notice being sent by the Chief of Staff, whose spies were found wanting when most needed. General Sheridan, too, was detached from the Army of the Potomac with two brigades of cavalry, and sent to form a junction with and succor Hunter. But the Chief of Staff failed to send Hunter any information concerning this movement, and hence Hunter was kept in ignorance of its design.

Sheridan was driven back before superior numbers, and failed to carry out the plan of his instructions. Had Hunter received information of this movement, he would not only have saved Sheridan from defeat, but, having formed a junction with him near Charlottesville, could leave beaten the enemy and gone where he pleased. So much for what the Chief of Staff ought to have done but did not do.

Of course the gates of Lynchburg were swung wide open, and there was nothing for the famous Early, who commanded the rebel hosts, to do, but to come out and brush Hunter away from before them. And he did this, and more than this. He cut Hunter's communications, and sent him flying over a different road, to the Ohio River, in search of supplies.

And it was now, my son, that the veritable Jubal, known to his old cla.s.smates at West Point as the late Mr. Early, saw the road open, and the great prize before him. Scorning, as it were, to pursue Hunter, he marched directly for Was.h.i.+ngton by the most direct road.

It was early in July, then, when General Early, at the head of his rebel hosts, reached and crossed the Potomac. And this movement sent the people of Was.h.i.+ngton into a state of great alarm. The southern sympathizers at the capital were in high feather at the prospect of Was.h.i.+ngton being captured by their friends, the rebels. Magnificent stories were set afloat, the government got into a state of great confusion, and timid people went about shaking their heads, and wondering what the War Department was doing. Everybody wanted to do something, and yet n.o.body knew what to do. The Chief of Staff sat in his easy chair, and issued orders by the dozen. The Secretary of War ran about excited, and issued orders that conflicted with everybody else's orders. The President, not to be behind either of them, issued orders that agreed with none of them. The great wonder is, that some one of these high officials, so much given to issuing war orders, did not issue a proclamation, warning Mr. Early that it would not be comfortable for him to bring his rebels this way.

I am not prepared to say what effect such a notice would have had on Mr. Early, who turned his column in this direction, and, marching with great rapidity, was in a few days on the banks of the Monocacy.

And, as if to increase our alarm, he sent that festive young trooper, Harry Gilmore, galloping down into Maryland, where his old friends received him with open arms, and entertained him sumptuously. Never was hero so entertained by his friends. And when this bold trooper had enjoyed the trip, and shared the hospitality of his friends as much as pleased him, he went to work disturbing our military arrangements. Yes, my son, he captured one of our railroad trains on its way to New York, and all the pa.s.sengers in it. And, what was worse than all, there was one of our most distinguished major-generals in it, and he was made a prisoner of war by this bold trooper. Thus he cut our communication with the North. He did all this, and walked away leisurely and unmolested.

Although his Maryland friends set him up for a great hero, I confess, as there was no one to oppose him, not to see in what his heroism consisted.

As you may naturally suppose, my son, these little affairs increased our alarm greatly. Our authorities, generally, went into a state of perspiration; and would have sent for General Grant and his army to come back and protect us, but for the fear that that general would not read the order correctly. In short, they had already become convinced that Grant was not the man to turn back when there was anything to be made by going ahead. Then our high officials called on the North for help, but called in vain. The North was not inclined to share the fears of our high officials, and had been too often sent for to come and take care of Was.h.i.+ngton.

It was common with us, then, to keep a lot of third-rate troops scattered around Baltimore; and over Maryland. These were hastily got together, and placed under the command of that famous warrior Lew Wallace. The administration was sure, now, that Mr. Early would get whipped, and that the capital would be saved. There were, however, a few unbelieving people who shook their heads, and were heard to say that General Wallace was not the soldier to drive Mr.

Early and his men into the Potomac.

I must do the general the credit, however, to say, that he marched out boldly enough, and engaged Early and his men in battle as soon as he met him. And although he had pluck enough, he was no match for the rebel, who brushed him away before him, and sent his scattered columns flying back into Baltimore, in great distress. Perhaps the only sensible man surprised at this state of things was General Wallace himself.

When those who come after us, my son, shall read of this, it will seem very strange that the fate of Was.h.i.+ngton, the capital of this great and powerful nation, should have depended on a battle between General Lew Wallace, and his undisciplined troops, on the one side, and Jubal Early and his stonewall troops on the other. And all this in the fourth year of the war.

Now this battle, if it can be dignified with the name, was fought on Sat.u.r.day, the 9th of July. General Early took no further notice of General Wallace, but started at once for the defenses of Was.h.i.+ngton.

And there was nothing to oppose him until he reached them; and nothing then but some cannon, and some men who did not know how to fire them.

When it got rumored round that the late General Early was not only aiming to besiege Was.h.i.+ngton, but was not far away from the defenses, there was considerable of a stir made in official circles.

Timid people tried to keep their courage up in various ways. Heroes, who had never been out of Was.h.i.+ngton, now talked like very heroes; and it was intimated that the Treasury Guard would come out, and take the field. Those who had no taste for fighting, and they were many, found it very uncomfortable, because there was no way of getting out of the city.

During the war, my son, I frequently noticed that when a battle was going on at the front there was sure to be a large number of heroes in uniform doing promenade duty on the Avenue. Their number seemed to have increased prodigiously just at this time. It was noticed also that they walked at a more rapid pace than usual, did an uncommon amount of eating and drinking, and had a large number of friends they were always ready to discuss the last battle with. I suppose this was all for the purpose of showing the amount of courage they had.

They were ready enough to go to the front to-day if somebody would only show them the way.

It was now the morning of the 10th of July; and a bright breezy morning it was. The symptoms of the siege now took a positive form and became really alarming. These symptoms were manifested in a singular manner at two prominent points of the defenses. A dilapidated and very much distressed mule, his ears erect and his tail askance, galloped down the road into Tenallytown, making a noise so hideous that the quiet inhabitants ran out in a state of great alarm. They then went to packing up their household goods, their tubs, tables, chairs, and crockery, and getting them ready for removal to a place of safety. In addition to this, the unruly animal sent terror into the very hearts of a number of cavalrymen who were out picketing the distant hills. These gallant troopers put spurs to their horses and never stopped until they got safely into Georgetown, where they circulated numerous stories concerning Mr.

Early and his men, who, they declared, had driven them in.

The other remarkable manifestation took place at Brightwood, a sleepy little town composed of four houses and a lamp-post, and situated not far from the city, on the Fourteenth-street road. A distressed cow came bellowing into this town just at daylight, with her head and tail erect, and driving the pickets before her. The antics of this otherwise kindly animal caused a great scattering among the gallant defenders of Fort Stevens. Indeed, I have good authority for saying that they evacuated that stronghold more suddenly than had ever been done before, scampering down the Fourteenth-street road at a rapid pace.

In short, my son, they mistook this wayward animal for Early's advance guard, and came to the very wise conclusion that a fort was not a pleasant place to stay in when an enemy outside was throwing sh.e.l.ls into it.

The good people of Brightwood betook themselves to packing up their traps, and pondering over the question as to whether they had been disloyal enough during the war to claim Mr. Early as a friend when he arrived. It was a trying time with the good people of Brightwood.

When, however, the gallant defenders of the defenses found that it was only a cow that had so disturbed them, they went boldly back to their guns, and were as full of courage as could be for the rest of the day.

As the morning wore on, the evidences of trouble outside increased.

Scattering contrabands, some with bundles on their backs, some with chairs, buckets and wash-tubs on their heads, others with the family table on their heads. There was an interesting group of three--two male and one female member of the African family. One of the former had brought his banjo, the other his fiddle. The female had a tub well down on her head. These poor frightened people came trotting into the city over the Tenallytown and Brightwood roads, seeking a place of safety inside of the forts.

Then the roads became blocked with all manner of rickety vehicles, many of them of the most primitive description, filled with the families and furniture of peaceable farmers, who had left their homes in fear of the approaching rebels. A more grotesque picture than was presented by this anxious train it is impossible to conceive.

CHAPTER XII.

THE GOVERNMENT GETS AGITATED, AND THE GREAT COMMANDER-IN-CHIEF TAKES THE FIELD.

THIS, my son, is a portrait of General Auger, a das.h.i.+ng, handsome officer, and a courteous gentleman. He commanded the department of Was.h.i.+ngton during the memorable siege I am describing.

As I have said before, my son, as soon as it was known that General Wallace had been driven back on Baltimore in search of rations, and General Early was close upon Was.h.i.+ngton, the government waked up to the fact that the capital was in danger, and began to take measures for its defense. Our good President, believing, in the honesty of his heart, that his presence at the front would do good, took the field. And the Secretary of War and the Chief of Staff went to issuing orders that no one seemed to obey. Indeed, their orders only increased the confusion that had already taken possession of everything military. The regular officers in command of the troops in the fortifications, and who knew the location and details of the forts as well as the roads leading to them, were superseded by strangers, ignorant of all these things, and even of what their commands consisted.