palpable to his mind, until the sentiment of distrust would become so overpowering that he would be utterly unable to arrange or order any decisive movement. Such was his mental state, when he saw the difficulties before and around him, when he had lain for a time with his army on the Chickahominy. He here saw how much better it would have been to have moved his great army at Washington, in front of the enemy on the Rappahannock, and with his right wing reinforced, flanking them by a movement down the valley of the Shenandoah. Hence, he remained in palsied inaction until his disastrous retreat to Harrison's Landing. No nation can be more unfortunate than one

whose armies are under such leaders as this.

We mention but one other serious defect in General McClellan as the leader of a great army. We refer to his overestimate of the necessity of universal and absolute readiness and order, as the condition, sine quâ non, of moving a great army. This characteristic of our General was thus presented to us by a distinguished United States senator. The fixed rule in the army is that each wheel of each army-waggon shall have an extra linch pin. If General McClellan should learn on the eve of a great advance that a single wheel of a single waggon lacked the required pin, he would stop his whole army for ten days, if that were necessary, to have the deficiency supplied. Hence it was that he was never ready to make an important movement. He could not obey an absolute order from the Commander-in-Chief to move his army across the Potomac, because he had just discovered that out of upwards of 90,000, some 10,000 of his men were not adequately shod. Hence it is that but for the absolute command of the supreme authorities nobody can divine when our army would have been moved from before Washington. The above characteristics will throw light upon all our campaigns which were conducted under the lead of General McClellan. Before proceeding further in our criticisms of the administration of our youthful commander, we will now devote a short chapter to noticing some important events which were at this time transpiring in Missouri in the department of General Fremont.

CHAPTER III.

THE COMMAND OF GENERAL FREMONT IN THE WESTERN DEPARTMENT.

ON the 10th July, as we have seen, General Lyon arrived at Springfield, and formed a junction there with the forces of Colonel Siegel, who had advanced from Rolla. Here we left this brave little army before whom Governor Jackson and General Price, with their forces, had fled from the State of Missouri. On the 9th of this month, General Fremont was appointed to the command of the Western District, which included Illinois, Kentucky, Missouri, and Kansas. Tarrying some time in the city of New York to obtain necessary arms, equipments, and munitions, he arrived at St. Louis on the 25th of the same month, and assumed the command of his department. As General Lyon was doing all that could be done, and that in the best manner, in and about Springfield, General Fremont did not interfere with the arrangements of his predecessor. In the meantime, the Confederates, largely reinforced, particularly in cavalry, re-entered and overran Southern Missouri, and confined General Lyon to Springfield, who was waiting for reinforcements. The general mustering out of the three months' men, however, prevented any being sent to his aid. Learning that the enemy was advancing upon him in two strong columns, one from Cassville on the south, and the other from Sarcassie on the west, he determined to advance upon the former and stronger body, and strike that before it had formed a junction with the latter. Leaving Springfield August 1st, with 5,500 foot, 400 horse, and 18 guns, he at Dug Springs met and defeated on the next morning a detach

ment of the advancing force. General McCulloch, who commanded this force, now moved west, and formed a junction with the column which was moving up from Sarcassie, while General Lyon returned to Springfield. The Confederates now advanced with great caution, and on the 7th reached Wilson's Creek, ten miles south of Springfield. At this point, our brave General knowing well that the opposing force outnumbered his as more than two to one, determined to surprise the Confederates now under the command of General McCulloch, and this by a night attack. He accordingly on the 9th left Springfield with two columns; the main one commanded by himself, and the less, 1,200 strong, with 6 guns, by Colonel Siegel. At 4 a.m. August 10th, the battle commenced by a front attack on the enemy's front by Lyon's forces, while the rear of McCulloch's right was attacked by Siegel. Taken by surprise, the Confederates at first recoiled in disorder. Becoming at length aware of the smallness of the force assaulting them, they returned and fought with desperate courage. On the enemy's right, Siegel at first gained a great advantage, and with his guns made terrible havock among the men opposed to him. Being at length suddenly assailed by a large force which had been mistaken for Unionists, his column was thrown into remediless confusion, and fled in disorder, five of his guns being taken. The entire weight of the Confederate columns now fell upon the devoted band under General Lyon. By the terrible fire of this band the enemy was, time and again, driven in confusion from the field, and driven but to return. with greater force and determination. In the last onset, our brave commander, the idol of his army, and one of the most worthy of our nation's perpetual remembrance, fell, but with his army in possession of the field.

Major Sturgis now led back the Union forces in good order to Springfield; from whence, under the conduct of Colonel Siegel, a safe retreat, with a baggage train five miles in length, was effected to Rolla, and the south of Missouri was again in the hands of the Confederates. In this battle, which was fought by General Lyon contrary to his own judgment, he being over-persuaded by General Sweeny and others, the Union loss, as officially reported,

His

was 223 killed, 721 wounded, and 108 missing. General McCulloch reported the entire loss on the other side as 265 killed and 800 wounded. The Unionists throughout the country lamented the death of General Lyon, as did the Confederates that of General Jackson, and for similar reasons. The former was, unquestionably, in all respects, one of the best Generals known in the Union army. great merits are confessed even by the Confederates. "The death of General Lyon," says Pollard, in his "Southern History," "was a serious loss to the Federals in Missouri. He was an able and dangerous man—a man of the times, who appreciated the force of audacity and quick decision in a revolutionary war. To military education and talents he united a rare energy and promptitude. No doubts or scruples unsettled his mind." lard, we would add here, thus explains the reason why our army was totally unmolested in its retreat to Springfield and from thence with its long train to Rolla:-"Shortly after the battle, the Confederate army returned to the frontier of Arkansas, Generals McCulloch and Price having failed to agree on the plan of a campaign in Missouri."

Mr. Pol

EVENTS IN THE WESTERN DEPARTMENT, UNDER THE IMMEDIATE DIRECTION OF GENERAL FREMONT.

On the 25th July, as we have seen, four days after the disaster at Bull Run, General Fremont arrived in St. Louis, and assumed command in the Western Department. Nothing can exceed the confusion and peril which everywhere encircled him. On the South, Louisville, Cairo, Cape Girardeau, Ironton, and Springfield, were threatened by large Confederate forces; while LieutenantGovernor Reynolds was operating in Northern Missouri with an army approaching 5,000 in number, and the spirit of St. Louis was decidedly insurrectionary. From every direction the loudest calls for help reached him. In addition to the advance of McCulloch and Price upon Springfield, and the occupancy of North Missouri as stated, 20,000 men under General Pillow, for example, were advancing on Cairo, and General Hardee with 5,000 troops, 2,000 being excellently mounted and equipped cavalry, was advancing

upon Ironton. At Louisville and other assailable points, the Union forces were being confronted by superior hostile armies. Another difficulty which he had to contend with was the fact that the largest portion of the troops, which in great numbers arrived in St. Louis, were unarmed, and no means existed to arm them until arms and accoutrements should arrive from the east; all exertions which any commander could employ being used to hasten this consummation.

Under the circumstances, the first thing to be done was to render the most vital points which were about to be assailed, secure. To this end our commander accordingly addressed himself. Having received a letter from General Lyon which convinced him that there were no pressing necessities at Springfield, and having reinforced Ironton, and Cape Girardeau, he, in five days after his arrival, collected 3,800 men, and transported them to Cairo; finding a force of only 1,200 men under General Prentiss at this place. The sudden appearance of this reinforcement induced General Pillow, who had landed at New Madrid, a few miles below the place, to make a hasty retreat. Thus this vital point was rendered permanently secure. On the 7th August he was back again at St. Louis, and took immediate measures, amid other pressing calls, to reinforce General Lyon; sending orders to Colonel Stevenson to march with his regiment from Booneville, and Colonel Montgomery to move with his from Kansas to Springfield. From St. Louis he could, at the time, send no reinforcements, because his recruits there were unarmed. Before any of the troops ordered for the relief of General Lyon, however, could reach him, the battle at Wilson's Creek had been fought, the brave General was dead, and his little army was in safe retreat to Rolla. To hold General Fremont responsible for the defeat of General Lyon's army at Wilson's Creek is to hold him. responsible for an event which did not occur; for there was no defeat, but a real victory, of our army there,—a victory which left the little band master of the field, which occasioned a backward movement of the Confederates to the borders of Arkansas and a division of their forces. there; the Texans and Arkansas troops under McCulloch