was steadily pressing onward, and the advance was now on the Warrenton turnpike, beyond Gainesville, not far from Jackson's right.

All the morning General Longstreet was coming into position. The far-seeing eyes of the great soldier who commanded the Southern army had embraced at a glance the whole situation of things, and his plans were formed. The design was to envelop the enemy, as it were, and occupy a position from which he could be struck in front, flank, and rear at the same moment, if he made a single error; and this design dictated an order of battle not dissimilar from that which was crowned with such success on the banks of the Chickahominy.

Jackson fronted, as we have said, obliquely to the Warrenton road, his right resting near Groveton. When Longstreet arrived, his troops were steadily advanced in a line crossing the Warrenton road, his left resting upon a range not far from Jackson's right-the two lines forming an obtuse angle,* and resembling somewhat an open V. The village of Groveton was in the angle thus formed, about a mile distant; and the fields in its vicinity were completely commanded by heavy batteries. These were placed upon a ridge at the angle mentioned, where Longstreet's left and Jackson's right approached each other, and were commanded by that accomplished soldier Colonel Stephen D. Lee, of South Carolina.

The advantage of this order of battle is apparent at a glance. If the enemy advanced, as it was probable they would do, upon Jackson, to crush him before Longstreet was ready to assist him, they would expose their left flank to the latter, and be placed in a most perilous position. If they succeeded in driving General Jackson back, and followed up their success by a general advance all along the line, that success would only expose them still more to the heavy arm of Longstreet ready to fall upon their unprotected flank. Their very victory would be the signal of their ruin. Triumph would insure destruction. The

* General Longstreet's expression to the writer.

rapidly-closing sides of the great V would strike them in flank and rear, huddle them together, and end by crushing them with its inexorable vice-like pressure.

Their only hope, in advancing upon Jackson, was to penetrate between him and Longstreet, thereby dividing the line of battle. But Colonel Lee was there, with his batteries crowning the crest, and the design was hopeless.

Such was General Lee's order of battle. The enemy seemed as yet unaware of it. They adhered to their design of overwhelming Jackson before succor reached him; and during the whole forenoon were moving their troops to the left, and massing them in his front. Skirmishing and cannonading, rather desultory in their character, and not important, went on during this movement of the enemy; but it was not until after two that the battle commenced in earnest.

About that time the enemy advanced a heavy column, consisting in part, it is said, of Banks', Sigel's, and Pope's divisions; and, supported by a heavy fire of artillery, threw themselves with great fury upon Jackson's left, consisting of the division of A. P. Hill. Their evident design was to turn his flank; and in spite of the destructive volleys poured into their faces, they pressed on, crossed the cut in the railroad extending along Hill's front, and, penetrating an interval of about one hundred and seventy-five yards, separated the right of Gregg's from the left of Thomas' brigades. This success proved almost fatal at the moment to General Gregg. He was entirely isolated, and but for the stubborn stand made by the 14th South Carolina and 49th Georgia, on Thomas' left, would have been cut off and destroyed. These regiments attacked the enemy with vigor; their triumphant advance was checked at the instant when they were carrying all before them; and the Federal column was forced to retreat beyond the cut again, with heavy loss. In this sanguinary conflict the men fought almost breast to breast; and General McGowan reported that "the opposing forces at one time delivered their volleys into each other at the distance of ten paces."

But the attempt to force back Jackson's left was not abandoned. The first assault was succeeded by another and another, ever increasing in fury, and participated in by the best troops of the Federal army. Time had, however, been given to remedy the fatal defect in the line of battle; no opening was now presented to the enemy; and, wherever the attack was made, they found their assault promptly met. General Hill reported "six separate and distinct assaults" which his division, reënforced by Hays' brigade, met and repulsed. His loss was heavy. Gregg's brigade had all of its field officers but two either killed or wounded; but Early's brigade, with the 8th Louisiana, came to its assistance, and the battle raged more furiously than before.

Early found that the enemy had obtained possession of the railroad cut immediately in his front, from which they were pouring a galling fire. He lost no time in attacking, and they were driven from the cut, thence into the woods, and pursued two hundred yards. As they fell back before the Confederate infantry, they were subjected to a heavy fire from the artillery posted on the high ground in rear; and so destructive was this combination of cannon and small-arms, that one of the Federal regiments is said to have carried back but three men.

A pause in the action was soon succeeded by another assault, this time very generally directed all along the line. The best Federal troops took part in this charge, which was made with a vigor indicating the importance attached to it. They evidently spared no exertions. The Federal batteries opened a furious fire, and, under cover of it, their infantry advanced at a doublequick, plainly resolved to break through the line of Confederate bayonets, or leave their dead bodies on the field. The conflict which followed was exceedingly obstinate. It continued for several hours, and Jackson greatly exposed himself in encouraging the men and holding his lines firm.

They retained their position thus, without wavering; but the strength of the Southern troops, so sorely tried in the heavy marching, began to flag. Other causes conspired to render assistance necessary. Heavy reënforcements were being rapidly

66

we col

That

pushed forward by the enemy, and Jackson's troops had shot away all their cartridges. "We got out of ammunition," writes a young soldier of A. P. Hill's division to his mother; lected more from cartridge-boxes of fallen friend and foe. gave out, and we charged with never-failing yell and steel. All day long they threw their masses on us; all day they fell back shattered and shrieking. When the sun went down, their dead were heaped in front of that incomplete railway, and we sighed with relief, for Longstreet could be seen coming into position on our right. The crisis was over; Longstreet never failed yet; but the sun went down so slowly!" Without ammunition, the men of Jackson seized whatever they could lay their hands on to use against the enemy. The piles of stones in the vicinity of the railroad cut were used-and it is well established that many of the enemy were killed by having their skulls broken with fragments of rock.

The conflict went on in this way all the afternoon, and was obstinate and determined. The enemy had not succeeded in driving Jackson from his position; but his men were beginning to grow weary in the unequal struggle with an enemy who threw against them incessantly heavy reënforcements of fresh troops, arriving from the rear and hurried to the front, to take the place of those who had been repulsed.

General Lee saw that the moment had arrived for a demonstration on the enemy's left, and this was made about nightfall. Hood's division was ordered forward, and now threw itself with ardor into the contest. Up to that moment the conflict had been obstinate, but the firing upon both sides had perceptibly decreased in intensity-the Federal troops, like their opponents, appearing fatigued by the persistent conflict. It was at this moment that Hood's division advanced; and the quick tongues of flame leaped from the muzzles of his muskets, lighting up the gathering gloom with their crimson flashes. These "fires of death" were followed by the sharp crack of the guns, from end to end of the great field between the opposing lines-and then dusky figures were seen advancing rapidly toward the Federal

line. The next jets of flame spurted into the darkness were near the edge of the wood where the enemy were drawn up; then, with one long roar of musketry, and a maze of quick flashes everywhere, Hood's men rushed forward with wild cheers, driving the enemy before them into the depths of the forest. When the deep darkness of night, lit up now only by a few flashes of artillery, put an end to the conflict, the Federal lines had been driven more than half a mile from the position which they had held before Hood charged.

By order of General Lee the troops, however, fell back to their former strong position, for the real struggle on the next day, and bivouacked for the night-a circumstance which probably induced General Pope to telegraph that, although he had sustained a loss of 8,000 men, he had driven back the entire Southern army.

Jackson had thus successfully maintained his ground against the heavy pressure of the enemy's columns, and night and Longstreet had come.

His movement had succeeded, and he had stood at bay after securing all its advantages, with that stubborn and determined front which defies all attempts to break through it. Now the dangerous moment had passed. Longstreet was there upon his right, with his strong and veteran corps; and Lee was by his side to take from his shoulders the heavy load of anxiety which he had borne unaided.

The stern soul of Jackson the soldier must have rejoiced within him when night came and all was well; but the heart of the Christian was doubtless heavy, here as elsewhere, for the blood about to flow.