Page:Confederate Military History - 1899 - Volume 3.djvu/269

Rh officers of the army, not to take up arms again until properly exchanged. General Jackson issued no regular order to perform this duty, but he frequently discussed with Dr. McGuire, subsequently, the policy and humanity of such a measure. This rule established, by this precedent, was kept up by Dr. McGuire during his term of service as medical director with Generals Jackson, Ewell, Early, and Gordon, with whom he successively served as medical director until the close of the war. Near the end of February, 1864, some Confederate scouts captured the medical inspector of Sheridan's army in the Valley. Dr. McGuire promptly released him on his parole, and returned him to his command. About a week after that, Dr. McGuire was captured in the defeat of Early at Waynesboro, when General Sheridan promptly released him on the same terms he had accorded to his medical inspector. In consequence of this action of General Jackson and Dr. McGuire, a number of Confederate surgeons were released and sent back from Northern prisons.

The Confederates had another day of well-earned rest on May 27th, while Jackson was busy providing for the safety of the vast military stores he had captured at Front Royal, Winchester and Martinsburg, and waiting for instructions from Richmond, in response to dispatches he had sent by a trusty aide immediately after the capture of Winchester, as to his future operations. He had now shown the character of his military genius and established his fame as an independent commander. He had relieved Richmond from the danger of an immediate attack by the overwhelming force of the army of the Potomac, and the authorities were only too willing to direct him to press the enemy still hovering in the defense of Harper's Ferry, threaten an invasion of Maryland and an attack upon Washington, and thus still further derange the plans of McClellan by stimulating the fears of the Federal authorities and inducing them to deplete the army of the Potomac for the defense of their capital.

Ashby's tireless and everywhere-watching spies and scouts kept Jackson informed as to the movements of the enemy, and he quickly divined their plans for intercepting his way of retreat up the Valley, should the necessity arise for so doing; but his cardinal rule of action in military, as well as in other matters, was to "take no counsel