Page:Confederate Military History - 1899 - Volume 3.djvu/432

398 hold its garrison in position. By the 17th of June the long column of the Confederate army was stretched from Culpeper in Virginia to Chambersburg in Pennsylvania, Jenkins' cavalry holding the latter place. Ewell's advanced division was encamped, in the midst of abundance, near Hagerstown; another was in a like favorable encampment near Sharpsburg, while his third division was approaching the fords of the Potomac, near Shepherdstown. Longstreet was crossing the Blue ridge to the banks of the Shenandoah, guarding the passes of that mountain chain from the eastward; while Stuart held the Piedmont country and the passes through the Bull Run mountains, thus keeping Hooker within bounds with his great army encamped from Manassas, near Bull run, to Leesburg, near the Potomac, striving to keep pace with Lee's speedy northward movement.

For five days Stuart held steady contention with Hooker's cavalry, effectually veiling Lee's movements, and then holding Ashby's gap of the Blue ridge against superior numbers, but with Longstreet just behind him, all along the ridge, while A. P. Hill passed the rear of the latter, by Chester gap, and rested in the Great valley, in and on the borders of which Lee had now gathered all of his army, except the cavalry immediately in charge of Stuart, which continued to hover around Hooker's flanks and rear. Lee had offered Hooker battle with Longstreet's corps, looking threateningly from the eastern slopes of the Blue ridge; but when that was not accepted, and Hooker still continued south of the Potomac, Lee boldly withdrew Longstreet to the western side of the Shenandoah, and on the 18th, from the vicinity of Millwood, ordered Longstreet and Hill to follow Ewell across the Potomac, satisfied that by so doing he would draw Hooker into Maryland. Hill crossed the Potomac at Shepherdstown on the 18th, followed by Longstreet, except McLaws' division, which was left with Stuart to watch the passes of the Blue ridge and the roads of the Shenandoah valley until Hooker should have crossed the Potomac. Imboden was also ordered into Pennsylvania, moving to the west of the Great valley, and it was suggested to Gen. Sam Jones that his cavalry should march his command into northwestern Virginia and menace the line of the Baltimore & Ohio. Lee also asked that the brigades left at Richmond should be sent