Page:Southern Historical Society Papers volume 34.djvu/15

 General Lee's Strategy at Chancellorsville. 7

sired to learn something from him about its by-roads. He therefore requested him to sit beside him on the box ; and when the other declined to incommode him by doing 1 so, made room for him, and repeated, 'Come, sit down ; I wish to talk to you.'



''Tie wished to know whether he was acquainted with any way by which their flank might be turned, either on the right or left. He was informed, in reply, that after proceeding southward along the Furnace Road, for a space, a blind road would present itself, leading westward, and nearly parallel to the Orange Plank Road, which, in its turn, would conduct into a plainer route, that fell into the great road four miles above Chancellorsville. The General, quickly drawing from his pocket an outline map, prepared for him by one of his engineers, and a pencil, said, Take this map, and mark it down for me/ When he saw it, he said, 'That is too near ; it goes within the line of the enemy's pickets. I wish to get around well to his rear, without being observed; do you know of no other road?' He replied that he had no perfect knowledge of any other, but pre- sumed that the road which he had described as entering the Orange Plank Road, four miles above Chancellorsville, must intersect the Furnace Road somewhere in the interior, because their directions were convergent. 'Then,' said Jackson, 'where can you find this out certainly?' He was told that everything could doubtless be learned at the house of the proprietor of the furnace, a mile and a half distant, whose son, a patriotic and gallant man, would be an excellent guide. He then said, 'Go with Mr. Hotchkiss (his topographical engineer) to the furnace, ascertain whether these roads meet, at what distance, and whether they are practicable for artillery; send Mr. Hotch- kiss back with the information, and do you procure me a guide ?'

"The desired information was speedily obtained; and it was discovered that the two roads crossed each other at the distance of a few miles; so that, by a circuit of fifteen miles, a point would be reached near Wilderness Run, several miles above the farthest outposts of Hooker. The intersecting road, by which the Orange Plank Road was to be regained, was known as the Brock Road."

This account, which was no doubt given to Dr. Dabney by