Page:Southern Historical Society Papers volume 40.djvu/258

254 been transferred from that battle-worn State to the shoulders of the State of Pennsylvania.

It is Washington now, not Richmond, which is threatened! Here surely is a great military achievement — and it has been accomplished without fighting a pitched battle, in fact, with insignificant loss to the forces of the Confederate chieftain.

In studying the Gettysburg Campaign I ask you to note this splendid result of Lee's masterful strategy — the great army of General Hooker drawn a hundred and thirty miles north, clear out of Virginia and across the State of Maryland into Pennsylvania, — by the sheer force of strategy.

Observe then that in the primary purpose of this campaign, the relief of Virginia from the presence of war, Lee was successful.

The more it is studied the more is the admiration of the students of war elicited by the skilful manner in which the Confederate army was withdrawn from Hooker's front. A large part of it was marched a hundred miles north to Winchester, Va., in six days and the whole of it was transferred in about two weeks from the Rappahannock River to the Potomac, without the movement being discovered for many days after its inception. As late as June 12th Gen. Hooker wrote Gov. Dix:

"All of Lee's army so far as I know is extended along the Rappahannock from Hamilton's Crossing to Culpeper," (quoted by Thos. Nelson Page, Life of Lee, p. 315.)

If we ask how this was achieved the clear answer is, by Lee's skilful strategy, seconded by the adroit handling of his cavalry by his gallant and resourceful Cavalry Chief, Gen. J. E. B. Stuart. Later we shall see that it was the unfortunate absence of his cavalry which primarily accounts for the comparative failure of the rest of the campaign.

The boldness of Lee in marching his whole army out of Virginia and thus leaving Richmond uncovered, is notable. When Gen. Hooker at last discovered that the Confederate army was on the march for Pennsylvania, he proposed to the Washington authorities an immediate march on Richmond. This was promptly disallowed by Mr. Lincoln and his military adviser, Gen. Halleck. Doubtless Lee's experience had satisfied him that