Page:Southern Historical Society Papers volume 43.djvu/49

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It was on the morning of December 15, 1862, that we discovered at Hamilton's Crossing that the battle of Fredericksburg had ended with the defeat of the enemy and his withdrawal to the north side of the Rappahannock River. The heavy mists were slow in rising, but as the sun made its way through, our pickets advanced across the plain and reached the entrenched river road, to find that all the proud army of Burnside had gone back to the Stafford heights. Here and there a Federal deserter lurked in the ditches, waiting to surrender. Dead bodies were found in piles, forsaken to the care of our burial corps. Arms and accouterments, dismounted artillery, and ordnance wagons everywhere strewed the fields.

The possibility of an attempt by the enemy to cross the river at other points was in the minds of our leaders; promptly Stuart moved his cavalry off to the right, down the river, and Jackson's divisions of infantry were set in motion on the hill roads by Grace church, to Caroline Academy and Port Royal.

Before noon Jackson, with one aide and a body of couriers, set off down the river road. In the afternoon couriers reached us from Stuart, and by five o'clock we learned that there were no indications of Federal movements on the river as far as Port Royal. We were then at the Moss Neck church, below Hayfield. Jackson turned and asked where we should spend the night. He was told that we were near the "Moss Neck" house, the fine residence of James Park Corbin, and that it would be a suitable place for his headquarters, as it afforded large accommodation and was well-known and accessible to couriers. Turning aside from the river road, we soon reached the large and handsome place, but the general no sooner saw it than he declared he would not go there. The alternative was between the comfort and hospitality of that elegant residence and a night on the ground