On the 23d of July the troops marched fifteen miles, crossing the Potomac at Chain Bridge; again were the men within the defences of Washington. The paymasters were present, paying the guards, and the various detachments. On the 25th the troops received their pay for four months, remaining at Washington four days, when the enemy again attempted to remove north into Maryland and Pennsylvania. Gen. Wright was ordered to move immediately to the vicinity of Harper's Ferry. The troops started on the afternoon of July 26th, marching ten miles, passing Tennelly Town, and halting at Rockville, the next day marching eighteen miles, passing Gatysburg and Clarksburg, halting in the afternoon near Hyattstown, with sore and blistered feet. Such marching now began to tell upon the men, and many wished to meet the enemy and engage in battle, rather than be marched to death. On the 28th marched ten miles, passing Hyattstown and Urbanna, halting during the afternoon at Monocacy Bridge, on the battle ground of July 9th. The ground was broken up and traces of the conflict could be seen; remnants of shells, cannon, and unburied corpses lay strewn around. Our boys, with feelings of kindness ever displayed toward the enemy, carefully buried both friend and foe. The members of the 14th regiment visiting their old camp; after leaving Monocacy to join the Potomac army the men had never expected to see the place again, but they were destined to fight as severe a battle on the same ground one year after as was fought during the war, and to see the place several during the three years, as the army moved back and forth eight successive times while in Maryland. They had tried to destroy the railroad bridge, but failed, as the pillars were hollow and could not be blown up. The hotel and tank at the depot were burned, the bridge also, crossing at the main road. There was now a sufficient force to meet the enemy, without fear of flanking, and the men anxious to fight. The 3d Maryland regiment was there guarding the bridge. After resting a few hours orders were given to move, marching eight more miles, halting at Jefferson until morning in the same field the division halted when leaving Maryland Heights to join the Potomac army the previous year. Leaving Jefferson on the morning of the 29th, passing Petersville, Knoxville and Sandy Hook, crossing the Potomac at Harper's Ferry, on pontoons, marching twenty-five miles, and halting at Halltown on Bolivar Heights, near the headquarters of Gen. Crook.
In the meantime Early had sent a raiding party into Pennsylvania, which on the 30th burned the beautiful village of Chambersburg, and then retreated towards Cumberland, where they were met and defeated by General Kelley, and with diminished numbers escaped into the mountains of West Virginia. From the time of the first raid, the telegraph wires were frequently down between Washington and City Point, making it necessary to transmit messages by boat. It took from twenty-four to thirty-six hours to get dispatches through and return answers back, so that often orders would be given by General Grant, and then information would be received, showing a different state of things from those on which they were based, causing a confusion and apparent contradiction of orders, considerably embarrassing General Wright, and rendering operations against the enemy less effective than they otherwise would have been. To remedy this evil, it was necessary to have a commander with full power, to act as he thought proper. General Grant therefore ordered General Sheridan to have the supreme command of all the forces in the departments of West Virginia, Washington and the middle military division.
General Sheridan had not yet arrived, and General Wright acting under orders remained at Halltown, when it was discovered that the enemy were again bent on invading the north; on the 30th of July the troops were again ordered to move; marching back, passing Bolivar, re-crossing the Potomac on pontoons at Harper's Ferry; marching all night, and all next day thirty miles; halting on Sunday evening near Frederick City. As the weather was hot and the roads dry, more than one half of the men fell out; remaining three days, until August 3d, when the column marched six miles; wading the Monocacy at Buckeystown, remaining in camp until the night of the 5th, when orders were given to move, marching five miles to Monocacy Bridge, it raining hard. At this time the enemy were in force near Winchester, while our forces were at Monocacy, at the crossing of the Baltimore and Ohio Railroad; leaving open to the enemy Maryland and Pennsylvania. General Grant being so far off hesitated to give positive orders for the troops to move lest by so doing it should expose Washington. On the 4th of August, he left City Point, and visited General Wright, at Monocacy, to determine for himself what was best to be done; arriving there he consulted with Generals Wright and Hunter, and then issued to them the following instructions:
Monocacy Bridge, Md., Aug 5th, 1864—8 P. M.
Maj.-Gen. Wright.
General: Concentrate all your available force without delay, in the vicinity of Harper's Ferry, leaving only such railroad guards and garrisons, for public property, as may be necessary. Use in this concentrating the railroads, if so doing, time can be saved from Harper's Ferry. If it is found the enemy has moved north of the Potomac in large force, push north, follow them and attack them wherever found. Follow them if driven south of the Potomac as long as it is safe to do so. If it is ascertained that the enemy has but a small force north of the Potomac, then push south with the main force, detaching under a competent commander a sufficient force to look after the raiders and drive them to their homes. In detaching such a force, the brigade of cavalry, now en route from Washington via Rockville, may be taken into account.
There are now on the way to join you three other brigades of cavalry, numbering at least five thousand men and horse. These will be instructed, in absence of further orders, to join you by the south side of the Potomac, one brigade will start to-morrow. In pushing up the Shenandoah Valley, where it is expected you will have to go first or last, it is desirable that nothing should be left to invite the enemy to return. Take all provisions, forage and stock wanted for your command, and such as cannot be consumed destroy. It is not desirable that the buildings should be destroyed; they should rather be protected, but the people should be informed that as long as an army can subsist among them, recurrences of these raids must be expected, and we are determined to stop them at all hazards.
Bear in mind that the object is to drive the enemy south, and to do this you want to keep the enemy always in sight. Be guarded in the course by the course they take. Make your own arrangements for supplies of all kinds, giving regular vouchers for such as may be taken from loyal citizens in the country through which you march.
U. S. GRANT,
Lieut.-Gen. U. S. Armies.
The troops were immediately put in motion, and were placed on the cars at Harper's Ferry. General Grant was recognized and cheered by the men; riding twenty-five miles, stopping at Bolivar Heights, near Halltown, remaining there three days; the weather very warm. On the 6th of August General Sheridan arrived, and after a conference with General Grant in relation to military affairs in that vicinity, General Grant left for City Point by way of Washington on the 7th. The middle military department and the departments of West Virginia, Washington and Susquehanna were constituted into the middle military division, and Major-General Sheridan was assigned to temporary command of the same. Two divisions of cavalry were sent from the army of the Potomac, commanded by Generals Tolbert and Wilson. The middle military division now numbered nearly fifty thousand men well armed and equipped, ready to move and attack the rebel army now in position near Winchester; they had also received re-enforcements, a division under General Anderson having arrived. Both armies were nearly equal in strength, with the advantage on the side of the enemy, as they had no capital to cover, and could move in whatever direction they pleased. The men were engaged in thrashing wheat and forwarding it to Richmond, having compelled every farmer to give all their proceeds to the help of the Confederacy, keeping but one-tenth for themselves.