Our new company was composed principally of young men from the lower counties of Maryland, and was a fine body, although totally inexperienced. Captain Barry himself was an old soldier, having served in Mexico with considerable distinction.
From what we saw at Staunton, we were led to believe our stay would be a short one, for large bodies of troops were arriving from Richmond, and we did not doubt for a moment but we were destined up the valley after Fremont, and perhaps for the invasion of Maryland. How great our mistake, and the transportation of these very troops was intended to convey that same impression to the enemy, and thereby keep McDowell from uniting with McClellan, while Lee carried out his great plan of raising the siege of Richmond with Jackson’s assistance.
And it succeeded; for the authorities at Washington were quickly apprised of the fact, and instead of sending McClellan the reinforcements he so earnestly plead for, they withheld them to repel the audacious Jackson, should he dare to cross the Potomac, which they did not doubt was his intention.
Suddenly, however, about the 22d of June, the whole army was put in motion, and marching to Staunton, took the immense trains that had been for some time quietly assembling there. Of our destination at first we had not the slightest conception, but that we were moving in the direction of Richmond was evident. Could anything have befallen General Lee? suggested itself, for everything indicated haste. By the time we had reached Frederickshall, however, it was generally understood we were destined to reinforce Lee, who, rumor had it, intended to surprise McClellan if possible in his fortifications. This was the terminus of the trip by rail, and disembarking we took the road by way of Ashland.
On the afternoon of the 26th, whilst marching rapidly, some four or five miles to the left of Mechanicsville, we were startled by heavy volleys of musketry and the roar of artillery coming from that direction. It was then I heard General Ewell, who was riding close by, exclaim, “that’s the programme! that’s the programme! I think we have them now!” It was but a few minutes after that the first Maryland, in the advance, encountered the enemy, and a sharp fight ensued. We drove them before us, however, for some distance, when we unexpectedly found ourselves in the presence of a heavy column, and were obliged to halt until our main body came up. During this time the utmost confusion seemed to prevail within the enemy’s lines, and shortly after we had discovered them they commenced to move precipitately to the rear.
That McClellan was surprised and utterly confounded, was now apparent, and that the next day would initiate a bloody fight no one doubted. As night was upon us, we determined to go into camp, not however until we had taken every precaution to guard against a surprise. The fighting at Mechanicsville still continued, and away in the night we could hear the rattle of musketry and see the explosion of shells.
The morning of the 27th June broke bright and beautiful, and long before the sun had risen the troops were on the march to attack the enemy. The men were in high spirits, and the rivalry was intense between those who had served with Jackson in the Valley and the reinforcements which had reached us at Staunton, among which was Hood’s Texans, who were that day to win a name that will live forever.
We had marched but a few miles when a large body of troops were observed in motion to our right, and as General Jackson had received no notice that any Confederates would move in that direction, he very naturally supposed them to be the enemy, and immediately prepared to receive them, for they were coming directly towards us. Still fearful there might be some mistake, he withheld his artillery fire, but threw an occasional shell in their midst to discover if possible who they were. At the first shot they deployed their skirmishers with the most beautiful precision, and advanced across the open field with great regularity, whilst the heavy columns of infantry moved upon us, closed en masse under cover of a wood. A fearful tragedy was now about to be enacted, and was only averted by the daring of Lieutenant George Booth, acting Adjutant of the First Maryland. From the first he had maintained they were our troops, whilst most of the officers, including General Jackson, were of the opinion they were not. The uniforms of the skirmishers were darker than we had ever before seen, and most of them wore white gaiters, something entirely unknown in the army of Jackson. Nearer and nearer they approached, and in a minute more we knew the mass of infantry must debouche into the plain, when the hand of friend would unwittingly be raised against friend. At this moment Lieutenant Booth, unable longer to restrain himself, without orders, dashed spurs into his horse, and at the risk of being shot to pieces, rode at full speed in the direction of the advancing skirmishers. We watched him with breathless anxiety until he reached the line, where halting a moment in conference with one of the officers, he wheeled his horse and galloped back to inform us it was Branch’s division of North Carolinians, which had lost its way. It was a great relief, and we congratulated each other when we met upon the timely discovery.
This affair, however, delayed us at least an hour, and we had no time to spare. Onward, then, we pressed, our advance occasionally skirmishing with the enemy, until we reached a dense pine forest, and here our troubles commenced. The guides were, or seemed to be, ignorant of the roads, and more than once we had to retrace our steps. Jackson was furious, and for the first time I saw him out of humor. Long before this he should have begun the fight, and here he was some distance from the field. Finally, however, we extricated ourselves, and soon after, about three o’clock in the afternoon, heavy skirmishing, and the occasional roar of artillery in our front, told us we were up with the enemy and developing his position.
As we neared the field the artillery and infantry fire increased in volume, and it was evident that the advanced troops of Jackson were hotly engaged, as were those of Hill on our right. Steadily the rattle of musketry swelled as Jackson forwarded reinforcements, until it became almost deafening. But as hour after hour passed, and that awful fire did not recede, he began to show symptoms of uneasiness. Upon his success on the left depended everything. Should he fail the splendidly conceived plans of General Lee would fail also, and Richmond would be at the mercy of the invader. Was it a wonder, then, that he rode nervously to and fro, and appeared for the first time to fear that the gods of battle had forsaken him? Every eye was upon the great chieftain as he galloped along the lines of the troops held in reserve, and the anxious expression upon that heretofore immovable countenance was observable to all.