Today in History:

187 Series I Volume XII-I Serial 15 - Second Manassas Part I

Page 187 Chapter XXIV. GENERAL REPORTS.

Question by General MCDOWELL. How after you sent word back to General Pope of General Banks' intention to engage the enemy decisively was it before you saw General McDowell's troops coming to the field?

Answer. About two hours and a half, as well as I can judge. Perhaps I ought to add that General McDowell was moving with his forces toward the field before my note was received. The orderly had to ride 7 miles to General Pope.

Question by General MCDOWELL. What was the position and condition of General Banks' corps when General McDowell's troops arrived on the field?

Answer. At sundown I left General Banks to ride to the rear to bring General McDowell onto the filed myself, regarding it as of the utmost importance that General Banks should hold the position on the field and not retreat from it. I met General Pope and General McDowell with Ricketts' division coming onto the field. The division was halted. i was questioned particularly by General Pope and General McDowell of the state of things and the position of General Banks, with a view to pushing General McDowell's troops to support him. I represented the positions of Banks' forces when I left. General McDowell and General Pope were proceeding to make dispositions of their forces on this representation. At this time General Banks came up himself and he was also questioned, and so far as I understood gave to General Pope and General McDowell about the same information that I had already give them. They proceeded to post the troops on this information, in the belief that General Banks' forces still held the field; but it proved that they had fallen back from the field, and General McDowell and General Pope were attacked in the night, and greatly embarrassed by the credit they had given to my representations and to representations of General Banks that his troops were still in front and holding the enemy in check.

Question by General MCDOWELL. In what way and to what extent did the nature of the ground assist in this misapprehension as to the position of Banks' corps, as represented by you and him?

Answer. There was a wood of very considerable extend immediately intervening between General Banks' position and the place where General McDowell halted the forces with him, and it was then getting dusk, so that nothing of the position of the field or the troops on it could be seen by General McDowell or General Pope.

Question by the COURT. What troops composed the forces with which General Pope proposed to attack Jackson on the 10th?

Answer. All of McDowell's corps that was present and the corps of Sigel and Banks.

Question by the COURT. Describe the location of these forces on the 9th.

Answer. Banks' forces were on the field; McDowell's as described yesterday, and Sigel about 10 or 12 miles north west, in the direction of Sperryville.

Question by the COURT. At what time on the 10th did General Pope propose to make the attack?

Answer. He proposed to attack the moment he concentrated his forces-that is, early on the morning of the 10th.

Question by the COURT. In sending General Banks forward to Cedar Mountain, did General Pope give directions to any other corps to operate in supporting distance of Banks?

Answer. Not to my knowledge.

Question by the COURT. Can you give any explanation them why General Banks was placed without troops in supporting distance where he was liable to be attacked by, and did encounter, a largely superior force of the enemy?

Answer. I had no idea General Banks would have been attacked by the enemy on the 9th if he had not made such demonstrations on the forces in front of him as to bring on a battle. I had been in the front three days, and knew where the forces were and what they were, and reported it to General Pope, giving him my opinion that there


Page 187 Chapter XXIV. GENERAL REPORTS.