I baffled many curious and civil citizens by breakfasting in
my room, where I remained writing till late in the day. In the afternoon I
walked to the State House. The hall door was open, but the rooms were closed;
and I remained in the hall, which is graced by two indifferent huge statues of
Law and Justice holding gas lamps, and by an old rusty cannon, dug out of the
river, and supposed to have belonged to the original British colonists, whilst
an officer whom I met in the portico went to look for the porter and the keys.
Whether he succeeded I cannot say, for after waiting some half hour I was
warned by my watch that it was time to get ready for the train, which started
at 4.15 P. M. The country through which the single line of rail passes is very
hilly, much wooded, little cultivated, cut up by water-courses and ravines. At
the junction with the Washington line from Baltimore there is a strong guard
thrown out from the camp near at hand. The officers, who had a mess in a little
wayside inn on the line, invited me to rest till the train came up, and from
them I heard that an advance had been actually ordered, and that if the
"rebels" stood there would soon be a tall fight close to Washington.
They were very cheery, hospitable fellows, and enjoyed their new mode of life
amazingly. The men of the regiment to which they belonged were Germans, almost
to a man. When the train came in I found it was full of soldiers, and I learned
that three more heavy trains were to follow, in addition to four which had
already passed laden with troops.
On arriving at the Washington platform, the first person I
saw was General McDowell alone, looking anxiously into the carriages. He asked
where I came from, and when he heard from Annapolis, inquired eagerly if I had
seen two batteries of artillery — Barry's and another — which he had ordered
up, and was waiting for, but which had “gone astray.” I was surprised to find
the General engaged on such duty, and took leave to say so. “Well, it is quite
true, Mr. Russell; but I am obliged to look after them myself, as I have so
small a staff, and they are all engaged out with my head-quarters. You are
aware I have advanced? No! Well, you have just come in time, and I shall be
happy, indeed, to take you with me. I have made arrangements for the
correspondents of our papers to take the field under certain regulations, and I
have suggested to them they should wear a white uniform, to indicate the purity
of their character.” The General could hear nothing of his guns; his carriage
was waiting, and I accepted his offer of a seat to my lodgings. Although he
spoke confidently, he did not seem in good spirits. There was the greatest
difficulty in finding out anything about the enemy. Beauregard was said to have
advanced to Fairfax Court House, but he could not get any certain knowledge of
the fact. “Can you not order a reconnoissance?” “Wait till you see the country.
But even if it were as flat as Flanders, I have not an officer on whom I could
depend for the work. They would fall into some trap, or bring on a general
engagement when I did not seek it or desire it. I have no cavalry such as you work
with in Europe.” I think he was not so much disposed to undervalue the
Confederates as before, for he said they had selected a very strong position,
and had made a regular levee en masse of the people of Virginia, as a
proof of the energy and determination with which they were entering on the
campaign.
As we parted the General gave me his photograph, and told me
he expected to see me in a few days at his quarters, but that I would have
plenty of time to get horses and servants, and such light equipage as I wanted,
as there would be no engagement for several days. On arriving at my lodgings I
sent to the livery-stables to inquire after horses. None fit for the saddle to
be had at any price. The sutlers, the cavalry, the mounted officers, had been
purchasing up all the droves of horses which came to the markets. McDowell had
barely extra mounts for his own use. And yet horses must be had; and, even
provided with them, I must take the field without tent or servant, canteen or
food — a waif to fortune.
SOURCE: William Howard Russell, My Diary North and
South, Vol. 1, p. 423-4
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