Diary of Dr. Alfred L. Castleman, October 9, 1861

We have remained bivouaced all day, and there is talk of our moving our camp to this place to-morrow. This will advance us another three miles in the direction of Richmond. On the 8th of August we arrived in Washington two months ago yesterday. We are now eight miles nearer Richmond than then. At this rate when shall we reach that famous city? If we do not go faster, I fear Mr. President Lincoln will never dine there at the head of his armies.

But these delays are doubtless necessary on the start. War is new to us. Our armies had to be organized and educated to war. Munitions had to be procured, and as most of those belonging to the nation had been appropriated by the South, much of them had to be manufactured. Our navy had to be called home from the four quarters of the world, and innumerable other preparations had to be made, of which we uninitiated are wholly ignorant. Gen. McClellan seems to be active, and we doubt not that under the counsels of the veteran General Scott, matters will be pushed forward as rapidly as circumstances will permit. True, many of us think that Gen. McClellan's "Stand by me and I'll stand by you" speech was not in refined taste—in about as good taste as Pope's proclamation—but as we do not expect or desire exhibitions of delicate taste on the battle-field with an unscrupulous enemy, we overlook the departure from it in our General, and accord to him full confidence, as to both his will and ability to lead us to victory.

We are at present within half a mile of the splendid mansion of the late Commodore Thos. Ap' Catesby Jones. I visited that and his splendid grounds, found them deserted by the whites; a few of the old and almost helpless negroes being left on the place. The soldiers had entered, and made some havoc amongst books and papers. The fine furniture stood in every room in the house, and the walls were covered by the finest paintings, including the family pictures. But the strictest orders, denouncing severe punishment to depredators, were posted about the house, and a strong guard placed to enforce them. I picked up a few articles of little value, except as relics from the home of this once happy and popular family, now in rebellion against the Government to which they were indebted for the favors and protection to which they owed their prosperity. I was strongly inclined to take down the family pictures, and to remove them to where they could be taken care of till happier times befall us, that they might then be returned to the family, by whom they must be held in high estimation, but I feared that the motive would be misconstrued, and that it would lead to trouble.

SOURCE: Alfred L. Castleman, The Army of the Potomac. Behind the Scenes. A Diary of Unwritten History; From the Organization of the Army, by General George B. McClellan, to the close of the Campaign in Virginia about the First Day January, 1863, p. 40-1

Diary of Dr. Alfred L. Castleman, October 11, 1861

Sent off ambulances to-day to commence bringing forward the sick of my regiment, and whilst they were gone, after having put my hospital in good order for their reception, I stepped over again to Commodore Jones' house to see how the guards stationed there had succeeded in carrying out their orders. Till I entered the house, I thought I had seen evidences of extreme vandalism, but the wanton destruction here beggars everything I have before witnessed. Furniture broken; feather beds opened, and their contents emptied over house and yard; even those beautiful family pictures were ground to atoms and thrown to the winds. But I need not describe here, for the impression is deeply stamped in memory, more durable and more accurate than words and letters can ever make. Everything destructable was destroyed.*

In handling over the papers I picked up the Commodore's "Journal of a cruise in the U. S. ship Relief-bearing the broad pennant of Commodore Jones-Thos. A. Downer, Esq., Commander," which I have preserved, and also a letter from a son of Commodore Tatnall (late of the rebel Merrimac) to Commodore Jones, written from the Meditterranean, asking to be relieved from duty there, and to be permitted to return to America.†

As it will be a matter of interest to me, in future, to study my predictions as to the course and conduct of this war-to rejoice and be vain over those which prove correct, and to laugh at or be ashamed of those which prove false, I shall continue to record them as I have begun; and here I enter one in which I hope to take interest a long time hence. As I have constantly predicted, we have had no fight here nor shall we have; and I now very much doubt whether we shall have a fight even at Manassas, and for this reason: "After all the feints of the enemy here to draw Gen. Banks from Harper's Ferry had failed, they, seeing that we have got foot-hold in North Carolina, will fall back on their fortifications at Centerville and Manassas, and then presenting a bold front with a small body, will cover the withdrawal of the larger part of their force, which they will distribute in Kentucky, Missouri, Tennessee and Western Virginia, and I very much doubt whether they will retain enough at Manassas to make a respectable fight. Kentucky and Tennessee are to become the theatre of war; and if I am not greatly mistaken, Kentucky will have trying times between this and the first of January. I hope that Gen. McClellan is taking the same view of things, and is preparing to meet it." What I have here marked as a quotation is a copied from a letter this day written to a friend on the prospects of the war.

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* It is worthy of remark here, that thus whilst this wanton destruction was going on, a half a mile away, everything on the place of Mr. Johnson, (a loyalist, whose house and garden were in the very midst of the encampments,) though unguarded was unmolested; every article he had to dispose of was bought and paid for, at high prices, by the soldiers. Even thus early could we read the soldier's aversion to guarding, or having guarded the property of rebels.

† This letter I handed to a lady connection of the Tatnall family, who was with me at the time, and she found means of restoring it to them.

SOURCE: Alfred L. Castleman, The Army of the Potomac. Behind the Scenes. A Diary of Unwritten History; From the Organization of the Army, by General George B. McClellan, to the close of the Campaign in Virginia about the First Day January, 1863, p. 42-3