XXIX
_A STRUGGLE OF GIANTS_
When Baillie woke from his drug-compelled sleep, his condition was farbetter than the doctor had anticipated. Lee was coming now, and the sickman was buoyed and strengthened by a confident hope of speedy rescue.The Army of Northern Virginia was in Maryland, and Baillie was sure thatit would push rapidly eastward to and beyond the town where he had solong lain ill.
So it would have done if all had gone well. But there was a Federalforce of eleven thousand men at Harper's Ferry. By all the principles ofstrategy it ought to have retired as soon as Lee crossed the Potomacabove or below that point. To remain was to be cut off and to invitecapture. McClellan, as a trained and scientific soldier, understood thisperfectly, and he wished the force at Harper's Ferry to be withdrawn andadded to his army. He was overruled by the civilian authorities atWashington, and the detached force remained in its entrenchments,completely isolated and helpless.
But in the meanwhile its presence at Harper's Ferry completely blockedLee's only secure route of retreat in case of disaster. It wasabsolutely necessary for him to reduce it before continuing his progressnorthward or eastward. To that end he was obliged to send Jackson backacross the Potomac, with orders to assail Harper's Ferry from the south,while other forces, detached for that purpose, should hold positionsnorth and east of the town, thus preventing the garrison's escape.
Jackson did his part promptly and perfectly, as it was his custom to do.He carried the place, capturing the entire garrison of eleven thousandmen, and all the guns, ammunition, and military stores, which had beenaccumulated there in vast quantities.
This was a very important capture, but in order to accomplish it, Leehad been compelled to scatter his forces in a dangerous fashion, besideslosing the advantage that would have attended a rapid advance againstan enemy who could not know whither he purposed to go, but must guardall roads at once. For from Lee's position after he had crossed theriver it was open to him to advance upon Washington or Baltimore orPhiladelphia as he might elect, keeping his adversary in the meanwhilein a state of embarrassing uncertainty as to his purposes.
But when he sent Jackson back and detached other strong forces to holdthe avenues of escape from Harper's Ferry, his army was badly scattered,its several parts lying at too great a distance from each other forready cooperation.
During the consequent days of waiting, McClellan was advancing inleisurely fashion to meet the Confederate movement, and his army wasevery day adding to its strength by the hurrying forward of freshregiments and brigades to its reinforcement.
Finally Lee issued an order setting forth in detail his plan forconcentrating his scattered forces. Copies of this order, showing theexact location of each part of the army and the movements to be made byeach, were sent to all of the corps commanders. One of those copies waslost, and fell into McClellan's hands.
For once that most leisurely of generals was in a hurry. His opportunityhad come to destroy the Army of Northern Virginia by beating it indetail. He threw a strong force forward to assail certain of itspositions. The assault proved successful, but the success did not comeso quickly as it should have done. By determined fighting Lee gainedtime in which to bring his scattered forces together again at Sharpsburgbefore his adversary could fall upon him in force. There, on AntietamCreek, on the 17th of September, 1862, was fought a battle which isreckoned the bloodiest of all the war, in proportion to the numbersengaged.
McClellan had seventy thousand men in line, Lee forty thousand. Thestruggle began early in the morning and continued until after nightfall.The fighting on both sides was as heroic and as determined as any thatwas ever done in the world. At the end of it all both sides claimed thevictory, and neither had in fact won it. Neither had been able to drivethe other from his position. Neither had broken the other's lines orgained any decisive advantage. And when morning came again neither sidewas willing to renew the contest, and neither would retire from thefield.
For a whole day the two armies lay facing each other in grim defiance,each ready to receive the other should it attack, but neither venturingto make the assault.
After twenty-four hours of defiant waiting, Lee slowly retired to thePotomac, while McClellan lay still, not venturing to follow hisadversary. Lee crossed unmolested into Virginia and took up a positionwithin easy striking distance, but his adversary made no attempt tostrike. McClellan presently advanced and stretched his great army alongthe Potomac. But he assumed an attitude of defence, calling insistentlyfor reinforcements, though his army outnumbered Lee's about two to one.
He had succeeded in checking Lee's invasion of the North and turning itback. He was content with that, and in spite of President Lincoln'surgency he refused to do more, till at last General Burnside was orderedto assume command in his stead.
It was confidently expected both at the North and at the South, afterLee's withdrawal to Virginia, that as soon as his army should be rested,he would again take the offensive, assail McClellan at some point, andattempt a new march northward. This expectation was strengthened whenStuart, early in October, plunged across the river with his cavalry,galloped over the country, penetrated into Pennsylvania, and saucilyrode entirely round McClellan's army, just as he had done a few monthsbefore at Richmond, in preparation for Lee's seven days' battle.