second
advance upon the Federal main body, and divert a considerable force to
meet the attack on his flank.

[Footnote 1: General Hooker in Report of the Committee on the Conduct
of the War, Part I., page 130. This great collection is a valuable
repository of historic details, and contains the explanation of many
interesting questions.]

After the repulse of General Sedgwick, and his retreat across
the Rappahannock, General Hooker seems to have been completely
discouraged, and hastened to put the river between himself and Lee.
His losses in the battles of Saturday and Sunday had amounted to
seventeen thousand one hundred and ninety-seven killed and wounded and
missing, fourteen pieces of artillery, and twenty thousand stand
of arms. The Confederate loss was ten thousand two hundred and
eighty-one. Contrary to the ordinary course of things the assailing
force had lost a less number of men than that assailed.

The foregoing reflections, which necessarily involve a criticism of
General Hooker, arise naturally from a review of the events of the
campaign, and seem justified by the circumstances. There can be no
inducement for the present writer to underrate the military ability of
the Federal commander, as that want of ability rather detracts from
than adds to the merit of General Lee in defeating him. It may be
said, indeed, that without these errors and shortcomings of General
Hooker, Lee, humanly speaking, must have been either defeated or
forced to retire upon Richmond.

After giving full weight, however, to all the advantages derived from
the extraordinary Federal oversights and mistakes, General Lee's merit
in this campaign was greater, perhaps, than in any other during his
entire career. Had he left behind him no other record than this, it
alone would have been sufficient to have conferred upon him the first
glories of arms, and handed his name down to posterity as that of one
of the greatest soldiers of history. It is difficult to discover a
single error committed by him, in the whole series of movements, from
the moment when General Sedgwick crossed at Fredericksburg, to the
time of General Hooker's retreat beyond the Rappahannock. It may
appear that there was unnecessary delay in permitting Tuesday to pass
without a final advance upon General Hooker, in his second line of
intrenchments; but, no doubt, many circumstances induced Lee to defer
this attack--the fatigue of his troops, consequent upon the fighting