so that the enemy had no idea of his movements. General
Toombs' brigade started in retreat from Centreville. He did not relish
this movement. He writes home from Culpepper:

This has been a sad and destructive business. We were
ordered to send off all our heavy baggage, but so badly did
they manage that none of it was sent back, and every
particle of that baggage, blankets, and every imaginable
useful article, was burned up to prevent its falling into
the hands of the enemy. My brigade must have lost half a
million of property and all the rest were in the same
condition. Millions of stores with guns and ammunition were
destroyed. Never was any business worse managed. The enemy
had no more idea of attacking us in Centreville than they
had of attacking the Peaks of Otter. Of course, when we
retreated, they sent marauding parties in our trail to
watch our retreat and take possession of the country, and
now the whole of the beautiful Counties of Loudon,
Fauquier, Prince William, Fairfax, and the Lord only knows
how many more, are in the possession of the enemy. It was a
sad, distressing sight, all the way along, and one that
frequently drew tears from my eyes. I do not know what it
means, but I would rather have fought ten battles than thus
to have abandoned these poor people. We have got to fight
somewhere, and if I had my way, I would fight them on the
first inch of our soil they invaded, and never cease to
fight them as long as I could rally men to defend their
homes. The great body of the army is now in the
neighborhood, and I suppose we shall abandon these people
and retreat back toward Richmond.... My command is in
excellent condition. A few broke down on the way, but I
managed to have them taken care of there and lost none of
them on the march.

One of the great features of General Toombs' control of his brigade was
the excellent care he took of his men. He never allowed them to be
imposed upon by the officers or by other commands.

This letter betrays the impatience of General Toombs over any
mismanagement. He was the soul of business, and as the transportation
facilities at Manassas were meager, he chafed under the heavy loss to
which his brigade was subjected in this retreat. With impetuous ardor he
calls for resistance, not retreat. He d