nt Cavalry
of the Southern Army had previously been dispatched on a false scent,
but at 9 a.m. on July 3 touch was regained with the Northern forces,
which were sighted from _Evelington Heights_ (July 3, 1862), a
commanding ridge within two miles of the bivouacs of the Army of the
Potomac, which was resting in apparent security, with inadequate
precautions against surprise. General J. E. B. Stuart, the Confederate
cavalry commander, {113} reached Evelington Heights with 1,200 sabres
and carbines and one light howitzer, and the whole Army of the Potomac,
90,000 all arms, was in bivouacs in full view from the Heights, and it
was clear that his presence was not suspected. The nearest column of
the force he was covering was six miles away, and there remained about
ten hours of daylight. It is easy to see, after the event, that this
was a case where "Silence is golden." Stuart should have sent the
information to Lee and to every column commander, urging them to press
on at all speed, while he occupied the Heights with his dismounted men
with the determination to hold his position with fire action, if
discovered, until the arrival of one or more columns of the Army of
Northern Virginia. But he failed to appreciate the situation, and
forgetting the larger question, he seized the opportunity to spread
panic in the ranks of the Army of the Potomac, and opened fire with his
one light howitzer. The Northerners recovered from the panic caused by
this unexpected attack, when it was realised that only one gun was in
action against them, and attacked and captured the Heights, and were
strongly entrenched there before the nearest Confederate column arrived.

(g) Among the examples of Advanced Guard work in Marshal Foch's
"Principles of War" is a problem for a battalion as the Advanced Guard
of a Brigade. "What is the problem the battalion commander has to
solve? It consists in preparing for the brigade to go into action
against an enemy who may debouch from Bettwiller. What does the
brigade require for such an action? It requires the _space_ necessary
for the full employment of its forces, and the _time_ necessary for
their arrival and deployment. In order to achieve that double task the
battalion commander orders his troops to occupy _the whole space
necessary_, and places them in points where they may hold on for the
_necessary time_."

{114}

FLANK ATTACKS AND FLANK GUARDS

"A man thoroughly penetrated with the