bility" attending him during his
stay in that section of the country. If it were so he had apparently
left them in the rear when he came up here. He sat now tranquil as a
stone wall, in sight of the mountains, sucking his lemon and studying
his maps.

This was the second. On the sixth of August Pope began to cross the
Rappahannock. On the afternoon of the seventh the grey army was in
motion. All the eighth it was in column, the heat intense, the dust
stifling, an entanglement of trains and a misunderstanding of orders on
the part of Hill and Ewell resulting in a confused and retarded march.
Night fell, hot and breathless. Twenty-three thousand grey soldiers,
moving toward Orange Court House, made the dark road vocal with
statements as to the reeking heat, the dust, the condition of their
shoes and the impertinence of the cavalry. The latter was more
irritating than were the flapping soles, the dust in the throat, and the
sweat pouring into the eyes. The infantry swore, swerving again and
again to one side of the narrow road to let small bodies of horsemen go
by. It was dark, the road going through an interminable hot, close wood.
Officers and men were liberal in their vituperation. "Thank the Lord, it
ain't my arm!"--"Here you fellows--damn you! look where you are going!
Trampling innocent bystanders that way!--Why in hell didn't you stay
back where you belong?"--"Of course if you've positively got to get to
the front and can't find any other road it's our place to give you this
one!--Just wait a moment and we'll ask the colonel if we can't _lie
down_. It'll be easier to ride over us that way.--Oh, go to hell!"

The parties passed, the ranks of the infantry straightened out again on
the dark road, the column wound on through the hot, midnight wood. More
hoof-beats--another party of cavalry to be let by! They passed the
infantry in the darkness, pushing the broken line into the ditch and
scrub. In the pitchy blackness an impatient command lost at this
juncture its temper. The men swore, an officer called out to the
horsemen a savage "Halt!" The party pressed on. The officer furious,
caught a bridle rein. "Halt, damn you! Stop them, men! Now you cavalry
have got to learn a thing or two! One is, that the infantry is the
important thing in war! It's the aristocracy, damn you! The other is
that we were on this road first anyhow! Now you just turn out into the
woods yourself, and the next time I tell you to halt, damn you, h