ch lay
between them was perfectly open, the roads were free, and
inter-communication seemed easy in the extreme. Yet, despite their
orders, despite the facilities of communication, the Guards advanced
to the attack an hour and a half too soon; and from six o'clock to
nearly seven their shattered lines lay in front of the position, at
the mercy of a vigorous counterstroke, without a single Saxon
regiment coming to their aid. But the Saxons were not to blame. Their
march had been unchecked; they had moved at speed. On their part
there had been no hesitation; but on the part of the commander of the
Guards there had been the same precipitation which led to the
premature attack on the Federal position at Beaver Dam Creek. It was
the impatience of General Hill, not the tardiness of Jackson, which
was the cause of the Confederate repulse.

We may now turn to the question whether Jackson was justified in not
marching to the sound of the cannon. Referring to General Lee's
orders, it will be seen that as soon as Longstreet and D.H. Hill had
crossed the Chickahominy the four divisions of the army were to move
forward in communication with each other and drive the enemy from his
position, Jackson, in advance upon the left, "turning Beaver Dam
Creek, and taking the direction of Cold Harbour."

When Jackson reached Hundley's Corner, and drove the Federal infantry
behind the Creek, the first thing to do, as his orders indicated, was
to get touch with the rest of the army. It was already near sunset;
between Hundley's Corner and Mechanicsville lay a dense forest, with
no roads in the desired direction; and it was manifestly impossible,
under ordinary conditions, to do more that evening than to establish
connection; the combined movement against the enemy's position must
be deferred till the morning. But the sound of battle to the
south-west introduced a complication. "We distinctly heard," says
Jackson, "the rapid and continued discharges of cannon."* (*
Jackson's Report, O.R. volume 11 part 1 page 553.) What did this fire
portend? It might proceed, as was to be inferred from Lee's orders,
from the heavy batteries on the Chickahominy covering Hill's passage.
It might mean a Federal counterstroke on Hill's advanced guard; or,
possibly, a premature attack on the part of the Confederates. General
Whiting, according to his report, thought it "indicated a severe
battle."* (* Whiting's Report, O.R. volume 11 part 1 page 562.)
General Trim