reported from the
direction of Warrenton; and the troops pressed on, further and
further round the Federal rear, further and further from Lee and
Longstreet. The cooked rations which they carried had been consumed
or thrown away; there was no time for the slaughter and distribution
of the cattle; but the men took tribute from the fields and orchards,
and green corn and green apples were all the morning meal that many
of them enjoyed. At Gainesville the column was joined by Stuart, who
had maintained a fierce artillery fight at Waterloo Bridge the
previous day; and then, slipping quietly away under cover of the
darkness, had marched at two in the morning to cover Jackson's flank.
The sun was high in the heavens, and still the enemy made no sign.
Munford's horsemen, forming the advanced guard, had long since
reached the Alexandria turnpike, sweeping up all before them, and
neither patrols nor orderlies had escaped to carry the news to
Warrenton.

So the point of danger was safely passed, and thirteen miles in rear
of Pope's headquarters, right across the communications he had told
his troops to disregard, the long column swung swiftly forward in the
noonday heat. Not a sound, save the muffled roll of many wheels,
broke the stillness of the tranquil valley; only the great dust
cloud, rolling always eastward up the slopes of the Manassas plateau,
betrayed the presence of war.

Beyond Gainesville Jackson took the road which led to Bristoe
Station, some seven miles south of Manassas Junction. Neither the
success which had hitherto accompanied his movement, nor the
excitement incident on his situation, had overbalanced his judgment.
From Gainesville the Junction might have been reached in little more
than an hour's march; and prudence would have recommended a swift
dash at the supply depot, swift destruction, and swift escape. But it
was always possible that Pope might have been alarmed, and the
railroad from Warrenton Junction supplied him with the means of
throwing a strong force of infantry rapidly to his rear. In order to
obstruct such a movement Jackson had determined to seize Bristoe
Station. Here, breaking down the railway bridge over Broad Run, and
establishing his main body in an almost impregnable position behind
the stream, he could proceed at his leisure with the destruction of
the stores at Manassas Junction. The advantages promised by this
manoeuvre more than compensated for the increased length of the march.