probably have destroyed the whole of the attacking force. The
riflemen of the West, however, were not made of the stuff that yields
readily to superior force. The fight for the bridge would have been
fierce and bloody. Twilight had fallen before the Confederate
reinforcements arrived upon the scene; and under such conditions the
losses must have been very heavy. But to lose men was exactly what
Jackson wished to avoid. The object of his manoeuvres was the
destruction not of Fremont's advanced guard, but of Banks' army; and
if his numbers were seriously reduced it would be impossible to
attain that end. Fremont's brigades, moreover, protected no vital
point. A decisive victory at M'Dowell would have produced but little
effect at Washington. No great results were to be expected from
operations in so distant a section of the strategic theatre; and
Jackson aimed at nothing more than driving the enemy so far back as
to isolate him from Banks.

May 9.

The next morning the small force of cavalry crossed the bridge and
rode cautiously through the mountain passes. The infantry halted for
some hours in M'Dowell in order that rations might be issued, but the
Federals made three-and-twenty miles, and were already too far ahead
to be overtaken. On the 10th and the 11th the Confederates made
forced marches, but the enemy set fire to the forests on the
mountain-side, and this desperate measure proved eminently
successful. "The sky was overcast with volumes of smoke, which
wrapped every distant object in a veil, impenetrable alike to the
eyes and telescopes of the officers. Through this sultry canopy the
pursuing army felt its way cautiously, cannonaded by the enemy from
every advantageous position, while it was protected from ambuscades
only by detachments of skirmishers, who scoured the burning woods on
either side of the highway. The general, often far in advance of the
column in his eagerness to overtake the foe, declared that this was
the most adroit expedient to which a retreating army could resort,
and that it entailed upon him all the disadvantages of a night
attack. By slow approaches, and with constant skirmishing, the
Federals were driven back to Franklin village, and the double
darkness of the night and the smoke arrested the pursuit."* (* Dabney
volume 2 page 77.)

May 12.

On May 12 Jackson resolved to return to the Valley. Fremont, with
Blenker's division, was at hand. It was impossible to outflank the
enemy's po