or die. That prayer was answered; thousands of the enemy bit the dust to rise no more; thousands lived in agony and pain, and the remainder were driven back weary, wounded and sore, to the shelter of their guns on the north side of the Rappahannock. Wherever patriotism is honored, and heroism admired, let this be told in memory of the women of Fredericksburg. There should be in the old town, on the banks of the Rappahannock, a plain white marble monument to the memory of these brave women, and upon this let there be inscribed the memorable words of Lee: "History presents no instance of a people exhibiting a purer and more unselfish patriotism; they cheerfully incurred great hardship and privations, and surrendered their homes and property to destruction, rather than yield them into the hands of their enemies." I saw Fredericksburg afterwards; the city was sacked and many a home was in ashes; some of these women were there, and as they sat among its ruins as it were, in the very ashes of their desolation, they thanked God for their victory. When Burnside's army first began to move, Jackson, in pursuance of his instructions, crossed the Blue Ridge and placed himself near Orange Court House, to enable him more promptly to co-operate with Longstreet. Lee always had his troops well in hand, and seldom, if ever, made a mistake. Sometimes they were a little slow in their movements, but the fault was not his. He had time, place and circumstances well considered, and one move followed another as effect followed cause. He had no haphazard campaigns, no accidents, all was methodically and regularly done.
It has been said that the distance between Longstreet, at Culpeper, and Jackson, in the valley, was too great, and that McClellan could have crushed either one or the other, but with such an army as Lee had—always greatly inferior in numbers to the adversary—he was obliged to risk much. His enterprise and success under disadvantages showed his genius, and in this as in all cases, he had considered all the chances and made the right provision, and hence, Jackson was at the right spot at the right time. Longstreet's corps was on the left. The range of hills left the river about 550 yards above Fredericksburg; Anderson's division rested on the river, and those of McLaws, Hood and
