Comte de Paris, History of the Civil War in America. Vol. 3.
Henry Coppee , LL.D., Ed.

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[46] closely. He immediately sends for two brigades of this division: that of Ramseur comes to take the place of Wright, while the latter general, supported by Doles, extends his lines to the left, beyond the unfinished railroad, in order to take the enemy in the rear. A third brigade, under Colquitt, is sent to the neighborhood of Duerson's Mill to reinforce the extreme right. The battle is about to become general. Jackson, who directs all the operations on the Confederate side, has McLaws' three brigades, the five brigades of Anderson, and two of Rodes in line, three other brigades of this division being kept in reserve, followed at a short distance by the six brigades of Hill; the third division of the Second corps, under Colston, is yet very far away, and will not arrive before night. These nineteen brigades, with their artillery, represent a force of about thirty-seven thousand men. The Federals could readily bring into line a larger number of combatants. Hancock has come to take a place in the rear of Sykes, and is ready to support him. Howard has but a very short distance to march to join Slocum. Without counting the Third corps, the Unionists can oppose the Confederates with nine divisions, which, with their artillery, cannot number less than forty-five thousand men. The position they occupy, both in the centre and on the right, is easily defended; their artillery sweeps the roads followed by the enemy, while Meade, who is advancing on the left, menaces him seriously.

The Federal generals were preparing to maintain the struggle when they suddenly received an order to fall back, each on the position he had quitted in the morning. Most of them would not believe at first that such an order had been issued: no one could understand that Hooker, shut up in the solitary house¹ which gives to the locality the name of Chancellorsville, would voluntarily abandon all the outlets of the forest, without even coming to reconnoitre the ground, in order to allow himself to be invested therein: Couch himself, a cold and reserved man, little disposed to assume any responsibility, implored his chief to recall such fatal instructions. It was all in vain: the general was determined. The soldiers shared the astonishment of their leaders when they saw that, after the first engagements of this offensive campaign,