The Daily Dispatch: June 23, 1862., [Electronic resource]

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The shock of Banks's retreat.

--An Incident occurred at the telegraph office in Washington about the time of Stonewall's advance to Winchester, which serves to illustrate the shock which Banks's retreat gave to every one, as well as the heavy losses entailed by it upon many speculative Yankees, who ‘"calculated"’ upon a thriving trade with Virginia. The Washington correspondent of the New York Post says:

‘ Early on Sunday morning a Northern man of business appeared at the office here and prosecuted a message for Winchester, "Call Winchester," said the clerk to the operator. Winchester was called, but made no reply. The m at the counter grew anxious. "Call Harper's Ferry," said the clerk Harper's Ferry replied: ‘"Winchester does not reply, and for a good reason — it is in the hands of the rebels!"’ This was repeated by the clerk. The gentleman at the counter raised his arms over his head as if in great distress, exclaiming, "I am a ruined man. I have just taken ten thousand dollars worth of goods to Winchester, and it is all the property I had in the world." This was the first intimation the public had of the rout or retreat at Winchester. It was known that Banks had retreated from Strasburg, but it was supposed that it was simply a prudential movement, and that he could easily hold Winchester.

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