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Bull's Run, from the Stone Bridge to Sudley's Ford, pursued by Confederates of all arms, who made many prisoners.
Still greater would have been the number of captives, had not many of the troops been free from panic, and in condition to cover the retreat and give encouragement to the disordered mass.
When McDowell perceived that the day was lost, and retreat inevitable, his first care was to protect his army in its flight.
For this purpose he detailed Colonel Porter and his regulars, with the cavalry.
He also sent word to Miles to order a brigade to the Warrenton Road, at Cub Run, for the same purpose, and Blenker was sent.
McDowell himself hastened to the left, where he found much confusion that might prove dangerous, caused by orders and counter-orders of Miles and his brigade commanders.
He was informed that Miles had been intoxicated nearly all day, and playing the buffoon, to the disgust of his officers and men. So he took command of the division himself) for Miles could not be trusted.
Porter performed his duties admirably.
He kept the Confederates in check; and after the retreat had fairly begun, according to orders, there was not much panic or confusion visible, until those who crossed at and near the Stone Bridge, and others at the fords above, met in converging streams (one along the Warrenton Turnpike, and the other down the forest road traversed by Hunter and Heintzelman in the morning) near the bridge over Cub Run, which was barricaded by a caisson1 that had been overturned on it by a solid shot from the pursuers.
Schenck's Brigade had already crossed, and gone on to Centreville, but many civilians in his rear were caught here by the hurrying mass of soldiers.
The excitement was intense.
The number of the pursuers was magnified by fear from five hundred to five thousand, and they were not far behind.
Shots from their Flying Artillery were coming too near to be harmless.
Frightened teamsters cut their horses loose, mounted them, and scampered away, leaving their wagons to block the road.
The drivers of artillery horses did the same, and left their cannon behind to be seized by the Confederates.
Full one-third of the artillery lost that day was left between Cub Run and the Stone Bridge.2
The caisson on the bridge was soon removed, and onward the excited mass pressed.
Blenker's protecting brigade, lying across the road, opened and let them pass; and at twilight the fugitives were all behind the lines at Centreville, where the Fifth Division, intact, formed a strong protecting force.
Ignorant of the number and exact position of McDowell's reserves, only five hundred cavalry of the pursuing force crossed Bull's Run that evening;
1 A caisson is an ammunition-chest on wheels, for the service of artillery in battle.
2 The Nationals lost twenty-seven cannon, ten of which were captured on the field, and the remainder were abandoned during the flight to Centreville. They had forty-nine pieces in all, of which twenty-eight were rifled. All but two were fully horsed and equipped. Only twenty-eight of the forty-nine pieces crossed Bull's Run before the battle, and only one was brought safely back to Centreville. Besides these cannon, the Nationals lost a large amount of small arms, ammunition, stores, provisions, and clothing. A large number of the knapsacks and blankets that were lost had been laid aside by the soldiers before going into battle, on account of the heat of the day.
Beauregard reported his spoils of victory to be twenty-eight field-pieces captured, with over one hundred rounds of ammunition for each gun: also thirty-seven caissons; six forges; four battery-wagons; sixty-four artillery horses completely equipped; five hundred thousand rounds of small arms ammunition; four thousand five hundred sets of accouterments, and over five thousand muskets. His engineer-in-chief, Captain E. P. Alexander, reported in addition as captured, a large number of intrenching, carpenters', and blacksmiths' tools; camp and cooking utensils; clothing and blankets; twenty-two tents, and a large quantity of medicines and hospital supplies.
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