| Federal: | killed 114, | wounded 443, | missing 127, | total 684 |
| Confederate: | killed 41, | wounded 232, | missing 15, | total 288 |
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[105]
than skirmishing and artillery duelling, of which the Federals usually had the best with their superior metal and ammunition.
It was Jackson's role to fight only defensive battle, until he had shaken off the superior force which beset him; so the battle lingered along all day, the casualties being:—
During the night of the 8th, Jackson returned to Port Republic and improvised a foot-bridge to carry his infantry dry shod across the South River.
Early next morning, leaving a rearguard of two brigades under Trimble and Patton to delay Fremont, the rest of his force was put in motion to find and attack Shields's two brigades, which had unwisely halted about two miles from Port Republic the day before.
I say unwisely, because they were only about 4000 men and 16 guns, but they had a position so beautiful that they were excusable just for the chance of fighting from it.
From the river on the right it extended straight across a mile of open plain, along a hollow road running between good banks, strongly fenced, to a considerable ravine in the wooded foot-hills of the Blue Ridge.
The key of the position was a high retired shoulder on the Federal left, on which were posted seven guns, strongly supported by infantry sheltered in the near-by wood, and commanding every foot of the plain.
Jackson, this morning, proposed to himself a double victory, and he built the foot-bridge across the South River to enable him to win it. He intended, by making a very early start, to fall upon Shields's two brigades and crush them, and then doubling back upon his track to recross the rivers and meet Fremont, whom he would expect to find advancing toward Port Republic, against the opposition which Trimble and Patton would make.
It was a good plan and entirely feasible, but two things went wrong in its execution.
The first was with the foot-bridge over the South River.
This was rudely constructed of a plank footway, supported upon the running-gear of wagons standing in the stream, which was about breast deep.
Such a bridge may be made quite serviceable,
1907.
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