Transcription

Early after Gen. McClellans arrival upon the

Peninsula, Gen. Jos. E. Johnston commanding

the forces in defence of the Confederate Capital,

assisted by Gen. Robt E. Lee, then Presdt. Davis'

Chief of Staff, made a tour of inspection of the

defences of Richmond, and both Generals decided

it unwise to make any serious opposition to the

advance of the Union Army -- outside of the defences of

Richmond [proper?], Neither of these Generals expected at

that time that the Yorktown defences would present any

serious obstacle to McClellans progress, with his army

of 112 000 men, composed of the [flo...a] and freshness

of the Youth and Manhood of the North and provided

with every equipment which the Military Science of that

day could suggest and the lavish wealth of a great

and patriotic people bestow, But Gen Magruders

blustering display of his meagre force of scarcely 3000

men had met with such success and the Union

Commander had exhibited such timed caution in

consequence that it was afterwards determined to

reinforce Gen. Magruder to a large extent, and move

the main body down the Peninsula within supporting

distance, Towards Yorktown, and about two miles

in advance of Williamsburg, the Peninsula afforded

favorable opportunities of defence, and across this Neck

their left resting on Queen's Creek, a tributary of the

York river, and their right, on the James, Gen. Magruder

had Constructed a series of Earth works, thirteen in Number.

the most formidable of which was known as Fort Magruder

which was surrounded by a ditch and heavily armed

while to the right and left stretched a series of twelve redoubts.

In front of those works the ground sloped gradually away

terminating at a distance of some thousand yards in woodland

which for some hundreds of yards back had been felled

so as to form an almost impassible, barrier of trunks and

branches, termed in military parlance a slashing

The danger of these formidable works of being flanked

from the York river, had decided Gen. Johnston to occupy them

with a force only sufficient to hold McClellans advance

in check until he could more fully secure the safety of his