Davis to leave the
valley of the Mississippi.
The Army of Northern Virginia was not likely to be stronger or more
efficient. Equipped with the spoils of many victories, it was more on
a level with the enemy than had hitherto been the case. The ranks
were full. The men were inured to hardships and swift marches; their
health was proof against inclement weather, and they knew their work
on the field of battle. The artillery had recently been reorganised.
During the Peninsular campaign the batteries had been attached to the
infantry brigades, and the indifferent service they had often
rendered had been attributed to the difficulty of collecting the
scattered units, and in handling them in combination. Formed into
battalions of four or six batteries a large number of guns was now
attached to each of the divisions, and each army corps had a strong
reserve; so that the concentration of a heavy force of artillery on
any part of a position became a feasible operation. The cavalry, so
admirably commanded by Stuart, Hampton, and the younger Lees, was not
less hardy or efficient than the infantry, and the morale of the
soldiers of every arm, founded on confidence in themselves not less
than on confidence in their leaders, was never higher.
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