Nevertheless, as events went far to prove, Mr. Davis would have done
wisely had he accepted the advice of the soldiers on the spot. His
strategical glance was less comprehensive than that of Lee and
Jackson. In the first place, they knew that if Burnside proposed
going into winter quarters, he would not deliberately place the
Rappahannock between himself and his base, nor halt with the great
forest of Spotsylvania on his flank. In the second place, there could
be no question but that the Northern Government and the Northern
people would impel him forward. The tone of the press was
unmistakable; and the very reason that Burnside had been appointed to
command was because McClellan was so slow to move. In the third
place, both Lee and Jackson saw the need of decisive victory. With
them questions of strategic dispositions, offering chances of such
victory, were of more importance than questions of supply or internal
politics. They knew with what rapidity the Federal soldiers recovered
their morale; and they realised but too keenly the stern
determination which inspired the North. They had seen the hosts of
invasion retire in swift succession, stricken and exhausted, before
their victorious bayonets.
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