undertook to judge for themselves when it was proper to retire. Had they but waited, the mischief on the left would have been remedied. I have never been able to satisfy myself that the enemy's attack in the afternoon, was not a demonstration to cover his retreat during the night. It certainly was not a vigourous one, as is shown by the fact that the very small force with which Ramseur and Goggin held him in check so long; and the loss in killed and wounded in the division which first gave way was not heavy, and was the least in numbers of all but one, though it was the third in strength, and its relative loss was the least of all the divisions. I read a sharp lecture to my troops, in an address published to them a few days after the battle, but I have never attributed the result to a want of courage on their part, for I had seen them perform too many prodigies of valour to doubt that. There was an individuality about the Confederate soldier which caused him to act often in battle according to his own opinions, and thereby impair his own efficiency; and the tempting bait offered by the rich plunder of the camps of the enemy's well-fed and well clothed troops, was frequently too great for our destitute soldiers, and caused them to pause in the career of victory."

The battle of Cedar Creek may be said to have closed the Valley campaign, and to have terminated Gen. Early's military career. There were afterwards some affairs; and a few weeks before the final scenes around Richmond, a remnant of Early's command, about 1,000 men, were overrun and dispersed at Waynesboro, the General escaping by riding aside into the woods, and making his way to Charlottesville with about a dozen companions. But the action of Cedar Creek was the decisive event. The fitful flash of that morning when Early surprised the enemy and broke two of his corps, was the last Confederate victory in the Valley of Virginia-a region so glorious with Confederate triumphs, that it had been called by the Federals the "Valley of Humiliation."*

*In a printed memoir of his campaign, Gen. Early makes the following comparison between his own operations and the earlier ones of the war that achieved such triumphs on the fields he had to abandon.

"Some attempts have been made to compare my campaign in the Valley with that of Gen. Jackson in the same district, in order to cast censure on me, but such comparison is not necessary for the vindication of the fame of that great leader, and it is most unjust to me, as the circumstances under which we operated were so entirely dissimilar. It was my fortune to serve under Gen. Jackson, after his Valley cam

For his reverses in the Valley Gen. Early had to suffer severely. The press and people, impatient for victories, and seized by feelings of desperation when the Confederate cause was evidently lapsing, condemned him unmercifully. He was charged chiefly with drunkenness; but there were a number of officers who had been with him on the field in every battle of 1864, who were able to testify that they had never once seen him under the influence of liquor. Some other charges were equally unfounded. But his errours were so magnified and multiplied by popular accusation, and so urgent became the demand for his removal, that Gen. Lee, although with unwavering confidence in the ability of his lieutenant, felt compelled to relieve him from command.

paign until his death, and I have the satisfaction of knowing that I enjoyed his confidence, which was signally shown in his last official act towards me; and no one admires his character and reveres his memory more than I do. It is not, therefore, with any view to detract from his merits, that I mention the following facts, but to show how improper it is to compare our campaigns with a view of contrasting their merits. 1st. Gen. Jackson did not have the odds opposed to him which I had, and his troops were composed entirely of the very best material which entered into the composition of our armies-that is, the men who came out voluntarily in the beginning of the war; while my command, though comprising all the principal organizations which were with him, did not contain 1,500 of the men who had participated in the first Valley campaign, and there was a like falling off in the other organizations with me which had not been with Gen. Jackson in that campaign. This was owing to the losses in killed and disabled, and prisoners who were not exchanged. Besides the old soldiers, whose numbers were so reduced, my command was composed of recruits and conscripts. 2nd. Gen. Jackson's cavalry was not outnumbered by the enemy's, and it was far superior in efficiency-Ashby being a host in himself; while my cavalry was more than trebled in numbers, and far excelled in arms, equipments, and horses, by that of the enemy. 3rd. The Valley, at the time of his campaign, was teeming with provisions and forage from one end to the other; while my command had very great difficulty in obtaining provisions for the men, and had to rely almost entirely on the grass in the open fields for forage. 4th. When Gen. Jackson was pressed and had to retire, as well when he fell back before Banks in the spring of 1862, as, later, when he retired before Fremont to prevent Shields from getting in his rear, the condition of the water-courses was such as to enable him to stop the advance of one column by burning the bridges, and then fall upon and defeat another column; and, when hard pressed, place his troops in a position of security, until a favourable opportunity offered for attacking the enemy; while all the water-courses were low and fordable, and the whole country was open in my front, on my flanks, and in my rear, during my entire campaign. These facts do not detract from the merits of Gen. Jackson's campaign in the slightest degree, and far be it from me to attempt to obscure his well-earned and richly-deserved fame. They only show that I ought not to be condemned for not doing what he did."

Immediately after the battle of Cedar Creek, Gen. Early had written a letter to Gen. Lee, stating his willingness to be relieved from command, if the latter deemed it necessary for the public interests. The suggestion was not acted upon for several months; and it was just before the closing scenes of the war that Gen. Lee wrote the following letter, terminating the military career of Early, but putting upon his record of public services a seal of approbation, an expression of personal confidence, of which the veteran commander might well be proud.

HEADQUARTERS, CONFEDERATE STATES ARMIES, 30th March, 1865.

Lieut.-Gen. J. A. Early, Franklin Co., Va.:

GENERAL,-My telegram will have informed you that I deem a change of commanders in your Department necessary; but it is due to your zealous and patriotic services that I should explain the reasons that prompted my action. The situation of affairs is such that we can neglect no means calculated to develop the resources we possess to the greatest extent, and make them as efficient as possible. To this end, it is essential that we should have the cheerful and hearty support of the people, and the full confidence of the soldiers, without which our efforts would be embarrassed and our means of resistance weakened. I have reluctantly arrived at the conclusion that you cannot command the united and willing coöperation which is so essential to success. Your reverses in the Valley, of which the public and the army judge chiefly by the results, have, I fear, impaired your influence both with the people and the soldiers, and would add greatly to the difficulties which will, under any circumstances, attend our military operations in Southwestern Virginia. While my own confidence in your ability, zeal, and devotion to the cause is unimpaired, I have nevertheless felt that I could not oppose what seems to be the current of opinion without injustice to your reputation and injury to the service. I therefore felt constrained to endeavour to find a commander who would be more likely to develop the strength and resources of the country, and inspire the soldiers with confidence; and, to accomplish this purpose, I thought it proper to yield my own opinion, and to defer to that of those to whom alone we can look for support.

I am sure that you will understand and appreciate my motives,

and no one will be more ready than yourself to acquiesce in any measures which the interests of the country may seem to require, regardless of all personal considerations.

Thanking you for the fidelity and energy with which you have always supported my efforts, and for the courage and devotion you have ever manifested in the service of the country,

I am, very respectfully and truly,

Your obedient servant,

R. E. LEE, General.

Gen. Lee knew better than the general public did the difficulties which confronted Early in the notable campaign of 1864, and he knew and took into account that disproportion of numbers which made the campaign "a forlorn hope" in view of the enemy's resources. Indeed, when history reveals this disproportion, it shows that Sheridan ought to have accomplished more than he actually did with one-half his numbers; and that even then he would have deserved not more than a tithe of the popular reputation he gained.

After the campaign in the Valley Gen. Early had proceeded to Lynchburg, to reorganize what remained of his command; and thence he had joined Gen. Echols, who was operating near the State line between Virginia and Tennessee. Having received at Abingdon Gen. Lee's order directing him to turn over the command in Southwestern Virginia to Gen. Echols, he rode to Marion, in Smythe County. From the exposure of the journey he contracted a cold and cough so violent as to produce hemorrhage from the lungs, and prostrate him for several days in a very dangerous condition. While he was in this situation, a heavy cavalry force under Stoneman, from Thomas's army in Tennessee, moved through North Carolina to the east, and a part of it came into Virginia from the main column, and struck the Virginia and Tennessee Railroad at New River, east of Wytheville; whence, after destroying the bridge, it moved east, cutting off all communication with Richmond, and then crossed over into North Carolina. As soon as Gen. Early was in a condition to be moved, he was carried on the railroad to Wytheville, and was proceeding thence to his home in an ambulance, under the charge of a surgeon, when he received, most unexpectedly, the news of the surrender of Gen. Lee's army. It is said

that when the strange and unwelcome information was first communicated to him he expressed his disbelief with a formidable oath; but being assured of the fact, he turned over on his uneasy bed with a groan, and, with all the solemnity of the venerable Zachariah, exclaimed: "Blow your horn, Gabriel!"

Gen. Early was a man whose person made a strong impression on the mind, and whose character was exceptional and interesting. He was resolute, perhaps obstinate, in his opinions; a true friend, but a man of no professions, taking apparent pleasure rather in doing more than he was obliged to do, than in giving kindly assurances of wishes, or polished expressions of regret for inability to comply with the expectation of friends. His bald head, gray, shaggy beard, and bent frame, tortured and warped by wounds and rheumatism, indicated a greater age than he actually carried. An old bachelor, he had during the war the reputation of being a woman-hater. It is said that he never approved an application for furlough when the applicant wished it for the purpose of getting married, and he often declared that every officer who was married either became utterly worthless or straightway got himself killed. We are led to believe that, with Jubal Early, it was not always thus. Gifted by nature with a handsome figure, a pleasing wit, an intellectual brow, and as fine an eye as ever gave expression to a man's face, it is not probable that he had always held himself aloof from the society of ladies. An intimate friend hints that his early life was influenced by an "affair;" but whatever cooled his affection for the opposite sex, it seems to have been quieted forever. It was the oft-told tale of disappointed love; yet the tender feeling with which he always alluded to the grave of his mother, and his noble, beautiful letter to the ladies of Winchester and the Valley of the Shenandoah, from his retreat in Canada, evince a manly love of good women, which neither age nor troubles nor exile have been able to destroy.

Nothing could be more feeling, no expression more tender and honourable towards the women of the country, than what occurs in the following passage from Gen. Early's pen, describing peculiar excesses of the enemy in the Valley of Virginia: "I had often seen delicate ladies, who had been plundered, insulted, and rendered desolate by the acts of our most atrocious enemies, and while they did not call for it, yet, in the anguished expressions of their