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March through Washington Reporting to Burnside The Ninth Corps Burnside's personal qualities To Leesboro Straggling Lee's army at Frederick Our deliberate advance Reno at New Market The march past Reno and Hayes Camp gossip Occupation of Frederick Affair with Hampton's cavalry Crossing Catoctin Mountain The valley and South Mountain Lee's order found Division of his army Jackson at Harper's Ferry Supporting Pleasonton's reconnoissance Meeting Colonel Moor An involuntary warning Kanawha Division's advance Opening of the battle Carrying the mountain crest The morning fight Lull at noon Arrival of supports Battle renewed Final success Death of Reno Hooker's battle on the right His report Burnside's comments Franklin's engagement at Crampton's Gap.
On September 7th I was ordered to take the advance of the Ninth Corps in the march to Leesboro, following Hooker's corps. It was my first march with troops of this army, and I was shocked at the straggling I witnessed. The "roadside brigade," as we called it, was often as numerous, by careful estimate, as our own column moving in the middle of the road.
It should be borne in mind that the Kanawha men had the position of advance-guard, and I believe did not camp in the neighborhood of the other divisions in a single instance from the time we left Leesboro till the battle of South Mountain. What is said of them, therefore, is not from observation.
The next morning at an early hour we proceeded to Leesboro, a distance of three miles, and a report being among the men that we were out of rations, Colonel Beach refused to go further until we had some. The men commenced to forage on a small scale. September 9th the Baltimore papers gave us the startling news that the rebels had occupied Frederick City, and were invading Pennsylvania.
On the day that we marched to Leesboro, Lee's army was concentrated near Frederick, behind the Monocacy River, having begun the crossing of the Potomac on the 4th. There was a singular dearth of trustworthy information on the subject at our army headquarters.
The Kanawha division took the advance of the right wing when we left Leesboro on the 8th, and marched to Brookville. On the 9th it reached Goshen, where it lay on the 10th, and on the 11th reached Ridgeville on the railroad. The rest of the Ninth Corps was an easy march behind us.
During this campaign it was commanded by Major-General Jesse L. Reno, who had long had a division in it, and had led the corps in the recent battle. We marched from Upton's Hill at daybreak of the 6th, taking the road to Georgetown by Ball's Cross-Roads. In Georgetown we turned eastward through Washington to Seventh Street, and thence northward to the Leesboro road.
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