sending the whole shell, and thus magnify our small force into overwhelming numbers"; and he further says: "The results of this plan satisfied my most sanguine expectations." But what does Hooker say?—"On the 4th the cavalry column, under General Stoneman, returned. It is hardly necessary to say it accomplished nothing. One part of it, under Kilpatrick, crossed the Acquia and Richmond railroad, and the fact that on the 5th the cars carried the Rebel wounded and our prisoners over the road to Richmond, will show to what extent the enemy's communications had been interrupted, and an examination of the instructions General Stoneman received, in connection with the official report of his operations, fully sustains me in saying that no officer ever made a greater mistake in construing his orders, and no one ever accomplished less in so doing."
Averell, when starting with his column, was told by Hooker that "in the vicinity of Culpeper, you will be likely to come against Fitzhugh Lee's brigade of cavalry, consisting of about two thousand men, which it is expected you will be able to disperse and destroy without delay to your advance." Averell marched to Culpeper Courthouse on the 30th, then to the Rapidan, and says, "from prisoners taken and from contrabands, it was learned that at least two brigades of the enemy's cavalry were fleeing before us." All day May the 1st, W. H. F. Lee, with his two regiments and one piece of artillery, gallantly disputed his advance, and in compliance with the orders from General Lee, burnt the bridge over the Rapidan and withdrew towards Gordonsville. He reached that place at 11 A. M. on the 2d. At 6.30 A. M. on the same day, Averell, who never advanced closer than three miles of Orange Courthouse, countermarched and went back to the army. He arrived at 10.30 P. M. on the night of the 2d, on the north side of Ely's ford. Averell's losses, by his official report, were two officers and two men wounded and one man killed. He numbered, according to the same report, 3,400 sabres and six guns.
W. H. F. Lee then turned his attention to Stoneman, who was about Trevilians depot in Louisa county. On May the 3d and 4th, he pursued Wyndham's force, who represented the fragment of shell which was filing towards Columbia, and says he heard by telegrams from Richmond that the enemy were everywhere. On the 5th and 6th he harassed Stoneman's rear as he was returning to his army; on May the 8th he returned to Orange Courthouse, having accomplished as much as could possibly be expected with his small force. I leave my hearers to infer what Stuart would
