RESPONSIBILITIES OF THE FIRST BULL RUN.

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toward Washington than it had done, and referred to a conference at FairfaxCourt House [October 1st, 1861] in reference to leading the army intoMaryland , in which he informed the three senior officers that he had notthe means of giving the army the strength which they considered necessaryfor offensive operations.

Mr. Davis was displeased by my second reply, because in his mind therewas but one question in his letter. I maintain that there are two; namely,

(1) Did he obstruct the pursuit of the enemy after the victory at Manassas ?

(2) Had he ever objected to an advance or other active operation which itwas feasible for the army to undertake ?

The second matter is utterly unconnected with the battle of Manassas , andas the question of advance or other active operation had been discussednowhere by him, to my knowledge, but at the conference at Fairfax CourtHouse, I supposed that he referred to it. He was dissatisfied with my silencein regard to the conferences which he avers took place on July 21st and 22d,the first knowledge of which I have derived from his book.

THE WITHDRAWAL FROM CENTREVILLE TO THE PENINSULA.

Mr. Davis refers (“Rise and Fall,” I., 444-5) to the instructions for thereorganization of the army given by him to the three general officers whomhe met in conference at Fairfax Court House on October 1st, 1861. But thecorrespondence urging the carrying out of the orders was carried on withGenerals Beauregard and G. W. Smith (my subordinates) in that sameOctober. He neither conversed nor corresponded with me on the subjectthen, the letter to me being dated May 10th, 1862. The original order wasdated October 22d, 1861, to be executed “ as soon as, in the judgment of thecommanding general, it can be safely done under present exigencies.” Asthe enemy was then nearer to our center than that center to either flank ofour army, and another advance upon us by the Federal army was notimprobable on any day, it seemed to me unsafe to make the reorganizationthen. From May 10th to 26th, when the President renewed the subject, wewere in the immediate presence of the enemy, when reorganization wouldhave been infinitely dangerous, as was duly represented by me. But, allud-ing to this conference at Fairfax Court House, he says (p. 449): “ When,at that time and place, I met General Johnston for conference, he calledin the two generals next in rank to himself, Beauregard and G. W. Smith.”These officers were with Mr. Davis in the quarters of General Beauregard,whose guest he was, when I was summoned to him. I had not power tobring any officer into the conference. If such authority had belonged to myoffice, the personal relations lately established between us by the Presidentwould not have permitted me to use it.

He says (pp. 448-9): “ I will now proceed to notice the allegation that I wasresponsible for inaction of the Army of the Potomac in the latter part of 1861and in the early part of 1862.” I think Mr. Davis is here fighting a shadow.I have never seen or heard of the “allegation” referred to; I believe that