MCCLELLAN ORGANIZING THE GRAND ARMY.

117

of men enrolled in the service of the republic, in the formation of his armies,and in constructing a scheme for their concerted action. General Halleck,but just then arrived in Washington, was sent to the West with extensivepowers [see Yol. I., p. 315]. McClellan assigned to him one of his best lieuten-ants, General Buell [see Yol. I., p. 385]. Finally, he prepared the great naval

expeditions which should give to the Fed-•al arms Port Eoyal, Roanoke, and NewOrleans . Scarcely had he begun therork when the fact was borne inon him that the armies of theWest were, as regarded material,less well prepared for the of-fensive than those of the East,and as it seemed requisite thatthey should act together, itmay be inferred that from thefirst days of his assuming com-mand, the scheme of post-

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‘ CLAREMONT,” THE RESIDENCE OF COMMODORE FRENCH FORREST, C. S. N.—PICKET POST OF THE 40TH N^W YORK VOLUNTEERS.

FROM A SKETCH MADE SEPT. 26, 1861.

MT. OLIVET CHURCII ON THE OLDFAIRFAX ROAD — PICKET POSTOF THE 40TII NEW YORK VOL-UNTEERS. FROM A SKETCHMADE IN SEPT., 1861.

poning till spring theoperations of theArmy of the Potomacwas explicitly deter-mined on. McClel-lan wisely concealedfrom every one thisresolution, the objec-tions to which he un-derstood better than any one. But his soldiers were not slow to comprehend;often the crowd has sagacious instincts, and may divine the calculations of eventhe most wary statesman. The army proved it in this case by constructing,with all the ready skill of American backwoodsmen, log-huts to protect themfrom the inclemencies of the season. They did well. When the snow and icerendered military operations impossible, veritable pioneers’ villages had grownup everywhere in the midst of the timber, and afforded the soldiers excellentshelter. The army had coolly taken the liberty of going into winter quarters,without consulting anybody.

The complications of foreign politics contributed their share to restrainMcClellan, at a period when the season would yet have permitted him to acton the offensive. It was the 16th of November when the news reached