When, then, this great general had shown us how the rebels were to be whipped, he went out to take command of his army.  And again there was great blowing of horns and beating of drums.  And when he had got his headquarters firmly established in the saddle, he invited the enemy to come forward and get whipped.  And the enemy came forward in all their strength,—­fierce and earnest, and a great and bloody battle was fought on the plains of Manassas.  And when they had fought for three days General Pope declared his new method of carrying on the war was a great success; that he had got the rebels just where he wanted them, and would have them all in his trap for us to-morrow.  We all threw up our caps and felt so happy at this good news.  But our hopes were dashed to the ground again, and it turned out that our Pope had made a slight mistake.  It was the rebels who had got him just where they wanted.  The saddle was not a good place from which to see what the enemy were doing.  And as Pope had given no heed to his rear, General Lee very wisely took the responsibility of giving that important position his attention.

When, then, to-morrow came, our general, who was to give the rebels such a whipping for us, found them in his rear, on his flank, everywhere but where he wanted them.  The very natural result of this was that his army resolved itself into a state of confusion, and in that manner came scampering back on Washington, leaving its commander to take care of himself, which he did, though with the loss of his wardrobe.  It has been hinted that he returned to Washington a much wiser general than when he left it.

The nation was again brought to grief, and fear and disorder reigned in Washington.  People were heard to say that Pope had made a prodigious failure, and was not the general we took him for, or he never would have let his army run away from him in this way.  Others declared he had opened the gates of the city to the enemy, and invited him to walk in.  And it was not with feelings of encouragement that they saw gunboats move up and take position where they could check the enemy’s approach.  Never did general lose his laurels so quickly.  Indeed, my son, when he returned to Washington, with little else than his saddle, there was not a dog to bark him a welcome, nor a chambermaid to wave a napkin in his honor.

Timid people fancied every hour of the day that they could see the rebel army deploying over the hills of Arlington, and loud calls were made for a general who could save us.  But we had something better than a mere general to save us.  We had the grim and silent strength of the forts.  And these the enemy dare not approach.  Their effect on the enemy was manifest and he turned aside from them, and passed up into Maryland, victorious and defiant.