The Court-Martial of General John Pope: Correcting Some of the Misconceptions About the Second Bull Run Campaign

By Steven Condon

This book, which takes a bold new look at the Second Manassas Campaign, is full of surprises, including a mistaken mountain, a warning that never was, and Pope's real plan for entrapping Stonewall Jackson. It contains an amazing Union supporting cast that includes a train-stealing renegade general, another general who was sent to reinforce Pope but who nevertheless sought to abandon him on the eve of battle, and another Union general who gloated over what he foresaw as Pope's imminent battlefield defeat and then not surprisingly repeatedly delayed the forwarding of reinforcements to Pope. No, 'The Court-Martial of General John Pope' is not alternate history. And, no, the many startling insights and new discoveries within this book are not fictions, even though they are presented within the framework of a fictional trial taking place in the afterlife.

It seems that the much maligned Union general John Pope has demanded a trial in order to once and for all clear his military reputation from 150 years of accumulated slights, slanders, and misconceptions. And who is defending Pope in the Valhalla Courthouse; none other than that peerless American defense attorney Clarence Darrow.

The packed courtroom blazes with electricity and occasionally thunders in outrage as the wily Darrow pulls one white rabbit after another out of his well-stocked magician's hat in a performance that rivals his very best. But Darrow has his work cut out for him as he faces a tribunal as daunting as any that ever sat in judgment at Nuremberg, packed as it is with the ablest generals of history. Ranging across the centuries from Alexander the Great to America's George S. Patton, these masters of the military art haveâ like all othersâ long considered Pope to be a laughingstock.

Equally entertaining are the events outside the courtroom as twice each day three noted members of the press corpsâ including Mark Twain and Nellie Blyâ furiously debate among themselves the merits of Darrow's long string of revelations. Readers can enjoy the excitement of courtroom drama as they thrill to some of the most startling discoveries in Civil War history in recent times and discover one of the fiercest but least known rivalries in American history.

This is because 'Court-Martial' boasts as its centerpiece a rivalry that was perhaps the most fascinating and devastating in American history: the fierce competition between Union General John Pope, the darling of the radical Republicans, and Union General George McClellan, the military standard bearer of the conservative Democratic Party and later Abraham Lincoln's Democratic opponent for President in 1864. 'Court-Martial' convincingly demonstrates for perhaps the first time the true depth and terrible impact of this fateful rivalry.

Competing with the Pope-McClellan rivalry for attention, however, is the drama of the controversy that spurred one of the most celebrated and politically volatile courtroom battles of the latter half of the 19th Century, the fifteen-year conflict between John Pope and the general officer who was court-martialed and drummed out of the army for not giving Pope his full support at Second Manassasâ Major General Fitz John Porter, noted friend and protégé of George McClellan.

The often amazing evidence brought forward by Darrow in his client's defense is well corroborated by over 300 end notes. Some historians and Civil War aficionados may object to the placement of this new evidence inside a dramatic fictional story. But given the degree to which John Pope's military reputation has unintentionally been misrepresented and the 130 years for which this has gone on, it was felt that, in order to shake the public's long frozen opinion of John Pope free from its icebound state, the setting of a trial and the skills of an advocate of the caliber of Clarence Darrow were required.

• Language: English
• Publisher: eBookIt.com
• Release date: Apr 26, 2016
• ISBN: 9781456605216

Book preview

Amos.

Morning of Day 1: Flint Hill

He doesn’t stand a chance, said Ernie, stuffing some popcorn into his mouth.

One should never discount a defendant’s chances, Mr. Peale, when he has such an able advocate as Clarence Darrow defending him, said Alistair Cooke, sitting in front of and a little below Ernie in the press box.

I’m betting on Darrow to sway the judges, said Nellie. He could convince you that it was raining chocolate milk if he tried. Nellie reached into Ernie’s bag, while gazing fixedly at the defendant, who was sitting beside Darrow at the table they shared on the other side of the courtroom. But Nellie was very hungry, having had no breakfast that morning, and she grabbed too big a handful of popcorn. As some kernels slipped from her hand, she squeezed tighter so as not to lose any more. Several pieces shot out of Nellie’s hand and into the back the head of Edward R. Murrow, the man sitting in front of her. Murrow, a reporter noted among other things for broadcasting live radio reports during the Luftwaffe’s World War II bombing of London, turned angrily on Nellie and fixed her with a steely gaze.

In the confusion Mark Twain reached forward and stole some popcorn from Ernie’s bag. Twain smiled and shared some of it with the man on his left, Roman historian Gaius Cornelius Tacitus. Yah, that Darrow sure is a sly one, said Twain. He can make as many sparks fly as old Tesla.

Tacitus gladly accepted the popcorn offered to him and said to Twain, I’m not sure I agree, Mark. I’m inclined to think that this group of judges will prove an extremely intractable audience for Mr. Darrow. Containing as it does three or four of the best generals in history, it is not likely to forgive or overlook the faults of so noted a military bungler as your country’s John Pope.

We’ll see, Gaius, replied Twain, We’ll see.

The main courtroom in the Valhalla Courthouse was packed for the first day of the hearing. Occupying the stadium like seating reserved for members of the media were numerous famous reporters and writers from history. At the right end of the second row of the press box immediately in front of Twain sat Elizabeth Jane Cochran, pioneer female journalist of the late 19th century who wrote under the pen name Nellie Bly. On her left sat globetrotting World War II correspondent Ernie Peale. In front of Peale sat the astute but always kindly looking Alfred Alistair Cooke, for 58 years the host of the BBC news show entitled Letter from America and for many years the host of PBS’ Masterpiece Theatre.

The courtroom was a large, sloping auditorium divided into four sections by a central aisle and two side aisles. The ranks of the audience displayed a wide range of colorful military uniforms from a multitude of kingdoms, nations, and centuries, although there was a definite emphasis of uniforms from the Union and Confederate armies of the American Civil War. Among the latter, the Union uniforms seemed to congregate primarily on the left side of the auditorium and the Confederate uniforms on the right. Prominent among the Confederates were Stonewall Jackson, Robert E. Lee, and James Longstreet, who were sitting side by side in the front row, immediately next to the central aisle.

Whatever country or century a member of the audience might represent, they all had one thing in common, a deep curiosity to see whether or not Clarence Darrow could pull yet one more rabbit out of his hat and make Union General John Pope, one of the most famous military klutzes of all time look like a first rate general. The defendant himself, sitting confidently next to Darrow, seemed to think so.

The door to the judges’ chamber was located in the far left corner of the courtroom’s front wall. The raised five-seated judges’ platform stretched along the center of the front wall, and the press box was positioned along the right wall, slightly forward of the judge’s platform and facing toward the center.

On the left side of the courtroom, between the judges’ platform and the heavy Union concentration of the audience, lay the Defense’s table, at which sat the defendant and his one counselor. On the other side of the courtroom was the table for the Recorder. In some respects he would be representing the prosecution. But in as much as the historians’ case against Pope had been carefully and repeated laid out over the last 130 years, and given that their charges were well known to all in attendance, he was not expected to bring forward any new evidence. He would, however, have the opportunity to cross-examine any witnesses called forward by the Defense.

I’m with you, Gaius, said Ernie, turning to the man immediately behind him. That Pope made a real big mistake asking for this hearing. Once the judges get a whiff of the meal that chef Darrow will have to set before them, they are gonna turn up their noses. And then it’s bye-bye, Johnnie.

What do you mean, ‘bye-bye, Johnnie’? asked Nellie, grabbing another handful of popcorn from Ernie’s large bag.

I mean Johnnie Pope is gonna get himself kicked right out of Valhalla to one of the less desirable neighborhoods of this afterlife.

They can’t kick him out of Valhalla, said Nellie. He’s a career military man.

I’m afraid they can, Nellie, said Twain, leaning forward slightly and speaking in her ear so she could hear him above all the hubbub of swirling conversations in the auditorium.

No, said Nellie, turning around and looking up at Twain.

Yes, insisted Twain. If they feel he disgraced his uniform, they can exile him.

But he never ran away, insisted Nellie.

No, but he sure made a big fool of himself, time after time, said Ernie with a huge smile. Or rather that Stonewall Jackson sure made a fool of him. No, old Johnnie made a big mistake asking for this tribunal. He should have put up with all the kidding he’s been getting all these years. This group of judges especially are not about to shake hands with Johnnie Pope and say, ‘All is forgiven.’

Here come the judges, said Nellie.

All, rise, called the Bailiff.

The first judge through the door was Alexander of Macedon, a.k.a. Alexander the Great. He was dressed in the brightly decorated armor he had worn at the Battle of Gaugamela, the victory that had done in the Persian Empire. Immediately behind Alexander marched George S. Patton, Jr., commander of the U.S. Third Army in World War II.

Your General Patton seems a little outclassed among so many world conquerors, Mark, said Tacitus.

America is a republic, Gaius. We don’t produce world conquerors but I would match our General Patton against any of them on any field, in any century.

Two paces behind Patton walked the chief judge, Hannibal of Carthage, the general who almost conquered the Republic of Rome. Close behind Hannibal came Sun Tzu, military commander in ancient China and author of the 2,400-year-old classic of military science The Art of War. And bringing up the rear came the shortest but the proudest-looking judge of them all, Napoleon Bonaparte, the little Corsican whose stride encompassed most of Europe.

Although referred to in the tabloids as the Court-Martial of General John Pope because everyone expected him to be convicted, it was technically more of a board of officers hearing. It had been requested by General Pope in order to clear his military reputation from almost 150 years of accumulated sleights and slanders pertaining to Pope’s performance in the campaign and battle of Second Manassas (a.k.a. Second Bull Run). In this respect the hearing had much in common with the hearing that was convened soon after that battle at the request of Pope’s chief subordinate at Second Manassas, General Irvin McDowell. McDowell had called his hearing in order to clear his name of many slanders arising out of the battle.

Pope’s hearing also had much in common with the yet more famous Board of Officers hearing that was called over fifteen years after the same battle in order to give a second hearing to General Fitz John Porter, the man who was drummed out of the army for supposedly failing to give his full support to General Pope at Second Manassas. Porter had been able to convince the judges at his second hearing of his innocence. Did Pope have any chance of doing likewise?

The chatter in the court room suddenly ceased with one strike of the gavel by Hannibal. Order! We are here today to give an opportunity to one of our number to clear his military reputation from a host of accusations. I will not read through the long list of accusations as most of it is well known. Here Hannibal passed several papers to the clerk of the court, who sat at a table immediately in front of the judge’s stand. The respected defense counsel may make his opening remarks.

Clarence Darrow set down the paper he was reading from, pushed back his chair, and strode to the front.

Esteemed judges, said Darrow, scanning his eyes slowly from Napoleon on the far left to Alexander on the far right, you were all chosen because of your keen knowledge of the art of war. You know the many ways by which a general may defeat his foe and conversely you are familiar with the mistakes by which a general may come to be defeated. And you know intimately how chance can sometimes play an important role in determining the outcome of a battle or even a war.

Chance, hah whispered Ernie to Nellie. If he’s gonna try to blame all Pope’s mistakes on bad luck, he’s in for a real disappointment.

Here Darrow turned and pointed to John Pope. The defendant sitting before you today is here because he believes that he has a right to put to rest once and for all 150 years of slights, slanders, and attacks regarding his military record in the Second Manassas Campaign of 1862. History insists he was a mediocre general at best. Darrow paused and swept his gaze over the press box and then turned and slowly scanned the public seats. Then turning once again to face the judges, went on. I submit, however, that he was an able general whose venerable record has been twisted by an almost uncountable string of omissions and distortions.

Hoots of laughter broke out from the public seats and Confederate General George Pickett laughed so hard that he fell into the central aisle and had to be assisted back into his seat. Hannibal banged his gavel several times.

When the laughter had died down, Darrow looked in the direction of the man who was seated in the front row on the right side of the courtroom between Confederate Generals Stonewall Jackson and James Longstreet and added, It is true that John Pope lost the Battle of Second Manassas but John Pope’s highly respected opponent in that battle—here Darrow looked right into Robert E. Lee’s eyes—also lost the battles of Mechanicsville, Malvern Hill, and Gettysburg?

There were cries of Shame, shame! and No, no! from the public seats, the loudest shouts coming from a cluster of Confederate officers sitting behind Lee. Judge Hannibal banged his gavel down several more times, shouting, Order! Order, I say.

Then turning his eye on Napoleon, Darrow went on. Every general has a bad day once in a while, even the members of this august tribunal. Just consider the Battle of Waterloo, for example. Darrow then turned to look into the eyes of Alexander—or the Battle of Zama?

This was greeted by hushed whispers from the audience.

He’s gone too far, whispered Nellie, turning to look back at Twain. He’ll turn the judges against him by reminding them of the crucial battles that ended their military careers.

Wait and see, whispered Twain. Darrow knows what he’s doing.

Shhhh, hushed Edward R. Murrow from the front row of the press box.

To most of the residents of Valhalla, continued Darrow, these comparisons may appear ridiculous, even insulting, but I make the claim here and now that if two black marks on Pope’s military record could be wiped clean, then this tribunal needs to carefully consider my remark.

There was a soft murmur from the audience and Nellie whispered to Twain, What does Darrow have up his sleeve this time?

Shhhh! said Murrow.

In 1862 John Pope had the bad luck to square off against the most daunting trio of generals ever to fight side-by-side on a battlefield, continued Darrow looking right at Stonewall Jackson, Robert E. Lee, and James Longstreet. Pope was leading a discouraged army that he had but recently inherited and had not had the time to turn into a confident and capable fighting force. He was backed by an array of subordinates that was heavily weighted with the mediocre, the unlucky, and the unwilling. The battle occurred thirty miles west of Washington D.C. Pope struggled heroically but lost. He was rewarded by having his army taken away from him and given to a man who had stabbed him in the back. In the days immediately preceding this two-day battle two things occurred that stand out dramatically in John Pope’s record.

Black Mark #1! shouted Darrow, jabbing the index finger of his right hand into the air. Ever since this lamentable campaign, John Pope has been ridiculed and mocked… This caused some laughter. …by countless writers and historians for permitting one of his three redoubtable opponents to lead three divisions around Pope’s army and into his rear. There were muted laughs and more than one member of the audience called out, Commissary Pope. Hannibal grabbed his gavel but stopped it in midair when the audience suddenly went silent.

After capturing Manassas Junction, Stonewall Jackson’s illustrious ‘foot cavalry,’—Darrow smiled and dipped his head slightly in Stonewall Jackson’s direction—"a poorly shod array of truly formidable warriors who were more used to living on green apples and unripe corn scrounged from nearby fields during their historic marches, gorged themselves on a rich assortment of foodstuffs taken from Pope’s secondary supply depot."

The Confederates in the audience loudly took exception to Darrow’s use of the term secondary. Hannibal pounded his gavel several times to restore order.

"The loss of this secondary supply depot, continued Darrow, created no severe hardship for John Pope, whose rations and forage came to him daily from his primary supply depot in Alexandria, which lies across the Potomac River from Washington, D.C. However, at Manassas Junction Jackson also severed Pope’s railway line to Alexandria and his telegraphic link to Washington, D.C. As a result Pope could no longer receive his daily shipment of supplies from Alexandria. Nor could he receive any more of the reinforcements of George McClellan’s Army of the Potomac that had been coming to him by rail from Alexandria. And perhaps most importantly of all, no more telegraphic messages could travel over this line between General Pope and him immediate superior, General-in-Chief Henry Wager Halleck, who was located at the War Department building in Washington, D.C. These consequences were all the more severe because at this time John Pope was striving to keep Robert E. Lee and his large army from crossing the Rappahannock River and attacking him."

Then, raising his voice, Darrow almost shouted, "I tell you here and now…that Stonewall succeeded in severing Pope’s communications only because Pope was deceived by and disappointed by several subordinates."

This resulted in a flurry of snickers and a host No’s.

"Esteemed judges, you know very well that every general—yourselves included—has suffered from the mistakes of his subordinates from time to time. Darrow paused to let the judges reflect on the times that this or that subordinate had put them in a difficult situation or even brought on a defeat. Then he focused his gaze on the judge sitting at the far left and added, What would have been the outcome at Waterloo, had General Grouchy vigorously pursued General Blücher’s Prussians—as he had been ordered to do by his commander—instead of turning aside too soon and letting the Prussians slip back to the battlefield?"

Is that true? Nellie whispered to Twain.

It’s debatable but it may put him back in Napoleon’s good graces, replied Twain.

Shhh, hushed Murrow.

Black Mark #2, snapped Darrow, again jabbing his right hand into the air. What did John Pope do when his supplies and his communications were cut off and he was all but cornered, having strong enemy forces both south of him and north of him? Did he march his army quickly to the northeast to seek the security of the forts that ringed Washington and Alexandria? Not at all. This bold general marched quickly north, determined to conquer the enemy at Manassas Junction before the rest of Lee’s army could advance sufficiently to threaten him or join forces with Stonewall. On the night of August 27th Pope composed a plan for a pincer movement on Stonewall Jackson the next morning.

Darrow turned to face the press box and then the audience. The plan failed but instead of praising Pope for his boldness, historians and writers have chosen to praise his opponent’s forethought and wisdom, even as they denigrated what they considered were Pope’s simple minded and clumsy attempts to entrap this master of maneuver, claiming that Pope’s plan was ‘obsolete only minutes after [the orders] were written…’"¹ Here Darrow paused while another wave of snickers crested and faded. Then he continued. "And consequently ‘would result in nothing more than a convergence on a vacuum.’ ² General laughter. And even blaming Pope’s plan for his later battlefield loss by referring to his pincer movement as ‘an inconsiderate and ill-judged movement…the parent of much disaster…’"³ Here the audience erupted into waves of loud laughter, upon which Hannibal lifted his gavel, thought better of it, and waited patiently for the audience to enjoy itself.

Darrow turned back to face the judges, Hannibal banged his gavel three times, and the laughter finally subsided. These assessments by Civil War writers Peter Cozzens, Shelby Foote, and John Codman Ropes provide distorted pictures resulting from an identification of McDowell and Sigeel’s implementation of Pope’s plan with what Pope actually ordered.

Cries of No, no issued from the audience.

"I tell you here and now… shouted Darrow, once again raising his index finger in the air, that Pope’s well designed pincer movement failed only because McDowell and Sigel thoroughly mangled it. … Here Darrow paused and added in a lower, calmer voice, …and because two Confederate division commanders were luckily confused by an act of fortuitous incompetence by their corps commander."

Darrow paused as a storm of abuse was hurled down upon him by the Confederates in the audience, well supported by officers representing many centuries and countries. As Hannibal strove to restore order, Darrow cast a knowing eye on Generals A. P. Hill and Dick Ewell, two of Jackson’s three division commanders at Second Manassas, who were sitting in the front of the audience between the right aisle and the wall.

When Hannibal had finally restored order, Darrow continued. Let us proceed to Black Mark #1, said Darrow. We begin by examining the relevant geography. Darrow walked over to an easel a few feet to the left and a little in front of where Napoleon was sitting. Mounted on the easel was a large map. (See Figure 1.) Learned judges, I give you Exhibit A. It depicts the mountains, railroads, and rivers of northern Virginia.

Darrow picked up a pointer and began explaining. This large mass of mountains here in the left third of the map is the Blue Ridge Mountains, marking the eastern border of the famous Shenandoah Valley, a vital agricultural area to the Confederacy, known during the Civil War as the ‘breadbasket of Virginia.’ The western boundary of the valley is the Allegheny Mountains, a small portion of which is shown on the far left edge of the map. This large mountain ridge running down the center of the Shenandoah Valley is Massanutten Mountain. And the smattering of small mountains in the upper center of the map represents the Bull Run Mountains.

The largest river on the map is the great Potomac River, which separates Maryland from Virginia. This river begins far off the map to the upper left, flows generally east until it reaches Washington, D.C., then turns south, flows past nearby Alexandria, Virginia, and continues generally southward and eastward, growing ever larger as more streams flow into it, and eventually empties into the Chesapeake Bay off to the lower right of this map.

Perhaps the most important river for our story, however, is the Rappahannock River, which begins in the upper left in the Blue Ridge Mountains, flows generally southeast across the center of our map passing the important points of Waterloo Bridge, the Rappahannock Railroad Station—in almost the very center of our map—then on to Fredericksburg, until it flows off our map in the lower right, soon to empty into the Potomac River.

The map also shows two major railroads and a less important one. The Orange and Alexandria Railroad begins off our map in the lower left, runs generally northeast through the town of Orange, Virginia, on past Rapidan Station on the Rapidan River, then on to Culpeper, Rappahannock Station on the Rappahannock River, past Bealton, and Warrenton Junction—not to be confused with Warrenton itself, which is off to the northwest. After Warrenton Junction the railroad runs through Catlett’s Station, Bristoe Station, and Manassas Junction, where it begins to turn more easterly and runs on to Alexandria.

Figure 1. Exhibit A: Location of Pope's and Lee's Forces before Jackson's March

The other large railroad is the Manassas Gap Railroad, which begins in the Shenandoah Valley off our map to the left of Massanutten Mountain. It runs northeast to Strasburg, then east to Front Royal, two important towns in the Shenandoah Valley. From Front Royal the railroad runs through a pass in the Blue Ridge Mountains, east to Rectortown, south to Salem, then generally east-southeast past White Plains, then through Thoroughfare Gap in the Bull Run Mountains, past Gainesville, and finally terminates at Manassas Junction, where it joins the Orange and Alexandria Railroad.

The third, lesser railroad, but still important in our story, is the Fredericksburg and Richmond Railroad, the most famous stretch of which for our story is the northernmost 11 miles here between the deep water port of Aquia—sitting near the mouth of Aquia Creek, almost on the Potomac River—and the town of Fredericksburg, on the Rappahannock River.

Exhibit A also depicts the Confederate and Union forces as they were located on August 25th, the morning that Stonewall Jackson set off on his march around John Pope’s army. They are mostly located here, along the Rappahannock River between Waterloo and Rappahannock Railroad Station. You can see depicted here the elements of General Lee’s army, on the southwest side of the river, and opposing them on the northeast side, General Pope’s army.

At this point Darrow took down the first map, revealing another very similar map underneath it. Learned judges, I offer you Exhibit B. It is the same map as Exhibit A but shows the motion of some army forces. Lifting up his pointer again, Darrow launched into a description of Jackson’s march.

"Jackson set off on his two-day march on the morning of August 25th from his bivouac at Jefferson,⁴ Virginia and traveled through Orleans,⁵ Salem,⁶ and White Plains⁷ in route for the all-important Thoroughfare Gap in the Bull Run Mountains. You can see the mountains portrayed here on the map. Darrow called attention to them with his pointer. Once past the Gap, he continued through Gainesville and severed Pope’s railway line at Bristoe Station. His three divisions had travelled 50 miles in two days.⁸ That same night Jackson sent two infantry regiments under General Trimble, accompanied by J.E.B. Stuart’s cavalry, northeast to capture Manassas Junction. Historians have long known that the furthest point west that Jackson ever travelled was a point one mile northwest of Amissville—here Darrow stabbed the map with his pointer—at which point he abandoned the turnpike." (See Figure 2.)

Darrow walked over to the table where John Pope was sitting and picked up one of several books on the table. Then turning to face the judges, he continued. The route of Jackson’s march is well known to most students of the American Civil War. As I stated before, John Pope has been harshly criticized by Civil War writers for almost 150 years for not taking action to thwart Jackson’s march before it did him great harm. Pope is depicted as being hesitant, negligent in his duty, and downright foolish in his conclusions. I shall read from a sample of published writings.

"Mr. Byron Farwell, author of Stonewall: A Biography of General Thomas J. Jackson (1992), states, ‘Although Jackson and Lee had hoped that [Jackson’s] movements would be undetected, the Federals were, in fact, able to follow it closely, but Jackson’s intentions were unknown, and Pope believed he was on his way to Front Royal, back to the Valley of Virginia.’⁹ Note in particular Farwell’s words ‘follow it closely.’ We shall see just how closely Pope was able to follow it. To read Farwell’s account, or almost any account, one would assume that General Pope knew that Stonewall Jackson was leading this mysterious column. In truth, Pope did not know who was leading it until after Jackson had struck Bristoe and Manassas Junction."

Figure 2. Exhibit B - Jackson's and Pope's Marches, August 25-27, 1862

Get ready for the sparks, Nellie, whispered Twain with a glint in his eye.

Darrow put down Farwell’s book and picked another. "Mr. John Langellier, author of, Second Manassas 1862: Robert E. Lee’s Greatest Victory, also portrays a Union general who well knew Jackson’s movements but foolishly failed to comprehend the danger, ‘Apprised of these various movements by his scouts and spies, but failing to comprehend their destination or purpose, Pope issued orders that scattered rather than concentrated, his large army.’"¹⁰ ‘Apprised of these various movements’ says Langellier. Here Darrow put down Langellier’s book and picked up a third book. And Mr. David G. Martin, author of The Second Bull Run Campaign: July-August 1862, writes, ‘Pope’s misreading of the direction of Jackson’s column gave Stonewall an open line of march to the Federal rear.’"¹¹

"Martin’s use of the term ‘misreading’ refers to seemingly universal criticism of Pope’s judgment during these two days, namely the claim that, despite following Jackson’s march closely, Pope foolishly concluded that Jackson was traveling not to Thoroughfare Gap but rather to the Shenandoah Valley. Here Darrow stabbed down his pointer onto the region west of the Blue Ridge Mountains. Did Pope really conclude that Jackson was en route to the Shenandoah Valley? asked Darrow. Was he really able to follow Jackson’s march closely?"

Of course, whispered Ernie to Nellie.

Shhhh, hushed Nellie, intently watching Darrow as she put more popcorn into her mouth.

I put it to the learned judges, continued Darrow, "that to John Pope the route of this mysterious enemy column did not look anything like the route that Jackson actually travelled. Why? Because of faulty military intelligence!" And here Darrow slammed the book down on the table.

There were murmurs of denial from various members of the audience but the judges all looked thoughtful and waited for Darrow to continue.

See, whispered Nellie to Ernie.

Bull dingie, replied Ernie.

Shhh! said Murrow from the front row.

I call as my first witness Mr. John Clark, John Pope’s primary observer of the march of this mysterious enemy column.

A clean shaven man of medium height came forward, was sworn in, and took his seat in the witness box. Darrow walked over to the witness.

Will you please tell us your rank and position on August 25th, 1862?

I was a colonel in the Union Army serving on General Banks’ staff.

Darrow turned to face the judges and said, I remind the judges that General Banks was one of the three corps commanders, along with Generals McDowell and Sigel, in Pope’s original Army of Virginia. Then turning back to the witness, Darrow continued, And where were you on that morning?

"I was located atop one of General Pope’s signal station hills located about a mile east of Waterloo Bridge¹² and four miles north-northeast of Jefferson."

Turning to the judges, Darrow said, I should point out that the hill in question was higher in elevation than both Jefferson, the town of Jackson’s departure, and Amissville, near where Jackson turned north; some 150 to 200 feet higher. I will submit a map to demonstrate these facts. Then turning back to the witness, Darrow went on with his examination. Colonel Clark, did you have a completely unobstructed view of Jackson’s march?

No, sir. My view was often obstructed due to numerous trees and undulations in the ground but I caught sightings of it occasionally.¹³

Darrow handed Clark a piece of paper. Will you please read the underlined portion of this report, dated 10:30 a.m., August 25th?

Have discovered their [wagon] train passing north in the vicinity of Flint Hill; infantry in rear. Their column is now in view at five different points between Flint Hill and Jefferson. Column been moving since daylight, composed principally of infantry and artillery…¹⁴

Do you recognize this report and if so, are the date and time correct?

Yes, sir, I recognize it. It is my 10:30 a.m. report to General Banks.

I should mention, said Darrow to the judges, that General Banks—who vouched for the accuracy of Colonel Clark’s observations—forwarded this report along with an earlier one to General Pope, who received them both shortly before noon, and that this was Pope’s first knowledge of the movement of this enemy column. Pope soon notified by telegram his immediate superior, General-in-Chief Henry Wager Halleck, who was located in the War Department in Washington, D. C.

"I should also mention that these two dispatches from Colonel Clark to General Banks, as well as Banks’ own accompanying dispatch to Pope, all reside in a 100-volume set of books published by the U. S. Government in the 1880’s under the name War of the Rebellion: Official Records of the Union and Confederate Armies. These two dispatches are often cited by Civil War authors when they are writing about this campaign. During this hearing I shall be citing many more dispatches and telegrams from the Official Record."

At this point Darrow took back the paper from Clark, and turning to face Hannibal said, I shall now read to you General Banks’ dispatch to Pope, addressed to Pope’s chief of staff, Colonel Ruggles.

"‘Inclosed [sic] you will please find reports by Colonel Clark, aide-de-camp, from the signal corps station of the movements of the enemy on the south side of Hedgeman’s or Rappahannock River. The facts are reported as having been observed by himself, and can be relied upon as being as near the truth as the distance will permit.

"‘It seems to be apparent that the enemy is threatening or moving upon the valley of the Shenandoah via Front Royal, with designs upon Potomac [River], possibly beyond…’"¹⁵

Darrow handed the paper to Hannibal, who glanced at it and passed it to Sun Tzu on his right.

Darrow then walked over to the map on the easel (Figure 2), picked up the pointer, and turned to the judges. I would like to point out, and this can be verified here on Exhibit B, that Flint Hill, and here Darrow stabbed the map at the town named Flint Hill, "is 9.1 miles northwest of Amissville; in other words, 8 miles—half a day’s march—further west than Jackson actually went."

He’s cleared Pope of one charge, whispered Nellie to Twain.

He’s not done yet, I’ll wager, replied Twain.

Darrow continued. "As I said, Pope is often criticized for jumping to the seemingly ridiculous conclusion that the mysterious enemy column was headed for the Shenandoah Valley instead of for the gateway to Pope’s rear, Thoroughfare Gap in the Bull Run Mountains.¹⁶ Pope, it is claimed, was convinced that the enemy column was headed either for Chester Gap—here Darrow tapped the map—which led to Front Royal, a town in the Shenandoah Valley that was 25 miles northwest of Pope’s army, or for the more southerly Thornton Gap—Darrow again pointed to the map—which ran from Sperryville to Luray, and which was approximately 19 miles west-southwest of Pope’s army."

Here Darrow stepped up to Napoleon, the leftmost judge and looked him in the eye. "What the writers seem either unaware of or forgetful about is that Flint Hill is only 12 miles from Front Royal but is 15 miles from Jefferson. So at 10:30 in the morning on the first day of Jackson’s march the mysterious enemy column being tracked by Colonel Clark was reported to Pope to be over half way to the Shenandoah Valley." Darrow slapped the pointer down on the Shenandoah Valley as he finished. (See Figure 2.)

This caused some remarks of surprise from throughout the audience as well as some cries of denial.

You and I are both keenly aware of the northward path followed by Stonewall Jackson’s three divisions, as they went around the Bull Run Mountain and around Pope’s army. How different things looked to Pope, based on the report from his observer, Colonel Clark. But Civil War writers seem totally oblivious of this fact.

There were more cries of dissent from the public seats.

Seems your fellow historians have overlooked something, Gaius, whispered Twain.

Sloppy research, replied Tacitus in a low voice, and he shrugged. It happens now and again.

Turning to the audience Darrow said, You ask how such a fact, if it were indeed significant, could be overlooked by so many for so long? asked Darrow. "Because they were too busy thinking that Pope was a fool and that Clark’s report was just one more piece of evidence demonstrating it. They totally missed the significance of ‘in the vicinity of Flint Hill.’ And this is not the only piece of geographical evidence that they overlooked, as I shall in time demonstrate."

Darrow walked over to the defense table once more and lifted up another book. "Let us take a look at some of the distortions and misrepresentations that John Pope’s reputation has suffered from over the years. John Hennessy, for example, the author of the standard campaign analysis of Second Manassas, Return to Bull Run: The Campaign and Battle of Second Manassas, seems totally unaware that the mysterious enemy column as reported to Pope was moving as much west as north. On page 104 he writes of Pope’s troops movements on August 25th: ‘a program that completely ignored Jackson’s northward marching column.’"¹⁷

"Martin’s description of Pope’s action in this instance is also fairly typical: ‘By noon Pope received information from a number of sources that a large body of Confederates was marching northwest towards Amissville. Pope at once concluded that Jackson was headed for the Shenandoah Valley, and began preparing McDowell’s corps to follow him.’ Martin knows that Jackson went northwest to just a mile beyond Amissville but Clark reported to Pope at 10:30 a.m. that the lead elements were ‘in the vicinity of Flint Hill.’"¹⁸

"Given Clark’s report, Pope was well justified in concluding that the rebels might be bound for the Shenandoah Valley. Even Jackson’s redoubtable ‘foot cavalry’ could not march so swiftly that Stonewall would lead them on a long detour to Flint Hill when his ultimate destination was Thoroughfare Gap.

Hannibal now rapped his gavel and declared, We will take a two-hour recess for lunch.

The members of the media fought with one another to rush out of the press box, then raced out of the court room to their waiting camera crews to give their first reports of the trial.

Moments later Nellie Bly stood on the steps of the courthouse as a makeup technician fussed with her hair.

That’s good enough, snapped the producer. Out of the way. You’re on, Nellie.

"Clarence Darrow has done it again, ladies and gentlemen. It was not a rabbit that he pulled out of his hat this morning but rather a 15-mile stretch of 1862 Virginia turnpike, as he demonstrated that General John Pope was seriously misled about the direction of march of Stonewall Jackson’s army. Darrow, with the help of his surprise witness, Colonel John Clark, Pope’s primary observer of Stonewall Jackson’s march around Pope’s army, showed that Clark placed Jackson over half way to the Shenandoah Valley at only 10:30 a.m. on the first day of Jackson’s famous two-day march to Manassas Junction…"

Not far from Nellie stood Edward R. Murrow, surrounded by his camera crew and in the midst of his on-the-scene report. "…And astonishingly, Darrow did this by pointing out one small fact in Colonel John Clark’s written report of that morning, a report that resides in the Official Records of the Civil War—a set of books that has been combed through, dissected, and quoted since the 1880’s by legions of Civil War writers…"

The whole court, announced Mark Twain, who stood a few feet away facing his camera, is waiting anxiously to see if Darrow can refute other evidence and claims that have been touted for almost 150 years to make it appear that the defendant, General John Pope, was hesitant, negligent, and foolish time and again as the Confederates—led primarily by Stonewall Jackson’s three divisions—ran rings around him at the Battle of Second Manassas and in the three days immediately before the battle…

But meanwhile down on the sidewalk Ernie Peale was announcing to his viewers, …Clarence Darrow came up empty handed in his first appearance before the likes of Napoleon Bonaparte and Alexander the Great this morning. Lacking any real evidence, he vainly tried to hang his entire case on one minor reference to ‘the vicinity of Flint Hill’ in one observer’s report of Jackson’s march. Darrow’s tiny feather of evidence when compared to the library full of weighty tomes written by hundreds of learned Civil War historians and authors was truly laughable and the audience let him know so. Darrow’s dance did not confuse me, and I am sure it did not confuse the learned judges…

Sometime after this Mark Twain, Nellie, and Ernie were standing in line at a roadside food vendor’s truck bearing the sign Mars’ Meals on Wheels, waiting their turn to order some lunch. Twain, standing in front of Nellie, turned around, removed a large cigar from his mouth, blew a smoke ring, and said to Nellie and Ernie, Pretty exciting, don’t you think?

Nellie coughed twice. Must you smoke those horrible huge cigars, Mark?

I almost fell asleep during that long geography lesson, said Ernie.

Twain replaced the cigar in his mouth, took another puff, and said, Setting the locale, Ernie, setting the locale. Very important. I’m sure now that he’s gone over it so thoroughly he won’t have to spend such big blocks of time on it again.

Well, I think he was just trying to put the judges to sleep so they would not notice how skimpy his evidence was this morning, added Ernie.

Skimpy? said Nellie. Darrow just caught the historians with their pants down and you’re too stubborn to admit it.

Ernie frowned. We’ll see. Darrow still has his hands full. It was a two-day march and Pope dug a hole for himself on at least one occasion, if I recall rightly. He soon knew where Jackson was really heading and yet he took no action to stop Jackson. He was a failure as a field commander.

Did Pope really know, or is that just what the historians have been telling us? asked Nellie. I think we haven’t heard the last word from John Clark. I think there are more important revelations yet to come.

Afternoon of Day 1: Buck Mountain and Pope’s Map

When court reconvened after the lunch recess Colonel Clark was again in the witness box. Darrow approached the panel of judges. Learned judges, we have seen that General Pope was seriously misled as to the direction and distance of the mysterious enemy column at 10:30 in the morning of the first day of Jackson’s two-day march. But what happened later? For example at the close of Day One, where did Pope think the enemy column was located and where was it heading?

"What have our Civil War writers been telling us all these years? Mr. Martin’s portrayal of the situation is fairly typical, and as I shall demonstrate once again, provides an example of how a modern day writer can let his near perfect knowledge of Jackson’s real line of march cause him to draw the false assumption that the Union commander on the scene, John Pope, knew this information as well. Martin states as follows: "Late in [Day One], once Pope had more information that Jackson’s advance was at Salem, he at last decided to send out a probe in that direction…Pope was still convinced, as he telegraphed Halleck, that Jackson was heading for Front Royal and that the troops at Salem were just a flank guard."¹⁹

Darrow’s laying that ‘at Salem’ on pretty thick, don’t you think, Mark? whispered Nellie.

More sparks coming, Nellie, whispered Twain back.

Shhh. hushed Murrow.

"I submit as my next exhibit a copy of a telegram that John Pope, then at Warrenton Junction, sent to his immediate commander, General-in-Chief Henry Halleck, at 9:30 p.m., August 25th. All Civil War writers who have described the Second Manassas Campaign are familiar with this telegram, which is in the Official Record, but how closely have they paid attention to it, and how accurately have they interpreted it to us? I shall quote a portion of this telegram now."

"The column of the enemy alluded to in my dispatch of 12:30 p.m. today passed Gaines’ Crossroads [3.7 miles southeast of Flint Hill], and when last seen, near sunset, was passing to the northeast, under the east base of Buck Mountain, in the direction of Salem and Rectortown…"²⁰

Watch out for some sparks from ‘Buck Mountain,’ Nellie, and another map, I’ll wager, said Twain.

Shhh! said Murrow.

Salem, continued Darrow, "as we well know, was on the way to Thoroughfare Gap. But does the telegram say that Confederate troops were ‘at Salem,’ as Mr. Martin seems to claim? Not at all; only that they were going in the direction of Salem.