October 9, 1862

October 9, 1862: STUART’S RAID - Maj. Gen. James Ewell Brown (Jeb) Stuart, Lee’s cavalry commander, is given orders yesterday to conduct a raid deep behind enemy lines. Gen. Lee orders Stuart to destroy key bridges on the Cumberland Valley Railroad, to gain intelligence about McClellan’s army and their intentions, and to arrest any civilians who might" give information to the enemy"---and to capture any civil or government officials to hold as hostages. This evening, Stuart and a picked brigade of 1,800 men set out from near Martinsburg, Virginia and ride to the Potomac, camping for the remainder of the night, and plan to cross the river at McCoy ford.

—Gen. Ulysses S. Grant sends this letter to Pres. Lincoln as a report on the Battle of Corinth: 

JACKSON, TENN., October 9, 1862. Your dispatch received. Cannot answer it so fully as I would wish. Paroled now 813 enlisted men and 43 commissioned officers in good health; 700 Confederate wounded already sent to Iuka paroled; 350 wounded paroled still at Corinth. Cannot tell the number of dead yet. About 800 rebels already buried. Their loss in killed about nine to one of ours. The ground is not yet clear of their unburied dead. Prisoners yet arriving by every road and train. This does not include casualties where Ord attacked in the rear. He has 350 well prisoners, besides two batteries and small-arms in large numbers. Our loss there was between 400 and 500. Rebel loss about the same. General Oglesby is shot through the breast and the ball lodged in the spine. Hopes for his recovery. Our killed and wounded at Corinth will not exceed 900, many of them slightly.

U. S. GRANT,
Major-General.

ABRAHAM LINCOLN,
President of the United States.


---John Beauchamp Jones, a clerk in the Confederate War Department, writes in his journal concerning the rising of prices in Richmond:

My wife has obviated one of the difficulties of the blockade, by a substitute for coffee, which I like very well. It is simply corn meal, toasted like coffee, and served in the same manner. It costs five or six cents per pound-coffee, $2.50.

---James Keen Munnerlyn, Jr., of the 2^nd South Carolina Cavalry Regiment, writes home about a skirmish between his regiment and the Yankees before the Battle of Antietam:
As our rear guard was passing through the streets of Fredrick City the Yankee Cavalry appeared within a few hundred yards of them, the gallant Col. Buttler of the 2nd So. Ca. Cavalry who was in command gave the order "by fours right about wheel, Charge"! Notwithstanding the danger from pistol & carbine Balls, the windows were crowded with women & men cheering and waving their handkerchiefs to the Yankees. Our men made at them at full speed they turned to run but they could not escape our men who were exasperated by the people cheering and determined to chastise them in their presence. Our men got into their ranks and did good work with their sabres. . . . We fell back fighting to Boonsboro where we met our infantry and there was fought the Battle of Boonsboro when our men were badly whipped Why the enemy did not follow us up that night and take all our artillery I dont know. I suppose it was because they did not know how badly whipped we were.