General on a Desperate Dash for Dixie
Gen. Winfield Scott, head of the Union armed forces, signed an order on June 3, 1861 for the immediate arrest of Albert Sidney Johnston. If Texas’ top general would not fight for the North, he would spend the War Between the States in a prison cell.
As soon as word reached San Francisco in early April that Texas had seceded, the highly respected commander of the Pacific Department resigned from the U.S. Army. He declined Scott’s offer of a coveted combat appointment and went to Los Angeles to await the next act in the national drama.
Johnston knew there would be no turning back for either side after the fall of Fort Sumter. Depositing his family with his brother-in-law for the duration, he made plans for the transcontinental trek to Richmond, the Confederate capital.
That was much easier said than done with northern agents watching his every move. But to leave Los Angeles without attracting attention was a cakewalk compared to what lay ahead -- 800 miles of sun-baked desert crawling with hostile Indians and soldiers wearing the wrong color uniform.
Johnston’s host put him in touch with a southern sympathizer secretly soliciting Rebs for the overland voyage to Virginia. The famous Texan quizzed Capt. Alonzo Ridley on his route and preparations before accepting an invitation to join the expedition. The Californian was so honored by his presence that he later wrote, “It is the proudest memory of my own life to have been associated with him.”
The threat of arrest forced Johnston to skip town a week ahead of his traveling companions, who joined him on June 25 at a ranch 100 southeast of Los Angeles. Of the 33, eight were former career officers in the army that had become their enemy.
Water was scarce on the hot hundred-mile ride to the California state line. Even worse were the flies, which caused Johnston to complain in a letter to his wife, “It is not possible to throw a veil over your face quick enough to exclude them.”
The Colorado River was a welcome sight on July 4, but the sweat-stained secessionists were too worried to celebrate. On the other side of the waterway was Fort Yuma, a federal outpost with more than enough troops to change their destination to a Union prison.
But their spirits soared, when a scout returned from the fort with miraculous news. All the officers were sick in bed, and the enlisted men were too busy having a good time to keep a sharp eye out for Confederate caravans.
That night a blue-coated corporal crept into camp with a daring idea. Speaking for the sizable pro-South faction inside the fort, he suggested a surprise attack by the passing pilgrims and the fifth column. Many of his comrades were tempted, but Johnston settled the issue by condemning the proposal as a prescription for piracy and refusing to have anything to do it.
Seventeen days and 270 miles later, the California column cautiously approached Tucson sandwiched between two federal forts 100 miles apart. Learning from locals that a combined complement of 200 troops was due to depart any day for Fort Fillmore, located only a few miles south of his destination, Johnston canceled the overnight stay in favor of pushing on.
All was lost if the retreating Yankees overtook them. Going two and a half days without replenishing their water supply, the Rebs reached the oasis at Dragoon Springs mere hours ahead of their pursuers, who were completely unaware of the desperate race.
Though tired and hungry, a nap and a hot meal were out of the question for Johnston and his men. They stopped only long enough to fill their water bags and climbed back in the saddle for the last 215-mile leg of their ordeal.
The trip across the south end of the New Mexico Territory was surprisingly uneventful. Union scouts could be seen occasionally off in the distance, but they never noticed the small band of expatriates. Although the wary southerners came upon the gruesome evidence of two massacres, the horrible handiwork of Apaches or Navajos, the war parties steered clear of them.
Johnston and his weary associates were by no means home free when they arrived at the dusty pueblo of Mesilla in late July. El Paso was a day’s ride down the Rio Grande, but Fort Fillmore and 550 federal soldiers stood in the way. With the 200 Tucson troops bringing up the rear, the Confederates could be caught in the middle.
The problem had already been solved, as Johnston quickly discovered to his immense relief. The weak-kneed commander of Fort Fillmore had high-tailed it after a skirmish several days earlier with 300 Texans.
Albert Sidney Johnston caught the stage at El Paso and, after a hero’s homecoming in San Antonio, headed for Richmond to keep his date with destiny. Jefferson Davis warmly welcomed his old friend from the Mexican War and put him in charge of Rebel operations in the West.
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