Journal of Surgeon Alfred L. Castleman.

7th.—Magruder has not surrendered. This day has been spent by the Surgeons in care of the wounded, and by the troops in rest and rejoicing, at the favorable result of the battle of the 5th, which for a good part of the day threatened us with disaster. The enemy has evacuated Williamsburg, and we are in possession. Gen. Franklin, with his corps d’armee, yesterday left Yorktown on transports, for West Point, to get in advance of the enemy and cut off his retreat to Richmond. If he will be prompt, and accomplish this, it will end the war by mid-summer. We are now receiving Gen. McClellan’s telegraphic reports of the late battle. He exaggerates. Amongst other things he says that “Hancock’s success was gained with a loss of less than twenty in killed and wounded!” Why will Gen. McClellan undertake thus to deceive the country? Is it to elevate some favorite General? Hie cannot do that without, by comparison, depreciating others. Gen. Hancock had eight regiments under his command on that day. In one of those regiments alone I counted seventy-nine killed and wounded. True, the whole eight regiments were not actively engaged in the fight. True, too, that the regiment referred to suffered more than all the rest, but there were others killed and wounded; and even if there were not, the loss to this regiment alone quadruples the number reported by Gen. McClellan. I wish he would not so.