9 8 The American Civil WarMaury paid considerable attention to the
problems of inflation and shortages of goods.
Less than five months into the war, she
noted that 'every thing in the South in the
way of dry goods and groceries are very high
and continue to increase in price.' The cost
of sugar, tea, and coffee had escalated
significantly, though meat and vegetables
remained more affordable. 'We can do
without tea and coffee,' she remarked, 'until
we whip the Yankees.' By early April 1862,
'goods of every kind' had become scarce, a
spool of cotton had increased threefold in
price, butter was unobtainable, and many
shops had closed. Maury claimed that she
and other Confederates did not mind the
hardship 'if we can only whip the Yankees
and conquer a peace.' Two months later the
Federal army had occupied Fredericksburg,
and 'Yankee citizens and Yankee Dutchmen'
had 'opened all the stores on Main street.'
This brought a confusion of currencies that
must have been typical of Confederate areas
controlled by Union forces: 'A pair of boots
are worth so much in specie, so much more
in Yankee money, and double their real value
in Virginia money.'
Civilians on both sides avidly followed
news from the military fronts, relying on
newspapers, letters from family members or
friends, and rumors to shape their
understanding of events. Betty Maury often
commented about campaigns, battles, and
generals. 'More good news!' she exclaimed
on 22 July 1861, upon learning of the
Confederate victory at First Manassas. 'The
battle yesterday was more extensive than we
thought. It extended along our whole line.
The enemy are routed and we are in hot
pursuit. Thank God, thank God, I hope it is
all true. What would I not give to hear that
they are now on Arlington Heights.' Her
enthusiasm abated the next day when it
became clear that the Confederates had not
hounded their beaten foe to Washington:
'Am disappointed that our troops only
pursued the enemy to Centreville. I had
hoped they were now in Arlington.'
The dreary procession of southern defeats
in the Western Theater during the first half of
1862 upset her, but failed to break her
resolve. 'The news from the West is
disastrous,' she observed in mid-February- 'The enemy have penetrated into North
Alabama as far as Florence. The coils of the
"Great Anaconda" seem to be tightening
around us. That is the name the Yankees have
given their plan to crush us simultaneously
from all points. God help us.' The surrender
of New Orleans in late April 1862 elicited a
defiant response from Betty: 'The enemy has
advanced with mighty strides in the last few
months, but hope is strong with us yet.'
Stonewall Jackson's exploits in the
Shenandoah valley and McClellan's retreat
from Richmond after the Seven Days thrilled
Maury. On 23 April 1862, she lamented the
absence of a great Confederate commander,
predicting that 'If we succeed in this struggle
it will be in spite of our Generals. The man
for the times has not yet been developed.'
Jackson soon emerged as Betty's ideal type of
leader. With reports of his final successes in
the valley in hand, she proclaimed, 'Jackson
is doing great things. He has whipped three
of the Yankee Generals on three successive
days. ... He is somewhere between
Winchester and Staunton.' She mistakenly
credited Stonewall with playing a major role
in Lee's victory over McClellan in the Seven
Days battles. 'This has been a most anxious
and exciting week and even now 1 am afraid
to boast of the great deeds that have been
done, and the fields that have been won by
our brave soldiers in the past ten days,' she
wrote on 5 July. 'Jackson came down from
the valley with a portion of his forces and
got in McClellan's rear. We commenced the
attack on Wednesday at Mechanicsville and
God has blessed us with a series of glorious
victories since then.'
Living in Fredericksburg placed Maury
near Virginia's military frontier for much of
1862 and early 1863. She worried ceaselessly
about whether Union soldiers would appear
and if she would have to move again. She
also fretted about the well-being of relatives
in Confederate service, including her brother
Richard Launcelot, an officer with the
24th Virginia Infantry who suffered a serious