This week marks the 150th anniversary of two of the most
significant events of the Civil War: the Battle of Antietam
(Sept. 17) and the Preliminary Emancipation Proclamation (Sept.
22). The contrast between these two events remains poignant a
century and a half later: the most deadly single day of battle
in American history signaled the beginning of the end of
American slavery. Robert E. Lee, contemptuous of his rival
general George McClellan, moved his army into Maryland in early
September 1862. McClellan was notoriously cautious, always
fearing that Lee had more men and other strategic advantages
over him. So Lee took the war toward Washington, D.C., dividing
his forces on the assumption that a nimble Union response was
unlikely. But then General McClellan caught one of the luckiest
breaks in the annals of warfare: at an abandoned Confederate
camp, his soldiers found a copy of Lee’s plans, wrapped around
three cigars. “Special Order 191″ detailed the movements of
Lee’s divided forces, effectively delivering