The Sun.
London, England, 1864-06-25 00:00:00

Confederate View of the American
Campaign.
(From Eh, Index.)
There seems to be very little doubt that General
Grant has made up his rend to adopt another line
of advance upon Richmond, and that the next mail
will bring us the intelligence of a still closer imita-
tion of M'Clellan's strategy, and another change of
base, defeated at Spottsylvania, foiled at Saxton's
Junction, defeated again on the Chickahominy, the
Federal commander has evidently resolved upen
trying a new point in the Confederate armies; and
everything tends to prove that his next move will
be towards the Jetties River. General M'Clellan
perseveringly maintained that the James River
route was the real road to Richmond, though it is
only fair to say that he never proved its advantages,
and only discovered them when every other route
had failed, and when it was too late to try
the new one. General Grant has trodden
so closely in his footsteps that it is per-
fectly natural ho should try his predecessor's
"forlorn hope," and to the last moment delude
the North into the belief that he is bent upon
marching into Richmond. At the same time, there
is a suggestive weakness in this change of base
which implies far more anxiety about a safe retreat
than an easy advance, and we shall begin to think,
when once Grant's march across the Chickahominy
to the James River is announced, that the end of
the campaign is not very distant. We are, of course,
very much in the dark as to the result of the recent
operations on the north bank of the Chickahominy.
All Southern reports are carefully excluded from.
Northern newspapers. The correspondence feom
the army is carefully edited by Mr Stanton's sub-
ordinates. Federal victories are magnified, Federal
reverses are dwarfed, and everything is narrated
in the tone most calculated to help Mr Lincoln's
chances of the Presidential election. Take the
battle of the 31 instant. It is now admitted that
a general action was fought on that day—that
the Federals attacked Lee's Drees with their Wfrole
force, and were repulsed 'with frightful loss. It is
even asserted that at 'ene moment they held the key
of the position, b
-rat that Grant, unev,iiing to reap a
victory whin' would cost him l
ve a great .ass of life,
withdrP" after three houry ggen a ement and the
log- of 7,000 men. Yet that action was described
in a previous mail as a mere reconnaissance in force,
which cost two or three colonels and "loss not very
severe," although it really amounted to a defeated
attempt to force Lee's lines and drive his whole
army into Richmond. It is difficult, then, to guess
what confidence is to be placed in the reports of
the Ne w York papers or in Mr. Stanton's despatches,
but if we take their own accounts, and draw our
opinions from them, we shall probably not be far
wrong in deciding that the battle of the 3d was
conclusive as to the campaign on the Chickahominy,
and rendered Grant's change of base an actual ne-
cessity.
The question arises for what point Grant W.ll
make. He is, as usual, moving by his left, 'and is
reported to have reached Despatch Stativa on the
Chickahominy. This would seem to 'amply an in.
tention of taking up a position sorreewhat nearer to
Richmond than Harrison's Laneling,and in advance
of Butler's lines. Bat we are inclined to believe
that if Grant does mak' for the James River, his
line of march will )•
,a nearly identical with the route
adopted by M'l'
In that case he will have
arrived on #..ne north bank of the James River almost
on thp same day of the year as his predecessor, and
hi-
d army will be subjected to precisely the same
malarious influences which decimated M'Clellan's
forces. Bad water, marsh miasmata, and a Vir-
ginian July sun would speedily dispose of his army
without the necessity of a blow from Lee. But
M'Clellan's army, even after the 7 days' fighting,was
formidable. Lee's forces, although victorious, had
suffered heavily, and were not in a condition
to follow up their victory. Things are different
now. Every week adds to Lee's strength. Rich-
mond is secured against a coup de main ; and, since
the advance upon Richmond is restricted to a single
route, Lee can afferd to trust very much to the de-
fences of the Southern capital, and make use of his
available forces for a blow that would speedily com-
pel Lincoln to think more of defending Washing-
ton than of taking Richmond. As it is, there is
nothing to prevent a Confederate force marching to
the Potomac. Confederate guerillas are virtually
in possession of the country from Arlington Heights
to the northern line of Richmond. If Lee can spare
the men, he has already an opportunity of dealing
a blow which will be as useful for the defence
of Richmond as another successful repulse of
Grant's army. But it is said to be the Federal
General's plan to establish himself on both
banks of the James River, to advance, a la
Halleck, a mile a week, by the aid of the spade;
and by means of his superiority of cavalry to cut
the communications of Richmond, and compel Lee
to evacuate Richmond without risking the failure
of an assault. Really there is no end to the inge-
nuity of Federals strategists. The attack, which
began on the north aide of Richmond, is now to be
transferred to the south side. The route which was
so obviously the only safe advance to Richmond is
to be abandoned, and a new line immeasurably
superior is to be adopted; and all the time the
Northern press is in ecstacies over the generalship
of Grant, and implicitly believes that Richmond
will fall, like Jericho, at the blast of a trumpet, so
soon as Grant arrives before the walls. For our
own part, we are of opinion that the further Grant
moves to the south, the more feeble must be his
hope of reaching Richmond; that every mile he
places between his army and Washington is a gain
to the Confederates; and that we shall soon hear
of combinations of the Confederate troops which
will effectually relieve Richmond for many months
to come.

Sherman's prospects aro not more favourable
than those of the army in Virginia. In Georgia,
also, the Federal army has suffered defeat and loss.
In two battles the Confederates have taken the
initiative. In one the Federals claim a victory, in
the other they acknowledge a defeat. A frightful
list of killed and wounded and sick has been sent
northwards, Southern reports already place at
45,000 the casualties in Sherman's army from one
cause or another. And we learn from Northern
sources that the advance has ceased; that Johnston,
reinforced by Polk and Finnegan,
has turned to
bay; that the news of the capture of Marietta is
false; and that before Sherman can hope to settle
down to the siege
of Atalanta, he has got to
fight an army of 600,000 men, commanded
by one of the best cfficers in the Confede-
rate army occupying an immensely strong posi-
tion. From Chattanooga to Ackworth the distance
is 120 miles. A single line of railway is all Sher-
man has to
depend on for his supplies ; and Forrest,
with a large
his co cavalry force, is said to be making for
Lnnaunications. It is contrary to all experi-
ence that Sherman's army should succeed, and we
believe a very short time will elapse before Sher-
man repeats the retrograde movement he made in
the spring in the State of Mississippi. In the mean-
time the Confederates are astir in liontucky ; they
are threatening Citcinnati—they have destroyed
four gunboats and several transports on the Mitish,-
sippi, and they are gradually acquiring quite a
respectable fleet by captures in Southern weters.
The Federals have sacrificed everything for the
capture of Richmond and Atalanta. At present
they have achieved no success to compensate them
for the territory they have abandoned and the losses
they have endured.

DANGEROUS CONDITION OF HEENAN.—Among
the most serious sufferers from the recent railway
accident at Egham is John C. Heenan, the:Benicia Boy. It
appears that Heenan looked from his carriage •window when
the first alarm was given, and finding a eollision inevitable,
jumped on to the platform as the train was moving, and
falling heavily, injured his spine so severely that he has
suffered from a continuous succession of fits ever since. His
own doctor (Mr Clark) and the company's surgeon (Dr.
Sally) have been in constant attendance upon him since the
accident, and from 8 o'clock on Sunday night until 8 o'clock
on Monday night he was never left by his medical men, as
he no sooner recovered from one fit than a more violent one
succeeded. Heenan, according to the latest inquiries, was
better, but is at present confined to his bed. Poor Heenan ,
has been most unfortunate since his arrival in this country,
and this last disaster is the crowning misfortune of his
English career.