The Sun.
London, England, 1863-12-14 00:00:00

BEFORE BRAGG'S RETREAT.

The Southern public have long since given up the tradi-
tional attitude of standing on tip-too in expectation of a
great battle. It rather plants itself firmly on its feet and
sets its teeth closely, the better to receive the shock. We
have proved our prowess on too many fields to require the
encouragement of one victory more; we have met with too
many disasters to have our balance disturbed by a single
defeat ; and by this time we have attained to a sad philo-
sophy, which embraces both victory and defeat in one
category—loss. Our loss seems always to outweigh the
immediate positive gain; and, to parody the famous line of
Filicaja, the South appears to be doomed " always ' to lose'
or conquering, or conquered." Our adversaries see this
clearly, and have based their calculations cn it. They design
to wear us away piecemeal—to reduce our army by battle and
by capture, and then to break the back-bone of the rebellion,
vertebra by vertel'ra,and extract the marrow at their leisure.
Of course, we regard this Yankee plan as an utter mistake ;
as a false application of mathematical principles, to the
working of organic structures. It is not a question of sub-
traction ; it is a question of vitality. One man loses both
legs and both arms, and lives; another dies from the ex-
traction of a tooth. But, mistaken as the Yankees are in
thinking that the whole matter resolves itself into two
diminishing series, of which the series is to become infini-
tesimal, yet they are not mistaken when they gloat over
the sufferings which our losses in battle occasion us. These
losses have been great—have been sufficient to glut the
appetite of any being but a New England ghoul ; and these
are the losses which, whenever a battle is imminent, the
public anticipates, even before the skirmishers are deployed,
and the pickets driven in. As we look forward, then, to
the struggle in the West, we cannot indulge in any feeling
of exultation at the prospect. We hope for victory; we
may have some reason to expect it ; but we know it to
be possible that somebody will be a few hours too late,
that some point of the enemy's line will not be pressed,
in spite of the explicit orders of the command-
ing General ; that the ammunition will be exhausted just
10 minutes before the Federals receive reinforcements ; that
some stupid courier will lose his way; that some heedless
aide-de camp will forget to deliver his message, and that the
Yankees will retire in good order, hotly pursued, at a re-
spectful distance, by our cavalry; and fall Lackon a stronger
position, which they will make impregnable in 21 hours,
This has baen the history of every victory of magnitude on
the Southern side, and it may be the history of other victo-
ries. And then, the fight over, in come first as single spies,
and then in full battalions, the casualties. It is said the war
has hardened us to the horrors of death. It is w, 11 that we
have become thus hardened, for otherwise nature could not
bearar the anguish, and we should be too much unmanned to
at. on our great work. But we venture to say that the
dZitalito_ugh,t of the majority of the people who have any
wounded'
thou
ght at all turns to the lists of killed and
but Pats the
eorrune, like the chary alms-giver in Homer,
but doe. ,Qt ot joy to our mouths, and "wets the lips,
to the dregs. e.:othe palate;" the chalice of sorrow we drink
rgia
aha oanneff thing we may count, a fearful ca-
se° be regained ? may be saved, but will East Tennes-
ohaudr t
armyhsaasidl onsogn'eburtee;
rush intoßut a
theirfigb tooura
courage
(t)aiii:goilluesoeftdheaatthiliß peupleering, It is, on the whole, well for
with
at large entertain such sober, we
one the subject of the war.
pain, and death,
The soldiers know
that battle means mutilation, di,fiZulrhe•
mad impetuosity
and more endurin t ot a far nobler,
higher, purer, an- g Ype than the swagger so
oa
fn and
otbh,esywdaor
don
ofo
se.