Abbeville press. [volume] (Abbeville, S.C.) 1860-1869, 1861-12-13
THE BATTLE OF LEEsRuRG.

american ctVH wartrom tEe representations
OF the North must now begin to have some
doubts of their own wisdom Happy is
for England, and happy will it he, we be-
lievc, for America, that they area small
minority, and that the great body At III
nation has judged for itself in so important
matter. Had our Government and peo-
bic been led ON in the early par, o! the
year To cleer on the cru.a,le IF the North ::
| 10 echo its assertions abou: the weakness of
, the secessionist ovemcnt, and 10 Join in
the prediction Of the Unions speedy vic
| tory, what would have been our position
now Instead OF standing in decen, neu-
| tra!ity between two powerful and inccnseh
nations, for SO must they now he called :;
instead Of being able. when the time comes,
to speak with The calm Of impartiali;y and
tie confidence derived from just atAicipa-
tiona, we should have been merely set Of
rartlzans, doomed TO explain away our has
~ enthu'issn.
Whatever may be the enI Of this An}cri-
: can contest, Engii>hlnen will be happy that
they counsellel peace. Shoqid the Confede:
rates established their independence, they
w'H not be ab'e 10 accuse as Of trying to
strangle their nationality in the cradle.
Should the present differences result in >
transaction by which tho old Union sl,a!
bs so!dcre.l together for time, then nelh-
e- party vii! have it to say that the bar
; dens left by a season Of civil strife were iii
creased by our counse!.. If anything were
needed to confi:m til 5 caun,ry in its policy,
! the present situation Of affairs would be
! quite enough. 1t IS ,to,o plain that Mis
must DC gigantic ,rar. 1t i. but four or
five months since We were t, ii that single
encounter would decide matters. Tho. e
who rro!ess-d 10 know the characters of
the Sonthcrner and his opponent, assured
us TINT the t,rmer WAS mcre noisy swng-
ger, wlio might fight pretty we'll for q rim
gle day, but would be soon everlir,wn by
the Stern moral man Of the North. IL.v
complete has been Tie mismte Of Msse wl 3
took this riew Of the combats may be the
ju'lge'l from The preseui state ~ Carl
paign.
Bu: the event from which we can gait,
the Lest insight into tho course Of the cain
P"gn is the severe def.a. which the North.
.rners suffered at LecsburS. and which, ii
l:t. rumnrs be true, WAS followed by \ still
more important res. r,e = day or two after,
wards. The wel!.knowu narrative we gave
Of it was taken from the New York 7riJ-
"ne, which c.nnot I've suspected Of any ia
vor towards the enemy, apI it may. there
fore, be concluded ,ha. these facts arc .uf
tic'cnsiy accurate. In This blot dy encoun.
t:r one must really admit that no disgrace
a,;acle4 TO the Northern troops, who Seen,
to have done all that can be expected 0
men. But the lesson should not be lost on
those who have been all their lives boastine
of the repalse which they have inflicted
on British columns. The battle was the
usual American battle, such as has been
fought in three great wars already, and j.
now likely to determine the event Of
the fourth.
In TACT, the account we published yester.
terd"y might. with changed names and
numbers, apply almost accurately to the
battle on the Monongallsla, in which Brad.
dock was defeated more than a hu"d-ed
years ago. and which first brought the name
] OF Washington into notice. The pedan,ic
veteran, who, With his head full Of the art
OF WAT, marched through the wilderness as
it 1t Eere FLANDERS, aud had half his force
destroyed by sharpshoo,ers from behind
trees, was bur the forerunner Of a Burgoync
and Packenham, and nov he has sue.
cessor in fedora! commander. One can
not read without pity the fate of these un .
fortunate men. The sn1 was a perfect
rontc. The drowning Of the mon in 1t.
tempting to re.crcss the river was dread.
'ul INCIDENT. Out Of eighteen hundred
men, the loss, according. to lhe official re.
port was six hundred and eighty. The bal,
tie is important as being perhaps the type
those to conc. What can the federas
hope for in a coputry Ike Virginia but a
sqccessisn of Lsesburg', Tough. against
epsmies strongly posted, and ending in de.
feats or -deur!y purchased VICTORIES about as
futsl as defeats.
The terror inspired hy tue excesses Of the
Northern soldiers which. had enough in re.
ally, are immensely exaggerated 10y South.
srn report will make Virginia sci! every
mile Of !Aeir country dearly, and le.ye
nothing but desert as they reriest, The
blood Of the Soplh has been ,boroyghIy
arnilsed anainsi if,a .inaadasa AL az. -. a.