New-York daily tribune. [volume] (New-York [N.Y.]) 1842-1866, 1861-09-27
PANICS IN WAR.


pr. sents very curious sketch Of the panics that
have occurred 10 all armies from the commence
meut of wBrIike chievemrnts-which is pretty
far back 10 the worlds annals. One OF the
earliest paDics on record occurred 10 the brief
campaign in which Abruhnrn put the pundering
kings Ia fight hard by Damascus. At Plataa,
the allies Of the Persians scsmpered of without
striking q blow, rs soon as the Persans gave
way. At Amphipoli., the left wing aud center
Of the Atbeni.us took 10 their heels incontDently
| upon the frst attack. The Macedonia cavalry
ran like the herd Of swine pursped BY demon'
| at the battle of Pydna. Both at Leuetra and
Mantnea the defeated armies were scared out
of their wits in sudden panic. The battle oi
| Pharsalia was partly decided BY the nervous
| fright of Pompey's cavalry. At ThasPus' Cs'ar
| gained an easy victory from the same cause,
losing only fifty men, while the enemy were not
| oply broken, but butcherrd. But, on the con-
srary he came pear losing every thing at
| Muuda, from panic among bis troops Which
was Only put down by his own splendid personal
| example. Even at the sea-6gbt Of Actium,
| portion of the feet was seized with panic CIV
| ing q speedy triumph to Octs'ius over the
| "a soft triumvir."
In modern wars, panics have been no less
| common than 10 the conflicts of the olden time.
| British history is spotted al over by their occur
renee. The famous battle Of BaDnockourn,
which BUNDLED English pride in the dust, was
fully completed aud rounded ont by the " big
| scare which occurred in this wise. The follow
FRS Of the Scottish camp appeared orhlnd the
hne Of battle displaying hor,e-cloths, and similar
| articles for ensigns of war, when tho English,
| believing that they saw ne'V Scottish army
rising It were from the earth, were struck
with pane, aud eager only for escape, were
butchered like many sheep. The rout Of the
English at BaDnockburn was more complete even
than that Of the French at Waterloo. The
affair Of GludsIBur IN I7I5 was anticipation
Of Bull Run. The English Army was beatsn IN
a little tDore than five minutes by Prince Charles
Edwards HIgblaDdrrs, the cavalry risaled Jonn
Glpin 10 the speed Of their flight aud then
panic-struck General did not look behind him till
be had put twenty mes between himself and
the nearest Of the tartans. -Four months later,
AZ Faikrk. portion of another English army
rushed belter-skelter from the field at the sight
Of the wild petncoat men," cavalry rushing
infantry. they lay on the ground, b-ilo~-
ing as they galloprd IN wild alright. " Dear
brethren We .hal all be- mBssacrcd to-day" A
regiment Of veterans 90 lo.t their presence OF
mind that they had lot sense enough left ~ ruo
cut Of DAGGER, but rode with bot haste along The
Highland line, receiving lie entire FIRE. la tue
same war, half d"zcn Hghlanders. commanded
by u blacksmith, threw n force 81 hiteen hundred
men under Lord Loudoun into such panic that
they fed in couiusioB, aud were completely
routed The Rac,s Of Castlebar " are re
now ed in Eng,h military history. After the Irish
REBEL on had beeD suppressed, small French force
was landei ut Killals, and n British army, full
four thousand strong, WAS sent ngan.t the inyad-
ers Tue two arnie, met at Castlebar the French
numbering only about eight hundred men. with
whom were Thousand raw Irish peasants, most OF
whom had never banded mutk1t until within
few days before the battle. The French had
Que small gun, the British fourteen guns. No
soouer were the tr"oys in face VI each other,
than the English were seized with panic. They
fed az oil the " ug. of the wind, making tue
best time from Casllobar that was ever made BY
flying army.
These are but a fraction Of the panics, which
are here collected from the records Of history
by the intel gent zeal 81 tho writer IN the " At
lantic." His remarks in the conclusion Of the
art Gle, are ito suggestive, not 10 be Transferred
10 our columns. at would be No difficult task
to add a hundred in,tanc.s b those We have
MENTIONED of the occurrence OF panlce IN Euro
pean arInir,; hut It Is not necessary to pursue
the subject further. Nothing Is better Known
than that almost every eminent commander ha-
suffered from pane, terror bavifg taken coIltra
Of the minds Of his men, and nothing ID more
unjust than TO speak Of the American panic oi
the 2Ist Of July AS If it were something quite out
Of the common way Of war. True, its origin hu'
never been July explained; bit in this point II
only resembles most other panlcs, the Causes OF
which never have been explained aud never will
be. IL is CHARACTERISTIC OF u panic that It's oc-
currrDce cannot be accounted Tor; aud th-felo =
it was that the anciruts attributed 1t TO tho d.
rect iut-rp"sltiOu OF god, us arising from 'o'n-
cau,e quite e,ond huhan comprehensive II. Ii
pancs cuuld be- clearly explained, some device
might be hit upon, perhaps, ior their prevention
But We see That they occurred ut the very dawn
OF history. that they have happened repe'tedl,
for hye.and. twenty centuries, aud that they a'r
M coulmnn nuw ia the nineteenth Christian cep-
tury Us they were ~ tl'se days Wien fau Was
god. Great Pan is mol dead. but sends or.
mics 10 pot now US readily DO did when there
were hophes aud potasts on EARTH we can