The Burlington weekly hawk-eye. [volume] (Burlington [Iowa]) 1860-1876, 1862-11-22
GENERAL KEARHEY's LETTER.
HEADQUARTERS THIRD DIvIsioN,)
uosns ain, ma Co.oo

Cumberland Landing, Va, Nay 16, 1922
DEAR S1R: am sorry to find that, very far
from military chiefs being so Immaculate, that
their subordinatee, relying on their strsightfor
ward conduct and truthfulness, might disregard
political influence az extraneous and unnecessa.
~, so grossly have been outraged land say go
Is representing my division) by the insrigues of
the general commanding this army, that I now
appeal to you and my friends for protection
against imposture.
Gen. Mcclellan is the first commander in his.
tory who has either dared or been so unprinci.
pied as to ignore those under him, who have not
only fought as good fig BIT but even saved his ar
my, himself, and his reputation. And here,
precisely, is the point. From want of frank
ness and reliance in his native superiority, he
fears to admit the services of others (my divi.
sion in PARTICULAR lest he thereby condemn
himself for want of generalship which gave
rise to the dangerous crisis. So q great and
successful battle, where the unprecedented
number of 1000 have fallen, Is passed over by
him in silence, whilst the day after that fearful
fight he forestalls the glory Of the victors by
vampiDg up in deceitful telegram mere fur
ry of skirmish, where Hancock "a charming
officer and gentlemanD with preponderating
numbers drives for an instant paltry few of
the enemy, with pittance of Z loss which be-
This move of Hancock's based on informa.
ton that the enemy had abandoned their minor
defenses opposed to our right, to concentrate
their forces on our left, was gotten up at II P
n, expressly to relieve from pressure the severe
fight of the Sd corps, enacted by Hooker from
Z A. H., until my division, at near 8 P. n, enter
cd under fire, and took the place Of his exhaus.
ted remnants, demoralized by fatigue, abandon
ment and want Of cartridges. The fire, that
lasted from about A, for some twenty minutes,
and which then ceased, was most distinctly
without results, for it was not followed up by
any advance; ard left me, used to the fields Of
battle in Europe, a. in Mexico, with the full be-
lief that an attempted succor had been given
up, and that must alone loox to myself for nv
own means OF success. For knew we'll that,
besides the repeated messengers that had been
detached to the right, by Gems. Heintzelman
and Hooker, that all there must be aware of our
severe fight, from our cannon and musketry,
which still rolled with the tull tide of battle
This fire, tantamount to that of half brigade,
which allude to, from about At to 5p. n, was
the only one that took place within three miles
of my position after my arrival, at II D. m. tor
was ever constantly far IN advance on the
plain, In the midst of the heavy abbatis Yet
Gen Mcclellan vaunts the one, and assumes to
ignore the other. The engagement where a
similar loss in the army of the Allies conssitu
ted the great battle of the Alma, an engage
ment where very few (6ve) weak regiments sui
fered more (some 450 killed and wounded) than
the $4,000 men of q French division, when. in
1859, it won for its general worldwide fame
as the victor of Montebello.
But wheL Gen. Mcclellan passes over, as if in
ignorance, an engagement of such great propor
tons, it proves, beyond the blackness of the
deed, which breaks down by its Ubiquitous ipjus.
tice the spirits of his entire sodiery that it has
been the result of 8 malignant design of cover
ing up from the scrutiny of the American pub
lie, q weakness of his own, flaw in his general.
ship which he well knows if once made patent
to our people, would bring him down from his
accidental superiority lower than the world ever
dreamed of, when exercising retribution towards
Mcdowell for the disasters at Bull Run.
This action of Gen. Mcclellan has but one
| parallel in history. his incarcerating Stone, one
of the ablest men of the army, on the plea that
it was done on the pressure Of the abolitienists.
when it in reality was to damn, past being lis
tened to, one who, he knew, If questioned by q
military committee would not avoid bringing
to light the incapacity, land subsequent contrie
yances to smother it,) which had exposed Col.
Baker, and then left him, helpless, doomed, and
unsupported, at the battle Of Balls Bluff
| There is secret in this matter, and although
patriotism, on the eve of an expected action
may prevent me from publishing to the world the
weakness of the man to whom are confded GU,
Union destinies, it does not preclude me from
yindicating for myself and my command re-
cognition of our service and exposure (no Officer
has ever exposed himself as did. for the crisis
demanded it) and unburden myself to friends
| As Stone has been militarily killed under
| tale tha 0f cG ana