Fayetteville observer. [volume] (Fayetteville, Tenn.) 1850-1966, 1862-10-02
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nd have driven, eur troops back

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and have driven eur troops bacl
to the. precise position they hell
fafter the battle of Bull Run, NOR
than one year ago. Our General
.1do not seem to be aware .whethe
they intend TO attack US there, o
t'push forward on some other linz
of operations. One thing may
BE deemed Scertain-they viii no
sit down i'm front of Washington
and attempt to reduce it by siege
they win either attempt, q flank
movement Upon it, or, what seems
to us still, more likely, they viii
push a powerful column directly
into Pennsylvania and strike a
iblow at, the Union cause on loyal
soil. 8 no. -. ~ III sE
There is a class, of public men
who think il highly pnWisel to ad-
NIT that we have suffered any Sc
fious reverses. They have eopious
explanations of the apps rent
checks our forces have sustained,
and abundant assurances that they
are all. to be redeemed in the i'm
mediate future 1 We, regret that
We cannot share their credulous
confidence. l. All their explains
tions, eannot change this fact, that
wherever we, have met the rebels
whether behind an earthwork,
as IN. in front of. Richmond, Or in the
open field, as in front Of Washing
ton-theyr have beaten us .Some-
times they have outhanked US;
sometimes they have thrown their
whole force upon single weak
point of cur line, and SO overborne
us by number; sometimes they have
drawn US into ambuscade; but it
matters not how-the fact re-.
mains that they have beaten US.
And all that these various expla-
nations amount to is that their
Generals are bolder and more skill
ful, and their armies, more effective
than ours, This is all that: any
body can ask in war. And it is
worse than idle-it is childish and
idiotic to attempt to shut our eyes
to the oglaripgg and repulsixe fact
that thus far in, the, war-the rebels
have tie hest of the fighting,
The sooner we realize our actual
condition the sooner SHALL we find
q remedy for it. ss asHI
{ What is the cause of these aw-
full disasters? Not in any lack OF
men, for our armies out nuInberi
the rebels two to one. Not I'M
lack of arms, .of.nlunitions, of. sGp-l
all the means and APP
pliances Of successful war for no
army ON the face of the earth has
ever been rilasishly supplied
with all these as ours Not in the
goodness of the cause-nor IN the
valor and patienceeof, our soldiers, !
for all theselrespeets we mayi
challenge)the world to surpass US.
We are driven to the conclusioni
that the rebel Generals have been.
to ,ours;s that the rebel
Government has been better able
to WELD skHlfullys and sueeessiiiki
" the weapons placed in its1hands.
Results afford the only test Of mil
itary capacity. The army that
conqpers isalMays theIbest. Large
or small, ragged or well clad, hun
cry or full, armed or unarlned, the
army that drives itslenemy off the
field is always. the better of the
two. Our rlforces have been splen-i
ditlly drilled, I admirably clothed
and almed.7 and always, supplied
with abundant food; but they have
been defeated, and that fact overs
rides all others, and brands them
as Inferior YIgI K85UTAof
Weiall hope that this is to be
chanGed;9.but so'1we have been
hoping for the9whole year past.A
The1very next step was always
to turn the tide. We were TO have.
.sno more Bnll Runs when Me-
Clellanf took command The en-
.es eIilys 4 was to be h.driven1 to the
WALL after he had evacuated
Y Yorktown. The army of the Po-
tomac, it was declared, should en-
ter Richmond, after. it had suffer-
ed defeat behind its owncfortifica-
tons And there were to be no
more retreats on our sitle after
Pope took the lead toward the reb-
| ell CAPITOL Yes, i'm spite of all
4 l.