Rutland weekly herald. [volume] (Rutland, Vt.) 1859-1877, 1862-01-16
THE REBELS PROMPTING THR
FEDERAL GOVERNMENT
FROM the Richmond Dispatch, Jan. q

that nave occurred during ITS entire pro-
gress. The beginning of December saw
the Yankees in full force, apparently rea-
dy for decisive battle at all the important
points of the frontier On the Potomac
they had the best appointed army on
the continent, stated by their own author.
ities 10 be Nv" tnndpd thousand strong,
In Kenmchv the, hal ~, SD together two
immense forces. OF thirty to fifty thousand
each. which menaced Columbus and Bowl.
ing Green, and all indication, pointed with
certainty To 81. lmnrdlat" advance upon
our lines, At a time when we were weak.
and were poorly able TO withstand assault
from heavy columns Zollicoffer was
pressed before Cumberland Gap by
force more than double his own; Pound
Gap was at the marcy of Nelson. having
only n thousand men 10 oppose agains,
ten thousand Rosecrans was on the Can.
ley with an army which is now confessed
to have been fifteen thousand strong,againss
Floyd having only twenty-three hundred;
Reynolds was on Cheat Mountain with
five thousand, opposed by johnson with
only twelve or fourteen hundred; and
Sherman had succeeded in landing fifteen
or twenty thousand men at Beaufort, while
we had in that region at the time but
/ few thousand forces, little better than mil,
itia, poorly provided with arms and am.
| muntion. And to crown al, the splendid
weather invited them to the charge.
Then was presented the golden oppor
tunity to strike at every one Of these points.
Bold, effective blows, stricken then stimuli.
taneously by all their armies. could not
have failed TO crush our strength in sever.
al quarters, and put a gloomy face upon
on. affairs. Success at Columbus and
Bowling Green would have been almost
annihilationg to our fortunes in the West.
Success at Cumberland and Pound Gapa
would have cut our connections with Ten
nessee and Kentucky irretrievably. Sue.
cess in capturing our army in the Kama.
wha would have laid open all middle
Western Virginia next spring TO the easy
invason Of the enemy. A vigorous push
from Beaufort upon the Charleston and
| Savannah Railroad would have separated
those two cities, and cut our army Of the
1 seaboard in two.
But the enemy have let the golden OPP
portunity slip through their fingers. They
have allowed US time to make good our
: defence5 in every threatened quarter The
= energy of the Southern people has been
aroused by the imminent danger, aud we
are now safe in every point where before
I Il "a 1 "a
passed, and we are now at liberty to spec
+ ulate upon the blindness or imbecilitY
i which prevented the enemy from using
: an opportunity which will never return to
K him
p 10 what cause is the enemy's failure
? everywhere to advance attributed? Il
J. clearly was not due TO the want of meD,
c to the want of supplies, or to the want Of
y preparation in facilities of every character
a No troops were ever better armed, better
1T clothed, or better furnished with provision
IS and ammunition. This was not only th'
case with particular corps, but was th
case with all, Aud yet. though fully pre-
rared Tor effective operations. though tn
u. whole world was expecting heavy blow
n 10 b., struck and decisive results TO
achieved, their armies everywhere eithc
remained stock still, or ignoniniOu>ly an
d. most strangely and suddenly stampede
,s- from an imaginary and nOn-pursuing fox
ID There can be but one solution for Til
'ir most strange phenoihenOn. The Yankee
'n do moi enlist to fight; they enlist only
H. draw nav. The cessation of Souther
NJ trade having put n stop TO the factorc
~r- and mechanical trades the operatives hay
ia had no other means of livelihood than ef
Ter li>tment: the clerks and toremen hav
Is under The same necessity, taken ileuiel
we apcirs and captaincies, and the bosses al
'ue forced to play colonies. They have
~ gone into the army as means OF i've
nm. hood, and without any sort OF intention
ere throw away their lives. They took tou
zee. army to keep body and soul together, D
the without the remotest thought of empioylD
be that method for separating the two. a
;;as cordngly, when Mcclellan OF dered an
1 ny vance from the Potomac, as he is SAID
and have done repeatedly, these well fed, w
and clothed, well paid and saaried men OF W
sion persistently DO not march. So 10 Nc
has lucky, where they had every emporium.
IN for a victory, and SO at Beaufort, WI
me- the panic created by ,htir landing lnVr
on' an advance. All around the frontier ID
,bo exhibit the same frugal regard tor lite
i've comfort and the same stolid immoO'
,ter- under orders for an advance. We reg
this the last four weeks as decisive OF tue
OF not m ly ly its results, or rather bar,
De- ness of results favorable TO the enei
hut by its clear development OF the
oo' that the Yankees have enlisted III tn'
clo. nv for living and with fixed o'le''
for 10 hard fighting.