Weekly standard. [volume] (Raleigh, N.C.) 1858-1865, 1862-03-26
PARTISAN WARFARE.

The enemy having at last pushed his lines with
in our territory, and embraced large districts of
country loyal to the South, the duty OF operating
within his lines now devoses upon our people. IL
is not in human nature to permit an Invader to &C.
cupy this country in quiet ana security anu we
must resort to the measures of the SpanardS. ano
of all patriotic people, in making his occupation as
hazardous and uncomfortable as possible 10 TINS
end our enterprising and daring spirits must make
use of their valuable skill in the saddle and with
the gun. and their intimate knowledge oil 'byways,
fords and passes, to waylay the enemy ana iniict
all the injury upon him that brave and adventurous
partizans have in all ages and all countries been SO
effective in dealing. Marion, Sumter ana lamp
ton; McCulloch, Hays and Chevae, are the types
we would fain hope to see initiated by hundreds OF
Vircinians in the counties about to be overran
by the enemy.
The mythical "black horse" and "masked bat
teries' that have figured so largely in the enenys
imagination ought now to become realities anu
the recent astonishing feats OF Jack Morgan N
kentucky and Tennessee afford examples OF what
enterprise may do in emergencies such as that in
which so large portion Of Piedmont Virginia and
the lower Valley now finds ITSELF OF course no
operations of this sort can be prosecuted except
within the lines of the enemy; and as West POINT
abhors the names equally with the tactics OF Sum-
ter, Marion and McCulloch, it will be in vain to
expect countenance from the regular army. The
only course open to pursue is for these enterprlsng
partizan warriors to obtain commissions from the
authorities, and to enter with this warrant upon
their work. They can in no way interfere with the
business of the army; and it is quite likely that
few hundred men in detached squads can intiict
more loss upon the invader than twice as many
thousand of our regular troops.
It is we'll for these partizan warriors to recoect
| in all their operations, one important iact The
enemy has now taken to land, and depends Tor
success upon his transportation. To kill or take
away from him one horse or mule therefore is equiv
alentto starving ten men and to blow up or burn
two wagons is to disable whole company. Our black
hersemen, therefore, ought to make the capture Of
draft animals and the destruction of transportation
their leading object and everything else secondary to
that main purpose. 70 shoot down an officer or
soldier ,s no great achievement inasrnuch as his
place can be supplied ad in1initum by the populous
North bat to shoot pair two of horses or mules
il ia disable cannon, or to starve hundred men.
l. In all anbushes that may be prepared, strict in
structions should be given to let the personnel of
the enemr pass by unmolested, and to reserve the
dash and the6re for animals and transportation. BY
the energetic prosecution Of this plan of operations
against the enemy within their lines, a few hundred
daring horsemen and marksmen can soon disable and
reduce to motionless hulk whole army Of Invaders
BY this system Of warfare every people in earnes
for their freedom have succeeded init To It the Swis.
owe their independence the Spaniards their rescue
her release from the dominion of old Spain !; tn
Southern colonies their triumph over Cornwslfis
and Texas her deEvsra,ice from Mexican nnisrule
we trust that many brave spirits within the line
OF the enemy wi take the public defence into thei
own hands, and hamstring the enemy m his rea
lieouf brave ailies sre Citing bin, in front
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