The weekly pioneer and Democrat. [volume] (Saint Paul, Minn. Territory) 1855-1865, 1862-05-23
The Army CT the Potomac.
STRENGTH OF YORKTOWN.

STRENGTH OF YORKTOWN. 20 ~,ft d
The New York Tribune, and its feeble
echo in Chicago, laadly detained against
Mcclellan for his operations against York !.
town by the slow but sure method of regu~
lar siege approaches. Here is a vindication
of the Generals policy from the New York
Tribune of Monday, written by correspon.
dent of that paper after inspecting the ene~
my's works: -' .
No army in the world could have taken
the Yorktown works by assault. If the
rebels had not evacuated them, they could
have been dispossessed only by shell. Such
deep trenches-such high breastworks =
such armament of artillery-such abundant
possibility to enflade and rake attacking
columns-such complete protection for the
besieged, and more complete exposure Of
the assailants, have not been seen anywhere
in the country during the war. The en-
deavor to take Yorktown by the bayonet,
persisted in, would have made the bloodiest
battle ever fought on this continent.
The bitches in places were 20 feet deep
and Is and 30 feet wide. The breastworks
were made Of clay, and in the embrasures
and at the angles, were thoroughly built of
sand bags or sods or gabions. The traverses
of the guns were substantial and ironed
strongly. BaDquettes ran all around the
breastworks. The average thickness of the
entertainments on the top was from 10 to II
feet. - - ~..... ...
The area of the works including the town
was about sixty acres ! Magazines, bomb
proofs, and small cisterns of water were
abundant. Ravines, the feature of this
country, ran through the works, and were
an element of strength of themselves.
FROM YORKTOWN TO WILLIAMSBURG.
Mr.. Raymond, of the New York Times,
was five hours in making the twelve miles
from Yorktown to Williamsburg. he
says: .t--4 1.4@t aata
thought I had seen bad roads before
indeed, felt quite sure, after my observa.
tions and experiences on the Peninsula,
that could realize the depth and bottom.
lessness of Virginia road in bad SEASON.
But l certainly bad never coceived any.
thing half so bad as the road from York.
town to this place. 1t is Of sandy clay
the road generally lying some three feet
lower than the adjoining fields, and cross
ing occasional streams, which, when little
swollen. food the road and convert it into
thick and sticky paste, The rains of
The past few weeks have made this
whole region exceedingly soft and
miry f; and the passage over it of the sup.
ply trains of the Confederate army for the
past few months has cut up the roads to a
| degree I should never have deemed possible
For very large part of the distance the
mud was foot deep on a level, while fire,
quent holes and spots of quicksand let down
horses and wagons twice or three times as
much farther. And over this interminable
and unfathomable bog must be dragged all
the artillery, all the ammunition, all the
tents and camp equipage, all the provisions,
all the forage for horses-everything, in
short, needed for the consumption and sub
sistence of an army of a hundred thousand
men I wished most fervently, at every step
of the way, that some of those who speak so
glib.y of the movement of an army--of the
duty and necessity of dasbing upon the foe
without regard to the obstacles of which
vulgar minds make so much, could go over
this route and witness the almost superhu.
man efforts required to transport the sub
sistence of even single regiment.