Spirit of the age. [volume] (Raleigh, N.C.) 1849-1865, 1862-12-08
Tie Situation in the Seuthwe st.

The Situation in the Seuthws st.
While important movements are taking
place in Virginia, equally important move
ments may be looked for in the Western and
Southwestern portions of the Confederacy.
The enemy is marshalling all his hosts to
strike a blow. Maddened by the hopeless
ness of his cause, desparing Of ever conquer
ing the South, saddled with an. .overWhe!-
ming debt, sick and>tired OF, the war, he is
determined to make one more giagantic e.
fort for our ~suFjugation. In view of this, the.
Augusta (Ga.) Constitutionalist, makes the
following interesting review Of affairs in these
States of the Southwest threatened By the
enemy
Away to the far off Southwest, tie Lone
Star State is threatened by the hordes from
the North and the Northwest, by the Indi-
ans and the C~ortinas Mexican on the West,
and by the Abolition navy on the .Souta.
Her situation is a precarious one, and troops
should be sent TO her relief. General Ma
gruder has gone there to take command Of
that Department, but without t. oops military
skill will be of no avail. 1t is to be hoped,
therefore, that the appeal of the people of
that State will be needed, and that no more
troops will be withdrawn from that quarter,
i p POS atA 9}as f stta 6 fel YhAf their baseqs J
fields by the Intrepid valor of her bra e sons,
and in her hour of peril, the strong arms Of
the Confederacy should be extended FIR. her
relief.
Ia Arkansas, the situationof aft sirs IS more
hopeful. General Holmes is in command Of
the Department and has quite a large army
at his command. The roads are uBfiSorable-
for military movements in winter. and IT IS.
not probable that any decisive engagement
will take place shortly in that quar- ter tho
our means OF communication with that sec
ton are so limited that it is very difficult to
form a correct opinion as to any movement
that my be in contemplation.
In LoulsEr,a, our troops are somewhat
scattered, and the guerrilla system of Warfare
seems to predominate them. II! Yankees
will not be able to overrun the State, though
they may prove exceedingly annoying along
the banks of the n2viga0le streams.
In Mississippi, it is highly probable that a
desperate effort wi be made to conquer the
State. To prevent this, will be the duty Of
the troops under comm md of General Penn
berton, who is assisted by Van Dorm and
Price, and an increasing army. That the
enemy will be defeated there can be no doubt.
His plan will probably be to flank the Con-
felerate army by land, and simultaneously
to make a Wig rous attack with his gun
boats on Vicksburg That glorious little
city cannot be taken and the topogr pay
OF the county, IS we'll as the character OF the
General in command of our forces, lead us to
1 believe that there is but little to fear in that
quarter. The reads " i'll soon be impossible,
and the enemy will Tot hazard a march into
E a hostile region, with the mere hope of form.
ing a junction with some imaginary army
from New Orleans and Mobile. Mississippi
= mo be conquered.
At Mobile there will, no doubt, be a vigor
Gus effort On the part Of the Yankees to take
, the city. But there, every preparation is
8 made to receive them, and it is to be hoped
that a successful resistance will be made.
But it is to Tennessee that we must look
! for the earliest, aud seyerest conflict of the
: campaign in the West. The enemy already
, holds the Western portion of the State and a
part ofthe middle, and now desires to ob:ai>
, possession of the Eastern portion. He is re.
= Dorted to be coming down f ON Kentucky
for the purpose, in heavy columns under Gen.
Rosencranlz, by way of Nashville-whenct
he will endeavor to make a flank movement
= on Knoxville, and, at the same time, capture
Chattanooga, as the key of North Ahbam;
and Georgia.
> To meet tbese movements, we have
: splendid army, admirably drilled. and in higl
: spirits, which will SOON be under the-com-
. mand Of General Joseph E. Johnston, sup.
h ported by Bragg, Kirby Smith, and othe
q competent officers. Already, we are told
! skirmishing has commenced between the ad
> vance guards of both armies, in the neigh
: bonrhood Of Layergns; and it is not at al
improbable that a general engagement wi
= soon be brought on. OF the result we hay
: no fears. Rosencranz will be defeated; and
e though the enemy .Uay occupy portions {
4 No. tn Alabam1 and Tennessee again. it wi
: be by virtue of his gunboats, and not by to
power of Rasencranz and his grand Abolitio
II horde-and East Tennessee viii not be give
e up to the vile Ilessians.
Altogether, then, We think the view Of a
: fairs in the West is cheerful. As we hav