Ashtabula weekly telegraph. [volume] (Ashtabula, Ohio) 1853-1873, 1862-04-12

ny HORACE GREELEY.

Run disaster swept over the country, the
greatest sorrow and humiliation were caus-
ed, not by the mere fact that battle had
been lost, and the capital of the Union
thereby endangered, but by the fear that
the hands to which the guardianship Of the
National integrity and honor had been con.
ided had proved unworthy Of so precious
and holy trust That our Grand Army
should be Tepulsed and overpowered, was
but an incident in a mighty struggle, that
it should thercupon throw away its arms,
abandon its cannon, leave its knapsackS aud
blankets where they had beeu thrown of TO
rush into the conflict, and run a reckless bel.
ter.skelter race Of twenty five to thirty miles
never stopping until it had put the Polo.
mac between it, and its fanced pursuers,
pouring into Washington weary, demoral.
lied, panic stricken mob, which had left all
its best and bravest dead or prisoners on
the shamefnlly deserted battlefield i-such
was the report which mantled with shame
ed cheeks Of American malrons and cauS.
the the hearts Of patriots 10 sink in despair
Later and truer accounts proved this pie
ture so grossly distorted and exaggerated as
to lack every essential element of truth -
The cowardly mob that thus raced into
Washington formed Il portion. indeed but
a minor portion of the Union Grand Army.
the greater part of The Army had not been
defeated, for the simple reason that it had
never been permitted to fight. That por-
ton of our Army actually in the battle,
did not exceed 10000 men, and they were
overcome simply because all the enemy's re.
cor mi xbt
precipitatcd upon them, while ours, for some
yet inscrutabie purpose, were held back
Col. McCun commanding a brigade at
Fairfax Court House, was teegraphing all
day TO Washington for permission TO ad.
vance; but his only response was a sharp
reprmand for his uflcous ntermeddny
with the business OF his superiors. Gen.
Blenker's brigade stood in arms all day at
Centrevile, eager to advance, but deniel
the coveted liberty. In fact, there we're
TO say nothiugo Gen. PatterSuu's army
more union soldiers who lstci impaIienty
10 the roar of that days artillery without
being allowed or in position to strike fo7
their country, than the whole number of ac.
tual cumbatants on either side. And Gen.
Jobusou'S official report of the BATTLE to
the Confederate War Department gives the
strength and solidily Of the Federal reserve
at Centrevile after the fight Of our troops
from the battlefield as his reason for not at
tempting pursuit. That reserve stood its
ground till an early hour next morning,
when, in obedience To commands, it fell back
lcisurely aud in good order to the Potomac
entirely unmolested. Had Gen. Patterson's
| Army been within days march of that it
was specially diI ected to observe, and had
there been any generalship on our side, We
might have fought second battle with en-
tircly fresh troops directly after that of Bul
Run, and outnumbered all that the rebel,
could bring against us.
Since that black day there have been moi
less than dozen serious encounters betweer
the Union aud Rebel forces along the line
of operations stretching from Floridl
around by Fortress Monroe and the Poto
mac to the Rio Grande in New Mexico
and, though the results have sometimes bt c..
adverse, no single conflict has reflected dis.
honor on the National arms, and in scarce.
ly one has an equality of forces failed to
secure victory TO our cause. If there be
an apparent exception IN the recent conflict
near Fort Craig on the Rio Grande, it is
onIy apparent, because the bulk of our force
in that conflict was composed of New Mex
leans, who proved of less than no use, re.
ducing our real force far below that of the
Rebels. At Wilson's Greek, Lexington,
Balls Bluff and perhaps two or three
minor collisions, the Unionists succumbed
to overpowering force, though at Wilson's
Creek they were only checked, not beaten;
while at Fredericton, Wildcat, Port Roy
al, Dranesville, Mill Spring, Roanoke, Fort
Henry, Fort DoneSon, Pea Ridge, New
bern, and a dozen minor skIrmlShes and
captures, the decided superiority of the
National soldiers was demonstrated, some
times by the aid of larger force, sometimes
when our numbers were Inferior, but al
ways so Enthusiastically as to leave no doubt
on any fair mind hat the graduates OF our
Northern and Western Common Schools
are an oyermatch in arms as well as arts
for the untaught and heuighted dupcs of the
Rebel leaders Aud as the battle of Pea
Ridge affords a most emphatic Illustration
of this truth, some of its more remarkable
features moy fairly be adduced in evidence.
The Union Army which followed Gen
Sterling Price on his third retreat from the
vicinity of the Missouri River TO the south.
west corner of the State, had been wasted
and worn down by sickness, combats, aud
the necessity Of guarding its eommunica'
lions, to barely $4,000 men. 1t was com
manded 10y Samuel r. Curtis of Iowa,
(late NJ. c., who never before led an army
into battle. 1t was opposed by Rebe
army of not less than 10000 men, beside
1000 savages who proved of little or no use
in the contest This army was led by at
least three of the ablest Generals in the
Confederate service: Sterling Price OF Mis-
souri, Ben McCulOch Of Texas, and Earl
Van Dorm of Arkansas: the first OF whom
was wounded and the second killed, along
with Gems Mcintosh, Herbert and Slack
-Four Rebel Generals left dead on the pat
lie field-more than there were 10 the unl
on Army-attests the desperation 0! tue
conflict and the reckleSSneSs with when the
Confederate Chiefs were compelled 10 eN
pose themselves in their determined but ul
timately futile efforts to keep their rank and
file face TO face with the defenders OF the