The Burlington weekly hawk-eye. [volume] (Burlington [Iowa]) 1860-1876, 1863-10-31
The virginis Campaign.

The Virginia Campaign.
The special correspondent of the New
York Times with the Army of the Potomac
reviews at great length the recent mysteri-
GUS campaign in Virginia. We select from
his review the following paragraphs:
GENERAL CHARACTER OF THE CAMPAIGN.
It must be acknowledged that the cam
paign Of the last fortnight has not been one
that has brought much glory to either
army. The operations, with the exception
of a variety of skirmishes and the one con-
siderable brush at Bristoe, have all been
of the kind included under the term1stra-
| tegy-that is, marches and maneuvers out
of sight of the enemy. The rebels have
inflicted no great damage on us. We have
inflicted no great damage on the rebels
In truth, the real results of this invasive
movement on the part of Gen. Lee are to
be sought for not SO much in anything that
has been accomplished here in Virginia as
i'll the relations of operations here 10 the
whole field of war.
There is not the shadow of doubt that a
considerable portion of the troops with
which Lee threw back Meade are now on
their way to reinforce the rebel army in
Tennessee for active work against some
portion of the line now being held by the
Union forces, from Chattanooga to the
Gaps of Virginia.
REBEL THEORY OF LEES FORWARD MOVE
MENT.
l have had frequent opportunity OF learn
ing the rebel theory of Lees late mote
ment, having conversed with many citi-
zens ofthe country through which we have,
during the past two or three days, passed
in the wake Of Lees army, and they all tell
the same story. It is that the movement
was made for the purpose of throwing the
Army of the Potomac back on Washing
ton, and then utterly destroying the rail-
road connecting Meade's army, on the line
of the Rapidan, with its base, thus reliev-
ing Richmond from the standing menace
which our occupation of that front of oper-
atoms held out, exhausting the season dur
ing which it is possible for us to make a
Fail campaign, and throwing us over till
next Spring, when the dissolution of our
army, and prospective rebel operations in
the Southwest, would secure them peace.
These views were stated to me as those OF
the rebel leaders by (among many others)
an intelligent and cultivated Englishman
named Green, who lives in the style of an
English gentleman on charming estate at
Greenwich, a few miles north of Warren
ton, and with whom Generals Lee and Ew-
ell and their respective stats, staid last
Sunday, while on the retreat.
REAL OBJECT OF THE CAMPAIGN.
Such was the theory given out by the
rebels on their backward movement. And
though perhaps not the whole truth, it is,
doubtless, large element in it. A plan of
campaign, such as that on which General
Lee lately entered, embraces, doubtless, a
complex of aims; and there can be no doubt
that, if the rebel Generalissimo had been
able to plant himself in a favorable potion
on Meade's communications, he would
have given battle.
The desperate dashes which they made at
our trains show, too, how greedy they were
for booty. With these addenda we have,
perhaps, the whole of the series of motives
that prompted Lee to the forward move
ment. There is no probability that he ever
proposed crossing the Potomac for fresh
invasion Of Maryland or Pennsylvania
There is, on the contrary, very great GER
tainty that he did not design such move
ment, for his army brought no pontoOn
train, fact in itself conclusive against any
such design, and further corroborated by
the limited quantity of supplies he had with
him.
THE DESTRUCTION OF THE RAILROAD.
This work has been very thoroughly
done, Lees whole rmy ha ing been engage
ed on it for two days. FROM Bristoe to the
RappahannOck the destruction is complete
bridges burnt, culverts blown up, ties
taken up and burnt, rails twisted and rem
dered useless, cuts filled up, &c, dc. The
engineers say that it will be at least a
month before it can be again put IN run
ming order. It is with no small mortitica-
ton, therefore, that we have to confess the
rebels have achieved an end fully COM
mensurate with the labor and risk of the
campaign. r...
Here the correspondent goes into re-
view of the campaign, commencing on the
9th and 10th inst, by Lee. Our readers are
familiar with these events, and we need
not recapitulate. The battle and repulse
at Bristoe, he says, completely disconcert-
Lees plans to get possession of Meades
communication. He abandoned all pur-
poses Of giving battle and set to work to
destroy the railroad. Thursday, Friday,
and Saturday week were employed in this
business, and then Lee began his retro
grade movement. On the 10Th, Meade
commenced following the enemy. We
quote:
On Monday, the 10th, the forward move
ment was begun, the army crossing Bull
Run on pontoons. The I'd Corps took the
road toward Auburn, the 9th toward War
renton, the Sd toward Catletts, the LIST and
5lh toward New Baltimore. Tuesday, 2Oth
found the army on the line indicated-the
line Of Cedar Run. 1t had been expected
and hoped that we should meet the enemy,
but they were too far ahead, and nothing
but small cavalry parties appeared. On
Wednesday, our cavalry returning gave
the intelligence that the rebels were all
across the Rappahannock and the Rapidan.
In this situation, pursuit was, of course,
hopeless, and has for the present been
given up.
CRITICISM OF THE CAMPAIGN.
In passing Judgment upon the conduct
of this campaign-even if that bepossible at
all at this tiine-we must weigh duly all
the elements that enter into the problem.
Had Gen. Meade been free to operate with
no other considerations in view save those
of a military order, a blow might have been
struck at the audacious invaders that WOO
have proved their death-blow. When
Lees force was massed at Sperryville and
Meade's on the Rappahannock, the Union
commander was already practically on the
rebel line of communications, and by al
advance on the part of Gen. Meade direc
| on Gordonsville, he would have brough
Lee promptly back. to attend to the men
aced safety of the rebel capital, and h,
might have, in a strong position, given tn,
| rebel forty thousand battle with double tina
force. This would have been to repeat tn,
brilliant strategy of Turenne, who, whe1
| his opponent Montecuculi crossed to the