Ashtabula weekly telegraph. [volume] (Ashtabula, Ohio) 1853-1873, 1863-04-11
Report of the Comm. on the War

| report shows that in December, 1901, ex
elusive Of the command Of General Dix, al
Baltimore, the Potomac Army numbered
1856, 600 men, we'll armed, disciplined aud
equ,ped. The strength of the enemy was
vuriously estimated at from 10, 600 to 24O,
600 ut that time, and their works were
exceedingly formidable; subsequently prov
ed that their force was less thau 10000
and the strength Of their forii6cstions wa
greatly overestmatcd At the same tint
| Il was considered unadvisable to attack th,
enemy in front aud it would be necessary
TO leave 5000 TO 10000 meu in front o
Washing ton for its defense, thereby ALLOW
ing about 100000 men for service else
where.
The Committee aver that adequate prov
isiou was never made to property man the
Qualifications in front OF Washington.
In relation TO the blockade of the Poto
mac the Committee states il was proposed
to take possession Of MatIheSou's Polat III
June. 1861, aud again in August, but moth
| IDg was dOhe
Iu October a plan was adopted to take
it, he Potomac Amy TO act cUnjOntly
with u detachment OF troops; but they weie
not sent us agreed, aud the plan was not
tried. Soon after the Potomac fotllla left
Oh the Port Royal expedition, when the
river Was almost Immediately closed by
rsUel batteries until the rebels left. Ou
the l9ih Of January. 1861, the President
issued orders for gcueraI movement of oil
the ermes Of the United States, Que Of the
resul's Uf which was the capture Of FOrIs
Henry aud DonclsUu, Oh the 3lst of jam
aty. The President ordered all the dis.
po>aUle force Of he Army Of the Potomac,
utter providing fer The safety of Washing
ton, TO seize poiut on the Railroad south
vest oi Muna>seS, and the expedition to
move before the 22d Of February. This
plan was objected TO, as it was dividing our
army 10y too great dltance to enable the
two portions 10 support each other.
The Commanding General recommended
instead Il movement 10y way ofthe R"ppa
hammock or Fortress Monroe. To this pro
position the President propounded certain
questioRsas 10 its possibility and advantages
and finally movement by way Of 'Aupapo-
lis and The Rappahaunoek was agreed upon,
hut the rebels would have evacuated al
Manassas retiring to the Rappahapnock,
thus rendering the plnn tile. On the lS,h
of March a council of Generals decided on
campaign by way of York and James
rivers, which the President sanctioned
and directed bat enough force be left TO
hold Manassas and leave Washington Sc.
cure. Mcdowell was assigned he advance
bIt transportation was not ready. His
n, icinn Iotaipal ill ho Inst on1
subsequently returned for the defense OF
Washington.
Previous to leaving, the Commanding
General addressed communication 10 the
AGjulanl General, showing "a, 456 men al
different poiuts, at Wurrenlon, Manassas,
Shenandoah, tand on the Lower Potomac,
with $50 900 for the garrison and in font
Of Washington. The next day General
| WadSw orth slated his force for the defense
Of Wasbing'o on was inadequate and lh,
tject was referred TO General Hitchcock
who reported the same evening, whicl
concludes with the opinion that the require
ments of the President, that ample enougI
force be left TO secure he safety of Wash
ingtop, had not been fully complied with
The President next day orderd MCDOWELL
corps to remain.
This brings the Committees report tc
The Peninsula campaign.
After landing 10 the rear Of Fortress
Monroe the army moved toward York
town, on the 4th Of April. appearing be
| fore the rebel works on the 5lh. The Gem
mittee rays athat the testimony prove:
that the rebels had from seven thousand t
twelve thousand men at Yorktown then
aud it is now evident that oui forces coult
have then pierced the rebel lines, cuttinI
off reinfurcements, but seige was deter
mined on contrary 10 the wishes of th
President.
The Committee rehearsed the facts re
latve to the battle Of yorktown aud tn
battle Of Williamsburg, and lays:
Que of he Generals testife that afte
the latter battle, if th. enemy had bee
followed, our forces could have reache
Richmond almost without firing a gul
but the General Commanding states thu
bad roads made pursuit impossible. A
e ter the battle Of Williamsburg, it was d
-, cided to send Mcdowell via. Frederick
burg to reinforce the Army of the Pot
mae, but the operations of Jackson in Il
IF Shenadoah prevented his being sent.
d The COmmi tee gives details of the ba
# tie of Seven Pues aud Fair Oaks. ia wh
il is stated that Hooker made a reconno
ance TO within four miles uf Richmond. ct
e tain fficerS tesliiying that The army th
5 could huve marched right into Richmond
It The Committee then continues rela:i
to The seven days battle, giving nn@b
Of teleSrams which passed between McCl
o Ian and the President ; the former te
J. graphing, on the night Of the 9th OF JuI
O that the Government has not sustained
army.
On the night Of the 25ih Of July Gen
u al Halreck and Burnside visited Harriso
Landing, soon after which it was deeId
to withdraw the army from there, VIII
v" was done to reinforce Pope.
"a The Committee devotes some six pae
~ to kilograms aud extracts o! evidence re
II tive to Popes defeat aud then goes on
the csmpagn iu Maryland, also mail
n composed OF extracts of letters of McCi'
an Halleck, and lelegrams. Ia relation
Antietam Mcclellan teslifes that The mo