, 1863-07-07
It is safe to believe that Lee has aban-
aa.aa Lie na.ua..1.4a.a:a .n1.o n. a Ell

IL is 6a1e 70 DeucVe 1nat Lee mas apan~
doned his Pennsylvania scheme as fail
nre. He came, and his coming was Sc
we're visitation to the rich region into which
his lean hordes were poured. He saw, and
seeing, he appreciated the FITNESS Of the
land In horses, cattle and much grain and
the rich epoils Of distressed farmers, sent
soutl,ward in his hungry wagon trains.
What the spoils were our dispatches begin
TO tell us. The clothing Of men and women
and little children; boots, no booty more
precious; and the plunder Of households,
such are the revelations made by the over
hauling Of these frccbooters by our scouts
in Maryland. But though Lee came and
saw, in that he did not.conquer he lost all.
The recent victory of Gen. Meade seems
to have been terrible blow to the rebel
force. They ought well-let Us give the
rebels that Gre it. But they failed to dis
lodge our army In the trial Of strength
and metal, the test seems to have been ac-
cepted By Lee as conclusive without push
ing it to point destructive to his army.
There is nothing Jet to indicate that. The
rebel General accepted the hint of defeat
without the fact, and later dispatches show
that he is on his route toward the Poto-
mac. We trust the dispatches Of Gen
Meade on the point The statements of
o!ler dispatches as to the demoralizations
and desertions Of the rebels fall upon our
cars with familiar sound It strikes us
We have heard them before. We pass
them By, at all events, in the account of
the situation. There is enough
that is reliable and official to show
thatLee found his match in Meade
and, straightway abandoning the idea Of
sacking Philadelphia, whose citizens have
been living the fortnight past with all their
white window shutters bolted fast; and of
capturing Baltimore and Washington dur
ing this trip; has been seized with sud-
den longing for Virginia soil, and to see
once more the spires Of Richmond.
It is undoubtedly true that Lee is eager
to get back. There are reasons in both
front and rear. From the rebel capital
JET himself calls chidingly to the once
pet general Of the rebels. Lee has ven
tured once too often, and Davis cries, II
1old you So" It will be crushing blow
to Lees reputation, even if he succeeds in
leading his shattered army back into Vir-
ginia.'
Will he get baekr That's the question.
Confessedly if he escapes without further
harm from our troops it will be mortify-
ing fact tor rs. The policeman started out
to arrest burglar in the very act. The
Enaye made fight, dropped part Of his
booty and got away. The of1icer's errand
was, to be sure, to put an end to this partic-
ularburg1ary, and he did so, but the arrest Of
the burglar, the prime object for which tho |
officer was armed with club and revolver
nniscarried. Let us hope the great Penn
sYlyan1a burglary will not end in q great
escapade. Every e3ertion seems to be
making now to prevent it. To be sure,
the Federal evacuation Of Maryland
Heights, announced in the Baltimore pa
pers Of the 1st inst, looked something
like opening window to drive burglar
out Of it, but if the purpose Of capture lies
concealed in the measure, it will be ap~
plauded all the more when it comes to
light.
One thing is certain, the alarm of Penn
sylFania may rest It is all over. Rescue
1,as arrived. Fat horses and beeves may
be brought home Peace may smooth her
xut1ed plumes. Agriculture may take
back her plough steeds from the artillery;
and the order Of d State peaceful, because
loya1, may be resumed. The plot Of the
enemy against her has failed. All that is
now needed is the cupture Of Lee and his
army to make the victory monumental,
otherwise it will stand Us another Of those,
only not singular, because numerous,
battles Of the Nashington-Richmond re-
x,ion, where the two forces impinge against
each other and then rebound to rub
their bruises, and each chant their own
praises, while the Journals in either inter-
est argue out victory for both. We
wait to see the late battle assume quite an
other shape.
Pending this uncertainty, it is enough
TO write that Meade and his troops have
done well and nobly, that they deserve
richly the very reward we desire to record
for them, the capture Of Lee. Until ar
mics begin to be captured, and victories
assume the shape Of vanquished command.
ers rendering up their swords, the war
-.7r .ro:t fnr ito fina1n The hY11shinr of