The weekly pioneer and Democrat. [volume] (Saint Paul, Minn. Territory) 1855-1865, 1864-06-24
How the Pres sLogically'' Captured
Richmond In 1863, aud it's Sarate.
gle Capture by Slrategus Zoe In
DQRA

"Ppuk, SroNrMAN and KKYEs ARR rossns1cN OF
RlcHnoND. Great Rejoicing throughout the Cossn-
hylU"
In this brief dispatch, received last night
from our special telegfaphic correspondent at
Milwaukee, is announced the most startling
and the most glorious event of the war
The announcement, first made to q few gen.
But there is no reason to doubt its correct.
ness.-.St. Paul Press, Nay 10, 1863.
From what has happened, and what seems
likely to happen, we think we are justified in
concluding with Major Bagstock that " Old Joe
Is sly."
"Sound the hewgag;
strike the ODj n,
Let the hurdy gurdy ring"
ST. Paul Press, May II, 1868.
In fact, logically, Richmond was captured
beyond the possibility of doubt. The failure
to take it after we had got all the preliminaries
to that end adjusted SO completely 10 our sat-
isfaction, is q ridiculous absurdiIy.-St. PduI
Press, Nay IL, 1868. ..... e..
The fatal blow is struck and Richmond has
virtually "gune up!"-.St. Paul Press, Nay 16,
1864.
One of the peculiarities of mental alteration
by reason of intense application to one excit-
ing subject Of thought. is a cunningness in
self deception, amounting to slyness, in avoid
ing any fact damaging to the theory or hypoth.
esis which the monomaniac has adopted. ''O!d
Joe Is sly" The unfortunate editor of the Press
after two or three years study of war maps and
labor at editorial experimental strategy, has
probably made himself incurable by achieving
one success in military augary through catch
ing up a distant probability of army move
ments and prophesying that the whole CAM
paign was planned and being fought for that
end. "Old Joe is s,yr' An evidence of his
selfdeception is the 70 getting that he bor-
rOwed his hypothesis of the campaign from
an anonymous letter widely published about
the time that GRANT was getting through the
Wilderness, and in that forgetfulness claiming
it as an original suggestion. as does the
| Chicago Tribune, which also claims credit for
having first predicted that GRANT would re-
sort to the south side of James River.
"Old Joe is sly" Another self-decep
ton is overlooking the fact that GRANTS
cautious wisdom in not needlessly wasting the
strength of his army, as displayed heretofore,
would have led him, if his purpose from the
first had been to reach his present position, to
adopt one of the other and cheaper ways by
which he might have gone there. ''O!d Joe {,
sly!" 1t is evidence also of his monomania
that in face of our loss Of forty thousand men,
placed hors du combat by the battles preceding
the crossing of the Pc river, he can still main
tain that the purpose of all this bloodshed was
TO commence siege OF Richmond from the
south side of James river. "Old Joe is siy!'
To mind not blinded by strategic mono
mania it might appear that the attack of Fri
day the Sd on the rebel line of the Chicka
hominy, whereby seven thousand more of GU,
men were killed or wounded, indicates thai
up to that time Grant did not intend to cross
the James river, and that any prophesyinp
that he would cross it must have been pre-
dicated upon belief that he would not sue.
eeed on the north side. But in nursing hi,
mania, "Old Joe is sly!"
The yirulence of the attack which hos pros
trated the intellect of the editor of the Pre-.
to that species of selfidolatry which distin
cuisines the insane who imagine themselves I.
be Gods, Demi.gods, Kings, Generals, or othe
remarkable characters, entities him to ou
pity, or we might call attention to the little