The Portland daily press., 1864-12-21
How gOes the battle2

How goes the battle2 sB
According to our horoscope our proSPecs
have never looked brighter and more hopeful
than thew do at this present writing. The for
.,,nos of war are always more or less uncer-
tain. and victory is sometimes the result of a
hard fought battle when least expected, and
defeat often occurs when the leader and his
hosts were flushed with hopes that victory
was about to perch upon their standard. So
uncertain is war. 80 NI %R ME
What battles are yet to be fought, Tnas
hardships to be endured, or what fortune Is IN
store for our brave troops, we cannot ten, ouI
It seems to us that the rebels have never 'oen
insuch a hopeless state since Trey coln'uenceu
and forced this unholy war upon our govern
ment. What should we think. or what visions
should we have. If Lee could triumphantly
march and faad his army through Pennsylva-
MIA, New YORK snd the new England states
to. and surround Portland and demand Its
surrandarP And suppose in the meantime
the hotspur Hood should invest Washington,
and keep the Union troops within the fortif-
cations that surround the cityl
Under such circumstances we are inclined
to believe that the most hopeful among us
would look upon our prospects as sad and
gloomy indeed. But the question arises, would
our situation and condition be worse than the
rebels? What brighter prospect have they
than we should have thus surrounded and
hedged in2 The question is easily answered
by all intelligent persons. We have no dlspo-
sidon to speculate on the state of affairs, to
indulge in false hopes, or to invite our read
M ers to an entertainment that might be sweet
in the mouth and bitter In the belly. <
But what are the facts--the stubborn facts
which the magnetic wires have brought to us !?
Sherman has marched his army through the
very heart CT rebeldem, over It's richest plan
tations and by Its most afistocratic residences
to Savannah, one of the proudest and most
wealthy cities Ia the dominions Of JEFF. Davis;
and his march has been a most triumphant
one to the armies Of Liberty, and terrible as
an army with banners to the hosts that are
lighting the battles Of Slavery; and what is
better still, he has met but feeble opposition,
lost but few men, recruited his teams, fed his
brave boys sumptuously, liberated thousands
of stalwart slaves, spread panic throughout
the Confederacy revived the hopes of South
q ern Uuionists, and now about to capture Sa-
vannah and make 1t a base of future and more
terrible operations against the enemies Of a
y Government that hassmade them all they are,
or all they once hoped 10 be,r 90
= Have We not reason to rejoice and ongrat-
q ulate our readers upon our present prospects ?
We are not mistaken in the facts, neither do
we exaggerate. Richmond papers of recent
date warrant us in thus casting our horoscope.
They admit that battle has been fought for
the possession OF the Savannah and Charles
"A ton railroad 10 which Sherman was successful
and that Is not all they admit, however re-
luctant they may be to make such admissions
The Richmond Examiner says: Qg~Ags 4
asss Savannah is now corailed, and its capture
- seems possible, as is also the capture OF Har
dee, Beauregard and The whole army there
That admission we take pleasure in recording
and spreading before our readers. We hope
when these generals and their troops are cap
tured they will not be paroled and given a
chance to fight another day, but sent North
We can better afford to feed them than to set
them. at liberty. Beauregard and Hardee
would look well in prison, for they would not
be misplaced. The former has been occasion
ally very conspicuous and fitted across the
sa skies like meteors In the early stages Of the
q rebellion he occupied alarge space in the pub
lie mind, and his name would look well on the
records Of prison TO loyal eyes. # III
$3.50 Butawhat Of Hood? Do the skies look as
bright in Tennessee as on the Gulf? We
think so: This dashing hotspur has beeo.
most gIoriously thrashed by Gen. Thomas
and his gallant troops. We opine he will not
be able to do much more mischief, for he is
in tight place. But. what of Early?, Phil
q Sheridan Is the boy for him any day, having
severely whipped him and ready to do IL
i. again whenever he shows anything like fight.
Last but not least, what ofthe indomitable
Grant? Like surly mastif he is watching
q about the gates of the rebel Capital, and keep
ing JEFF. Davis, Lee, and their hosts Within
proper bounas.1 There he will watch until
Sherman. Thomas and Sheridan shall accom-
plish the work assigned them to do. The
plans ave all been well arranged and the com
plete execution will soon be cousumated
With such prospects before us, with such Gen
erals in the field, with Father Abraham firm
ly seated inthe Presidential Chair, we have
abundant cause ofrejoicingan gratitude. and
can afford to be patient and wait for coming
events whose shadows we now so plainly see.
God speed the right. beiia &