Richmond Whig. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1862-1865, 1864-03-22

h.,5l hs vsake Cd by the eOubter-statemeDts OF he
w. Yo,L World in view Of the assurance from the
,s.sn. idol of tn, 6ckle ard guibe population OF the
No,th Lieutenant General Grant, that Sherman had &C.
oOUn.bsd all that was designed by tie expedition
Il true that Sbsrmans own report, that the further
purDoses of his expedition were abandoned on account
of the failure Of the cavalry force from Memphis under
smith to eff ct junet o. With lin at Meridian, con-
diets with this assurance Of Grant; but such email in
cOnssterces easily escape the highly excited imsgiuA-
ion Of the Yankee people in the present state Of their
military fortunes and their great confidence in the eff
Caey Of Their new strategy, Of burning mills and seal
log mules
We hGvs little concern that the truth Of soch
Affairs should be known TO them, or any idea that
for some time will ever reach them; but that our own
people may not b. deceived and history falls ned We
thpk proper ON the most reliable sta eEents, derived
from PEI 1ns recently from the scene OF Satrnaas oPe
ra ions, to contradict in the mos emphatic man
GER every assertion of General Butsr6ed, 10 regard
TO the extent Of the dspredaOns which he is 80 proud
70 claim as the brilliant achievements Of this grand
sIpedton We learn that far from having destroyed
tie railrcals irretri,vAOly on this hne, ele this
trains have slrtaiy begun 70 Iun o. ihree-fourhs Of
the line from Mobile to Brandon, and in f-w days
it is not already done, tie read will be repair and in
working order as far as Meridian. As TO the corn de-
sro,ed there WAS, We are assured tu. ttls left by
our commander, wAo would not destroy IT, on the de-
eAied policy tf preventing tie enemy rcm depredaIing
upon the poor pop'e who live the line OF bis march,
sherman thinking that If he destroyed corn aban-
doned on the ground By the Confederate Genera, he
would disgust and ienAts from him the imaginary
friends Who be was led TO believe Gbou.ded in that re-
soa, ale grand display of magnanimity BY leaving
the corn at various points, aud invitii tue poor TO
come and help themselves ButteT6eld was DOUBTLESS
GOT aware OF this e1pedient Of his cemmAnde or he
would rot have hazArded the assertion that Two millions
of bus els Of corn destroyed Equally false is the
assertion that ten thousand bales Of cotton we're burned
rke Government cotton, with tie exception OF few
bales, was all moved Il BY General Pix and safely
lodged a, Mobile, and private cotton was ordered Lot
70 be banned As to the eight thousand negroes and
refugees and the twenty locomotives destroyed We are
assured tina. the few negroes who enteed CT by
the YArkees-nOt eight hundred much less eight thou
sand-gsneraly returned dsguittd with their treat
ment BY their new frends aud the sill fewer re usees
Who Accomp lnied the Yankees poor claimants for
property appropriated by them which they we're induced
10 believe would be paid for their arrival at Jackson.
As to their less o: only two hundred, have the re
por. of General Forrest, of the military command
ers Who never a.es Lis exploits, that be bad
buried ole bundled and twenty-five Yankees, had left
fifty badly wounded at OSAl0nA and brought two hue
dred pr=oners to headquarters Besides these, the
sragglers, deSerers the lied and wounded Of sher
mare column in ths frequ,n: skirmistes with tie
cavalry of Lee make up aggregate loss of thOusandS
Instead OF hundreds; for which loss well for the
disgust and emO:AiIltiOn OF his men-producsd BY
toe prO6tless character Of expedition through the
pOOrss, region OF the Confederaey-,hey will seek in
rain any comfort or consolation frcm the burning Of
few mills, tie appropriation of few half starved
mules and the addition TO their herd of consumers Of
4 few worthless negroes.