The Nashville daily union. [volume] (Nashville, Tenn.) 1862-1866, 1864-11-12

chagrlped at finding their own amateur
generalship totally at fault, about the
inferiority of Northern compared with
1 Southern Generals, or Northern com.
pared with Southern men. The truth
is the tide has turned; the British peo-
! pie, driven out to sea and almost sub
merged, have discovered land-aye.
and have got their feet upon it-and
the day is coming when they will exc
crate the Press and the Powers that
classed them among the sympathizers
with the defenders of slavery, and, in
the name of independence" represen-
ted them as encouraging that which
their fathers abhorred, and gave their
time, their talents, their energies, and
their tens of millions of pounds forever
to destroy.
In supporting during the past four
years the cause of free people and
free institutions against slave system
of the worst character that has ever
outraged earth or insuIted heaven, we
have studiously avoided everything like
representations as to the end of the
conflict; we feel, however, in view of so
much ss has recently occurred in Geor-
gia and Alabama, and particularly in
consideration of the glorious series of
victories by Sheridan in the Shenan-
doah Valley, followed as the latter have
been by corresponding movements by
Grant at Petersburg and Richmond,
that the day is not far distant when it
shall be our pleasure to congratulate
the British public on the summary ex-
tinction of the rebellion, and with it
the summary extinction of slavery
throughout tbe whole length and
breadth of the Union. The gallant
Sheridan has justified the opinion we
expressed of him when Grant gave him
the command of Hunters army. Though
only twenty-six years of age, he has
displayed a generalship worthy of the
ripest years. He has made what was
not inappropriately called the Valley
of Humiliation" the valley of jubila-
ton He has been able to do what no
Federal General in that quarter, and no
Confederate General either, has been
competent, since the commencement of
war, to accomplish. He has fought two
terrific battles with the best troops in
the Confederate service" StoneWall
jackson 8 veteran" these troops hav-
ing each time the choice and advantage
of position; and while beating them !
fearfully on both occasions, he has been |
able without loss of time to pursue |
them in their disorganized condition !
over ninety miles of ground, and to so
dispose his forces as to make it abso |
lutsly certain that he will either ami /
hilate them altogether or drive them |
down upon Richmond to the loss of the |
great gate they were at any price bound |
to maintain. Looking at how Sheri- /
dan drove Early, with loss in killed,
wounded and prisoners of 10000 men, |
through Winchester and on to Stras
burg, distance of twenty-five miles /
seeing how two days after he whipped |
him at Fisher Hill, taking from him /
twenty cannon and l,l00 men; and 90 /
serving how by the latest kilograms he
had apparently driven him six miles
south of Newmarket, sending on his /
own cavalry to Staunton and Waynes- !
boro' to cut him off from the only line |
of communication open to him to Rich
connot resistthe conclusion that unless
the Fates have been extremely propj-
tious 10 the Confederate General, he
has ere this been necessifated to do as
Pemberton did at Vicksburg-surren-
der his army The Fates may have
been propitious; Sheridan's cavalry
may not have got to Stanton and Way
nesboro' in time or in sufficient force
to deal with the fugitives; this, how
ever, all accidents to the CONTRARY not
withstanding, is abundantly clear, that
the object Early had in view in holding
the Shenandoah Valley-an object so
important that Lee weakened himself
seriously to accomplish it-has been
frustrated, and that even though the
Confederate General were to get down
to Lynchburg he could not in his shat
tered and exhausted condition, hope to
hold it against such terrible Odds
Need we add that the capture of Lynchs
burg by the Federals would break the
back of the rebellion. There, cutting
and holding the only line of COM
munication left open to Lee and Rich
mond, the army of Sheridan could Co
operate at once with Grant, surround
Richmond, and either drive the rebels II
out or compel them to surrender. This
was in Grants programme at first, and
our readers know how, by the tardiuess
of Sigel and the indiscretion of Hua-
ter, the plan was disarranged. By a /
false move after the battle of the Alma I
we did not get Sebastopol at the only
time that that fortress was easily within
our power, and by false moves, first by
Sigel and then by Hunter, Grant did /
not get Lynchburg when he wanted 1t,
or Richmond when he might taken it
with greater ease We did our work at I
nevertheless, and 50, we are
will the Federal at Richmond
The kilograms by Cape Race are not
full to enable as to deter
mine the actual results of the various
skillful moves made by the Federal
commander chief; there is enough, (
however, to satisfy all who desire to !
know the truth that every position
taken up by the Potomac army has It's
value, and that only by the moves pre-
viously made and declared by recruit
ing sergeants of the Press here to be {
failures could such q combination have {
been formed as that shown by the latest !
kilograms to be directed, south, east,
and west, against the doomed city. l. I
disodssing the matter further,
We leave to hdture mail the revelation ]
Of the now intensely interesting issue {
of what must be regarded as the greatest
struggle of the war. Lee is an. able I
General, and for long time he has !
been economizing MS strength If he I
nave force enough to beat back his as
,ailants, and save himself and his army &
ne will deserve all the credit that the !
friends Of the South, here or elsewhere.
,an bestow upon him.
Zen. fitzpatrick Repalsed-Sherman's
Cavalry Makes Raid on Talladega s