Daily Ohio statesman. [volume] (Columbus, Ohio) 1855-1870, 1864-06-01
THE GRAND CAMPAIGN.
The Enemy not Retreating to Rich-
mond--Lee to Assume the Offensive {
The Defenses OF the south An-
na-What the BebeIs think
About Supplies.
A REBEL VIEW,
From Correspondent of the World.l

From the sources indicated in my last
letter have derived the following infor-
nation. l send inclosed a typographical
ssketch of the country which is now the
scene of Gen. Lees operations, lying i'm
mediately to the north and west of Rich
mond. 1t is to be noticed that Hano-
yer Junction sometimes, but erione-
ously, called Saxton's Junction,) is be-
tween the North and South Anna rivers
and comparatively near their junction,
where they form the Pamunkey. Some
confusion of ideas has doubtless arisen from
the fact that Hanover junction has been
marked ON many maps as lying east of the
North Anna, and the two railroads running
north. from Richmond as crossing the Pa
munkey below the mouth of the South
Anna. Whereas, as will be seen by the
sketch inclOsed, both the railroads cross
the South Anna at points three miles apart,
and five miles below Hanover Junction,
the latter point being about two miles
southwest of the North Anna. Another
point to be noticed relates to the principal
roads leading from Richmond to Gen. Lees
present position, which are also laid down
in this sketch. The distance by these roads
from Richmond to Gen. Lees present posi-
| ton, north of the South Anna river, is in
one case twenty, in the other thirty miles.
GENERAL LEE IS NOT RETREATING TO RICH
MoND.
1t need not be supposed, however, that,
because General Lee is so near to Rich
mond, he is falling back TO the defenses of
that city. Whatever may be the event of
the maneuvers OF the next few days, Gen.
Lees army will not retreat to Richmond,
nor will the army under his immediate
command take any part in the immediate
defense of the rebel capital. Allow me, on
| De int 20 fn fhn OF fxxn
agraphs of my letter of May 10, and also to
my last letter. The tenor of my informa-
tion now is, that General Lee has on the
line of the South Anna one hundred and
| twenty-five thousand troops, and that he
will remain where he is now, either until
General Grant advances to attack him, or
until he moves our army to Hanover Court
House, with the view of again flanking
Lee and approaching still nearer to Rich
mond. For one OF these two things Gen.
Grant must do. The position at present oc
cuped by Gen. Lees army Is characterized
by Secretary Stanton himself as a strong
one, and such it undoubtedly is. 1t is po-
sition which the practiced eye of the rebel
General selected months ago, as one Of
those on which he would be compelled to
fall back before the advance of some north
ern army, and which he would not have
halted on now if did not possess advan-
tages of which he intends to avail himself.
REBEL VIEW OF THE SUPPLY QUESTION.
But it is said that General Lee does not
believe that Grant will attack him on the
South Anna, but WILL instead, move his
army to Hanover Court House, south of the
Pamunkey, and so, by thanking him, APP
proach Richmond from the north. General
Lee believes that the Union commander
will be forced to do this from the question
of supplies alone. Even in its present posi-
tiOn, say at Chesterfield, north of the North
Anna river, the mode of supplying the army
with food, &C., is attended with great diff
Guilty and danger. The distance from that
point to Belle Plain, or even to Fredericks-
burg, is thirty miles. If our army follows
Lee to his line on the South Anna, it will
be infinitely worse. The distance from our
base Of snppliss. will then be forty miles
every possible opportunity for the intercep2
tion and capture of our supply trains. Gen.
Lee believes that these considerations will
lead General Grant to seek at Hanover or
at some point a few miles below that on the
Pamunkey, a water base for his supplies,
which, ifhe succeeds in gaining, will enable
him to receive them with expedition and
absolute safety, and to operate against Rich
mond on the very line adopted by General
Mcclellan in 1862. An examination of
good military map will show that this
course of reasoning is based upon sound
military principles.
GENERAL LEE TO ASSUME THE OFFENSIVE.
In case this line of operations is adopted
by General Grant, it is understood to be
General Lees intention to assail the Union
army either in flank or rear, either at
Hanover or at some point between there
and the Chickahominy. 1t might be ex-
nnnfnd n fhnf
adopts this line of operations, he will do
so expecting to be Joined at some point
north or east of Richmond, by the forces
under Generals Smith and Gilmore, now
south of the James river. But it is said
that General Lee has anticipated this, and
has prevented it. 1t is said, that ever since
Buffers defeat and retreat on the 10Th inst.
General Beauregard has pressed him so
hard that all he can do is to act on the de-
fensive. He is ''safe, " to besure. But But
Ter was not exactly sent with $4,000 men to
attack Richmond from the south, merelyin
order that he might get in 'safe" position.
He was sent to do something which he has
failed to do. This is beginning to leak out
now, even in the radical papers. But when
it becomes fully known how absurdly But
Ter has acted, and how he has thwarted all
the good that General Smith and General
Gilmore would have accomplished but for
him, it will be amazing even if this admin
istrati0n continues him in command a'day
longer. l6 ts- ...f.ttf.5,
--i REAL SIZE OF GEN. LEES ARMY. 5
Since Gen. Lee commenced filling back
from the line of the Po, there has been
growing disposition in certain quarters to
underrate his numerical strength. 1t is
even stated now that Gen. Meade gives it as
his opinion that Lee has not over forty-fiye
men, and that General Grant saws
that Lee has not more than fifty thousand |
men. The same people who give currency |
10 these statements are the ones who relig. |
ously believe that Lee is flying pell-meil |
across the South Anna and that Richmond |
s being evacuated. People, however, who |
.eally desire to know the truth, remember |
hat the rebels, with only fifty thousand |
;roops, could never have kept Grants i'm
nense force at bay on the line of the Po for |
,leven days in succession. They remember,
llso, that strengthened by bis recent REIN
orcements, Grant has enough men at his
)ack now to brush fifty thousand rebels out |
II his path with ease; and he would not |
lait now, while Mr.. Stanton talks about the
strong position" of the rebels, if there
we're no more than fifty thousand OF them.
No; the fact is, as stated in a recent letter,
every corner of the Confederacy has been
ransacked and drained to reinforce Lee,
Ind he has now one hundred and TWENTY
i've thousand troops. The testimony on
his mint Ia annaluciya . |