The Burlington weekly hawk-eye. [volume] (Burlington [Iowa]) 1860-1876, 1864-02-06
The Rebel Plans+ImpOrtan /
TPu0.

A Washington correspondent of the st
Louis Republican, upon the authority of ,
gentleman direct from Richmond, who ha
been employed in the rebel departments
gives the following statements, which only
needs confirmation to be Of peculiar inter
est. The correspondent writes:
In n recent letter l stated that il was ex
pected our CONSUMPTION will raise one hun
dred thousand new recruits. My inform
ant states that the increase Of the rebe
armies thereby will be much greater-a
least one hundred and TWENTY-FIVE thou
sand, perhaps one hundred and fifty thou
sand. One hundred and twenty-five thou
sand will make the total forces Of the rebel
lion on this side Of the Mississippi an ag
gregate OF two hundred and seventy. Fl v,
thousand trrops-an extraordinary mum
Der under the circumstances; but the fol
lowing estimate of troops in the field a
this time will show that il is not exagge
ration, provided the ultimate results Of the
| consumption are correct. Gen. Lee has
H5,OO0 troops in the army of Northern Vir.
/ gnia, to which must be added ten Thousand
scattered throughout the State. In North
/ Carolina there are five thousand State
| troops and II few thousand Confederate
| Beaureeard has fourteen thousand a,
Charleston and Savannah. At Mobile
there IS force OF three thousand. All the
| commands in Mississippi and Alabama
amount 70 fifteen thousand. Johnston has
thirty thousand in Northern Georgia, and
Iongstreet twenty-eight thousand In East
Tennessee-the whole amounting to about
one hundred and fifty thousand veteran
troops.
This force Of one hundred and fifty thou
sand veterans are relied upon as the last re-
source Of the rebels in their desperate ex :
tremlty, and It alone will he employed in
lighting the spring campaign. All detach-
ed commands Of veterans VIII be cent to the
main armies, and the weakest regiments
alone will be held back aud filled up with
conscripts to guard the forts, railroads Gc.,
and to occupy positions in the rear Of the
troops engaged in active warfare.
Gen. Lee arrived in Richmond on the I'd
day Of this month, and remained there
nine days, during which time he was in
constant consultation with JEFF Davis and
the rebel War Department in regard to
the military condition and prospects Of the
Coniederacy, and 70 plans for future oper-
atlons-i. C., the spring campaigns. 1t
WAS admitted by ali the parties TO these
consultations that the prOspec. Of success
was gloomy in the extreme; that the af-
fairs oi the Couiederaey had reached a des-
perate crisis, which could only he passed
III safety by the successful adoption Oh the
most desperate measures: that another
year OF such war as has been waged against
them would end in their complete defeat
and that the question OF the hour was
whether they should surrender now, Or
gathering up all their resources and con-
centrating them in last and final effort,
continue the war and trust To fortune and
their own desperation for success. They
choose the latter course.
In the course of their interviews the fol-
lowing plans We're developed. JET Davis
was III favor Of employing two hundred
thousand troops as follows:
An army of seveniy-tiye thousand under
Johnston to hold Grant in check /; another
column oi fifty thousand 10 oppose the ar
my OF the Potomac, protect Richmond, and
hold Virginia while a grand army of one
hundred thousand veterans should be con-
centrated in Southwestern Virginia, OF
which Longstreet' present force should be
the nucleus, and the whole, under Lee, to
march TO the Ohio, TO ascend the right bank
OF the river, and crossing above Wheeling
10 occupy a line stretching from the PAN
handle TO Lake Erie, thus dissecting the
territory Of the loyal States, and, by hold
ing or destroying ali the railroads, 10 sepa-
rate the East from the West. He admitted
this could not be done without encounter
ing great difficulties, and perhaps fighting
great battle at the start, somewhere on
the Ohio River. But said he TO General
Lee, "all ordinary difficulties / know YOU
can surmount. The enemy cannot concen-
trate an army TO oppose your one hundred
thousand veterans before you lily our flag
in the sight Of British subjects on the hith-
er shore OF Lake Erie, and l believe that
circumstance will insure our immediate
recognition by the powers Of Europe.
am not fearful of the result of the battles
which know must be fought to accom-
plish this, for something tells me that be-
fore die ! shall eXult in the glad tidings Of
a great and overwhelming victory by you
over our Oppressors upon their own soil,
and firmly believe the next time you meet
the enemy on free soil my hopes will be re-
alized.'
General Lee had many objections to the
rebel Presidents plan. He admitted the
argument about recognition; but insisted
there were difficulties in the way Of sue
cess which could not be surmounted. In
the first place he presented the fact that u
rebel army Of one hundred thousand men
would have to carry its supplies some two
hundred miles over the worst mountain
roads in the country, and the transpOrta- |
ton necessary was not TO be had besides. |
had they the means at command, the pro- |
gress of the army would be SO delayed Ivy !
the immense trains, il would be impossible |
TO succeed. Secondly, it would take TWEEN
~ days, unde. any circumstances, to ad-
vance to Wheeling. and in that time the
Federals could confront him with an equal
number of troops; and thirdly, he might
succeed in penetrating north Of the Ohio,
aud establishing his line as far as Lake
Erie, but he would be menaced on both
TANKS at the same time, while his rear and
lines of communication would be the most
exposed 70 attack and occupation
BY the enemy.
In conclusion, the rebel General present.
ID his own plan, which was as follows: To
give Johnston seventy Eve thousand troops
md Longstreet the same number; the for
ner to keep Grant employed in front, while
he latter would retake Knoxville and East
tennessee. LongstIeet's success would
urn Grants flank, and. if the latter did not
hen fall back from Chattanooga to NASH
lille, he could advance toward Middle Ten
lessee, and, inenacing his rear and line Of
supply and communication, force him 10
e,reat under the most un!avorable circum-
stances. Grant. once on the move, John
ton would follow him closely, and uniting
With l1ongstreet, the two could drive him
o the Ohio river. "Then Kentucky is
'urs.' said General Lee: "give Johnston
md LonSstreet this many troops; let them
tart Grant out Of Chattanooga. and then
mite their forces before he could fall on Ell
her separately, and / am certain we will