The evening telegraph. [volume] (Philadelphia [Pa.]) 1864-1918, 1864-08-19
TIE CAMPAIGN AGAINST RICHMOND.

OnETnNl0mN
The Rebel StrRtegy-PIRns, COIabina-
lions, and Prospects.
WASHINGTON, Thursday, August ia fort
night ago, discussing the military outlook in
Virginia from the p)iOt Of view of the unsuccess-
ful assault of the 3Jth of July, adventurod the
prophecy that Lees temerity would be Grants
opportunity"
Certainly there was very much In that afr,ir TO
stimulate, if not TO justify, rash enterprises on
the part Of the enemy. With the best possible
combinations, wrought out in all their prelimi-
nary details with admirable success, the upshOt
was bloody repulse. Equally shut out from
turning either to the right hand or the left, our
army was seemingly condemned " attacks as
slaughteTous as they are iruiucssi or, IA hope
less deadlock, ~ watch from behind its earth
works the motions Of an enemy into whose hands
the power OF initiative would have passed.
Nor WAS this all that appeared dt3c0uraging.
Still more omlnous than the failure itself was the
| inference IL seemed to warrant Of the enfecbcd
| and dispirited condition of our tro)ps. IL was,
! therefore, not without the sembLlnce at least, Of
reason, that the CoppeThead press eXultinSly pro-
| claimed that the campaign was enlod - tint
| "Ri hmond cOuld not be takeH' This opinion
was eagerly taken up and echoed by the Rebel
| pres.
! Wig, n day or two ago, "has reached the con
! Clusion that Grants campaign is failure and
! that Richmond cannot be taken and we are
| content 10 put that weighty iact IN the scales
|
declarations" In a similar strain wrote the
| Petersburg Erprcs.-"We are inclined % think
that this calm does not presage co ming storm,
but simply means that tie Jig IS up, or, to discard
figure, that the siege is failure, and the Yankees
are busy in getting ready to slip away, blg aud
baggage, II Robert LIE will only let them"
II the only effect Of the late repulsc had been
to inspire this kind of plague on the part Of tile
Rebel papers, IL would have been of but little
moment. But il had far weghter results than
tbis-it Influenced the action of the enemy IL
has not been unknown To General GrAut that
| for some time past Lee, relying on the impro-
liability OF any further move on the part OF his
| antagonist, was making large dctAChment5 from
| bis force Of Petersburg
Fret one division was sent TO reinforce Elrly
| in the valley, then another, till the gross OF his
subtraction amounted 10 not less than twenty
thousand men, Other troops were despatched o
| the aid Of Hood at Atlanta, and TO meutth alta k
| on Mobile, and though information is not 50 pr, =
ci c to- ching the number Of rlent seat TO these
named points, there il no doubt that certain de-
| taChmCnts hava been made.
II IS for precisely such turn CT affairs that
| General Grant has been waxing and watching
day by day. 1t is easy 10 believe that b. has
been not unwilling that Lee should adopt and act
| on the the ~ OF the Generalization OF our army,
and one can readily see tha. it has not been with
out quiet inward JOY that he has learnt through
his scouts OF the late doings OF the enemy.
And It may be remarked that, ifit was griev-
Gus humiliation TO see an assault with such re-
suits made by The least eicient corps of the army,
while fifty ihOus NJ splendid troops stood idly by
that humii alton will find partial compensation
Mi produceu iu the minds of the Rebels those
"e uficaie and blown surmiSes' that appear in
III r journals and, above all, II 1t induced the
ReDe commander to enter on any such rash en-
tecprises as he seems to have atyentured.
There was one man who was determined
III Il the Virginia campaign shonld not 80 out
| IN any such lame and impOtent conclusion as
tn Petersburg tiasco. General Grant is not thC
| mn, with such au army as he yet commands, tC
, | cry halt or admit a failure. Ignorant OF when
, he is beaten, esteeming nothing concluded unit
everything is tried, devery resource exhausted
he was content TO await other and better oppOr
tunCs for blow at his antagonist Little recking
what cline" he lights 1t out on, he has already
crossed every line ever proposed against Rich
mond, and tojA try them al orer again i reed Be
. II is but day or two ago since every sigT
seemed TO poreud that the Rebel predictions o
the raising Of the siege OF Petersburg wonld b
fulfilled. a large portion of the army was en-
i baTked ON transports, under sealed orders, anC
speculation rife as TO what line OF oper Ition
would next be adopted And ii, in the me intme
other objects are foo IL Is still not beyond th'
8 reach OF possibility that the siege of Petersburg
/. may be raised. General Grant will certainly dI
y so, If his judgment should dictate this step.
II remains as yet secret with those Ia tn
confidence OF the commanding General, whl
i was the original destination OF the troops tha
, | were q few days ago placed upon transports II
the James river. That they were shipped mere
for the purpose Of deceiying the enemy is hardl
, | to be supposed, for that would he calling int
" | play an apparatus enormously cumbersome
eject what might have been equally eficacious
accomplished by much simpler means.
The Indications therefore, seem 70 be that
was the original purpose 20 withdraw the bod
% of troops named To some other held of operations
y but that at the last moment II was determined
,s from some information suddenly received,
throw this body on the north bank of the james
for new sally toward Riehmond b. tat in,
ie With this view, the starting OF the eet in brOa
>; day doicp the James, and its sudden and secr'
recall after night, followed by the deblrkatio
al. H., nAtfn aall a
10 signed ruse de 9UerIe, in keeping with Gener'
4. Grants favorlte system of military stratagem
n The line of advance taken up in the late movt
- ment has been twice already, during the preseI
70 campaign the scene of operations; but they bot
differed from the present movement in that bot
were but feints. During the operations attendn
the transfer Of the army across the James rive
IN | the 5th Corps was thrown forward on the ToaC
., leading to Malvern Hill, and II is fresh in Il
~ public recollection that three daysprevious 10 Il
10 last assault on the lines Of Petersburg, the
ee Corps, accompanied by the cavalry, made d
a. | monstTations on the roads by the north bauk
| the James, with view of calling aWi
ID detAchmenis of Lees army FROM Petersbur
III while the real action was made elsewhere. III
a. present movement, whether designed to al
- directly at the capture OF Richmond by coup
On nam or ouly 10 secure such positions as M
er farther and facilitate subsequent operation
&C. against the Rebel capital by slower process,
av at least serious one lHdeed, from the disrib
- ton of force il would appear that tho troops
" in the works before Petersburg are reduced
nh a purely subsidiary role; and what they do "
depend almost entirely on the developments ma
,s by the powerful body operating on the north 81
u9 of the james.
pc OF the preliminary operations Of this force, "
nd have already received advices; they have be
4 marked by entire success and though no de
siye action has yet taken place. the postio
secured are of high value in view OF future opal
tiOns Sunday morning saw the ID Corps (Ht
los cocl) and the 10th Corps (Brney) planted on I
T' north side Of the James al Deep Bottom; the II
oIE Corps holding the left Of the line and resting
run, the west bluff Of Deep Bottom the 2d Corps
ere the right Of -Four Mile Run.
IL, A successful charge in the morning by portlC
- of both corps resulted in driving the enemy ir
their first line of rie-pits, and in the eYonn
successful assault and thanking movement,
General BiTney's command, dislodged the Ret
from their second line. These positions were
gained without severe loss, but they were wo
ON what they cost, as the points secured admitted
ion extension and development Of our line.
in Accordingly, on Monday, the 10th Corps, VIII
in had previously held the left Of the line,
moved round. and took position on the right Of
ing 2dCorps These mRnUuvres would seem TO indie
purpose on the part Of General Grant to VIII
ing the line of battle round by the right on the jar
river, planting il opposite Fou Darling, VIII
D. the heights Of Balls Bluff give q command
position.
- With our force on the rear of the forts do