Wood County reporter. [volume] (Grand Rapids [i.e. Wisconsin Rapids], Wis.) 1857-1923, 1864-09-29

! allS iOIION4uS Is TIE reply OF Teneral SneF-
man to the rebel General Hoods charge of
studied cruelty in ordering the people of At
lanta from the city, the loyal to go North and
the disloyal through the lines South
HEADQUARTERS MILITARY DIVISION OF THE
MISSISSIPPI, IN THE FIELD, ATLANTA
September 10, 1864.
! General H. b. Hood, Commanding A1nay ofHe
Tennessee, Confederate A1my:
GENERAL: | have the honor to acknowledge
the receipt of your letter Of this date, at the
hands of Messrs. Ball and Crew, and consent
ing to the arrangements had proposed to IA.
cilitate the removal south of the people OF
Atlanta, who prefer to go in that direction.
inclose you a copy of my order, which will,
am satisfied, accomplish my purpose perfectly.
You style the measures proposed unprece-
dented, and appeal to the dark history of war
for parallel,a as an act OF studied and ungener-
Gus cruelty. 1t is not unprecedented, for
General Johnston himself very wisely and
properly removed the families all the way
from Dalton down, and | see no reason why
Atlanta should be excepted. Nor is it nece5-
sary to appeal to the dark history of war
when recent and modern examples are so
handy you yourself burned dwelling houses
along your parapet, and | have seen to-day
fifty houses that you have rendered uninhabi-
table because they stood in the way of your
forts and men.
You defended Atlanta on line SO close to
the town that every cannon shot, and many
musket, thrown from our line of intrench-
ments that oyershot their mark, went into the
! habitations of women and children. General
Hardee did the same at Jonesboro, and Gen
eral Johnston did the same last summer at
| Jackson, Mississippi.
have not accused you Of heartless cruelty,
but merely instance these cases of very re-
cent occurrence, and could enumerate hun
dreds OF others, and challenge any fair man
to judge which of us has the heart of pity for
| the families of brave people.
say it is a kindness to these families Of
Atlanta to remove them now at once from
scenes that women and children should not
be exposed to, and brave people should
scorn to commit their wives and children to
the rude barbarians who thus, IS you say, vi
olate the laws of war as Illustrated in the
pages of its dark history.
In the name of common sense I ask you
not to appeal to just God in such a sacrilig-
ious manner. You who, in the midst Of
peace and prosperity, have plunged nation
into civil War-dark and cruel war; who
dared and badgered US to battle; insulted
our SelZeu our dFSeHdIS anu IOrtS, That
were left in honorable custody; seized and
made prisoners of war the very guardians
sent to protect your people against Indians
and negroes, long before any overt act was
committed by the Ito you) hateful Lincoln
Government. You tried to force Kentucky
and Missouri into the rebellion, in spite of
themselves; falsifed the vote of Louisiana
set priVateers to plumber unarmed ships
expelled Union families by the thousand,
burned their houses, and declared by an act
Of your Congress the confscation of all debts
due Northern men for goods. You may talk
this to the marines, but not to me, who have
seen these things and who will this day
make as much sacrifice for the peace and
honor of the South as the best-born South,
erner among you,
II we must be enemies, let US be men and
night 1t out as we propose to do, and not deal
in such hypocritical appeals to God and hu-
mainly. God will judge us in due time, and
he will pronounce whether it be more hu-
name to fight it with town full of women
and the families Of brave people at our
BACK or to remove them in time to places Of
safety among their own friends and people.
am, very respectfully,
Your obedient servant,
". T. SHERMAN,
Major General Commanding.
Official: L. NJ. DAYTON, A. D. G.