, 1864-12-29
THE BATTLE OF PITTS.
BURG LANDING.
Vtndfcation Of General Grandfather
from Major General William r.
Sherman


sketch of Lieutenant General U. s, Grant, In
which see you -are likely to perpetuatc an
sufficient importance to correct. To General
Buell's noble, able and gallant conduct. you
attribute thu, fact that The disaster Of april
6, at Pittsburg Landing, was retrieved, and
made the victory of the following day. As
General Taylor Is said, in his later days. to
have doubted whether he was at the battle of
Buena Vista at all, on account OF the many
things having transpired there, according to
the historians, which he did not see, SO l be-
gin to doubt whether was at the battle Of
Pittsburg IandiDg Of modern description.
But was ut the BATTLES of Ap:l and Z,
1862. General Grant visited my division in
person about ten 8. m., when the battle ragged
general conversation, he remarked that was
doing right in stubborn1y opposing the pro
g1ess of the enemy and, III answer to my iu-
9uiry rs to cartridges, told me had
anticipated their want, and given or
de,s accordingly; he then. said his
It lie lett. About two p. m. Of the 9Th, the
enemy materially slack ened his attack on me,
and about p. m. deliberately made -E25sW
line behind McArthur's dri11l! 4 !sieid, placing
batteries on choseEE ground, repelling easily
cava]r3T12ettfack, and watched the cautious
approach Of the enemy's infantry, that never
dislodged nc there. selected that line In
which We had all day been expecting the ap-
p1oach Of Lew. Wallacc's division from
Crump's Landing. About S p. M, before the
sun set, General Grant came again to me, and
after hearing my report Of matters, explained
to me the situation faffairs on the left, which
failed to reach the landing Of the boats. We
agreed that the enemy had expended the Jttt-
r0re Of his attack, and We estimated our loss,
and approxlmatcd our then strength, includ
ing Lew. Wnllace's fresh division, expected
each minute. He then ordered me to get all
things ready, and at daylight the next Day to
mi Buell. had arrived, but he was known to be
near at hand. General Buell's troops took no
essential part in the first days tight, aud
Grants army, though collected together has
tily, green as militla, some regiments arriving
without cattridges even, and uearly all hear.
ing the dread sound Of battle for the first
the first days terrific onset Of q superior enc
my, we'll commanded and we'll handled.
know had orders from General Grunt to as
sumo the offensive before knew Gen. Buell.
was on the west side Of the Tennessee. I
think General Buell., Colonel Fry, and others
! was about sunset, about the time Gen. Grant
was leaving me. General Buell. asked ms
many questions, md got Of ME small map,
| which had made for my own use, and tod
me that By daylight he could hare eighteen
thousand fresh men, which I knew would SET
tie the matter.
understood Graut's forces were to I'D
vance on the Right Of the Corinth road and
Buells on the left, md accordingly at day
light advanced my division by the flank. the
resistance being trivial, up to the very spot
where the day before the battle had been
for Bue1fs troops to get up abreast, when the
entire line advanced and recovered atl the
ground We had ever held. I know that, with
the exception Of one or two severe struggles,
the fighting Of April z wRs easy as compared
with that Of Ap1it6.
Ineyer was disposed, nor am ! now, to
question anything done By Gen. Buell. aud
field Of battle from the rear, be encountered
that sickcning crowd Of laggaris and filgi-
| tiyes that excited his contempt and that of
his army, who never gave full credit to those
in the front line, who did fight hard, and who
lad, at ! p. IN. fchcckcd the enemy, and were
preparing the next day to assume the often
| sire. remember the fact better from Gen.
Grants auccdote OF his Donclson battle,
| which he told me then for the first tune
| that. at q certain period of the battle, be
eaw that either side was ready to give way II
the other showed bold front, and he deter
| mined to do that very thing, to advance on
the enemy, when, as he pFognosticatcd, The
l -
he thought the appearance the same, and be
| Judged, with Lew. .Wallace's fresh dt.
vision and such Of our startled troops
as bad recovered their equilibrium, he would
he justified In dropping the defensive and
assuming the offensive in the morning. And,
! reMat, l received such orders before knew
Gen. Buell's troops were at the river ad'
| nit that WAS glad that Buell. was there. he.
| cause knew his troops were older than ourt
and better systematizcd and drilled, and hi.
| arrival made that certain which before vi:
uncertain. have heard this question much
discussed, and must say that the officers o
BuelPs army dwelt too much on the STAN
! pede Of some Of our raw troops, and gave u!
too little credit for the fact that for one whols
day, weakened as We were By the absence 0
Bnell's army, long expected, Of Lew Wal
lace's division, only four miles of, and Of tht
our assailants for the time. At the same tint
our Army Of the Tennessee have indulged il
severe criticism ut the slow approach Of tha
| army which knew the danger that threatened
us from the concentrated armies Of Johnston
Beauregard and Bragg that lay at Corinth. Il
sonal prowess arc ns plenty as blackberries t.
those who seek Them at the front, oil sucl
ordinations should be frowned down; an9
were 1t not for the military character Of you
journal would not venture to offer 4 correc
lion of very popular error.
will also avail myself Of this occasion t.
correct another very common mistake in at
tribut1ng to Gen. Grant the selection Of tha
battlefield. It was chosen by that vetcral
soldier, Mai. Geh. .Chas. F. Smith, who OF
dered my division to disembark there. an
strike for the Charleston Railroad. This OF
; der was subsequently modified by his order
, Ing: Hurlbut's division to discmbark there
and mine higher up the Tennessee to tn
mouth of Yellow creek, to strike the railroas
at huntsville. But floods prevented ou
reaching the railroad, when Gen. Smith OF
, dered me In person also to disembark Z
!. Pittsbnrg, aud take post well out, so as t
make plenty of room, with Snake and Lie
creeks the tanks Of camp for the grand al
| my Of invasion. ..
: TWAS Gen. Smith who selected that flcl
of battle, and it was well chosen. On m
, other we surely Would have been oyerwhelm
ed, as both Lick aud Snake creeks forced th
enemy to contne his movements to d direc
front attack, which new troops are bette
l | qualified to resist than where tanks are {.
. posed to real or ehimerical danger. Eve
: the divisions Of that nrmy were arranged I
: that camp by Gen. Smiths order, my diyiafo
whilst cClernand's and Prentlss' were th
real line Of battle, with ". r.. I. Wallac
/ in support Of the right wing, and HuElbut
, the left Lew Wallace's division being d.
tached. All these subordinate disposition
) were made by the order Of Gen., Smith, b
| i0f6 Ecu. dEAuL euccteutu llaA ~ LILO 1oi
! mand Of all the forcea up the Tennessee
, headquarters, Savannah. If there were au
error in putting that army on the west sid
, | of the Tennessee, exposed to the 81
| 7erior force Of the enemy also assembling 6
) Cosinth+ the mistake WAS not Gen. Grants-
, but there was no mistake. It was necessat
t that combat, fierce and bitter, to test Il
manhood Of The two armies, should come Of
: and that WAS as good place as any. It We
not then question Of military skill an
strategy, but Of courage and pluck, and l a
. convinced that every life lost that day to I
) WAS necessary; for otherwise at Corinth,
Memphis, at Vlekebu1g, We would have four
2 | harder resistance, had we not shown our en-
j mics that, rude and untutored as we the
!, | were, we could fight as well as they.
: Excuse so long letter, which is very un
t snail from me. but of course my life Is liable
cease at any moment, and happen 10 De
l witness to certain truths which are now b
!. ginning to pass out OF memory ai'o iof
, what Is called history. ,,,.- H.,
e : also lake great pleasure IN aadlng IN
. nearly I'LL the new troops that at Shiloh DIRE
: from me official censure have more tnan
l. deemed their good name among tnem II ~
4 very regiment which first broke, the 55d ~ n
, Colonel Appen. Under anotner isaaer. end ~ =
Jones. it has shared every campaign ano G
e pedition Of mine since, Is with me now, 81
8 can march and biyounc and fight as well
. | the hest regiment in this or any army. Us
putation now Is equal to any from the sta
b 81 Ohio. am, with respect, yoxs, traly,
!, ". T. SHERMAN, Mnjor 0tnerni.
e Tho Soreheads.
j. There is q class of chronic soreheads in II
= co,,ntry-the sediment of the late Democra1
party-who seem to have no mlss,on e.see eaee
~ everything Tint the Administration does
~ atfemnts 10 do, These shallowpates thu