Richmond Whig. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1862-1865, 1864-12-16


by slmsr line Of sarlhwOfka improyssd Tor the Ell
0sneV. 10 those constituted BY Todisben As SAID
hato,n sabascpOl was naval depot, Ia great part
omen and uudeieudsd on tie land SD. powerful
Inv vhieh had lust brushes With ease trcm the line
Of iss march a. Alma the main Russian force, ap.
preached 10 invest l.. No Other resistance remained
tsasibe ID. The one adopted promptly By the Russian
,neral-hsld works and ltrsnched lines we're hiSonly
b pc. The history Of European wars haa taught tnat
lesson plainly and tbs Gng ieer proved 10 be At hano
to Tlan and eiec. the works needed, With conspicuous
skill and energy.
You refer 10 Frederick the Greats abstinence from
the use Of sarthworka in his campaigns. Be assured
Eas not because of any low estimate of their vldeon
propsr occasions. You will remember that hls tu-
tors we're all men selected BY his father from
t1ose whom he had noticed during the" siege
oDeralions sgainlt SIasund, and among ho
Instructions Sraun up by bis ia'ner Iof tee :gse-
anee OF bic education an order that the crown prince
should with Increasing years, be taught ornhcAnon
in a noat eapeciAl De agree" fh,reoro II Frederick
the Great did not resort 20 earhHorks IN the AnLe'
you suggest may venture to observe that was surely
because they were suited 10 the theatre OF As ope-
raous and 10 the System OF war which he iluslra cd
With such splendor. To him, situated as he Was,
sarthv had been fatal born general and leader
OF men, IA we'll thoroughly edncAted IN the science
OF war he fully compFehended the high value oil mat
art which he possessed OF bringing mo scaon, a. 'he
right time q mass OF troops either superior IN NUN
hsr. or djso,plns mobility or some other vital military
Qualities 10 the iorcs which his enemy could there OPP
ooae 10 him By his mai R Iues or strategy he gel-
orally made bis ENEMY hght him under disadvantages
created by hs genius and tue scat Of War, which
vent towards ensnring victory on tue other nand.
MS adVersares did not throw up rn-sps lunetIes Ia
nsills heads lines Of Tedans or ndsntsd tnes . Ia
Oremallers because by weight OF superior numbers
scd combinations they expected 10 oveFWhtln him
Napoleon did not use the spade In LAZY because bs
pau and pol cy tbs Sas With those oil Atelefek,
N Mt d.
nit of thar implement He endeavored and sue
cessfuIly, 20 hght and break the Austrian Corps
In detail 9Th such 0slerlIy and under srch eoL-
dons 10 leave 10 out OF thsir power 10 pron' py
Geld works when isolated and v0rstsd.
EaFshuoFkS hayS ever he'd THAR sphsfe and value ID
Eurepean var, and have alWays been used when The
scsus Ct operations and Other circumstance MADE
Issn advantageous, Is vas, indeed, the formidable II
90, iupFeEaa5e works Of shieh the lined aeou Verona
fora part, Vh:Ob u Q .esiiops5ly induced Louis M
pols0n 20 tender peace so soon 70 Austria
The theatre OF var on the other. hand, and The
ehaae er OF the troops employed ~ she war IN which
We are engaged have made enTenched lines oil special
value. Our generals being educated soldiers-three
Of the i've of highest grade being engineers they
understood under what militia conditions earthWorks
shoIll be relied on, and employed them accordingly
They would have done the same had TodlSben never
LVed-had rodlebtn never shown suoh signal ability
a. an engineer SsbaslOpo Its error, therefore, In
my besf say thai any change IN the system OF war
,as brought about BY him, that he taught the IN
ierrsed value OF earhwoks 50 signay that our gen.
erals and our adVsrsares have been led 10 use en-
ueGchmentS ss has been done in tbs course Of this
war.
Tee character Of the country and Of the troops cp
posed to them ave. doubtless made the Federal Gen.
erals intIercl 10 uca dgree. But IL remains to be
seen, after all whether they have pursued the best
plan of for them, with their superior numbers and
immense Irtia resource which, possibly might have
nkka cd L 4.
questionable, indeed whether the strategy and tactics
Of either GRAFT or MCCLELLAN will be recommended to
ths imitation Of tie soldiers OF the fuIure
II the achievements OF Todleben taught the value Of
sarthWorks in defensive war, 1t would seem the Lesson
sas quickly forgotten in the Southern States by al |
but ar aud the Federal Generals ess how did it hap
pen that for the first year Of the war and TO the close
OF 1861 If no later indeed, the spade was viewed and
character Zsd with sUcS scorn by our sbleIt ou nal
sts who 5rrecIy psrceivlng the quarter Il /
came US ed it one OF the evils imported from
West Point with whose slsvsS il widely appre-
hended spades are trump to degree derogsiory 20
the IN anbOod aud ohiValry Of the Southern people.
In the recent war between Denmark and al
led Austria and Prussia, the Danes threw:
IN poEer nj huss II earthWotks q. several |
piae g. PAR lcullrly at DuppHl, where q prolougs
dIsnce Vas made u DR. e'ey hdSeTse cond on
A. U, ground which highly favorable for defence.
Thsy could not DO turned or hInked One OF the re-
doubts Was however taken by a eoUp de man-Com-
D e.sly surprised While ts CARR san was 1t Breakfast
And Tie whole lius fell IN qliek suCce sion. Those
sorks would have been made aud theic stout defence
Al emtted eIea had the late DOk1 Of 1Ncasts never
in lue "a bis dro~sy aud inviting colleagues to yield
,eir unconsei assent to the terms OF the despatch
I, nd an, persnpiorily directing the ell pei.
I o. 10 the U, msa 81
Ons striking anu Viuntsd incident OF Auglo French
ooerstions in the BiatE Sea fortunately had hnls
20 git with Generals, and did not make Gen Beau
regard dlslrust .ths efficiency OF esrthWOIks even
.gsiLsl the really ,GLg lsd mach OF war iron
mopted shipA | refer 10 the easy reduction Of Il
worha KinborD by two Fonolads greatly inferior 90
those employed by the United Slat>s. Fort Nc AstsT
and the Ofks al Charleston have shown Generals
Judgment.
Antecedent u the defence OF Sebastopol and the
lab0gS OF Tod chen the siege of Sill stFs by the
Ro5 ans aud s N, morsbls deferce by the Turks un-
der tue lead Of tSo youag British cf3erP. The ope
ratious oil the Turks that occasion we're more slln
30 Ogfs than those at Sebaslopol but il il Is to be
aid that the latter taught the sig1al vaus OF old
methods of cid systems OF defence, the defence OF
Sl is:ra more properly be said TO have taught
rodls ban aud the Russians that lesson.
The "a ID both b Dad aad fertile, but will trss-
pasa no loI ger within II. ."
FF.sder OK the Great, when EoaFcely 81 years OF
age uaa present with the PTuaaian contingent as vo
unfesr and sudrlt a. the siege OF PnpsburR on the
Rhine Il was bssisged you will remember, BY the
F6Ich under the Duke Of Berwick, WbO threw up EN-
rel cAments 10 prOt6e. lis from Prince Eugene
chile e conducted siegs operations. Around and
part of tho deencss vi Phlipstufg during this siege
vas line OF oatposts known the lines OF .E,lngtI
here was another still longer lne which bai been
thrown up in the time OF the Eagsne Marlborough
sns kn0sn 10 military annals the lines OF Sol DO.
en Ia a letter IRON Frederick TO his father he meu-
ions that the ussians bad thrown up three redoubts
ia a day. A little later the ROssians laid siege 10
Dau Z, Which vas obstnatey defended with every
,rgiuesring dew Ffs derrick after il fell per
4on1ly ,IahiJsd the lines So q military study; and
young he Was, defeated there, a. at llipsburs,
defects in the conduct bOh of The attack and defence
I, was his opinion that the Ftenoh could have been
stacked With success 10 their ines a. PGiipebug by
tho relieving force.
The Ausifians abou! the same time, having been
dt.ran out Of Naples BY the Spaniards under the