The Kenosha telegraph. [volume] (Kenosha, Wis.) 1860-1888, 1864-07-28
A Rebel View Of the Situation.



boasts, but confess the truth, and not make
successes out of disasters. The writer ex-
poses the rebel dodge of making their people
believe that Johnson is driving Sherman
just where he wants him, in the following
language:
The magnificent army of Sherman has
without loss and without battle, forced back
one Of our best armies, under favorite GEN
eral, and if he had only intended raid, the
destruction of the vast agricultural interest
of the granary of our State is loss which
we are ill-prepared to endure and totally
unprepared to retrieve. The evil is, first,
the withdrawal from the market of the es,-
sential food second the increase of popuIa
ton caused by refugees, which makes an inv
creased demand on the producing capacit h
of the State; third, the increased prices whic :
tend to depreicate the currency, which can
not bear another one third reputation.
Then if it be more than raid, and Sher-
man holds his front by Notifications and his
rear by guards, it is an actual loss of empire.
Therefore with harm actually done, and
with Atlanta and the great railroad inter
ests involved in the fate of battle that
Sherman may or may not risk, is it wise to
tell our people that the invasion of our State
is but a ''stupid blunder'' of the enemy?
Just eight hours before the battle of Ba-
ker's Creek General high in command
told lady in our hearing that the crossing
of the Mississippi by Gen. Grant, placed him
at our mercy and that the only thing
to fear was that he would take the alarm
and escape to his gunboats before we could
make the attack. Twenty-four hours later
our broken columns were hurrying along
the same road in retreat, and the lady who
had believed the general could not save even
her wearing apparel That General was
not named Pemberton.
Instance after instance of this kind have
we had during the war, and yet grave pa
pers with able editors, talk of the certainty
that Sherman can never take his army back
to Chattanooga, and congratulate the coun-
try that he has marched into trap. We
once had some experience with an old rat
that always sprung the steel trap from the
under side, and always took off the bait and
never got caught. The Yankees have Pc
culiar faculty Of marching into traps and
staying there. Our only commentary upon
such writing is that such traps as half State
and the best half at that, are so expensive as
to perhaps awaken smiles in the North and
in Europe when we boast of them.
WHAT THE FACTS ARE ABOUT GRANT.
In like manner do we talk about Grant
and amuse ourselves over set of facts which
are far from amusing. We are perfectly
satisfied that the commander of the armies
OF the United States might have reached the
result he now aims for with small portion
OF the loss he has now sustained, and that
too, with all allowance for the peculiar Con
| federate arithmetic which kills Yankees 81
fast-on paper. Lieut.. Gen. Grant wa
greatly mistaken in his idea that, having
turned the flank of Gen. Lee in crossing tn,
Rapidan, there simply would be a foot-rac
for Richmond. But two things have sine
| been demonstrated, and both are serious
First-That the army of the Union is s.
large and powerful that the usual military
axiom, thanking is more dangerous to tn,
Tanker than to the fianked," does not apply
The strategy of Grant, which simply con
sists IN withdrawing one wing at time be
hind the impregnable masses of the cente
and other wing, would be frgauht with peri
were that center and remaining wing con
tracted enough to be enveloped, or veal
enough to be broken, but is perfectly safe a
it is
Therefore, he is at liberty to play trick
in plain sight and without peril, simply be
cause he is too big 10 cotch! Consequent,
in succession of tricks, even by one O
the moderate ability OF Grant, there is dan
ger that one not seen or foiled at exactl'
the right time may catch u.s. Such a result
would not be destruction to our army, fo
Lee also is too big to hold, but it might d.
us harm.
GRANT CAN HAVE HIS OWN Way
The second danger is of the siege of Rich
mond. Some OF our contemporaries and tn,
most Of our correspondents laugh at this
and yet Grant has it in his power to besieg,
The Capital, or force an attack on himself. O
force an evacuation of Richmond. Not tina
he has his choice of these three things, bu
he can force that choice upon u.s.
In Grants moving upon the south of Rich
mond and threatening James River near the
city, Gen. Lee has choice of two evils. Ifhe
keeps ahead OF Grant and holds the Peters
burg line lnvlolate, that tanker necessarily
gets between him and Richmond and walk
INTO the city at his leisure. If Lee keeps be
tween Richmond and Grant, the latter O
course gets between him and the Southern
States communication, and cuts off the onl,
source OF supply now left, as the valley o
Virginia is in the hands of the enemy. |
Lee wants to have Petersburg and Rich
mond both, he will have to attack Gran
in one of his craw-fsh movements and will
have to attack the positions and intrench
ments which the grand spade and pick army
never exists an hour without.
In our judgment the plan of the campaign
is at last developed Western Virginia, tn,
valley and It's resources is by the movemen
on Staunton and Lexington, to be rendered
unavailable for provisions Grant is t.
throw his army into Notifications across tn,
railroads from Richmond South and so Gu
OFT our army supplies. Thus the starvation
OF siege will be as effectually secured as
an army could be found large enough t.
surround the legions of Lee as Grant die
Gen. Pemberton provided, of course, tina
the Danville road shares the fate that th
Weldon road probably will.
Ii Gen. Lee chooses to stop the same bv
night, he has to put his finger on the slip
lpery Grant, and stop his flee like Rankings
and having found him and stopped him 70
hght will have to charge the hills Gran
Will occupy and the trenches Grant will dig
Ii President Davis concludes to swap capi
tais' and giving Grant Richmond, starts of
ahead of him for Washington, we will
nave the army to subsist in the desert vast
between the two capitals; have t.
make time on foot that will bea
the transports on the Potomac an,
the chesapeake, have the Notifications q
washington to storm, and a siege to stan,
there should he get inside
! we lose richmond if we hold the Weldon
ana Danvllle railroads;we lose the railroad
II We save Rlchmond,o or we attack Grant il
his mighty trenches if we try to save both
IL is true that Gen. Beauregard could still
Keep south OF Grant, and prevent raids int
carolina, put could not keep him from stop
ping the raids south unless he h as enou Of
men to attack Grant in reserve, and place
hlm between two fires. We h ope Grant
thinks he has. This is a game with no pos
sl6le hlndrance, perfectly plain to ven un