Richmond Whig. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1862-1865, 1864-02-22


ilbls iOr eheFnGn 10 msks "A evsflAnd naseh tcr
Yoksbufx to Nobils--sbcut three hundred miies ana
Il tbia be answered In the affirmative, We are stu met
With the purEDg proposition that there i no adequate
reason why he should undertake the prodigiou' dmou
ties Of the march, -. =. ..-.-.r. 80.
Sherulsns Corps undoubtedly ID mol destined Tor No
bile. Where, then, Is be goingf careful e1suna-
ton of good map without which military discussions
are necessarily 90 much blind yersAge) should answer
this question. Let suppose that Sherman conunues
ssspp Railroad which be puts In working order a. be
goes and that be advances as far IS herdan one hun
dred and forty miles from Vicksburg Suppose, that
while this operation Is under way Banks and Farrsg,
strike successful blow at Mobile This accomplished,
aud We have The two forces planted at poins
of the highest Importance and sonrsssd by The line
tho Mobile and Ohis Railroad IT. nov, from hefidisn,
Sherman pushes OH his advance still due eastward TO
Selma Ala IL viii be seen that the result Of these COM
bined operations IL to give " possession OF region Oh
enormous impoitinos, strategetcaiy ana msHrAHI-s
region whose possession In fact would setls the late
of the rebellion.
Tho region into possession OF which shall come BY
the tuccssu issue of the operations now on foot forms
grand strategic triangle, whereof Meridian, hooiie'
Selma are the three points. LIS value u threeiolo-
First the great facility for p's -
sents; secondly, the material value OF the district Oh
country of which assures possession and, thirdly
the military bearing of this region on the whole theatre
of var We can more than glance Of these three
points in kuccssfon.
Aud frst of the communications it il TO be sad that
no region in the South is admirably situated, bolh
naturally and arfcay, that just Indicated For III
the district between Vcksburg Selma and Mobile, ve
havs no loss than too pdtsr bdsis-oa tho 4isasHPPs
and on tie GHLf; and four Hno Of communication
nansIy trs rarodds, and too rivers. From cks6urg,
we have the line of the Southern Mississippi Railroad
from Mobile, we have the Mobile and Ohio Railroad TO-
rsther with the Tombigbee and Alabama Rivers The
Tombpbee opens the State OF hssifsippi up to Cslun
bus and Aberdeoa the Alabama opens the State OF Ala
| bama up 10 Selma Montgomery and beyond. These
points viii all be held and made powerfully foruned
depots Of supply. 71sy viH form precisely The second
ary 6ass Gen. Grant m'si hsvs in an advance into s
| Galf Statss Toe material importance OF the region
aes from the fact that its river bottoms form the ron
est cotton district Ia the South and il Ia there also,
that the Of the distribution OF the slave popua-
| ton shows It's darfes. hue.
We now arrive at the strategic bearings Of the region
in its relations with the present disposition OF the rebel
forces il the Southwest The value OF it IN this view,
oauuot be over-eslmstd. First OF al, it Will give Us
the grand secondary line OF rebel common c,tions.-
Vita the possession Of Chattanooga and Knoxvils Ne
tapped the first Of these ines and the confessions OF
the rebels themselves show how terribly this itself EN-,
b.rrasses them. Well, VIC shall now SEE, tho only re-
mainirg line. In the next place, 10 must CAL away
considerable portion AZ least, oil The rooel army from
| Grants 'front.' and enable him TO advance Sgppies viii
som be accumulated to make this possible. But finally,
and important of ALL IL anticipated the rebels ~ ne
possession of the only remaining ne Of defence which
t vas posii6l for hs rebels to take up vhsn Grant
,hovId once advance from Chattanooga Military men
have long recognised, that If the rebels were once
turned Of Atlanta the line Of the Tomb g6eo was the
only available position eft taem The otner line leads
directly into suI sac, ending In Florida H. hsre-
fore, the present movements successa II clutches
this single position at which the rebels could have
hoped to mlse any protracted stand.
We discern in these moves the marks OF bold, bril-
liant, original conception. Their very initiation must
utterly dseol cerI ali the rebel plans Of invasion in the
West There very little doubG that as their first re-
sult We shall hear OF Johnston prompt retreat to At
lAntS.