The Xenia sentinel. [volume] (Xenia [Ohio]) 1863-186?, 1864-05-10
An Omen Of Success.

!
The present temper Of the North affords
good illustration of that national trait
which is commonly traced to the large in
fusion Of Saxon blood among the Ameri-
can people, which charaeterizes about equ-
ally the two great nations that speak the
| English tongue, which is reverenced IN
Great Britain uuder the name of pluck,
and which lnanifests itself among US BY an.
undaunted persistence in whatever effort
IS met with opposition. Cool observes
from without, noting the inception and
watching the progress of this momentou8
struggle, have counted on the fnal success
of the North from the slowly gathering
earnestness which marked t; e conduct and
mood of its people '-SloW to fight, and
fight once, says a great orator, is an at
tribute of the Yauk es.-
With perhaps single exception, the
important military events which we have
been called on to record since the early
opening of the campaign have been disas-
ters to the National cause. The exception,
if it be one, is Shermans Mississippi
Expedition, which was so far successful
that it did vast damage to the enemy, and
so far unfortunate that a cotemporlneous
reverse caused it to fail Of its ulterior aud
most essential purpose. Setting that aside,
we have to record the total defeat Of cava
ry under w S. Smith in Northern Mis-
sissippi, the abandonment Of the siege Of
Charleston, the defeat at Olustee in Florida,
various rebel successes in North Carolina
in March, the entrance Of Forrest into
Tennessee and Kentucky, the sack Of Pa
ducah, the capture Of Fort Pillow, the
present uninterrupted occupation of West
tern Tennessee and Kentucky by the Rcb-
el forces, accompanied BY a wholesale con-
seription and plumber Of that region the
capture Of Plymouth, n G., which hap
pened last week, but Of which the partie
ulars have not yet reached the public, and,
finally, the overwhelming disaster in Lou,
isiana, which has arrested the progress Of
General Banks Red River Expedition. /
Each Of these reVerses, viewed simply in |
a military way, stirred a ripple Of impa-
Gent or angry comment on tho placid sea
of public content, but except for special |
of evaporation, as the Reb-
el barb .rity at Fort Pillow, OF the disasters
at Olustee and in Louisiana, seemed una
bic to imprint itself deeply on even the
Of the people. As affecting
the result of the war, or the determination
on which its prosecution depends, mot ono of
them deserves attention. They only add
other evidence to that which has before
of the unslterable purpose Of
this nation 20 assert its sway over all the
territory now occupied by rebellious
We are careful to notice the indications
Of this spirit beOause they deserve notico,
and because to direct general attention to
them is to stimulate and augment the spirit
Itself, A nation is like a regiment. An
essential difference between new troops
md veterans is that the former have not
earned 10 rely on each other; that in the
,errib!e test Of battle no man knows wbeth.
sr his eOmrade on tha right or on tie left
will stand or run. When a regiment has
.augbt confidence IN itself, it is veteran
regiment. So when a nation, tried By
,terner test than those Of battle, as We
lave been in the progress of this struggle.
8 at last pursuaded that it's own heart is
sot on going through the war,
t becomes iuvinoible. It puts aside tales
# disaster, braces its nerves to repel dis
,ouragement, and out Of an uubroken sue.
.ession Of defeats gathers new strength
nd freshcr hope. In such an attitude the
North stands to-day, and tits better omen
# victory in the end than if every reverse
his year has been a triumph "Tho good
hings which belong TO prosperity are to be
Wished, but the good things that belong
Q adversity are to be admired, IN T.
Tribune.
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