American citizen. [volume] (Butler, Butler County, Pa.) 1863-1872, 1864-05-25
what Has Reen--What is--aBd
What is to BET


what is to be- The dissertations of great
majority of them, it is true, contain not
so much as even grain of sense, for the
writers have as little real knowledge Of
what they pretend to know so much, as
they have of what the man in the moon
lives on. Another class of writers-car-
pet warriors generally-know an immense
amount of theory, and have a smattering
of practical facts. There is a certain val
nc to their speculations, for we get at
what, according to experience and APP
pointed methods, is possible, and are assist
ed to form our own conclusions. OF this
class of writers is 4 VETERAN 0RsER-
YER" in the New Y York Tines, otherwise
g. G. Msnsfeld, Of Cincinnati, whose mil
itary education, habits of thiugking and
observation, qualify him to give an intelh-
gent opinion, and to speculate wisely.
Having said this much, We give what
the Veteran" says :-PtHsbnryh Com
merciol.
''There is no question, the rebels have
been greatly deceived as to the force bro't
to bear upon them Perhaps they did not
believe all that has been constantly said
in the Richmond papers; but, doubtless,
they were not at all prepared to see the
vast exhibition Of strength which has en-
abled US to pour heavy armies on more
than one point They expected we should
make one grand onset, and they thought
that would be toward Richmond, Ac-
cordingly Virginia was filed with the best
troops, and all tina, could be got together.
Johnston has large army, but not at all
equal to Lees. Our Generals have prob
ably uudcrratcd Johuston's forces The
united commands Of Johnston, Polk, For
rest and various detachments, probably
make 0,000 men, and that is formida-
Bile force. Behind the rockyspurs Of the
Cumberland mountains. such an army
ought to makean obstinate. if uotsuccess-
ful defence. But there are two things
against Johnston First: Dalton can be
fanked on either side; and secondly, the
line between him and Atlanta can be cut
of, if he remains thore-hencc, if he
does not defeat our army at once, he will
retire upon Atlanta. That place is said
to be surrounded with furtihcations. Per
haps 80; but Notifications are the last re-
source Of war, and time oyercomcs them.
Atlanta is the most important railroad
point in the entire central South. Prior
to the war it grew with immense rapidi-
tv. and from q small village it grew up to
iourishing town Of 10000 people. The
rebels have no point of Importance be-
tween that and Augusta, which is Gin re
gard to these materials and resources, the
most important point in the South They
have an immense manufactory of powder
there, machine shops, sc. But we may
safely assume that we shall not reach Au-
gusta till all the main points Of the war
are decided.
The most quiet and uuheraldci move
ment Of the campaign is that from the
Kanawha. This has been in preparation
for several weeks, and my information is,
the column is thirty thousand strong, and
has moved in the direction Of Newborn,
Virginia, near the New River. Tt must
have reached that place, or some other
point on the Virginia and Tennessee Rail
road before this letter reaches you The
rebels seem to have no sufficient force in
the Valley to resistis. Its immediate oh
iect is to destroy all the rebel commuui-
cations through the Southwestern Valley
OF Virginia. This done, it may turn to-
ward Lynchburg Or to the south, ulti-
mately uniting with the movement thro'
Georgia.
In the meantime, the Valley of the
Kanawha and the railroads in West Vir-
ginia will be garrisoncd by the Ohio Ma
tonal Guards, who are now moving to
their various points Of destination. |
have recently been at some Of the points
in the West, and | assure you there is no
more glorious act, in this war, than to see
these young men leaving the plow in the
field, Gas old Pullman did, ) the anvil, the
counter, and the fractory, to rally around
the flag. "0h !" said a mother' "my boy
is so youag !" Yes, madam, but he
viii supply the placeof a veteran soldier"
Yes, (and she wiped her eyes, | could
have got him off, but / saw his heart was
in ii, and couldn't say no." Such is
the spirit of the times, and such it will be
till that flag Of beauty and of glory shall
have waved over the last rebel | trust
before this letter reaches you to hear of
the Army of the Kanawha, in the Val
ley of Virginia, striking an effective
blow.
For the first time, in the War the cam
pa!gn is conducted according to my ideas
of what just military principles, and true
views of the resources and geography Of
Of the country, require But even now,
there are two exceptions which may here
after be important. These are the move
ments of the Shenandoah and the useless
expedition against Shreveport, The for
mer would have trebled in strength, and
the latter | would reYer have begun. /
would have undertaken no expedition west
of tho Mississippi; and have contented
myself with defending the lower sugar
country, in Louisiana, on the line of the
Arkansas. We have wasted men, muni-
tons and provisions enough in these i'll
fated expeditions to have moved strong
army up the Shenandoah where it would
have been aseffective as one against Rich
mond
l am writing without the information