Rutland weekly herald. [volume] (Rutland, Vt.) 1859-1877, 1865-03-16
The military Prospect.

The Army and Navy Journal has the
following Interesting speculations con-
corning the military prospect;
alt is, Of course, impossible for us TO
entirely surround Lee with armies, each
equal TO his own force, and armies of
less strength might, by an active and
skillful opponent, be attacked and de-
stroyed in detail. Hence, our cOncentra-
tlOn against Lee can consist Of only
two armies, that of Grant and Sher-
man. The forces of SchOteld will nee
esSarily join one or the other of these,
as soon as relieved from their immedl-
ate duty by the fall Of Wilmington.
Which army SChofeld will JOIN Will de-
pend upon the relative force OF our two
main columns, counting, or course
Grants entertainments and defensive at
titude as so much force on his side. We
incline to believe that he will join
Sherman, who is most exposed To the
assault OF Lee, and TO whom defeat,
from his exposed position, would be
more disastrous. Concentrated between
our columns, with forces probably equal
to the stronger, Lee would occupy much
the position of Napoleon in his ceja-
brated campaign of 1914. In that, in
terpOsing between the two columns of
the Allies advancing apon Paris, strik-
ing powerful blows which his genius
alone could conceive, he snatched yicto-
ry from almost every encounter-trom
Champ-Aubert, Chateau.Thierry, and
MOuntmirail, to Nantes and MOntereau
But he was doomed to fall before the
combinations of the enemy, their aupe-
riority of numbers, the impossibility Of
his obtaining requirements to supply
the drain of battle, and the want of that
levy of fifty thousand men which he
had hoped his victories would enable
him to rally to q standard dear TO
Fsance, for the victories That it symbol
lied and the glory that haloed round it.
Men for his armies it was no longer in
his power 20 obtain; for France was
getting tired of slaughter, and saw at
last the unholiness of the cause she had
fought for, stripped as it was of the
false brilliancy it once possessed. With
such obstacles the magnificent COmbi-
nations and the brilliant genius of Ma
poleOn were useless. This war has
shown that armies of 10000 men,
though frequently defeated, cannot be
destroyed in a single battle Antietam
Charlottesville Chickamauga Gettys-
burg, all illustrate this fact. The mate
rial of which our armies on both sides
is composed, their long experience of
war, the great advantages which the de-
teRsive always possesses, render a deci-
sive victory over either Grant or Sher-
man, under any circumstances, whatev-
ever impossible for Lee. But an indeci-
sive one would be defeat A battle
prolonged for many days with either of
these commanders, would absolutely in
CBpaCitate Lee from confronting the
other. How can he replace troops lost
in battlel He has no territory from
which to draw troops or arms, except
that which has already been exhausted
by the most violent combats in this
war. He cannot arm and drill his ne
SfoeS lH timeS and time is everything
for Sherman neAer halts while anything
is to be achieved. Whether, therefore,
Lee, recalling Hoke, Beauregard, and, if
possible, Hardee, by rail to Richmond,
endeavOrs to Overwhelm Grant that he
may atterwardt fall upon Sherman; or,
leaving a small garrison and the hope
less mud to oppose Grant, concentrates
on the borders of North Carolina to at
tack Sherman before Schoneld joins
him; whether in either af these cases he
meets with temporary success or with
the defeats which a just confidence in
our soldiers, in Grants tenacity and
Sherman's genius, causes us to antici-
pate the ultimate success of the combi-
nations of the present campaign can,
without the development of new re
sources on the part pf;the South, which
neither they nor us appear to anticipate,
be no longer a matter of reasonable
doubt"