The Nashville daily union. [volume] (Nashville, Tenn.) 1862-1866, 1865-03-04
From the arms and Navy Journal.
the Prospect.


fled national pride, the magnificent
success which our Army and Navy have
achieved within the last few months
the triumphant march of Sherman from
Atlanta 10 Savannah. his even more bril-
liant progress from Savannah through
South Carolina; the fan Of Charleston,
that famous birth place and cradle OF
secession; the capture of Forts Fisher
and Anderson, leading, probably, be-
fore our readers see this sheet 70 the
evacuation of Wilmington, and the
abandonment of the whole Atlantic
seaboard by the enemy, and his relin-
auishment Of the vast resources he has
hitherto drawn from foreign countries.
But it is more imperative upon US IN
this hour Of our fortunes to try and
form q calm and dispassionate Judgment
upon our real military position, its pros
poets Of success, its chances Of failure
TO discern from what point results may
. be expected great enough to ensure US
union and peace by the triumphant
march Of our Armies, and by the over
throw Of that military power which re-
cent acouaintance with the interior OF
the States IN rebellion shows TO be the
only obstacle to happy and triumphant
issue Of the war. And we must inquire,
as well, where temporary disasters may
be looked for, and how far they can
leopard and influence the ultimate tri
umph Of our arns
The contending forces upon the field
Of operations on the plains east of the
Alleghanies, are the Army Of Lee,
with the scattered commands of Bragg
and Hoke, lately at Wilmington, Har-
dee from Charleston, Beauregard in
front Of Sherman, Hood striving 10
get into the Eastern Zion and Hill cut
of at Augusta; and on our side Grant
facing Lee at Richmond, Schofield in
North Carolina, left by the evacuation
of Wilmington free either to march
10000 men to Sherman's rein
foreement, or TO join Grant by water
with all but the small force necessary
for garrisoning Wilmington; finally,
Sherman, whose victorious columns are
pressing their relentless way direct to
victory
"strsight forward goes the lightning,
Straight forward goes the cannon-bsll's
fearful path,
Swift, by directest course, it hurtles on,
shattering, it makes its way that it may
shatter."
The destruction Of the armed force
of the Coniederacy being now the great
specific object Of the combinations of
our generals, il necessarily involves the
forcing Of its main army into a central
position. from which escape, in case of
defeat, is impossible The direction Of
Sherman's march promises to secure
this specific object At the same time,
il is, OF course, desirable for him to cut
off from the enemy's main force as
many as possible of the small detach-
ments which he has left in garrison at
various points His advance upon
Branchville cut of Hill and Hood. His
movement upon Kingsville, before
threatening Columbia, forced Hsrdee
and Beauregard upon diverging lines
of retreat; and, il our cavalry we're Tor
tunate enough TO strike Florence, or
Schofcld 70 HeiZe Wilmington before
Hardees arrival AZ these places, the
latter general will be thrown entirely
out Of the immediate sphere Of opera
tons. These mastery combinations
are inestimably efficient in preventing
accessions 10 Lees forces.
The limited resources Of the South,
and the combination of its military
forces under Lee as generalin-chief-a
change Of organization which must Of
necessity lead to union of the out
living forces Of the Confederacy in the
execution Of some one well conceived
scheme-compel Lee to the same con-
centration which our combinations are
forcing upon him.
1t ia, 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 Ekilllul opponent be attacked
and destroyed in detail Hence, our
concentration against Lee can consist
of only two armies, that of Grant
and that of Sherman The forces
of Schofeld viii necessarily join one or
the other of these as soon as relieved
from their immediate duty by the fall
of Wilmington. Which army Schofeld
will Join will depend upon the relative
force of our two main columns, count
ing. of course, Grants entertainments
and defensive attitude as so much
force on his side We incline to be-
lieve that he will join Sherman, who is
most exposed 10 the assaults of Lee,
and 10 whom defeat, from bis exposed
position, would be the more disastrous
Concentrated between our columns
with forces probably equal to the
stronger, Lee would occupy much the
position of Napoleon in his celebrated
campaign of 1914 In that, interpOsing
between the columns OF the Allies adj
vancing upon Paris, striking powerful
blows which his genius alone could
conceive, he snatched victory from al
most every encounter-srom Champ
ALBERT Chetean-Thierry, and Montmi.
mirail. 10 Nanges, and Monterau. But
he was doomed to fall before the com.
binations of the enemy, their superior
ity in numbers, the impossibility of his
obtsining reinforcements 10 supply the
drain of battle, and the want of that
levy Of $4,000 men which he had hoped
his victories would enable him 10 rally
to standard dear TO France, for the
victories that il symbolized and the
glory that haloed around it. Men fol
his armies it was no longer in his power
70 obtain; for France was tired Of
slaughter, and saw AZ last the unholi
ness of the cause she had fought for,
stripped as it was of the false brilliancy
it once possessed. With such obstacles
the magnificent combinations and the
brilliant genius of Napoleon we're use.
less.
This war has shown that armies o!
$1,000 men, though frequently defeated
cannot be destroyed in single battle
Antietam, Charlottesville, Chickamau
ga, Gettysburg, all illustrate this fact
The material of which our armies or
both sides is composed, their long ex
perienoe of war, the great advantages
which the defensive always possess, rem
der decisive victory over either Gram
or Sherman, under any circumstance
whatever, impossible for Lee. But al
indecisive one would be a defeat
battle prolonged for many days will
either Of these commanders would so
solutely incapacitate Lee from con
fronting the other How can he replac,
troops lost in battle2 lie has no ter
ritory from which 70 draw troops Of
arms, except that which has alread,
been exhausted by the most violent
Combats Of this war He cannot arm
and drill his negroes in time; and time