The daily dispatch. [volume] (Richmond [Va.]) 1850-1884, 1865-03-10


praise even to our enemies. They were
once our brothers-once hand in hand
with US. Whatever their errors, the,
crimes, they are none the less men.
Charleston, Wilmington and Column,
being ours, cui Bono' Beyond the mere
fact of obtaining full control of the sea
board, and thereby relieving our blocka.
ding fleet from a tedious, tiresomc ser.
vice, and gaining possession of cities de.
serted, there does not seem to he any ma.
terial advance toward the termination Of
the war.
Those who have studied the career of
Lee, and observed his plan of campaign
know that his system is that of concen,
tration. To mass his troops and attack
the enemy's divisions in detail, one after
the other, is his strategy. Wary, cir.
cnmspect, yet possessing and using a.
times the dash and reckless audacity in
attack Of the first Napoleon, he never
loses chance, and SO far has left no
record Of mistake.
Since his appointment to, and as
sumption OF, the supreme command Of
the rebel army, the whole method Of
operations has been changed. Concen-
tration is now the order. He is carryin.
out his favoritc plan Of prosecuting the
campaign. lie we'll knows the strength
OF his antagonist, and that antagonists
tenacity of purpose and immense re-
sources. And knowing them, he is at
this moment gathering the scattered
forces Of the rebel domain into one com.
pact whole, with the intention Of de.
Gliding the fortunes Of his cause at or
near Richmond. There, upon the al
ready blood soaked soil of the Old Do.
minion, will be fought the Waterloo Of
the rebellion.
Sherman's victories and almost en-
tirely unopposcd raid from Chattanooga
to Atlanta, thence to Savannah, Charles
ton and Columbia, with whatever of de.
vastation he may have created, has not
in the least disconnected Lee 1t NAV
rather be considered part and parcel Of
his plan. And when the true history Of
affairs at the front is made known, it will
be found that Charleston, Columbia and
Wilmington were evacuated only that
the rebel commander in-chicf might
withdraw all the available force stationed
at these garrisons to be incorporated
with the army around Richmond.
1t is useless to talk of Grants comb.
nations and tremendous schemes, Of
which we are duly and daily reminded
by army correspondents and the tclc>
graph. These grand combinations and
that wonderful strategy OF which we
have heard so much have been cap
turing Richmond every day for the la,
six months. Yet the beleagucrel cap
tai is as far from our grasp as when our
armies under Mcclellan were driven from
the peninsula. "On to Richmond"
but never into il. With the record Of
the last attempt, beginning in the spring,
and as yet unended-from the RAPID
Ann, through the awful carnage Of the
Wilderness, and to the present base, a
hecatomb of Gear lives have been lost, the
blood Of our kindred has flown in tor
rents, happy homes have been made
desolate, and grief brought to thousands
man might have its holocaust.
TO crafty the logged pertnacity Of 4
General who, whatever his genius, ana
whatever past success he may have
blundered into, cares as little for tie
lives of his soldiers as he docs for those
of the enemy, and who would throw
away half an army to accoml.,,h a par
poscless object, the Admina,ta ion have
given him almost absolute tower.
Week after week, month after month
Richmond was being,,evaccatcd-it was
about to he captured.
Petersburg, after being bombafled, is
outer defences mined and stormcd, still
is held by Lee. The great Butler ele-
phaut, the Dutch Gap canal, was to &C.
complish wonders, but it did not. |.
caved in magnificently, and buried Butlc'
beyond hope of resurrection. Demon
STATIONS of an imposing character were
made, and are being made daily, with
the same result-a loss Of life and no
good accomplished.
But matters arc approaching crisis.
Before many weeks the last grand
and decisive battle will have begun
The prcliminarics arc being rapidly ar
ranged.
Such a contest as this will be the
world has never witnessed, for upon 1t
depends the fate Of the country. In
that battle, should We suffer defeat, II
will be Overwhelming, and all the adj
vantages we may have gained IN the past
six months will be as worthless as the
bubble regulations. they have made Il
Lee is defeated, he still has the interior
in which to once more rally his scattered
legions, and concentrate for defence, Il
not for attack.
From all the outer gArrisOnS and troop