Cleveland morning leader. [volume] (Cleveland [Ohio]) 1854-1865, 1865-02-20


eai - = =
ri isahSranu In sCeIE1btA--s4ey1eW ef his
ctt r1IIol Iifr VI flidsSFeeEes-- -g Lgr1.L
Il 4a The, telegraph contains the highly ina
sysf f,orssnt news that General ShermAn.took
sa possession Of Columbia on Thursday last.
sI The aGallsnt OEOsle," my Lerd BsAure-
ed gard, skedAddIsd Is soon q the oongsree
20 me river was passed. The Richmond Dispatch
announces the fact in such . way that it
-isto admits Of no doubt. 1t Is nov disposed to
think thSs Sherman next aims st Char
loste and RsIsigh ID North Carolina. Inc
successive steps by which the seiEuro OF
Colunbia has been achieved srs not Jet
- fully known. The Ant movement began
from Savannah about the 10th Of J January.
The 18th Army Corps was transferred
.~,7 from Savannah TO Beaufort and was fol
ofv lowed IN the courEe Of ten days by AL but
bsTga1 one Division Of the 10th Ccrps. The
eGT troops constituted the right column. They
ssalH marched to PAcotaigo and subsequently, to
es2 bioshe 5AIlzehatchie. 5- 5-I ,lobiss .-.- - =
About the 2Oth Of January two divisions
as Of the Goth Corps crossed the river at
Savannah, and BY terrible marching
reached Rsrdeeviile from which point
they pushed forward toward BrsuchTille.
49,. To reach Hardes7iIle they were obliged to
-l5s- TsOopduroy about thirty miles Of the road
s-a s through the intsrminAble Hwsmps And
-agl1z nATshes. 5a -o-s
div The left wing was msde up Of the 14th
-a5a Corps and tbs remaining divisions Of the
- zoth and 18th Corps. They moved upon
-aa7 the Gsorgia side Of the Savannah to Sis
ters Ferry, about sixty miles from Savan'
nah. On the 4th and 9Th of February,
they crossed over into South Carolina, and
pushed forward apparently to strike the
~ road between Branchville and Augusts.
The left wing, under Slocum, has been de-
monstrating in the direction of Augusta,
but whether with view to the possession
of that place OF not remains to be seen.
The center, under Howard, together with
Slocum's forces and Kilpstrick's cavalry
are probably the forces now st COlumbia,
,.s unless Augusta has been seized, Of which
there is some doubt. OF the intention Of
~-1 Sherman to take possession of Charleston
there can be but little doubt. The forces
ss under Gilmore operating in the vicinity
and the large naval Accsssions to the Heet
s- before that city, indicate it as Sherman's
q as intention to occupy Charleston. .-
[5- From Columbia several routes are open
z % Sherman. BE may either advance
northward to Charlotte, one hundred miles
distant, and thence to Salisbury, where 8
large number of our prisoners are con-
fined, destroying the railroad as he advan-
ces and thus making the supply Of Rich
mond impossible over this route, or he may
strike across the country in an sasterly di-
rectiou, taking Florence, an important
point at the junction Of the Wilmington
and Manchester road with the Charleston
90 ro and Wilmington road, thus taking VII
has ni1gton in the rear. In either case, he
ed destroys all the communications Of Rich
la. mond with the South Either course viii
LEAD to the occupationof Raleigh not many
weeks hence. North Carolina is ripe for
resistance to the rebel despotism. Both
-i'as usstansasa $40 Erssrsss, PIblished At
Raleigh, ara clsmorouI for convention Of
the people Of that State .r -f
---- The 10000 men that Dayis jet keeps
--.- 81. about his person to defend him in his mad
81 and desperate folly, viii soon be obliged to
face both the veteran armies Of Sherman
and Grant, which, with recent reinforce
7 rnsnts number not less than 25o,o0O mep.
What chance will remain for the last de-
fence Of the rebellion, can be easily infer
red Nothing but sorne remarkable favor
of chance or tome unfortunate blunder,
win enable il TO escape