The weekly clarion. [volume] (Jackson, Miss.) 1863-1882, 1867-03-07
Exti.Rct FROM GEN. Earlyss. We
-. - znOir Ofthe War.

of secession on its passage by tha
body, with the hopes that, even ther
| the collision of arms might be avoid
| ed, and some satisfactory adjustrnen
arrived at. The adoption of that ordi
nance wrung from me bitter tears o
gfief, but I at once recognized m,
/ duty to abide the decision of my ma
tive State, and to defend her sol
against invasion. Any scruples which
/ may have entertained as to the RICH
of secession, were soon dispelled b,
the mad, wicked, and unconstitutiona
measures of the authorities at Wash
ington, and the frenzied Glamour b
the people Of the North for war upor
their. former brethren of the South. - ]
then, and ever since have, regarded
4 Abraham. Lincoln, his lors anC
supporters, as the real traitors who
had overthrown the constitution ano
governments of the United States, and
established in lieu thereof an odious
despotism and this opinion I entered
on the journal of the Convention
when i signed the ordinance of Sc
cession / recognized the right of re.
sistance, and revolution as exercised
by our fathers in o1776, and, without
cayil as to the. name by which it was
called, I entered the military service
of my State, willingly, cheerfully, and
zealously '.' .'''.' u o. a'.''' 'l1' .s'''a ~
When the State of Virginia became
one of the Confederate States, and her
troops were turned over to the Con-
federate Government. I embraced the
cause of the whole Confederacy with
equal ardour, and continued in the
service, with the determination to de-
vote all the energy and talent ] pos
sessed to- the common defense. !
fought through the entire war, without
once regretting the course I had pur-
sued; with an abiding faith in the
justice of our cause; and never saw
the moment when would have been
willing to consent tosany compromise
or settlement short of the absolute In
dependence ofmy country.
: Tt was my fortune to participate in
most of the great military operations
in which the army in Virginia was en-
gagged, both before and after General
Lee assumed the command. In the
last year of this momenteus struggle, I
commanded, at different times, a di-
vision and two corps of General Lees
Army, in the campaign from the Rapi-
dan to James River, and subsequently,
a separate force which marched into
Maryland, threatened Washington
(ifxy aya6 thar. fhrar,rrh
full campaign in the Valley of Virginia. )
No detailed reports of the operations
of these different commands were made
before the close Of the war, and the
campaign in Maryland and the Valley
of Virginia has been the subject of
much comment and misapprehension
Ihave now written q narrative of the
operations ofan my commands during
the closing year of the war, and lay it
before the world as a contribution to
the history of our great struggle for
independence. In giving that nara
tive, I have made such statements of
the positions and strength of the op-
posing forces in Virginia, and such re-
ference to their general operations, as |
were necessary to enable the reader to
understand it; but I do not pretend to
detail the operations of other COM
manders. i.fsa,s .......ss' 5-s.+ : /
I have not found it necessary to be |
guilty of the injustice Of attempting to
pull down the reputation Of any of my
ellow officers, in order to build up my |
,wn. My operations and my cam
,aign stand ON their own merits, what I
aver they may be- Nor, in anything /
nay have found it necessary to say in
'egard to the conduct of my troops,
10 I wish to be understood as, in any +
way, decrying the soldiers who con-
tituted the rank and file of my COM
hands. I believe that the world has
lever produced body of men supe
Tor, in courage, patriotism, and endu- |
ance, to the private soldiers of the
Confederate armies. !, / have repeat
dly seen those soldiers submit, with |
heerfulness, to priyations and hard
hips which would appear TO be almost
Incredible; and the wild cheers of our
rave men, (which were SO different
rom the studied hurrahs of the Yam
ees, when their thin lines sent back
pposingo hosts of Federal troops,
reeling, and flying, have +
ften thrilled every fibre in my heart.
have seen, with my own eyes, rag
ed, barefooted, and hungry Confeder-
te soldiers perform deeds, which if
erformed in days of yore by mailed Fl
'arriors in glittering armor, would +,
ave inspired the harp of the minstrel /
nd the pen of the poet. 3
do not aspire to the character ola
but, having been q witness Of
nd participator in great events, l
ave given statement of what saw {
nd did, for the use.e of the future !
Without breaking the !
lread of my narrative, as it proceeds,
have given, in notes, comments on
,me of the errors and inconsistencies
ommitted by the commander of the :
ederal army, General Grant, and the, g
ederal Secretary ofWar, Mr.. STAN lts
n, in their reports. made since the y
ose of the war; also some instances =
cruelty and barbarity committed by I
e Federal commanders, which were i
ought to my immediate attention, as !
ell as some other matters of interest !
AS was to have been expected, our y
lemies have flooded the press with p 2
,etches and histories, in which all y
Ak..sa II