Public ledger. [volume] (Memphis, Tenn.) 1865-1893, 1868-12-24

pulse, a council Of war was held bv the
Confederate chiefs, at which Gen. Jack
son suggested that the artillery OF the
frat and second corps his and Long
streets) should be collected upon the
bills directly in front of the town, and
heavy FIRE opened upon it, and that the
men Of bis corps be stripped to the waist
to distinguish them from the enemy, aud,
under cover of the artillery FIRE, force
their way into the town, and bayonet all
who were not similarly attired." This
suggestion, your correspondent says, was
adopted but not carried out; and he fur
thsr says it was afterward told by men
of the second corps that they had re-
ceived orders TO strip to their waist.
Your comments on Pollard's statement
are very just, though you seem to con-
cede the correctness of that of your cor
respondent. Not doubling the sincerity
of your correspondent belief in what be
states, yet, if he has no better authority
for it than the uncontradioted statement
of some army correspondent, or .
camp rumor, will say that he
has very bad authority. There
were numerous erroneous state
ments which found their way into the
newspapers and went uncontradieted, as
there were many false reports in camp
which obtained sredence sometimes even
from officers. General Lee never thought
it consistent with his position to contra
dict any of the many erroneous state
ments put afoat during the war, and he
discouraged everything of the kind ON
the part of his officers. knew his views
on that subject, because on one occasion,
when / had corrected q misststement OF
correspondent in regard to some OF my
operations, be gave me, privately, gen
tie rebuke, which disclosed his own views
and effectually prevented me re-
peating the indiscretion. The reasons
which govern military men, especially
such military men as Generals Lee and
jackson, are very different from those
which govern politicians in dealing with
Newspaper statements. Notking, there
fore, is to be inferred in favor of the
truth of an anonymous statement in re-
gard to the military operations in the
Army of Northern Virginia because it
has gone uncontradicted.
The statement Of your correspondent,
if true, shows either that General Jack
son proposed to commit great blunder,
or that General Lee was guilty of an un-
rardonsble negligence.
think there 10 as little truth in that
statement ss there is in the one made by
Pollard; and / will state the following
facts to show why | think SO:
At the battle of Fredericksburg l COM
manded division in General Jackson's
corps (the second), and my division met
q part of the enemy. who had broken
through our lines on the right, and drove
him back into the plains Beyond; fact
which will be well recollscted by some of
your readers, as Georgia brigade (Law.
tons, afterwards Gordon's,) led ia the
attack and greatly distinguished itself.
Two of my brigades, which had met the
enemy and aided in his repulse, then oc-
cupied portions of the front line for the
rest of the day; and it was very appa-
rent to us that, while the enemy's attack
had been repulsed, be had very large
force that had not been engaged, which
| threatened another attack on our right.
Late in the afternoon General jackson did
determine to attack the enemy after the
repulse of the attacks on our left, and |
was ordered to lead in the proposed at
tack with my infantry, preceded by artll-
lery, while Gen. d. H. Hill, followed me
with his division in support. Everything
was got ready for the attack, and the
movement was begun, but the enemy
opened such terrific fire from his artil-
lery, which swept all the wide plain in
our front, that Gen. Jackson, who was
! out with the advance, countermsnded his
orders, because, as he says in his report,
"the first gun had hardly moved forward
from the wood hundred yards when the
enemy's artillery reopened, and so COM
pletely swept our front as to satisfy me
that the proposed movement should be
abandoned" 1t was getting dark when
this movement was abandoned; and II
was well that it was given up, for the
enemy had an immense force OF infantry,
that had not been engaged, massed In
the road which ran through the
middle of the river bottoms behind
the high, thick and solid embsnk-
meut of earth which served as an inclo-
sure for the adjaceAt fields, and furnished
q breastwork co-extensive with our whole
| front On this part OF tne nus anu muSu
stronger than the famous stone wall at
the base Of Marye's Hill. There was q
simi,ar embankment on the other side OF
the road, forming q second line, and the
front enc had been pierced in numerous
places for artillery, so that from behind
il storm Of canister and rifle balls
would have belched forth that would have
rendered it utterly impossible for any
thing to live while passing over the open
ulain of about G mile in width between
us and the rosd. However ready they
were ts ouey the orders Of their General
20 advance, .here vas not q man Of all
the force ordered forward, whether in the
front o. in support, that did not breathe
frear when the couutermsnd came.
/ Much has been said in unofficial quar-
ters about General Jackson's supposed
proposition 10 drive the enemy into the
river, bat it will be seen from The fore
going statement that be did make The
attempt, and was compelled TO abandon
il did not hear Of any other PROPOSE
ton 70 attack the enemy on that oee=-
sion.
A sale afler dark on that day re-
a = = L. y.