Nashville union and American. [volume] (Nashville, Tenn.) 1868-1875, 1870-12-01
NEW SERIES. NO. 7O3.
TEE CHATTANOOGA CAMPAIGN,

banquet given to the Army of Che Cum
berland recently at Cleveland, O., CAV
his views of the Chattanooga campaign
as follows
| Driven across the Tennessee, whithel
we could not pursue until means had beer
provided for the transportation of oul
ammunition and supplies, Brsgg's com
mand held Chattanooga, the key of Eas
Tennessee and of the South, covered the
great mountain ranges and intervening
river, and able to get re-enf0rcn1ents by
rail from Virginia and the South, he cool.
ly and confidently watched us, knowing
that we could not reach him in less than
ten or fifteen days march over bar
rem, uninhabited country, IA which we
would be obliged to cross three ranges of
mountains and great river, from 400 to
300 yards wide.
No sooner had the Rebels been driven
from Middle Tennessee than we began
our preparations for the gigantic work of
wrestling Chattanooga from the enemy.
The first thing was to repair the Nash
and Chattanooga Railroad, without which
we could not live even in the valley of
the Tennessee river.
But it was equally necessary to deceive
the enemy as to our points of crossing
until it would be too late for him to meet
and oppose us.
Next, it was necessary to wait until
corn was ripe enough for horse feed, be
cause once across the river and wholly
dependent on our wagons we could never
possibly carry more than our ammunition
and rations.
It was obvious, even 10 our intelligent
Western press, that when we did attempt
our work the enemy would have the in
terest and the means of concentrating
every available man TO fall upon and
destroy US.
Nor did your commander neglect to
call the atention of the government to
these and other conditions and dangers in
the road to success. That his advice
was appreciated by the President his au-
tograph letter to me testiies. That it was
otherwise with the War Department, well
appears from the telegraphic order / re-
ceived on the 4th of August to move you
over the mountains. Your corps COM
manders saw this order and the Command
ing Generals reply that the government
could not be more sincerely anxious for
successful advance of the Army of the
Cumberland than himself. That no effort
had been omitted to make ready for it,
but that it would be yet ten days before
preparations were completed for the
movement. That should movement by
the 14th be deemed compliance With the
departments order, it would be obeyed,
but if not the government was respectfully
requested to name some other commander
for theiarnly.
Our noble comrade, faithful Thomas,
first spoke and said: General, you
are perfectly right, and we will stand by
you"
But, comrades, our movement began
on the 14th of August, and on the 2lst of
September, thirty.three days from that
time, we had crossed the Cumberland
Mountains, crossed the Tennessee on pom
toon bridges, the shortest of which was
S1S and the longest 900 yards in length,
built by our improvised engineers. We
had scaled the Sand Mountains; we had
passed over the Lookout range in the
presence of an opposing army, heavily re-
inforced and waiting to destroy US. We
had met that army on grounds new to US,
but well known to him, and fighting
more than once and half our numbers,
had foiled him in his efforts TO destroy US
or wrest from US the coveted "fKey of the
South, =" and we held 1t with grasp that
death only could have unlocked.
The moral greatness of this campaign
consists in the facts that the immense
difficulties and dangers were compre-
hended by all, from the General com
handing to the men in the ranks, and its
chief officers knew that the Government
was unconscious Of them or madly de-
| termined to drive you on regardless OF
them. Not only 50, but we saw thai
Burnside, with $4,000 effective troops,
was sent into East Tennessee where hi
could not help US, and that the Army Of
l. the Tennessee was not ordered to threaten
Johnston in Mississippi, nor Gen. Bank
| TO threaten Mobile, nor Gen. Meade &c
threaten Lee, to prevent them from re.
inforcing those who lay quietly behind
the (to us) unknown mountain ranges,
where he was gathering his strength tC
destroy US. And yet, conscious of these
obstacles snd perils, conscious that We
were impelled by cold, unconscious anc
| unfriendly orders, conscious of the peri
to our country and cause, knowing full
well that the nation held its breath in feal
lest we should be overwhelmed, and thai
we should have no cooperation from
comrades of other armies, the men of the
Army of the Cumberland moved TO theil
work as brave men go TO die for theil
country, not even willing to pin theil
names upon their garments that each herr
| in death might be found with a mark o.
conscious self-immolation upon him.
In this inVincible spirit of conscious
| self-sacrifce consists the moral grandeur
of that movement on Chattanooga, which
has no parallel in the history of on
country, and few, if any, in the annals o
history.
And to this the greatness of the OBJ
stacles overcome, of the battles fought
of the prize won and held, and the great
l uCSS VI buC AAulto VI lIc nOAhl WhiSA
have no time to develop, and you vii
doubtless agree that the campaign o
Chattanooga is the grsndest and mos
heroic effort of the Army of the Cumber
land, snd join in saying:
''The Army of the Cumberland Whel
the spawn of shallow ambitions, brisl
cellators, current newspaper reports
| rOpopc,1c charlofano nrptandara IN appur
acy or philosophic grasp, shall have laiC
their pretended historical offerings on tn
altar of party or person at which the.
worship, and with their offerings shall b
forgotten, and the great muse OF histOr,
shall lay the story of our late war 70
national existence on the altar of truth
how bright and glorious will be the pag
consecrated to theeln
-, &c 81,