Wilmington journal. [volume] (Wilmington, N.C.) 1844-1895, 1872-12-13
LETTER FROM GENERAL JUBAL
4. EARLY.
He REPLIES 10 GENERAL j. Il.
HOODS RALEIGH SPEECH.
THE TROOPS OF ylRdINIA AN9 NORTH
CAEOLINA.

RICHMOND, December ). lS;=.
Editor Of the Enquirer:
have observed in tho report OF so!nn re-
marks, complimentary to North Carolina
and her troops, recently made by General
John B. Hood, on the occasion of sere-
made to him Al Raleigh, Ia that State, the
following statement
81 believe that your State had moro men
in Virginia than Virginia had Oh her own
soil, and you and all North Carolinians
ought TO be proud of her name"
IN view Of tho well known fact that
almost all the Virginia troops served in
the State for nearly the entire war, this
statement, if true, conveys n very serious
imputation on her people; and coming
from SO distinguished so'tr2t' it should
not tie permitted 10 pass unnOticcd.
No one has higher estimate Of the
energy displayed by tl3 North Carolina
government, and the value Of her troops,
than myself. / think had much better
opportunities OF judging Of the couduc', as
we'll as the numbers Of the
NORTH CAROLINA TROOPS
that served with the Army Of Northern
Virgil nia than General Hood had, for
believe that while he was connected with
that army he had undsr bis command ouly'
three North Caroliua Regiments at auy
time--the Sixth, Fifty-fouIth AID Fifty
seventll-and | also believe thai those we're
the Only regiments from TINT State which
served in the corps in which lac belonged
! after the army Vi as regularly divided intu
corps. Those regiments vcIe transferred
! TO my division i'll JANUARY, 1863, and served
with it until the close Is the Wal; AMI az
various times all the brigade>, regiments
and organic itiOns OF North Carolina trnol,s
attached to the Army ii N0rthe:ll Vir.
9iuia, prior TO its arrival At Gold IIalbhr in
June, 1864, except The cavalry regiments,
and Pc!hapS :: T"Ty f:.'T batteries OF ariil-
lcry, came under nly command and went
into action under me. OF The eight brig
AIDES Of North Carolina infantry belon ling
TO hat army when / was detached in
June, 1861, four were with mo throughout
my hole campaign in Maryland and the
Valley. No one IS rIOr0 ready or willing
to bear testimony ia til" general good CON
duct and
GALLANTRY OF THE NORTH CAROLINA
TROOPS
than I AM and always have been: and l
must say that the State which gave to tho
cause such soldiers as Ponder, Ramseur,
Branch, g. Il. Anderson, Daniels, Gordon,
Fisher, Campbell, Stokes, Avery, and
others among the dead, 70 say nothing of
the living, las indeed good cause to be
proud Of her var record. Bat in order 10
place the merits Of the North Carolina
people, gOvernmont and troops before the
world, 1t - not necessary TO depreciatn
rooR OLD vIEeINI4,
who threw herself into the breach between
ten Southern Sisters and the United States
government, and, after having had her
soil devastated for four long years by the
tread Of contending armies, came out Of
the conflict bleeding, torn and dismember-
ed Nor can the fame Of the former State
be enhanced by showing that the latter
was derelict. L can hardly presume that
such las the intention Of Gen. Hood, vet
the eEectSof his statement is TO DO great
Injustice to Virginia.
During the tattles around Richmond, In
1852, OR army in Virginia was larger than
at any time during the war, numbering
then something less than 10000 men for
duty. At those battles there were
presebt
FoRTT-FIvE REGIMENTS And THREE
- BATTALION: OF VIRGINIA INFANTRY,
which could name, il necessary, being
fully, if not moro than one-fourth Of ali
the infantry regiments present. There
"tlcs k1Ioo, SefCu ICSItucIIS OF lGGLnia
cavalry present, and mich the largest nor
ton Of all the artillery vas manned by
Virginians. At the same time q very con.
siderable force Of Virginia troops, Of all
arms, was in the Valley Of Western and
Southwestern Virginia. The North Caro-
lima troops present at these battles, being
all then in Virginia, consisted Of thirty re-
gments and two companies Of Infantry,
five companies Of cavalry and few bate
ries of artillery. At these battles oil the
Confederate States, except Kentucky and
Missouri, weEa represented by Regiments,
and Georgia had present more regiments
and more men than North Carolina one
Of her bTigade's (I.awton's, afterwards
Gocdon's] being the largest brigade ever
attached TO the army of Northern Virginia.
Until after the battle Of Fredericksburg
the proportion Of Virginia and North Car
DINA troops continued about the same, ex-
eept that three North Carolina regiments,