The weekly clarion. [volume] (Jackson, Miss.) 1863-1882, 1874-05-21
HOOD VS.. JOHNSTON.
GENEasAE. y. Is. HOODS REPLY
To Certain Statements Contained
I'm .BOs. Il. .BOhnsaom's Book.

IL INCUMBENT upon me 10 discuss at TIL
hour certain operations In the Yves
during the late war between the States
but most unjust strict ures, passed upol
me by Gen. Johnston, and which ar
derogatory to my character alike as
man and soldier, compel me to speal
in self-defense, or otherwise admit b.
silence the charges brought forth Al
though l feel by reasons of injustice
done me in the past that | have create
cause to demand of our people tn,
privileges of a hearing upon certain
matters little understood by them,
would nevertheless have left the WORK
of vindication to the unbiased histori
an Of the future had not my words anC
actions been SO strangely misrepresen
ted
Before and just after the close of the
revolution our people, in the despair Of
defeat, were in no state of mind to listen
to truth which ran counter to THEN
prejudices. Blind passion, however,
has now subscribed, and reason it is hoped
| has returned; therefore, if not soliciting
| too much of some of the principal
journals of the South and of the North,
| would request hearing through their
columns AS by that channel alone can |
arrive at the object / now seek. l request
| this indulgence at least so far as the
important historical events discussed in
General JOhnston's book are concerned,
and in which | was prominent actor.
Gen. Johnston speakes as follows, page
353-54: General Hood, in his report
of his own disastrous operations, accused
me of gross official misstatements of the
strength of the army and of its losses
asserting that had Eat and near Dalton"
an available force Of seventy-ive thou
sand men, and that twenty-five thousand
five hundred of them were lost in the
campaign, including seven thousand
prisoners. He recklessly appealed for
the truth of these assertions to Major
Kinloch Falconer, Assistant Adjutant-
General, by whom the returns of the
army were made, which were my au-
thority for the statement attacked
by Gen Hood At my request,
made in consequence Of this attack, Ma
this army sat and near Dalton was for
that statement the effective strength of
which contradicts the appellant. BY
from the official data in his possession
jor Falconer made another statement
ty thousand four hundred and eighty
four infantry and artillery, and twenty
three hundred and ninety cavalry.
Again, page 256, he says; "The loss
Of the Confederate army in this campaign,
while under my command, was nine
thousand nine hundred and seventy-two
killed and wouded. About a third
of it occurred at and near Dalton and Re
SAGA"
The point in controversy is this state
ment made in my official report: con
the 9Th Of May, 1864, the army lay at
and near Dalton, awaiting the advance
of the enemy. Never had so large a
Confederate army been assembled in the
West. Seventy thousand 100000 et-
fective men in the easy direction of
single commander, whose good fortune
it was to be able to give successful bat
tie, and redeem the losses of the past.
"The Army of Tennessee lost %, 100,
nearly one-third of its strength.
| shall now demonstrate the actual
loss during General Johnston's campaign
In order to do this it is necessary to prove
what was the force Eat and near Dalton,
or, as | expressed it in my official report,
sin the easy direction OF a single com
mander," May 6, 1864. 1t must be add
mitted that in order to ascertain the loss
of an army during any campaign, siege
or battle, we must first ascertain the to-
tai effective force at the beginning of
hostilities, and when the battle Is over,
or the siege or campaign ended, again
find out the effective total, which, sub
stracted from the number at the outset,
will unquestionably give the loss. This
is the only means by which it can be fairly
indicated. The losses of an army are
greater or less, according to the manner
the troops are handled, lie: An army
standing its ground and fighting, or ad-
vancing and driving the enemy, as was
the case in Virginia, under General Lee,
will count but few stragglers and deser-
tiers; the actual loss is not great, from
the fact that the wounded men go to
their homes, proud of their wounds, and
the majority of them are soon found again
in the ranks.
On the other hand an army fighting
and retreating at the same time, taking
up positions day after day only to
be given up under cover of darkness,
suffers great loss. During such cam
paign the orders necessary to be given IN
withdrawing from the immediate presence
of an enemy are depressing; such as di-
recting that dead silence be observed,
wheels muffled, etc., for fear of dlscov-
ery and being fired upon by the enemy.
Let this policy be continued for a dis
lance of one hundred miles, as it was
from Dalton to Atlanta, and the glory,
pomp and circumstance of war are lost
in a sombre funeral procession. The
wounded cannot go home buoyant and
hopeful, as they are forced to bear to
their dear ones the chilling intelligence
that ''the army is falling back" in all
such cases they tarry with their friends,
and MANY fail to return. However, the
loss from this source is but small in COM
parison to the number of stragglers picked
IN bv the enemy, and deserters who, be-
holding their homes abandoned to the foe,
become disheartened, and return to their
families within the lines of the enemy,
as was the case in North Georgia !,
" SS' -. - MS
The statement as derived from Dr.
Foard's return of the killed ana wounded
l. doubtless correct; but Gen. Johnston's
intention cannot assuredly be to assert
that this number, nine thousand nine
hundred and seventy-two, constitutes his
entire loss during his campaign. AS Will
be seen in the return of Major Falconer,
to which he refers, page 574, the effective
strength of the army on the 10Th of June,
near Kennesaw mountains, when about
eighty miles from Dalton, and within
about twenty miles of Atlanta, was fifty
nine thousand two hundred and forty
eight; whilst the return of the 10th OF
July shows, just after crossing the Chat
| l9ooba y;I,er on the NIGHT of the 9th,