The daily dispatch. [volume] (Richmond [Va.]) 1850-1884, 1875-10-29
es.poniug the giIttering prize which each

pickets sighted IT'S tempting epIFes, rolled
the SHcessant' tIies uosa abastle with alteEnaE
lions OF suceess uutit sli Northern Virginia
became upheayed With entrenchments, biz
loved With graves, saturated with blood,
scared with Are, stripped 10, desolation, and
kneaded under the feet, Aoofs, snd wheels Of
che marchinK cOsennns. s. s6 oa 81 h ~ 4tr.;a
Atthe 0rst 'bastie Of Manassas the Gordon
OF Notifications around i Wsshingscu pre-
ventedaroutfrom becoming IAN sannihiia-
ton, aud that battle cuiys decided that other
battles would be,neelet to decide ansthing.
At Williamsburg McCleilans who succeed
ed:McD6weHs sbe displaced ddcommander og
Manssass, received s,shsrp Fcbu6, (which de-
cided nothing but that the antagonists would
hsPe TO close togethersl ss,9BaIfHsh I, X, 4s IA
v As Seven, Pines the fall oGfeur. skiiful
General Joseph a. SJohnston; at % eriticaDmo-
ment, and the consequent delay which en-.
abed Sedgwtck !soy cross the swollen waters
OF the Chicsahominy, ended the epsospect Of
making that more than . field of gallant
and brilliant endeaT0r. t5aY 4s.f - tis4os,-
~ At Malvern HUI a,eurious mistake, which
.ledsone subordinate to pursue wrong road,
and ytheIlamentabie delay of h0thers, com.
key. position, exting,Ished the high tide: of
victory in the voacanic fires OF that battery
crowned Summit and closed with the escape
or the enemy 10 bis gunboats aud the dis.
appointment of his adversary. %s:.:%
Fi y The second field of Manassas, ID which the
redeubtabie john Pope, who having seen
before ~only the backs Of bis euemies.n en-
tered the fact of record that his curiosity was
entirely satiated With single glimpse of
their faces, was only the prelude Of more
deadly struggle at Sharpsburg. and as Manas.
sas only decided that 1t would require another
effort OF the Federal army to beat us on our
OWN soil, Sharpsburg only decided that We
would have to gird our loins once more 10
|oyerwheim It upon its OVID. q, ,..,..5'r ~. -
rE At Fredericksburg Ia December, 1862,
Burnside, having blindly hurled bis army
against Lees entrenchments, managed to re-
gain the opposite bank Of the eRappahannock
without foot Of ground lost or won, leav.
ing that ill.starred plain behind him as me.
moriai Of nothing but.wasted life and cour.
age on the one side, and cool, steady, self.
poised intEepidity on the olher.ow .15aE
And at Charlottesville, in the spring -ei
1868, when Hooker assaiIed by fink the
same FIELD which Burnside charged in front,
q famous stroke OF generalshtp, directed by
Lee and executed by jackson, placed him
side by side on the stool of penitence with
bis predecessor. But there great calamity
planted o thorn In the crown of victory and
gave pause to the advance OF the conquerine
banner and turned to safe retreat what pro.
missed to be the rout and annihilation of t6e
Federal army. That calamity was, the fall oi
IS Stonewalln y Jackson, Lees incompatible
lieutenant, whose genius shed nndyIng lustre
on the Confederate arrns aud before whose
efigy to-day the two worlds bow In honor. I
And so. the end of two years found The
two armies still pitted agains. each other il
the same arena, with proud Washington be
bind the one still eggtng it on to the at
tack for the honor of the old flag and the
solidarity Of the Union; and defiant Rich
mond behind the other upholdipg It with
words and deeds of cheer, and bidding /,
never to weary in we'll doing for the cause
of liberty and Confederate Independence.
7s'a. - TIE CRISIS OF 1863. ;: -i#
But while the status Of the combatants II
Virginia had received no decisive change 1t
became obvious in the spring of 1858 that M
hour big with destiny was near at hand. The
Army of the Potomac had become dfsheart.
ened by continuous adyersity. Five chosen
chieftains--, Mcdowell, Mcclellan, Pope.
Burnside, Hooker-had led it1:to battle in
superb array; but its ranks had only beenre'
cruited to march again to defeat and decima.
tion. The term Of enlistment Of nearly 49,.
900 of its rank and file had now expired. and
as they marched for the rear. homeward
bound, no counter column was moving to
supply their vacant places. With the north
ern people hope Of victory deferred bad made
the heart sick of strife, and the Copper.
head" faction, like the Republicans Of Paris
when Napoleon was marching against the
allied armies to Waterloo, were Iagitating
schemes against the government and the
proiongation of the war. The paper cur
rency, like thermometer on the stock ex'
change, showed that thepulse of the popular
faith WAS beating low. :. Factory hands
without cotton to spin, cried for bread, ano
were not content to take muskets and go to
the feast of blood. Foreign powers bad
lost confidence in Mr.. Seward's three
months promissory notes Of victory, which
had been 80 often renewed and had now
gone to protest; and 1t Is said that our d.
Dlomatic agents abroad authoritattvely an
nounced that should Lee establish now 9
| Judgment in the North his triumph should
be greeted with the long.sought boon of for
eign recognition. <u..
On the Confederate side our line of battle
L
| iron shell with emptiness within. HuDgrI
mobs bad been rioling through Richmond
with the fearful cry Of s.Bread n" Bread !.
The plantations had not only been swept 0
their proyender, but the tillers Of the sol
and their beasts of burden had likewise beel
| absorbed into I he ranks Of war. And to in
crease the gravity Of the situation our west
ern horizon was overhung With omens o
disaster. There the progress OF the Uniol
arms bad been steadily forward. missouri
iKentucky, and parts of Tennessee and Ar
kansas had been conquered. Along the Mis-
sissippi river, Colum bus, Island No. TO, For
Pillow, Memphis, and New Orleans ha.
fallen, and cow Vicksburg, q solitary sent'
| mel upon its banks, alone prey ented the F'a
| tber of Waters from "rolling nnyexed to tn
Isea." .G8 2s.3l - -
This post, like @ligature upon an artery
severed the Federal liue of1military commu
pication from, the Northwest to the Gulf
Mexico, and isolated the western States fron
their. markets. Its early conquest was fore
lshadowed, and with that ythe northern
heart would be again fred with hope and
blow struck into the very iyitais of the Con
federacy. 4, y Htfs[3 II .>3ys. 200
TIE PKoJgcr OF INVASION.
Could the hitherto invincible Army 9
Northern Virginia now launch forth tel!iD
blow against its adversary, and anticipat
the bursting Of the storm; cloud 10 the Wes
4 BY q sunbrrst of decisive victory 10 tn
i East disaster, there would be counter
balanced, if not forestalled and prevented
The peace parry Of the North would be re
;! iaforced in numbers aud strengthened i
/ resolution. recruits would be deferred fror
| eurollipg under the blighted banners Of dc
! feat; the bonds and Treasury notes of tn
United States would rapidly decline i
value. thus relaxing the sinews OF Wa'