The Republican. [volume] (Oakland, Md.) 1877-current, 1878-12-28

Valley had been the field of glory to the
Confederate arms till Sheridan took
command. Early had just then driven
Hunter out of the valley, and had adj
vanced through Maryland toward Wash
| ington, which narrowly escaped capt
ure, while Grant was repeating his de-
feated thanking movements south of
Petersburg.
That panic at Washington caused the
detachment of Sheridan from Peters
burg to the valley with orders to keep
the defensive unless forced to fight.
The non-success of the Wilderness
campaign and in the valley had made
our policy thus cautious. There was
much marching and countermarching
by both armies, and much skirmishing,
which was generally to our advantage,
while Sheridan was held to these defen-
sive orders, against which he remon-
strated. At length Grant came up to
Charleston, where Sheridan met him,
and demonstrated to him the good
chance to attack Early. In two DAYS
after getting this permission he sur
prised Early at Winchester by an attack,
which threw Early's army into wild
confusion, so that night alone saved it,
leaving in Sheridan hands 5000 pris-
oners, five guns, and seven colors.
Early retreated to q strong position
at Fishers Hill, which he strongly in
trenched. Sheridan attacked him two
days after Winchester, and drove Early
out of these works, into which our
troops dashed on the very heels of the
enemy, capturing here 1,200 prisoners
and twenty-one guns, Pursuit was kept
up as far as Stanton. The intervention
of darkness again enabled Early to get
off. Can anyone doubt that if Sheridan
had been reinforced with as many as
$4,000 men he would have continued
his victorious march down this produc-
tive valley and fatally struck the COM
munications of Richmond, where Lee
would be forced to come out and fight
in the open field for existence?
But right here came that dreadful
order from Grant to devastate the val
ley and join him. The burning and re-
treat began. Upon this the indefatiga-
BILE Early rallied and pursued. At
Woodstock our cavalry turned and at
tackled and drove the Confederates,
who were commanded by Gen. Rosser,
twenty-siX miles, capturing all their
guns and headquarter wagons. The
Sixth Corps now started to join Grant,
but again Early became demonstrative,
and that corps cOuntermarched. Sheri-
dams army was now placed in position
on the north side of Cedar Creek, feel
ing secure, resting and getting supplies
for about a week. The question was
how to hold on to the valley and vet
send the Sixth Corps to Grant A plan
was proposed for an intrenched camp,
to be supplied through Manassas Gap
Railroad, and Sheridan was ordered to
go to Washington to arrange with Gen.
Augur to carry out this plan.
Returning, with a few members of
his staff, he had reached Winchester on
the 18th of October. The enterprising
Early had been active meanwhile, and
had prepared for a grand surprise. An
hour before dawn on that day Gordon's
division attacked the pickets on our ex-
IRENE left with main force, followed
them on the run into the camps, max
ing a complete surprise of the Eighth
Corps and putting it to rout. The tax
ing of this ground. together with that
in front which Early now occupied, so
commanded the ground as to make it
untenable to stay on. Gen. Wright had
marched his Sixth Corps to form a new
line on the left. The Sixth and Nine
teenth Corps were intact, and it is likely,
if commanded theoretically, they could
have attacked and redeemed the day.
For GOrdOn's men halted to rush into
the plumber of the camp of the Eighth
Corps, and also of the Nineteenth,
which had been obliged to fall back.
But the advance was only partial,
and then the whole fell back, the enemy
following. All this resulted in much
decentralization and loss, but Wright
was forming the troops in new posi-
ton, intending to resume the advance,
when Sheridan came upon the ground
No matter what may be said of Wright's
intentions to attack, or of the probabili-
ties of his doing this successfully, there
are few instances in history of such q
change wrought in the spirit of an army
by the appearance of its commander as
that when Sheridan came upon the
ground. He stopped all retreat, formed
the line of battle, rode along the line,
and about half an hour before sunset
made an attack with infantry and cav
airy on all parts of Early's victorious
army, completely routing it, and pur-
suing till again darkness rescued the
utterly broken troops.
This victory got forty-nine guns, fifty
two caissOns, many thousand small
! arms, great quantity of army wagons,
about l, 100 prisoners, and five or six
colors. Besides these hundreds of the
captured escaped in the darkness. The
long prestige of the Confederates in the
Shenandoah was destroyed, and Early's
army, as an effective agent, had ceased
to exist. Nor was the effect of this
brilliant campaign confined to that val
ley. 1t was a change in the long course
of failure and disaster in Virginia. 1t
= was the first successful campaign in
: that which to the nation was the great
theater of the War. Sheridan, with q
part of these victorious troops, returned
to Petersburg, and there also he made
: a change in the long series of unsuc-
cessful attempts to outtlank Lee on the
south. He led his troops upon Lees
rear, repulsed a furious attack, and by
the most energetic pushing seized Lees
only line of retreat, and captured his