Clarksville weekly chronicle. (Clarksville, Tenn.) 1873-1890, 1879-08-30

| lty, lie cTOSSeu the 16nueSSSS, Cu
tured stOckades, with their garr
sons, burned bridges, destroye
railways, reached the Cumberlan
below Nashville, drove away guI
boats, captured and destroyed sevt
raj transports, with immense store;
and spread alarm over a wild
region. The enemy concentrate
on him from all directions, but h
eluded or defeated their severa
columns, recrOssed the TenneSse
river, and brought off fifteen hun
dred prisoners and much spoil
Like Give, nature made him a grea
soldier; and he was without tn
formers advantages. Limited a
was Gives education, he was a Por
son of erudition compared with For
rest" Such was the quick resolve
the prompt execution and the bril-
liant result of the first short meeting
between these two remarkable men
One, small in stature, but keen il
intellect and polished by education
the other, rough and powerful il
body and mind. 1t was Richard
with a battle-axe, that could cleavt
the bar of iron, meeting Saladin
whose keen scymeter could cut the
pillow of silk. Forrest admitted
that he was more awed by Dick
| Taylor's power of will than any
man he ever met, or, as he expressed
it, 81 lost my charm when met
Dick Taylor"
The CONSERVATION of the enemy
at his movements can be best appre-
ciated from their telegrams to each
other at the time.
Grant telegraphs to Sherman from
City Point, Va, Sept. 18th, 1864 /:
at will be better to drive Forrest
from Middle Tennessee as a first
STEP" The same day Gen. Sher-
man telegraphs Gen. Webster at
Nashville: " Call forward from
Kentucky any troops that can be
spared there, and hold all that come
from the rear until Forrest is dis
posed Of"
On the 28th he telegraphs Gen.
Webster: 81 will send up the road
tonight another division, and want
you to call forward from the rear all
you can get"
On the same day Gen. Sherman
telegraphs Gen. Grant: 81 send
back to Stevenson and Dechert Gen.
Thomas to look to Tennessee, and
have ordered a brigade of the Army
of Tennessee to Eastport, and the
cavalry across to that place from
Memphis. Forrest has cot
into Middle Tennessee, and will, l
feel certain, get on my main road
tonight"
Gen. Thomas telegraphs to Gen.
Sherman from Nashville, Oct. Sd,
1864 Rousseau will continue after
Forrest. Mai.-Gen. WASH
burn is coming up the Tennessee
river with ten thousand cavalry and
fifteen hundred infantry, and will
move toward Athens for the pur-
pose of striking Forests flank, or
off his communication with
Gen. Morgan, as / tel
egraphed you last night, is moving
from Athens on Bainbridge. So it
seems to me there is a fair chance of
hemming Forrest in and destroying
his command. The river is not |
and if we seize his means |
Of crossing at cambridge, he will be
unable to cross anywhere else, and,
[ think. Rousseau ought certainly |
to destroy him." And it appears
from the report of Gen. Thomas
that Rousseau had four thousand |
cavalry.
AT JOHNSONVILLE.
With all these efforts made to
capture him, Forrest again made
MS escape. AS soon as he reached |
The south side of the Tennessee
river in safety, he turned on his
laid an ambuscade ofa about |
5hree hundred men, under Col.
Kelly, for the enemy attempting to
and at Eastport, captured seventy
i've prisoners, three pieces of rified
ield artillery, sixty horses sunk
me gun and two caiSSonS in the
liver, and drew a large number of
he enemy into the river, many of
whom were killed or drowned. And
hen striking boldly for Johnson
yilIe, Sherman's chief depot of
supplies on the Tennessee river,
'aptured one gunboat, two trans
ports and one barge, heavily laden
With supplies destroyed three
sunbOats, thirteen transports, eigh-
cen barges and buildings, quar-
and commissary stores,
o the value of eight million dol
ars, as estimated by Federal Off
'ers. General sherman, whose soul
lad been greatly veXed by Forrest,
writing to Gen. Grant, Nov. 9Th,
S64, about the movements of Hood,
ays: "And that devil Forrest was
loWn about JohnsonVille making
lavOc among the gunboats and
Forests reputation
vas now worldwide; and in read
ng recently Il description of the
'reat Tamerlane, | was struck with
he wonderful resemblance between ,
heir military careers.
The author of "Soldiers and their |
cience" says of Tamerlane "Born
o comparatively humble fortune,
obstacles seemed to lie
cross the path of his ambition, and
'et one by one he overcame them.
isplans were deeply med (
tated before embarking in an enter
rise; he examined the avenues of ,
stFeat, and he himself tells US that
be principles of his tactics were :
inform. 1t was his maxim that {
Qecess came not from the greatness
t armies, but from skillful and judi I
ious measures. Shepherds and {
unters, mounted on light hardy
orses, and welding the iaYelin and {
he bow, followed the Standard of {
imOur; he covered them neither !
nth defensive armor nor unfamiliar
yeapons. He respected and ever /
rev advantage from that untamed {
nd adventurous spirit which, re-
arding close restraint as insuppOrt. ]
BILE, gave so large scope to daring {
Intelligence and prOwess, = =
lie relied much on rapidity of move [
lent, and often disconnected his [
nemies by falling on them una
ares, and cutting them UP In des {
lil-in his own words, he charged s
uick and hot on the foe, and never s
It the plain of battle cool. He at {
EAST had made, If not announced,
ne discovery, since attributed to [
Iarshall SAKE, that the secret of an {
rmy's success is in its legs < \ [
N all occasions his march was pre- {
eded by clouds of flying scouts, s
'ho, piercing the country in every 6
irection, kept him constantly in {
)rmed as to its varied resources and Y
ne dispositions of the enemy" {
With change of name a better de- !
,ription of Forrest could scarce be l
'ritten. [