The National tribune., 1882-02-04
Memories of Burnside.
fContinued from First page.

To this end he ready 10 MAKE COLI
cessions to allay the Southern discomfort. But
when the first gun upon Fort Sumter fired alike the
Southern and the Northern heart, he promptly,
and without moments hesitation, offered to his
country the sword that she had taught him 10 use
He was selected for the command OF the First Rhode
Island regiment In reply to dispatch from Gov
ernor Sprague, inquiring how soon he could leave
for his command, he answered at once; ana the
next morning he was in Providence, buslly engaged
in organizing and preparing 1t. In an incredibly
short time the regiment was raised and equipped
and in two days after the first man was enlisted,
battery of six rified guns, with five hundred men,
was on its way to Washington; and, IN two days
more the rest of the regiment followed. NOtwlth-
standing this prOmptneSS, such was the Vlgor OF Ihe
Colonel seconded by his subordinate officers, and
such his valuable military experience, that the
regiment left fully armed, equipped, ana provlS-
toned; and gained the highest praise by us appear
ance of discipline, efficiency, and soldIerly bearing
None of the new and hastily organized regiments
came into the service better prepared Tor their
duties Its evening parade was favorlte resort Oh
MI Lincoln who, accompanied by high dlgnltarleS,
civil and military, often came to witness ana 10
admire its evOlutiOns
In the battle of Bull Run, which followed, COl0nel
Burnside commanded a brigade, and as was justly
said in a memoir read before the Loyal Legion by
Colonel William Goddard who served under hll
mo share in the disasters OF that conflict can De
assigned to him or to his troops, In the autumn
of 1861, General Burnside, raised TO the rank Vi
brigader- general, took command OF the BURNSIDE
EXpeditiOn " to the coast OF North Carolina Inc
cOnception the plan, and the execution OF that I'M
nortant ENTERPRISE attest. the uncommon military
ability of its originator and leader. The secret OF
the expedition was well kept, kept even from the
penetrating investigation of the newspapers. II
sailed in January 1862 the objective point beng
known only to the commander and the few conn
dental officers whom it necessary OlntruSt with
the information. violent storm struck the meet
off Hateras and dispersed the vessels, so that more
than a week elapsed before they reached the rem
j prpH
gales which threatened them with destruction.
The ships crowded into a narrow space, with lnsu1-
ficient holding ground, beaten about by the Wlnos
and waves, entangling their hawsers running f0uI
of each other, and filled to Overtiowlng with dis
couraged and sea-sick men, the expedition seemed
to be predestined to failure by force OF the elements
without the opportunity to fire gun In the midst
of all this disastrous cOntuSlOn the calm FEATURES
and striking figure of Burnside appeared consplcu-
Gus, meeting every emergency, providing against
every calamity confident, lmpartlng to his men his
own indomitable cheerfulness and inspiring them
with his own unfailing hOpefulness. The gallant
and able defenders OF the position hattered them
selves with the easy repuiSe OF any assault that
could be made against it, by land or by water even
unaided by the elements, which seemed to have
conspired in their favor. They were strongly forti
fed naturally, and by artificial works. skllitulIy
constructed, and of great strength.
A not over friendly pen thus describes the situa-
ton:
the romance Of the four years call the rebellion
its episodes will stand out more pIcturesquey than
its most defensibe point. New Berne the knot of
ganglia OF railway systems An army OF one hundred
thousand could have been concentrated on Its cir
cumvaating land and water lines long before Burnside
felt justified in attacking The rebels content with
confronting the expedition with equal but slightly
superior numbers, and though they had much in their
favor the admirable courage and intrepid combinations
of the Union commanders wrested lines and deenses
from we'll organized defenders that in other
any other time would have given the vicors an i'm
Berne on the Neuse River Burnside depoye his lines
with simple faith in the Army regulations that would
have given joy to such martinez as Won Moltke or
Frederick The rebels admirably protected and
had anticipated serious peril to disturb the serenity
thin growth of pines separated their works from the
river. These works, beginning with an enormous rail
way embankment that reached the dimension OF bastIons
at certain points. calculated to hold army in
check until feldguns and regular approaches should
demosh them. Burnside though tllnld in peace and
difdent III war. was never cautious IN oattie he be-
leyed that armies near equal III numbers could find
first opportunity. Hickman, the dashing commander
of the Ninth New Jersey Infantry, took the lead and
the regiment tore the field on run. They found
the behind the works full of ardor themselves
The elan of the Jerseymen, however, had caught the
though moved down and almost annihilated, reached
the railway surmounted crossed the ditch on the SIDE
and in few minutes the astonished and confident rebels
were prisoners.
This was the earliest important Union success in
the East. The grumblers, a class always numerous
and noisy in proportion to their ignorance of the
purposes or even of the destination of the expedi-
tion had been loud in their predictions of its fail
ure, in which they were strengthened by vague re-
ports of disaster and shipwreck When the news of
victory was flashed across the wires one exultant
shout throughout the North and the name
of Burnside was in every mouth.
General Burnside then joined the Army of the
Potomac, where he organized the Ninth Corps
which rendered SO important services and Won for
itself and its commander SO high Ienown. On the
14th of September 1862 General Burnside achieved
the victory of South Mountain. At the battle of
Antietam he commanded the left wing of the army.
Returning to the Army of the Potomac, he resumed
command of his favorite Ninth Corps. Here he was
offered the command of the army. He declined it,
with unaffected difidence, he had twice before
but it was pressed upon him by positive ORDERS and
he could not longer, without INSTRUMENTATION, re-
fuse it. The battle of Fredericksburg followed
AS magnanimous in disaster as he was modest in
success he assumed the whole responsibility of the
defeat, and made complaint. He simply de |
manded the removal of certain officers as the con-
dition on which alone he could efficiently and sat
remain at the head Of the army This |
condition not complied with he resigned, and turn
ed over the command to General Hooker When |
urged to make public his grievances he replied that
it would embarrass General Hooker whose success
he sincerely desired and, with his hopeful DISPOSE
ton, believed in.
The President refused to accept General Burn
sides resignation of his commission, and appointed
him to the command of the Department of the Ohio,
where he rendered eminent and conspicuous SER
vice. clearing the country of guerllas and affording
protection to the loyal population. Attacked by
Longstree with vastly superior forces, he retired
after repulsing the enemy, which Outnumbered him
nearly three to one, at Campbels Station to Knox
Vile, which he occupied and fortified and where
cfa1 cSn ovyhio