The National tribune., 1882-03-11

!
lahoma campaign by. General BOsecrans how
his broad and enlightened view of the plain
duty of his army to hold Bragg from REIN
forcing J0hnstOn's succoring army in rear
of Yicl>sburg rendscd the capture of Vicks-
| burg possible. An earlier movement re-
sultlng In the retreat of Bragg to Chatts-
nooGa would have sent 250O0 veteran troops
by rail to reinforce Johnston, increasing his
army to $4,000 men, which. with PcInber-
| tons, would have outnumbercd Grants army
more than 10000. Such a result would have
been favorable to a brilliant campaign by
General Rosecrans. With such detach-
ment from Bragg the Tullah0ma campaign
could have been followed immediately by an
advance upon Bragg's communications south
of Chattanooga simultaneously with the adj
vance of Burnside into East Tennessee from
Kentucky, resulting in the hasty eyacuationof
Chattanooga or the capture Of the remainder
Of Bragg's army That ne resisted the i'm
portunitics of the War Department and the
newspapers until The army of the Tennessee
had so tar completed the inycstmento Of Vicls-
burg as to render It's surrender a foregone
conclusjon,- he denied himself the op-
portunity to gain a brilliant victory when
within his grasp through q loyal sense Of
duty to his country, and by so doing crowned
the brow Of a rival department commander
with the laurel which he might have worn,
is matter of history.
The occupation Of Murfreesboro by the
Army of the Cumberland as the result Of
the battle Of Stone River, caused the retreat
of Bracg's army south Of Elk River, whence
it was ordered back to TuIIahoma by Cen
eral Joseph Z. Johnston.
The Army Of the Cumberland had crown
during the five months Of comparative mac
tirity from 75.030 TO 100000, distributed
from Bowling Green, Kcatu.isy. to Murfrees-
horo, Tennessee. The rcturns for May 3lst
show present for duty, equipped, 6G.573
inlantrv, 9.G1 cayalr.- and 49, artillery.
Total -l,G0G. The army had been divided
into three corps: the Fourteenth commanded
by Major-GeueraI George II. Thomas; the
Twentieth. under 3I4ioy-GeneraI A. Med.
McCoolz; and the Twenty First, under
General Thomas /. Cr.ttcndcn These
organizations, which were intended for Of
lensive operations, numbered on the Goth Of
June, present fer duey. equipped, 4o,z46 in
lantry, 1,t57 cavalry, 3,gG5 artillery, which,
with the cavalry corps under command of
Maior-CcncraI David s Stanley. and the
pou.ouicrs, engineers, and signal corps,
G,-GJ strong, constituted an army for the
purposes Of au offensive campaign. of -. .e12.
Independent Of this force was the reserve
corps, 12,515 strong under N&ior-GenerM
Gordon Granger, and the .,arr.sons at Nash
Vile, GaIlatin, Cl;,rksyiile and Fort DoneI-
son. During lie occupation of Iurlrcesboro
it had been strongly fortified and fitted ior a
secondary base which, unless great pressure
existed lor is presence in the front, was to
be occupied by the reserve corps.
The Army Of the tennessee, under COM
mand of General Eraxton Bragg. eucamped
behind eutranch-d works al TuIIahon.l and
SheIbyyiiIe, had an effective total at the
same date of $3.50, divided as follows:
&G205 infantry 1892 cavalry, and o,6s7
artillery. Besides these, 1911 were ou extra
duty, making a total present .or duty of
1926.
Months of time and the highest engineer
ing si,ilI were used in making jhc works in
front Of Tullauoma and &hy.'yyilIe im2reg-
uaMa. The two iniaulry corps were com
mmier by 1Iaior-Gyucrls Poll, and IIardee.
Able cavalry leaders in the persons Of
Wheeler, Forrest, Whar,ou, P,gram, and
Armstrong. commanded the cavalry. Van
Dorm had fallen, on the -eh OF Nav, not as
he would have wished TO fall, a victim at the
shrine of Venus instead Of Mars. Peace to
his ashes; he WAS brave, honest, and chiyal-
rous.
Against these forces, strongly fortified in
positions Of their own choosing. General Rose
Grams advanced. on strttcgicaI rather than on
saugulnary thoughts intent, ON the morning
OF ;he 2"J OF June. The campaign beggu
and ended in the midst OF "a storm. The
sterile u,lanJ- of the region through which
he passed consist of thin crust of clay with
Il subsoiI of quicksand. For rctrcating
army it would have been slough of dospond
sixty miles in width, hut to huoyant army,
on the eve of campaign, it was simply
damrcr upon their ardor The infantry
waded chcerlully through mud up to their
knees, and but for the necessity Of assisting
the artillery across deep morasses and light
ening the supply trains, by carrying their
contents where horses and mules had all
they could do to founder through uuim-
peded they would have cared little for the
of the weather.
Equalization of H"unties.