Delaware gazette and state journal., 1884-02-21
ARNIHILATION OF TROOPS.
An.OccnrrenceO Of Doubtful Existence
In MIIiIarY HIAfarY.

~
In the Fortnightiy Reuiew Archibald
Forbes, the renowned BDglish war corre-
spondent, says: "Than 'annihilation'
there ia no more favorite word with the
oritioa OF mar muvres and sham fights.
In notice Of a mimic battle near Ports-
mouth in the London Times of the day |
write these lines occurs this observation
'1'he guns OF the fleet would have ami
hilated Colonel Thompson's advance on
the left along the seashors.' In truth 1t
is 40 hard thing to 'spnihilate' a body
of troops as ii is to kill scandal. In a
literal sense there ia scarcely record OF |
such catastrophe; if used In a figurative
sense to signify loss go great 40 to put |
the force suffering 1t hors de combat, there |
is amazing testimany to the quantity OF |
snnihilstion good troops have accepted |
are four instances taken almost at ran
dom The Confedsrstes ont of $1,000 |
men engaged at Gettysburg lost $1,000,
but Meade held his hand from interfer-
ing with their orderly retrea;. OF that
battle the climax was the assault OF
Picketts division, the flower OF Virginia,
against Webb's front of the left Of Gene.
terry Hill. Before the heroic Armitage
| called for the cold steel and
carried Gibbons battery with a
rush, the division had met with
variety OF experience during its mile
and-a-hslf advance over the smooth
| ground up to the crest. when 1t fl rst
csme Into sight 1t had been piled with
| solid shot; then half way across IL had
been vigorously shelled, and the double
oanisters had been reserved for it's nearer
approach. An epfilsding fire tore through
its ranks; the musketry blazsd forth
against it with deadly effect This ia
the evidence of an eyewitness on the
opposite side, who adds .Bnt it came
ou maRnifioently.' Yss, It came
on to cold steel and dubbed
muskets, aud, sfter desperate
strnggle, it went back foiled, to the ac.
compartments which had marked its ad
vance. Bat, heavy as were its losses, it
was not 'spnihilated,' Pokett's diyi,
sion survived to be once and again a
thorn in the Federal side before the insl
day of fate came to it at AppOmsttox
court house. AT Msrs-la-Tour, Alven.
sleben's two infantry divisions, number
ing certainly net over $4,000 men (for
they had already lost heavily at the
Spichereu Berg) sacrificed within a few
OF 1000 during the long summer hours
While they stood unsupported athwart
the course OF the French army retreatine
from Metz. But 80 far were they
from beipg annihilated that As hours
later they made their presence acutely
felt on the afternoon of Gravelotte In
the July attack on Plevns, of the 2S, 900
men with whom Krudmler and
Schahovakoy went in, they took out
uuder q 900. One regiment of the
lstter's command lost 1876 killed and
loo wounded-abOut rs per cent. of its
whoie numbsr-yet the Russian retire
ment was not disorderly and next day
/ the troops were in resolute cohesion
awaiting what might befall them. In the
/ September attack on Plevna of $4,000
) Russo Roumanisn infantry engaged the
losses reached 5000 men. Skobseff
: commanded $4,000 men, and at the end
OF his two days despeIats fighting not
10000 of these were lett standing. Bat
there wss no annihilation, either liter.
ally or conventionally, if one may use
the term. The survivors who had fought on
the llth and l2.h ofSeptember were read y
at the word to so in again on the 18th,
aud how they marched across the Balkans
latsr is one of the marves Of modern
milit'ry history"