Evening capital. (Annapolis, Md.) 1884-1910, 1885-06-23

New Bees
Those wno haze rann tne recent dii-
lering accounts oE ere battle Il Shiloh.
including che Generals own paper on
the subject published not long ago. vii
Be interested Il this additional reference
rom IL place IN the hrnt volume 1t his
new book
Gen. Beauragard vas next IA rank %
Johnston, and succeeded b che COM
mand. which be retained 70 tie close Of
the battle and during the subsequent
retreat ca Uorinth. s wel IS ID the
siege Of that placa Els tactics have
been severely criticised BY Coincidence
writers, but / do not believe his fallen
chief could have done any better under
the circumstances. Some 81 these critics
claim that Shiloh was won when John
Bton fell. and IL he had not fallen the
army under mewonld have been annihi-
lated or captured. Ifs defeated the Con-
federates at Shiloh. There Is little
doubt that we should have been dis
gracefully beaten IT AL the shells and
bullets fired BY rs had passed harmless
" over the enemy, and If all OF theirs
had taken effect Commanding Cen
erals ere liable to be killed during en-
gagements; and the fact that when he
was shot Johnston was leading brigade
to induce it to make charge which had
been repeatedly ordered, is evidence
that there Was neither the universal de-
moralization on our side nor the nm
bounded confidence on theirs which has
been claimed. There was, il fact, no
hour during the day when doubted the
eventual defeat Of the enemy, although
I was disappointed that reinforcements
so near at hand did not arrive at an
earlier hour.
The description Of the battle Of Shi-
lob given by Col. William Preston
Johnston is very graphic and well told.
The reader win imagine that he can see
as each blow Is struck q demoralized
and broken mob Of Federal soldiers,
each blow sending the enemy more de-
moralized than ever toward the Tennes-
see river, which was . little more than
two miles away ct the beginning Of the
onset. If thereader does not stop to In
qnira why, with such Confederate sue
cess, for more than twelve hours Of
hard fighting, the national troops were
not eli killed, captured, or driven into
the river, he will regard the pen picture
as perfect But Witnessed the fight
from the national side from o'clock in
the morning until night closed the con-
test, and I see but little Ia the descrip-
ton that I can recognize. The Con-
federate troops fought we'll, and de-
serve commendation enough for their
bravery, and endurance on the 9th Of
April, without detracting from their an
tagonists, or claiming anything more
than their due.
Here is another early experience:
AT the battle Of Belmont, fearing that
the enemy we had seen crossing the
river below might be coming upon us
unawares, I rode out Ia the field to our
front-still entirely alone-to observe
whether the enemy was passing. The
field was growing up with corn so tall
and thick as to cut of the view Of even q
person on horseback, except directly
along the rows. Even in that direction,
owing to the overhanging blades Of
corn, the view was not extensive. had
not gone more than few hundred yards
when I saw body Of troops marching
past me, not fifty yards away. / looked
at them for q moment and then turned
my horse toward the river and started
back, hrst in walk, and when I thought
myself concealed from the view Of the
enemy, as fest a. my horse could carry
me.
The cornheld In front Of our transports
terminated at the edge Of dense forest
Before I got back the enemy had entered
this forest, and had opened brisk Gre
upon the boats. Our men, with the ex-
ception Of details that had gone to the
front after The wounded, we're now either
aboard the transports or very near
them. Those who were not on board
soon got there, and the boats pushed Of.
/ ives the only man Of the national army
between Che rebels and our transports.
The Captain 81 . boat that had Just
pushed out, but had not started, recog-
nized me and ordered the engineer not
TO start the engine. He then had q plank
RIM out for me. NY horse seemed 10
take II The situation. There was no path
down the bank, and every one &C.
nuainted With the Mississippi River
knows that It's banks, II 3 natural state,
do not vary al any great angle from the
perpendicular. ny horse put bis fore
feet over the bank without hesitation OK
urging. and, with bis hind feet well
under him, slid down the bank and
frottad aboard the boat, twelve or fifteen
feet away. oyar g single gang plank. /
dfzrnnmnfnd and want AZ rnno A., a.