The National tribune., 1885-09-17

presence, :" 1t is a fine thing to have son to
saddle mean act UPON" Indeed. the writer
must say what a fine thing for the elite that
there ever had been an Eighth Corps.
Out of 5000 men accounted for in the official
report less the number killed. wounded and
taken prisoners on that day, which aggregated
nearly 1000 men, Gen Crook could not have
had single man with him in line of battle
when Sheridan came UP, owing to the great
number of stragglers in the Valley. If all be-
longed to the Army of West Virginia, or the
Eighth Corps, as it has been called. he would
have been obliged to
BORROW FROM THOSE LARGER CORPS
to make up the deficit, as the Valley "had
swallowed more men than the sword"
A personal friend OF the writer, who came up
to the front with Gen. Sheridan, told him that
the stragglers which he passed through would
have made respectable looking army; SAID
stragglers did not wear the six-pointed star
the badge of the Eighth Corps i'll the days OF
"auld lang syne"
In honor to the brave comrades who were
killed and wounded, who subsequently, died,
and those who languished in prison pens the
writer cannot let this opportunity pass, but
must defend those heroes of that memorable
day. Can any comrade who was a member OF
the Army of the Shenandoah SO bclittie himself
as to steal the honor due the Army of West
Virginia to advance his own popularity or no
again appeal to the honor of all comrades Is
not any command deserving of respect and con-
fidenCe who lost fully one-thrd of its entire
number in killed, wounded and prisoners?
Let me ask the elite of the Army of the
Potomac, Did you lose one-third of your entire
command-12,9 ,966 men--on that 10Th of October,
1864? If not, why do you-your correspond
s-maliciously misrepresent the Army Of
West Virginia, and seek to
ROB US OF OUR HoNoBP
When the Army of West Virginia was organ
lied we numbered approximately close to
fifteen or sixteen thousand men, rank and file,
composed Of artillery, cavalry and infantry. In
our campaigning in both valleys and the
mountains under the command of Gems. Hun
ter and Sigel; passing through " Hunters Raid"
the greatest campaign of the war, and back to
the Shenandoah Valley; participating in
Smokers Gap, Winchester in July and Sep
tember, Fishers Hill aud innumerable skir-
mishes previous to Cedar Creek suffering from
battle after battle: the hardest kind of marches
and fatigue duty. sickness and death; decimated,
time and again leaving our hOnored dead often
far behind buried in the enemy's land, our
wounded frequently going into prison pens;
dwinded down to 5000 men on that memor
able morning, now to be robbed OF the honor
which every
BRAVE MAN HOLDS SACRED,
because the Eagle Division could not at the
extreme front, one and one fourth miles distant
from the main line of battle, hold in check the
onslaught of Early'S army, which the combined
strength of the Army Of the Shenandoah failed
to do until REINFORCED by single man in the
person of our beloved commander, Maj Gen. Z.
II. Sheridan, is rather more than can be borne
patiently.
Gen. Shoridan's ride has been made the sub
iect o! a poet, and will be read by unborn gen.
erations after we have passed to the unknown
world. 1t has been asserted that Gen. Wright
| could have accomplished what Con- Sheridan
did after ne came upon the battlefield. Gen.
Wright was an excellent soldier, but he lacked
| the dash and push which influenced such men
as composed the Army of West Virginia and
the Nineteenth Corps. Sheridan was their
| ideal commander. He had led the army to
! victory before, and, as subsequent events de-
veleped, did again.
As the writer stated above. the army was re-
enforced by single man. That man came
"swEARIEG AND TEARING"
around at desperate rate, examined the lines
which were then formed, ordered forward
movement of the entire line, saying, "We'll
whip them out OF their boots, and sleep to night
in our old quartersi" and what was a disaster
| early in the morning resulted in great vic
tory, which is known all over the length and
breadth of the land!
1t is not the writer's intention in this paper
to pluck ono single star from the cOnstela-
ton of any comrade, regiment, brigade
| division corps which were engaged on that
memorable day. Each one who did his duty is
deserving of all the honor and praise this coun-
try can lavish upon him. But he will not allow
any one to
PLUCK ONE SINGLE STAR
| from the constellation belonging to the Army
of West Virginia aud convert it to his own, nor
will he allow at this late date that little COM
| Eland to be stigmatiZed Us towards! Our hon
| oTed dead on that memorable occasion from
| their narrow resting places cry out to the sur
| yivors to rush TO their rescue aud hurl back in
| disdain these malicious ISLANDERS! We, the sur
| vivorS of that command, ever stand ready to
| defend the honors of our noble dead. The old
| Eagle Division lost its commander and each
| brigade suffered more or less in field officers,
| which is attested by the fact that the First
Brigade was commanded by Leut.-Col. Wiids,
of the 1l6th Ohio, for long time after the hat.
| tic of Cedar Creek.
The enemy is routed horse and foot. "The
pride OF the Army of Northern Virginia" is
| virtually no more. Early gives up in de-
| spair, and the Shenandoah Valley is once more
| IN the peaceable possession of the Union forces.
| Sheridan has more than accomplished his mis-
| sion. Gen. Grant and the
| IMMoRTAL LINCOLN
are well pleased with his achievements in the
| Valley, and Gen. Sheridan, for tho time being,
| rests upon his laurels and holds q commission
as Major General in the United States service
which he so nobly earned by his valor and de-
yoton to the Union cause.
| There is no more use for the Eagle Division
| in the Shenandoah Valley. The Army Of the
| James, operating in front of Richmond, has a
place in the Twenty fourth Corps for the elites
| towards, Nine regiments-thrce regiments in
| each brigade-of the division, still holding the
| division organization, under the command OF
| Brevet Brig. .-Gen. Harris, formerly Of the Third
| Brigade, are transferred in December, 1854, to
| the aboye-nanied army. The division takes its
| position in front of Richmond to the right oi
| Fort Harrison, on New Market Heights, above
| Deep Bottom. 1t occupies another outpost, the
| First Brigade being on the extreme right OF
line of battle. This brigade is composed of the
| "inscparable triplets," viz, 34th Mass, 1i6ti
Ohio and 123d Ohio, and is commanded by
ieut.-Col. Wilds, of the 10th Ohio 1t is seen
by the above statement that the Eagle Diyis
ion was posed of nine regiments of infantry
which had seen hard service for oyer two year:
in Western Virginia, and each regiment SO fire.
qucntiy decimated, that the entire command
seemed, when reviewed by the
PRESIDENT AND SECRETARY OF WAR,
to be no larger than an ordinary brigade in til,
other divisions Of this corps; yet this mer,
handful Of men was deemed sufficient to reley,
Gen. Terry, whose division was sent TO For
Fisher to accomplish what Gen. Butler failet
to perform.
Gen. Buffers failure to capture the for
caused his removal from the command 0
the Army of the James aud Gen. Ord sue