The National tribune., 1885-06-11
FIGHTING THEM OVER.
What Our Veterans Have to Say About
Their Old Campaigns
CHARLOTTESVILLE.


pressedi
"reminiscences of the late war are being pub
lished and when officers of all rank and even
the high privates" are coming TO the front
again, each bringing his scrap of history
never before writtcn-to assist in the great
work of getting at the bottom facts as TO the
parts taken by different commands IN the great
struggle, and TO compare notes and ascertain
as correctly as may be possible where blame
should rest for the many disastrous failures OF
those terrible years of wa-,l deem 1t my DUTY
with all due respect for my superior o1ncerS, 10
tell my story in regard TO certain matters per
tanning to Gen. O. o. Howard commanding the
Eleventh Corps, Army of the Potomac, at
Charlottesville and Gen. Joseph Hooker, com
mapdinC the Army of the Potomac, which
have never before been given to the public.
Ii is with reluctance that L DO this, for have
never received anything but kindly treatment
at the hands of Gen. Howard or his staff, while
at his headquarters on duty, in the Adjutant-
Generals Department, where was ordered to
report at Stafford Courthouse early in the year
1863 but IN view of the fact that Gen Joseph
Rockers lips are forever sealed and can oiier
no defense Of himself, and also that The rank
and file of the Eleventh Corps are suffering
under the unjust and ofteutimes cruel criti-
cisms of comrades who were not on the right
of that line az ChancelorSyille ard can have
no adequate conception Of the situation OF az
fairs ] say in view OF these facts, feel July
justified in laying before my comrades these
facts as scraps of history, which at that time
were evidently among the secrets OF headquar-
tiers
The matter wish TO lay before my comrades
pertains TO Charlottesville and the part taken
BIZ the Eleventh Corps on the extreme right OF
the line. Ex-Lieut. Gov. John G. Lee, late
Colonel of my regiment t5Jth Qhio), in his re-
cent article on Charlottesville, published in
your paper few weeks ago, gives facts, IUIsr
thA 1900 A nmebodv's piandef." The
question is,
WAS II FooKER's.
who after the mastery movement OF his army
across two rivers in the face of his enemy, ut
terly neglected to give any direction rs TO the
position of his right wing, but suffered Stone
wall jackson to move across his front, around
his flank and rear by daylight, and leisurely
concentrate $4,000 men within two or three
miles of his line, and then, at o'clock p. IN.
Saturday, May 2, 1863, pounce upon his right
and rear and nearly annihilate the Eleventh
Corps who were utterly unable to defend them
selves against overwhelming numbers; many
soldiers having no chance to fire a shot, until, as
with whirlwind of FIRE and destruction IN flank
and rear, they were swept away. l say, was
Hooker to blame for ali ths2 1t certainly looked
that way TO us. rs in few days with heavy
hearts retreatcd over the pontoons in the swell
len, angry RapPahannock In the sleet and
storm, leaving our dead and many wounded in
the hands of oar enemies. and came sorrowiully
back through the mud, oar amGulances full of
wounded and dying men, to our old camps,
almost discouraged. Mark Twain says: =" 1t is
not the province Of private soldier to offer
advice 10 the General commanding Ii he don't
like the way the war is being conducted let
him resign" Many priyatcs as well as officers
felt there ike resigning. Surely if there has
been any neglect of duty dis0bedience Of
orders. any petty iealeusies which have in any
measure contributed to this terrible disaster to
our arms there will be military court con-
vened, somebody concentrated, thorough
searching for the facts aud summary justice
meted ont TO the guilty ones. Justice to our
dead comrades demands this. Justice to The
living will he satisfied with nothing less. The
friends of Gen. Hooker were asked, What
have you got 10 say now'a bout Fighting Joe
He would do well enough to command a bri-
gade OF q division, possibly corps, but he had
no head on him to ranmand an army; he was
completely surprised and his flank crushed in
broad daylight at Charlottesville" Such
criticisms could not be answered, and
held our peace. 1t certainly looked so. The
campaign of such nature that no writing
could be done records kept up or files of Off
cial documents put in order until We were back
in camp again. Gen. Towards headquarter
tents were put up on the same spot tnear
Brooks's Station) which they had occupied
before the campaign bean, and nearly every
regiment of the Eleventh Corps went back to
its old place, each man to his own shanty !;
then, as you stood upon the hills and looked
down into the encampmeuts You couid see at a
glance where the boys had been shot out-a
shelter-tent cover gone here, another there, and
in some camps whole company streets almost
left desOlate.
Col. t. A Meysenburg. Assistant Adiutant-
General, with whom l was on duty, had placed
IN my charge and keeping the records of the
Eleventh Corps, consisting of kilograms re-
ceived, kilograms sent, letters received letters
sent, orders received, orders sent, together
with files of the same. Ali the accumulated
mass of official matter of the campaign was
brought to my desk TO be fled, Endorsed, placed
on the records, properly folded and preserved.
When this was completed Col. Meysenburg
came TO me and said that the records and files
Of the Eleventh Corps relating to the campaign
of Charlottesville might be needed soon in
Washington, and it was desirable that there
should be q duplicate official copy OF every
document relating 10 this campaign made at
once, and he directed me to prepare the dupli-
Gates for Official signature as rapidly as possible.
] accordingly furnished him duplicate set of
papers. which were official copies of every line
relating to the famous Charlottesville cam
paign. Let the reader keep in mind and i'm
press il upon his memory indelibly that the
attack the right of the lire at Chancellors-
vile which smashed the Eleventh Corps took
place at 6 p. M, Saturday, May 2 1862 for this
duu udCS are very ldCLoTS III
the problem are trying TO solve. After the
work was completed / expected a thorough in
vestigatiOn of the management of the campaign,
from the commanding General down; but in
stead, in few weeks the army broke camp
again. marching north, Gen. Hooker in com
mand Of the Army of the Potomac and Gen
Howard still commanding the Eleventh Corps
We marched via Catiett's, Bristoe, Centerville
Goose Creek across the Potomac at Edwards's
Ferry, via jefferson, Middletown to Frederick
City, reaching this latter point at shutdown
June %, 1868. Early in the morning (29th), the
Eleventh Corps moved north the Emmitts
burg road, and during the forenoon, while on
the march, it was whispered along the line that
our beloved cOmmsndcr-"0 Old Joe"-was
NO LONGER OUR CoMMs EDER;
that Gen. Geo. G.. Meade (more farnliarly
known among the boys on account of his spec
taces and his vigilance, as " Four-eyed George ~
commanded We loved Fighting Joe
Hooker" and felt sorry to have him go, but
ever loyal to their leader, that brave old army
marched forward TO duty without any delay
No Encouragement, no counteTmanding OF
orders; everything went forward like clock.
work. Reaching the outskirts of Emmittsbura
that night, We camped, and on the following
day moved headquarters into town and then
began work upon the accumulated papers Of
that campaign, TO be known ever afterward as
the Gettysburg campaign. While engaged
upon this work On the 30th of June the day
before Gettysburg battle began at Emmitts