The National tribune., 1886-07-22
FIGHTING THEM OVER
What Our Veterans Have TO Say About
Their Old Campaigns

CoHradH MRgee Wants Facts, Not FRncies.
To THE EDITOR: There arc none Of the
great battles of the war SO thoroughly misun-
derstooa as Chcllamanga, and none IN which
history Is 20 thoroughly Flashed, ana nave
been often wonderfully amazed at the descrip-
tions given OF this battle by officers high IN
rank But q careful study OF all the facts Will
account for most of the discrepancies. The
Fourteenth CORPS had marched all night Fri
dav. aud came on TO the battlefield just at day
light Saturday morning, without knowing
which way they had come or how they got
there They were never on the ground before
and from All the accounts i have seen written
By members OF that corps j should judge they
were never on the ground afterwards. The
advance Of this corps was scarcely In line OF
battle until they were attacked by ovcrwhelm-
ing numbers of the enemy when they did not
know there was an enemy near them and 10
this day thousands of the Fourteenth Corps
think they were the first 10 open the battle,
and this on Saturday morning, when the bat
tie actually commenced at Friday noon. lSee
Bragg's report. also, Carleton's Life Of Garfield,
page 1861 The Twentieth Corps lMcCook's), at
least two divisions, came on TO the field after
noon on Saturday, and according TO the admis-
sion OF many writers from that corps were
swept from the field before noon on Sunday.
Aud writers from that corps are, if possible,
more confused than those of the Fourteenth.
The writers from the Iwenty-hTSt Corps Crit
tenden'sl MS a rule are more nearly correct, be-
cause part Of the corps had passed over some
of the ground just n week before the BATTLE and
the left Of the corps was not far south of where
the battle actually commenced. Nllders
lightning Brigade OF mounted infantry came
Am the noighborhood OF the battlefield on the 18th
of September, and on the night Of the 18th OF
September oamped on the ground where Davis's
and Sheridan Divisions were SO terribly slaugh-
"a. ,.,FG uEa
aud from the 18th until the morning Of the
goth, with the exception OF the nights OF the
18TH and 10th, at or near Crawhsh Springs
camped every night within mile Of the same
place; and everybody az that time belonging to
the ARMY of The Cumberland. and knowing the
fomging ispositon of the Lightning Brigade, is
ready 10 assert that we knew every road, by
road and cow-path within many miles Of there.
The lact ii, we had secuted over the ground
and lulagcd over it for nearly a week, and had
facilities for knowing al about the country not
enjoyed bv our less fortunate comrades-nOt
even by Roseerns himself or any oil his corp:
or division commanders
Nov, Mr.. Editor, beg pardon for this lonG
prelude, for il is but prelude TO the article, to
which j want GO call your attention, by Maj
George ID. Jenncss, Qucnemo, Kan, i'm TIN
NATIONAL TEIBUNE. IN that article be takes
for his hero Alexander Mcdowell McCook
Now. d have not the slightest objection 20 hi:
making hereof Alexander Mcdowell McCOok
Alexander SHlkirk, Alexander the Great, Oh
any other Alexander or smart Aleck, and
shat never lind fault with his work so long as
be confines himself to the business in hand
But when he entirely i0rgets his theme, goes 9
long way out of his path to ialsify history, and
makes aH assertion that there was no earthly
call for hieuazng, ] shall simply ask space K
make a correction. The statement referred K
a. this: While Sheridan calls his division 4
arms 30 ON the pap left by these two divisions
the writer is ordered to gall0p TO Gen. Mildel
with orders 60 ding his brigade Of mounted in
fantTy into this open part Of the line. Wilder
Obevs promptly, but before his men are fairly
formed two heavy lines OF gray bear down upon
him in overwhelming numbers, and in that
deadly whirlwind of shot and shell his men are
swept away like chafn
Now, Mr. Editor, 20 every member Of The
Lightning Brigade there is more news in ihOsi
10 lines than he ever read before in SO few
words. And any man who states that Wilder
Brigade WIS driven one inch by the enemy
from any position il occupied az amy time dur
ing Saturday or Sunday states what is not true
I'm proof Of this see H s;OTy Of ia Ind, D. I6i
Niider's Brigade was never under the command
Of Gen. McCOok, aud what right had Comrad'
Jenness 10 Pallop with orders To Gen. Wilde
10 fling" his brigade anywhere This bring
me 10 the reflection that comrades who attelnp
60 describe battles should c0nfne their remark
10 occurrences Ia their immediate presence, q
j have always found that comrades IN under
taking 70 describe what they did not see Away
make mess Of it.--B. H. MAGEE, Montmo
renci, Ind.