The Dillon tribune. [volume] (Dillon, Mont.) 1881-1941, 1886-10-08
WHY THE POTOMAC FORCES FOUGHT
LESS STOMCLY IN JUNE, 1854.

official Figures of the Los>e,--.,encrals
Kille:! and Wounded nl, Both Sides
4 Private soldier States :. l'ra,.ien-
a ConeraSt.
At the time, in the latter part ,f June,
1864, twas freely charged BY the gener.
ais employed in the Army OF the Potomac
that that army was not fighting as
stanthly at Petersburg as it had fought
in the Wilderness or at SpottsylvaU;a.
The charge was true. We had seen rcgi-
ments melt before the heat OF the Con fed
crate battle. firc. until u sc:tnt hundred
men fell into line when the drum t,pped.
We had seen briga<les fall into battle line
300 muskets strong. Oncc at Cold Har.
bor two regiments We're sent to support
my battery. l smiled sUlrowfully at the
scanty array. One hundred and twenty
muskets. sixty flies, we've all that We're
left OF two Delaware regiments. We had
Aeen heavy artillery regiments, which
Joined us at Spottsylvania l, 500, 1000
LOO men strong, tall into line before
Petersburg, 400, 500, GOO men strong, and
to come back from the assault delivered
on June IS, 1864, still weaker. The EN-
listed men who passed unframed through
the frightf,,l carnage judged the losses
the army suffered by the actual losses
that had occurred in regiments with
which we were familiar.
To the official figures During May,
1864, which period of time includes the
prolonged study of the Confederate ell.
trenchments at North Anna, the
Army of the Potomac lost 3o5
officers killed, 1913 wounded and
vi missing. Five or six general Off.
GERS were killed and ten or twelve wounded
during this month. In the same month
$50 enlisted men were killed, 21,14
wounded, and 1889 were missing. From
May 81 to Oct oS, the day ON which the
campaign practically ended, there were
In the Potomac army 4O1 officers killed.
l,453 wounded, and 54 missing; during
the same time 1851 enlisted men were
Killed, q. l40 were wounded, and 15,S4I
were missing. The aggregate losses after
the ftgh ting ut North Anna were III, 9s9 ell.
listed men and officers.
GENERALS KILLED AND WOUNDED.
And in this appalling number stricken
when the army was well nigh discour
aged, and when the soldiers needed, il
ever battle-worn troops did nee.l the
presence of their generals, and needed tc
be reused to enthusiasm and valor by gal.
liant leaders, the enlisted men never heard
OF but one general officer being killed. He
was Brig. Gen. Bl,rnham. They hear. OF
one or two other generals being wounded,
ana OF two being captured. During the
same time-that is, after the battle of
North Anna-we learned that the Confe.l.
crate Gems. Doles. Chambliss. Gherarlie.
donovan and Gregg had been killed, and
many OF their generals wounded And it
must he remembered that the Confeder.
ate general was behind sheltering earth.
works with their troops The execution
OF their duty made it essential that they
should be there. Our losses of general
officers, if they had fearlcssly performed
their duty, would have been at least four
times as heavy as those of the Confeder.
ates Instead of one Union generals be.
ing killed to "A, 900 enlisted men stricken
IN battle, there should have been at least
twenty of them killed and eighty of them
wounded, and there would have been ii |
they had done their duty as the Coufeder.
ate generals did theirs.
Let me go west, and to the battle of
Franklyn to illustrate my meaning. On
the afternoon Of Nov. 30, 1894, the Confed. |
crate generals led their veteran infantry
TO the assault again> the hastily con.
structed union earthworks, thrown uI
across broad neck t land formed by a |
pend IN the Harpeth river, in Tennessee.
he attack began at p. m. 1t was dark
at D p. IN. The fight tasted until about 10
=. IN. Say six hours Of fighting, four of
which was performed after dark, when it |
was impossible for infantry to select gen
erals us targets, or to shoot accurately.
The Confederates lost about 5000 enlisted |
nRfj j,
heroes of magazine fiction to solve is u
simple one in proportion. They had bet.
ter figure it out for themselves. 1t is |
this:
THE PROBLEM STATED
Ii one Union general was killed and two
were wounded during continuous battle |
III Virginia which lasted from May 81 to !
Oct. % ESQ days., and in which the Union
losses were officially stated ut $3.50 en-
nsted men and officers, how many Con.
1ederatc generals should have been killed
ana wounded in fight lasting six hours.
ana III which their losses Of enlisted men
ana regimental officers were G,OOO. Iynor.
ing tho factor represf cd by the d duration
of the light and the problem ran be stated
clearly:
AS A,:Ss are to3 50 will 5000 be to the
answer.
The answer is not to be found by arith
metical rules, which in this case would
have to be cased on the alleged valorous
conduct of Union generals belonging tc
The Army OF the Potomac. These six
hours CT fighting in Tennessee. six hours
ot assaulting Union earthworks, cost the
Confederates four generals killed and six
70 severely wounded that they left tue
.ront. In truth, every general in tue
Confederate army which fought at FRANK.
IN, except Gen. Hood. was either killed
y wounded: So fought the Confederate
caders In the field. So southern yolun-
Ger QeneralS man hrofl T., oO,; ,,.n AL