Wessington Springs herald. (Wessington Springs, Aurora County, Dakota [S.D.]) 1883-1891, 1888-03-23

OF circumstances OF actions, in such a
wsy as to alter the entire fate of a
great campaign, perhaps of the whole
COW sesfs we eau only guess. Yet there
were. ALL over the South during the
clviE WAL, situations that can be point
ed oms where it is next to certain
that a very slight change in the rela-
tian. ST the opposing forces would have
'nue side Or the other as to have saved
tile sacrifice Of thousands in life, limb,
and health, and eXerted the most pow
sarfI sntiuence on tue determination of
tho struggle.
There is no better illustration of
these assertions than the fact that in
sfuns, 1852, the little command of
General Thomas Williams (who was
killed. in the battle OF Baton Rouge
tt'e following August almost succeed
ed III making an inland town of Vicks-
burg, SO that the Mississippi would
flow fas out of reach of the guns on
tle heights of that historic place. Yes,
almost succeeded-came 80 near sue
aesssss xha5 nothing prevented this amaz-
lag and bloodless victory but the re-
vols OF nature herself at such an auda-
ciaass attempt OF Yankee enterprise.
lAho1t seventy thousand men in the
lnion armies toiled and suffered, and
,e.itEser sicLened or died from fever and
malaria or the bullets Of the enemy,
III the work OF car turing Nicksburg
aas,d Port Hudson, in the first six
months OF the year that followed, all
of which would have been spared had
General Williams succeeded in his re-
zala.a;ass}e attempt
Tn every man who served along the
Mississippi, and who therefore knows
the gigantic task that it was to send it
uuvSxed to the sea. this item of his
Tory will have the largest interest. It
is because I was one of the Port Hud-
SON nen, and know something of the
tolls and dangers OF the river cam
'paigr OF 1862, and something of the
good blood that was poured out to re-
store Che great river to the Union, that
i have been interested iii looking up
the facts of this remarkable attempt to
accomplish that end year before by
the strategy of the spade and without
bloo1shed.
}f the reader examines good map
'ehh eSAG ao~C1 AlooAss1Pl1, ue Will Sce
tdra@ t11s great river first runs down be-
low VIclsburg, then returns to that
town, IN the shape of long q, and
Guns down again, leaving opposite and
below the city peninsula about six
miles long and one wide at its lower
end
Tie soldiers who served in that re
gion well know the character of the
soil 1t is light and alluyial, being
1nossly made along the banks by the
deposits OF the stream. The great river
rs like a mighty serpent, continually
changing it's course It works anc
w1iggles here and there; the soil yields
TO it everywhere. Whole acres some
times tumble off in the night, and the
river at certain point will change it,
course sometimes by distance OF hal
q mile The Red River, as VIC discov
cred has the same popularity.
These facts were presumably know
to General Butler and General Will
Tatns- There is controversy as t.
which 10 entitled to the credit for til,
idea Of the Vicksburg cutoff, and thi
1atxy be settled elsewhere. Two year
Eates Butler tried the same tactics OF
the James River below Richmond, will
his Dutch Gap Canal and tho at
sempt was equally Intellectual. Blu