The Ottawa free trader., 1888-11-24
WAR EMORIES.
Some Unofficial Facts About "The Siege of
COrinth."

Some lnOItcIdi EacIs hDou' hh' ''h' '"
Corinth."
Probably no battle Of equal extent anC
importance was ever fought, In moderr
times, about which have been more numer
GUS or more conflicting reports, or about
the plan, If any there were, or the details
80 little is really known, as that of Pitts
burg Landing. Not easy to determine who
was the actual commander-in.chief; or II
there were any The different commands
were so hurriedly preciptated together
there, many of them confronting the foe
for the first time, without previous drill OF
essential discipline, In such a confused
manner, that, surprised at the first onset, on
our part, the battle was fought rather like
an aggregation of birds In their flight, ol
beasts In their movements, by instructive
understanding and general consent than at
men under Il General-in-chief with def
mite, pre-arranged plans. Commanders OF
different distinct bodies of trI ops finding
themselves face to face with and attacked
by an enemy, were forced to accept battle
and maintain the fight independently In
the absence of orders from any known su-
perior authority to the end, If possible, Of
self preservation. 1t Is certain, IN what
ever forms the scenes have been described
by different historians, today nobody
actually knows other than that great body
of Union troops was hastily massed togeth'
er At Pittsburg Landing, and surprised by
a great array Of well prepared and disci-
plined rebels not known to have been with.
In striking distance" That the first day
was one OF great slaughter on our side, ard
but for the timely arrival of Buell. the next
day Beauregard would have fulfilled his
expressed intention OF overwhelming and
driving our entire army into the Tennessee
river. That great battle ragged there for
something over two Gays, with varying
successes, over good many square miles of
territory adjacent to Pttsburg Landing,
and reaching beyond Shiloh church; whic ,
on the night of the first day Beaulegara
made his headquarters, and named the
6eld Shiloh, VITA the concurrence, subse
quently, II Is said, of his old friend and
classmate,.. General Halleck
1t is equally reliably reported that the
rebels actually retreated on the third day
In precipitate haste, witt heir organization
badly broken up, leaving behind many
thousands of unburied dead, and some SO
hastily buried that the heavy rains prevail
Ing there, then and afterwards, extensively
uncovered them, adding much TO the
already extreme foulness of the atmos,
phere Of all that region, before they could
be covered again by our troops, In addition
TO their own exhausting and protracted la
bors In that and other directions. Also
that much debris, broken and scattered
arms, mired and broken wagons, dismount
ed artillery and other effects were strewn
along the way they hurriedly retreated.
Learned also afterwards that the retreat
was tedious and difficult, encumbered as
they were with wounded, withal.
II has been referred to as "a drawn
battle" with advantage to neither side.
Subsequent revelations are to the contrary
effect that If our army had been In con.
dition to have followed up the advantage
really gained, the entire rebel army could
have been captured This, and all else re-
lsting, Is now so much involved In coniec-
ture that the full facts Can never be known.
With equal truth it can be said, on our
side, that the field presented a dreadful
spectacle; In the great number of unburied
dead, the carcasses of dead animals, dis
mounted guns, broken and scattered smal,
arms, commissary and quartermasters'
stores, and various other property rendered
useless, and depths of mud from recent
and continued heavy rains,-a very Ge.
henna of filth and pollution, not even
purihable by fire. An insult TO meagerest
Intelligence TO intimate the necessarily
foul condition of the atmosphere and all
water obtainable for use about and adjacent
to this valley of disease and death.
This was the first scene upon the stage
upon which was about TO be enacted The
memorable drama of the Siege of Cor
inth," representing a contest between our
large army and far more formidable enc,
mics, than superior forces of strong men
thoroughly armed and amply equippei
and supplied; in that these now 10 be
encountered works in darkness, in secret
aud deadly silence, in the innermost cells
and recesses Of physical and moral human
beings. 1t is too vividly impressed on the