Fergus County argus. [volume] (Lewistown, Mont.) 1886-1946, 1889-06-20

Toledo Blade.
That embodiment of old COnfeder-
ate venom, Fitzhugh Lee, IN his adj
dress ut the unveillng OF a monument
to the rebel dead at Alexandria, Va,
endea vored to show that l.ongst rect
was responsible for Lees defeat at
Gettysburg. This attack was undOubt-
edly made because LOngstreet accepted
the settlement made by the war and
turned his face to the morning instead
of pitching his tent among the ruins OF
t he old order OF things. AS a military
criticism Lees address is weak. IN
point OF fact, he base. his argument
upon an untruth--that Gen. x. +. Lee
was on July 3, 1868, compelled to he
alternative OF either attacking the un-
ion army in front or of retreatlng.
There was u third course open TO
l.ee-a course commended by Long
street to makea flank movement and
turn the union position. We know
now that this could have been done.
and that the chances Oi SUCCESS would
have been at least equal to those oi
defeat. Why Lee preferred an attack
in front, where the attacking column
had to march II mile over I'm open
plain exposed to "a tremendous artil-
lery fire, will probably never be known.
Whethe it was an error OF Judgment
or whet her his information rs to the
union position and force WAS erro-
neOus, no one can tell. But he decided
on an attack on the union lett cent Ell
and Pickett charge" has gOn.
into history as u magnificent effort oi
brave men to achieve the impossible
Like he charge Oi the six hundred at
Balaklava, lit WAS magnificent, but
| it was not war IL was simply send
ing men o theirdeath. When Pickett :
men reached their extreme advance
was he high tide mark Of he rebellion
When they retreated the wave OF re-
bellion began its subsistence.
! The mistake, il seems to us. was iI
an attempt to make this persona
bravery OF inferior numbers, on disad
vantageous ground, take the place o
military strategy. The fault lay with
the man who ordered II done, and that
man was Robert f.. Lee. The attack
was made under I.ongstreet's com
mand and Pckett's brigade was in
the lead. There wers in the attacking
| brigade and the reserves about l2,UW
men, and with this force an attack
was made on u position and II force
| that would have been able to have
driven back Lees total force, had il
all been massed i'm that bloody charge
across the wide leveland upthe heights
OF Cemetery Hill. I.ongstreet did al
that he could do i'm IN impossible ef
fort. The blunder was not in the way
Lees order was executed, but in thu
order itself Tor such II desperate, I'M
necessary and impracticable move
ment.
In point OF fact, the entire invasion
OF Pennsylvania was itself II blunder
and n blunder of Just the same char
acter as the fruitless charge ut Gettys
burg. Had he won that battle h,
would have been unable to have main
tanned II position north OF the Poto
mae. Had Meade shown more energ,
in the pursuit his army would hav,
been either captured or scattered
Fitzhigh Lees effort to put the blam,
on other shoulders than those of hi
uncle, Il. +. Lee, probably was prompt
ed 10y the loyalty OF n kinsman, bu
here is reliable test imony to the eifec
that Lee acknowledged his error q
ceneralship in ordering he Gettysbur
charge ana assumed whatever nj blam
attached thereto