The National tribune., 1890-06-05
HUMANITY SHOWN or ROTH SIDES.

J
HUMANITY SHOWN on BOTH SIDES
As showing the humane feeling which often
actuated the leaders on both sides, it NAV bt
/ interesting TO state that when the two cavalry
/ officers who were left on the field had sulli.
GENTLY recovered 10 permit of their removal
/ Zen. FItz. Lee sent a flag of truce 70 Avereli's
/ pickct-lne saying: "lour two officers are well
enough 10 20 home, where they ought to be-
send an ambulance to kclIy's aud you can have
them." This was done, aud the officers went
70 their homes. IL must also be remarked that
Of the three officers left behind BY Lee In his
raid on AyefelIs pickcts few weeks before,
two of them died and were placed in collins
( and sent under flag Of truce across the lines.
The ether one recovered and was sent to Camp
Chase
Maj. II. p. Mcclellan, in the "Iife and Cam
psigns Of Maj. Gen. ]. +. u. Stuart" deyotes
over Il pages to a description Of this contest.
when we consider that from his standpoint il
seemed but slight affair, aud an utter failure
on the part Of the Union troops engaged.
the undue prominence given it. as well as his
manner Of treating IL, gives rise 10 the suspicion
mat be iceis under some compulsion to explain
away the result
As his work is one Of the most important
contributions 10 the history Of the cavalry of
the Army Of Northern Virginia that has vet
made It's appearance, his deductions gkilifully
literary
style and general character Of his book auch
as to give il place in most public Libraries. |
have fclt that il Will not DO well 10 allow his
statements II 20 unchallenged where they ap.
pear to me to be incorrect.
Gen. AveFell in his official report TO his Chief
OF this affair says: From what had learned
oi Lees position and from what knew Of his
character. expected him to meet me on tho
road TO his camp" This seems 10 have been
construed ~ d slur on Gen. Lee by the author
Of the sentence, and is frequently anotcd and
paraded by Maj. Mcclellan, who exhibits q
feeling IN his account Of this battle which ono
does not expect TO find in the work of an im-
partial historian.
However this may be, something seems TO
have occurred that has awakened the ire Of
tins writer, aud he proceeds 10 roundly berate
Gen Averell and to belitllc bis conduct of this
affair. He claims that Fiiz Lees command
that day, exclusive Of the battery, consisted Of
only 600 men. II this be so they were handled
in a manner 10 leave the impression on the
minds Of their adyersaries that thero'werc at
least twice as many. This, in itself, would be
an eloquent commentary Oh Fitz Lees general.
ship.
A participation in that fight, an experienced
aud cool headed officer, remarks that il was the
MOST NUMEROUS 800 / EVER sAw."
Gen. Lee in his report does not state his own
strength, though he il careful to state that of
his adversary at IN round numbers, Just ]. 900
more than he had. Mai. Davis, now in charge
Of the War Record Office, has kindly made dill
gent search for, but has failed TO find, any re-
port from this brigade that gives the number
Of men in IT al this precise date
This is unfortunate. The only mention
made Of the number Of men he had occurs In
the last sentence OF Gen. Stuart's report 10 Gen
X. l.. Lee, forwarding that Of Fitz Lee. In
the very last sentence he states ID 10 be Z" less
than 5JJ" This estimate may not be exact
aud probably was carclcssly made; but on ac
count Of the prominence Of it's distinguished
author, 10 seems about 10 be passing unchal-
Ienged into history. IL is however, open to
grave suspicion. since IL is part Of the same
report that contains such glaring inaccuracies as
this: The defeat was decided aud the enemy.
broken aud dcmorallzed, retired under cover
Of darkness 10 iis place Of refuge (the main
army, having abandoned in defeat an expedi-
ton undertaken wiih b0asting and vainglofious
demonstration" The quotation is verbatim.
All agree that five regiments and a 4-gun
battery we're there. Ii Is said that f0ur gnnad.
Tons were % picket duty and were not In the
fight. Deductng eight companies from 50. the
number in five regiments, there would remain
~. Eight hundred men in az troops would
mean l9 men only 10 each troop On other
occasions not remote from this period, these
organizations were found 10 contain 40 and 80
lntu per troop.
IN his Chancellorgyi!le address, referring to
the battle Of Charlottesville, Gen. Fitz Lee
states that his brigade which WAS composed of
these same organizations, numbered 500 men,
/ This information was obtained from his
monthly return for March 81, 1863, IA days
after kolly's Ford. iSee also note on D. 225 Of
Maj. McClCllaug book Subtracting the
losses at Kelly's Ford from the supposed "less
than 800 "-l53 officers and men and I70 horses
we perceive that there must have been
An UEUsUAL RECRUITMENT
in these few days. IN the light Of the above,
before the numbers given by Stuart can be re.
ceiyed as even approximately correct some
explanation Of this extraordinary condition of
numerical decentralization should certainly he
given. The four squadrons on picket are the
only absentees which Eitz Lee pretends to ae-
count for.
There are many statements In the account
given by Maj. Mcclellan Of this fight, which
are not corroborated by the Fecolections of
others who were there, aud these others are not
confined solely 10 the men who rode under the
National colOrs that day.
On page 2O7 he gives prominence TO Fitz
Lees statement that there were but IL or I2
men in the rihe-pits at the fOrding during tho
contest for II, and, later on, on page PIT, he
admits that % men were captured there These
men were all taken while running from the
pits 10 their horses in rear, and were captured
by mounted men, who saw many Others escap-
ing
For the following letter from the Confederate