The Madison daily leader. [volume] (Madison, S.D.) 1890-current, 1891-01-27


reported:
TO General L. Thomas, AdJutant Genera
Unitsd States Army, Washington. ID. O.
kIa--In the ODscaul 0uaftte of tho els
nltfmo ] soc report OF Judgo Adyoca @
General Holt, dated the 9Th of March. rela
tive to san eSnediton set op foot ia Al rii.
1s62. under the authority and direction" ~
the report says. sof Gen. o. III. Mitchell. The
object Of which was TO destroy the conn.u-
nication on the Georgia state Railroad be-
t~een Atlanta and Chattanooga IL,
expedition was @aet ON foot under my
authority the plan was arranged between
Mr.. Andrews, whom l had In employment
slnce soon after assuming command In
} sntucky, and nay Chief Of star, Uol. ames
B. Fryi and General Mitchell had nothing
TO do with either It's conception or execu-
tion, except 70 furnish from his command
the soldiers who took part Ia Il. He was
directed 10 furnish slxl instead OF that be
sent twenty-five Had he conformcd 70 the
Instructions given him ID would have heen
better the chances OF success woul have
been greater, and In any event several lives
would have been saved. The report speaks
OF the plan as an oman1tion Of genius. aud
OF the results which IL promised Is 10 bso-
lntely sublimau II may be proper there
fore, to say that this statomenl IL made fer
the AXE 81 truth, and not 60 call attention
20 the extravagant eolors In which q has
been presented. Very respectfully your
obedient servant. 2. G. BuELL,
Major General
Itappeats from Mr.. Pitte1ger's book
tina. the party assembled at Atlanta
but failing TO find the a ginesr on
who q co operation tha enterprise was
based gave it up, and all the me made
their way safely back 10 our haes.
Thi- terminated the effort 10 destroy
bridges west of Chattanooga b, cap
turing a locomotive In felati A 10
the merits of this scheme ID may DO
said that at the time perha 70 the ob
iect was OF sufficient importance tc
cover the probabilities OF failu a'td
the risk to the men engaged, but at
boat the undertaking was hardly com
niendable. Buell., basitg no plans
the success of IL, marched with the
maiu bod, of his army for the field of
Shiloh without knowing the esult.
When Andrews returned cary in
command near Nashville aud reported
TO him in 3uell's absence. General
Mitchell, with no o envy TO oppose him
was advancing throv gh Midd TEL
nesseee and occupied Huntsville, on
the Memphis aud Charleston Railroad |
on Friday. April IL.
Mr. Eittenger SAYS Mitchell's pul |
pose was 10 capture Chattanooga. Ap- |
propriafing the idea Of bridge burning |
Mitchell, on April 7th--the last da ~
the battle of ShiIoh--started q art OF
twenty four man under Andrews to
capture a locomotive and DESTROY
bridges south of Chattanooga, between
thas place aud Marietta. No exeep |
taon can be taken 30 Mr.. Pittenemr'a
graphic account Of the failure of thas
effort, but he and tho Judge Advocate,
General of the army and the Soush.
ern newspapers appear TO have at
tached undue i'm portance 10 the object
Of it.
The destruction OF bridges betwoe
Marietta and Chattanooga would not
have enabled General Mitchell to take
the latter place. IL his instruc 10 u
or the military conditions had justified
him In an attempt 10 capture Chatta
they did not-the pres
srvution of the bridge over the Ten,
nessee would have been i'm ortant to
his sLccess. The enemy had o ily 10
burn the structure. as they did whel
troops approached il Apri
20, in OF der to check an advance
Furthermore, IL Mitch
sll's party had succeeded in burIi q
bridges between Marietta and Chal
that would not have PIE
vented the reinforcement of tn,
after place. as the regula
'ailroad route through East Tennessee
vas open and In the aaemY's- llnaaas
ion, and IL was from the east and 40
rom the sou b. where there we're bu
ew II any available troops until Cor
nth was evacuated, that the place wa
most likely 10 be re enforced.
Hitchell's bl idge-burneSs, therefor
ook desperate chances 10 accompli-h
'bjeots of 10 substantial advantage
udge Advocate General Holt probabl
lad not examined carefully into IA
military aspects OF the subieds Whe
10 reported OF this enterprise, in l..
In the gigantic aud overw helmiug =.
ults 1t sought aud was likely g. ac
omphsh, II was absolutely snlYiin,.
Gen. Mi chell made no such claim
n fact, seeing, as he no doubt tuau
i'd, the insufficienoy of tho object, and
he completeness of the failure and it, {
eplorable con elueaees, he never {
1ade any re iyort whatever of the opcr
ton q
II Is not strange that when the me
4 this affair We're ca 3tured thsy ca
eavoi ed to have the eoenomv treat then. z
$ prisoners Of war but it in ralhe !
TRANCE that Mr.. Pitteuger in his book I
hould claim that their only offe 81 =
was that Of accepting a dangerouo {
srvice proposed by their owa officers
nd complain that the rebels treated
hem as spies. They were soldiers
ho stripped off their Uniforms aud
-ent into tho enemy hacs to war
gaiust him In Disguise.
Mr.. Pitienger mai rrains hat as the
Id not "lurkS about the enemy's cam
'r the purpose oi gaining information
aey were not spies. This plea is
and feeble; nor is the argu.
tent that tho rebel partisans and
camo IN citizens drc,s with.
our lines OF any material weight L. :