Saint Mary's beacon. [volume] (Leonard Town, Md.) 1867-1983, 1891-04-16
GEN. JOSEPH B. JOHNSTON.
The Genius Of the Soldier Who Opposed
Sherman.

Zen. Joseph Il. Johnston lived q
long time. but there never was, per-
haps, as much talk abont him as there
is now when he 10 dead. He lived in
Washington city unostentatiously and
could be seen nearly every day walk
ing down Pennsylvsnia avenue by
himself. as If he were in brown stu.
dy. He was rarely in company with
any one and about the only comment
made on him as he passed was that it
was Joe Johnston, who unsuccessful.
ly contested Sherman's march to the
sea.
Not one man in q hundred Of the
generation which has sprung up since
the war knew anything about him
other than that he opposed Sherman
and did it unsuccessfully. And these
are not to blame. For it seems that
there has been for the last twenty-five
years a concerted and studied effort
on the part of all men who write
about the war to exaggerate the won
dsrful military genius displayed by
Sherman in his march to the sea, and
while not actually "belittling" the
genius Of the man who opposed him.
at least to ignore that genius.
Sherman was the last great general
of the Union army. Grant, the bull.
dog fighter, was dead. Thomas, who
in my opinion was the greatest man
on the Union side, but who never got
his dues because he was democrat,
had died long before. It is said and
believed by many that Thomas died
from the unfairness with which he
was treated by the "powers," that ia
the republican party. SO. Sherman
remaining after all had passed away
it was natural that the writers should
write, the orators speak and the bands
play continually in his honor. 1t was
natural also that the man who oppos-
ed him should get very little credit.
II there were mistakes made the I'M.
successful man is supposed to have
made them-Johnston was the unsuc.
cessful man.
Now that he has crossed the river
the world seems to be more fair. The
papers are full of him and everybody
who knew of his private or public
military life are coming forward now
to tell of the pure simplicity Of the
former and the greatness of the latter.
Union generals who fought him, Con-
fedsrate generals who were with him,
now openly declare that he was the
greatest soldier that America every
produced. He is put above Lee,
Grant, Sherman. Hood and all the
rest. The Union soldiers say that he
fought Sherman with not quite half
the men the latter had, and vet did it
In such a mastery way that history
will give him the most prominent
niche in the gallery of fame. Twas
talking to Union general few days
ago about him, and, condensed, this
is about what he said
when Sherman encountered John.
ston he had at least two to one men
over the latter. This proportion was
not kept up because we were getting
new man from home for every man
we lost by death, wounds or sickness.
Beside this, we had clothes and sup
plies and were as well equipped as
any army ever was. Our success at
Nashville and other points in Tennes.
see about this time gave US the great
est confidence. Every man killed.
wounded or captured by US was a
dead loss to the Confederates. There.
fore, the proportion Of the armies did
not last long. We kept our strength
while that of the Confederates failed.
The saving Of strength or, to put it
more clearly, the economy of men,
should have been and was the main
idea of Johnston. He had to fight,
but he did not want to lose any men
In doing so. His campaign was based
on this idea.
when the two forces were march.
ing around in Georgia Sherman had
at least $4,000 men and Johnston
about 10000. and yet with this force
Johnston restrained Sherman from
marching more than two miles a day
for a month. There has never been
in the history Of warfare any such re.
treat as Johnston made when the CON.
ditions, such as supplies, surrounding
him are considered.
"ln my opinion at Bsntonville, in
North Carolina, it was a mere scratch
that Johnston did not destroy sher.
mans army in detail. Sherman
army was divided. the two parts be.
ing twelve miles apart and marching
on parallel roads. Sherman had IA;