The Providence news. (Providence [R.I.]) 1891-1906, 1894-12-12

LIEUTENANT GENERAL JAMES LoNGsTREET
end Sumner asked Mcclellan to suspend
the fighting. The slaughter on both sides
had been unparalleled on any American
battlefield What remained of Long
streets battalions stood at bay in front OF
the citadel, the key to the field covering
the avenue of retreat, and when night
came ON without a renewal Of the Union
attack Leo expressed his thanks to his
lieutenant with the fervor of Napoleon
when praising his marshals.
Again at fredericksburg Longstreet
held the citadel, Marye's Heights, where
he repulsed Summers grand division at
the stone wall. Charlottesville was
fought by Leo without his Old Warhorse
or his valiant corps. Otherwise that bat
tle might have ended the war, and Long
street would never have been called upon
to make the hopeless assaults at Gettys-
burg, tasks ho protested against, yet would
not shrink from. The work cut out for
him there was Of the nature always as
signed to Jackson during his life. Per-
haps he would have done better than
Longstreet but there is no data to affirm
that conjecture. jackson never came off
with flying colors when pitted against his
peers At Gettysburg Longstrcet was
called upon to settle accounts with Han
cock and Sicklcs and Sykes, together with
the men of tho Third and Second and
Fifth corps, who had given him no end Of
trouble whenever be had met them, from
Williamsburg on And Gettysburg was
another Antietam or Fredericksburg, with
the tables turned. The boys In blue held
the citadel, standing on their own soil to
fight for thoir homes and firesides.
The 3d of July, 1868, was the saddest
day of my lifc, F" said Longstreet, recalling
the hour when Pickett men came reeling
back down tho slope from the Bloody An
gle What Lee thought of his conduct
there may DO inferred from the readiness
with which in the presence of the defeated
men he accepted the responsibility. 1T
was all my fault" he exclaimed.
Once moro after the Gettysburg failure
Longstrcct saved the Army OF Northern
Virginia, and his great work ms soldier
was done. That was in the Wilderness
when tho left had been repulsed, tho cen
ter broken, and the right on the Plank
road was no moro than skeleton line
outnumbercd and oyerrun by Hancock's
FIVE splendid divisions 1t was crisis
Jongstreet must save tho cnuse by a forced
nlgnt nlnrcu ol w nllcs from MS camp OF
the day before. Would he Gomez Could
he Gomez Yes. and Sat double quick, his
veterans shouldcring their way through
the mob of wounded, stragglers and non
somratants, through the everglade and
thicket to necSthe foe I'm death prapple
The blow told. The sledge hammer was
at work For onco the impcrturbablc
Longstrcet was beside himself, elated
with triumph or horno on by tho fury of
tho battle yalcr. Like Jackson, he ven
turcd too far. nnd returning In the dim
light OF tho thiCkct was shot down by his
own men. when he had recovered suffi
eiently 20 take tho ilcld, it was no longer
the day FOE battle, but for retreat and sur
render Ard there was something more
than the timely advent of Longstreet's
corps amid tho thunders Of combat to
make the episode dramatic. II was the
return Of his lnvincible logions from be
You'd the Blue Ridgc, where In tho inter.
val Al bloody Chlckamausa they had also
turned the tide by decisive charge.
GEORGE l.. KiLMFR