The National tribune., 1895-09-12
Its Possibilities and Results, and a Defense
of Mcclellan.


three years ago the battle Of Malvern Hill,
which occurred on the frat day of July,
| 1862, brought the opening act Of the great
| civil war to a close. 1t was prelude to
Gettysburg, which in some of its features it
resembled. 1t is probable that serious
disaster to the Union forces might in either
case have led to political results of very
! injurious character. We can get glimpse
of their nature by considering the military
and civil conditions Of that time in their
mutual relations to each other.
| Mcclellan had been forced to make his
advance on Richmond by the York River
| instead of the James The Merrimac was
in Norfolk, and she might at any moment
reappear and close the navigation of the
| last-named river. The delay of our army
at Yorktown brought US to the swamps of
the Chickahominy during the malarious
season. Our base at White House Landing
was upon waters not admitting Of any de-
| Tense by the navy.
Under these circumstances Mcclellan did
not feel warranted in advancing directly upon
Richmond, though it's steeples were in sight
| from the tops of the tallest trees on his
| picket-lines. He was apparently waiting for
Teiniorcements when the Confederates fell
with great fury upon his right wing.
The results of the first battles showed he
could not main tain his position astride of
the Pamunkey aud Ch;ckahominy. To a
man Of his cautious character it was COM
| paratiyely easy 10 come at once TO the I'M
| welcome conclusion that the great army
| under his command was quite as likely to
| be taken itself as 1t was to capture Rich
mond. He was forced suddenly to abandon
the offensive and devote his ability to the
| preservation of his troops.
The Confederate forces were massed upon
our right, and they naturally assumed that
his retreat would be, down the York River
and by land down the Peninsula upon the
same route as that by which he had adj
vanced. But they were mistaken, and in
| consequence of this they remained in mac
ton for several days. If they could have
known that il was the real purpose Of Nc
Clellan to make q flank movement over onto
the James, they would have taken steps
which might have resulted in irretrievable
disaster to the Union cause.
1t is necessary here, to understand the OBJ
sacles to which both armies were exposed.
The change of base was so sudden that it
was dangerously nenr to a repetition of the
retreat from the first Bull Run. 1t is evil
dent that our army was in condition of
marked disorder until it reached Malvern
Hill. The duties of pioneers were per-
formed by general officers; they were abso-
lutely ignorant of the roads, and in extreme
perplexity from this and other similar
causes they led the disorganized column to-
ward what proved to be a safe shelter on
Malvern Hill and under the protection of
the navy.
Mcclellan led his officers, and it was in
harmony with this most remarkable ext
gency that he went at once on board of
man-of-war and directed the commander to
steam up the James, in order that he might
satisfy himself personally that the navy
could be relied upon to cover his left flank
as he went into position on the famous hill.
If the Confedcrates had been able to meet
him he emerged from the friendly shell
ter Of White Oak Swamp before he had time
to arrange his lines of battle, it was possibly,
we may almost say evidently, in their power
to inflict most fearful losses upon him but
they were not there in season, for reasons
which will be explained later on.
Before leaving our forces it is necessary
for me to state that as they turned their
face southwark they had but short dis
lance to go before the swamp above named
effectively covered and protected their right
flank. 1t was for the most part as impass-
dbiC uS a. Idht, anu lHt lew IOuuS WHICH run
through it, as at Fraziers Farm and Glen
dale, were held by our artillery, which was
massed in such effective force at these points
as TO repel all the efforts of the Confederates
to break through.
We will now go back week and inquire |
what the Confederate leaders were doing. |
1t will be remembered that they had come |
out from Richmond in the first assaults upon |
our lines, so that when they found what |
Mcclellan was doing they had a sudden
experience which must have been as disa-
greeable TO them as ours was to US.
The direction of the road, the position of |
our rear-guard, and the location of White
Oak Swamp compelled them to move their
army back again 20 miles to Richmond,
passing actually through its streets before
they could again encounter our forces They
had thus lost several days; their golden
opportunity 10 inhict q terribly decisive de-
feat upon Mcclellan was gone.
1t was in vain that their leaders drove
them with the desperate energy of hate upon
our orderly lines of infantry and artillery
as securely posted as they were aiterward at
pass now TO the civil side of these awful
events. The state, of public opinion was
such that the presence of Lees triumphant
army before Washington, fresh from an over
victory on the lOwlands of the
Peninsula, mighs.easily have counted out"
,he friends of right aud installed its enemies
The repulse of the Confederates at Nal
yern Hill, and their delay in the attempt on
Washington, gave the country time to rise
with patriotic spirit to new and fuller
sense of the stupsniOus exigency which Was
ipon u.s. and it led ultimately to glorious
conclusion. ri GsI
If it should be thought that have over
ated the possibilities of n ruinous political
under the conditions named, it
hould be kept in mind that the popular ma
ority against Lincoln was heavily weighted
~ disastrous moral error; that is, that it
vas not right for the North to take even the
conservative step of opposition to the ex-
ension of slavery upon free soil. !
This was all that the election Of Lincoln 1.
eally meant, but SO deeply had the virus Z
# slavery infected the whole country that |
he army itself was heavily burdened by the
anne error.
The Intervention of England was to be
lreaded, and more so ON its political than
N its military aspects. Gladstone himself /,
vas confused and temporarily led astray by ]
he subtle aspects of evil, which seemed I
uddenly to successfully invoke tho aid of |
he Supreme Being himself in the aston d
shing energy which was manifested by
ur misguided countrymen.-EDwARD II. :
lnaE ChAIaoa