Richmond dispatch. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1884-1903, 1895-06-22
RANDALL ON WHITING
A CUEyALIER or THE LOST
CAUSE.
His Incompatible Gifts ma one
Nlsfortunc-Wcrc Nr. DAVIS mn"
General Brngg Responsible for His
Fatalities.
Fatalities:

| Y.
was conspicuous in the same cause. Inc
/ phenomenal accomplishments OF pehefai
! Whiting are admirably summed mp. rev
men have been born into the world WIN
such astonishing endowmonts OF oody
! and mind. His personal, masculine beau
| ~ was n splendid shrine for one OF the
| mcst brilliant. comprehensive. and YER
| satile intoilects. His record ri west
| Point has not yet. l presume oeeh
matched. The late DR.. Greebough, OF
| the navy. who knew him well, declAred
! TO me that whiting not only surpass'u
| all Of his military contemporaries III 81,
| ricus Of manly accomplishments, but Couiu
even beat all the boys Of his time playins
| marbles lie was by parentagc a north-
| ern man. southern born, however, anu,
| like Byron, his blood was all merldiah-
| My personal acquaintance WIN MN WAS
| very slight but il happened at tilhe
wbcn this extraordinary man was In the
| crisis Of his destiny, ana perhaps WIN a.
much delicacy as possible, may clear up
| some of the adverse criticisms made, In
all sincerity no doubt. upon men who,
IKE Whiting. are with the historic dead,
and whose characters need not fear truth
as well as commentator.
The charge made against Mr.. Davis sub
stantially is that he did not thorougnly
appreciate General Whiting and 80 this
gifted and intrepid soldier did not nave
the scope his eminent ana exceptional
talents. TO say nothing Of his services
deserved This is "a hard question To
decide where much, no doubt. could be
said on both sides. but it may be due
10 Mr.. Davis's memory. without injustice
to the memory Of Whiting, to state some
facts which | have reason 70 believe
well-founded.
HIS REMOVAL.
whether Mr.. Davis removed General
Whiting from the field OF active opera
tons for wise or unwisc motives or fca-
sons others must settle who are more
competent 10 judge than myself, but my
recollection Is that nothing could have
been more unfortunate for this wonder
fully gifted officer than iniually giving
him command at Wilmington, y. c. We
may chartaby suppose that Mr. DAVIS
intended no harm To General whiting
for Wilmington was one Of the important
sca-gates of the Confederacy, and the
man who defended IL had need OF just
such engineering skill as Beauregard had
at Charleston. | have always been under
the impression from personal experience
AT the time. when stationed at Whining
ton. that General Whiting would have
been spared many troubles il IL had not
happened that blockade running was one
of the most dcmoralZng agencies al mat
place He was honest, an incorruptibie.
but like many another dazzling genus.
he did not always avoid the danger or
the "insidOus spirit Of wine. lie was
placed in a trying position. with very
Inadequate materials for exploiting MS
great talents He was possessed OF an
active. fearless resoluie spirit that loved
the combat Of the field Of AIMS. tie was
presumably chaGng under v nat he deemed
the grievance Of Punishment from glorl-
Gus combat He felt unsphered, and
this tOrmenting sentiment may have
forced him into mOodiness and opened
the way for what seemed his one tempta-
ton. At any rate. he never rested until.
through the request OF General Beaure-
gard. he was assigned 10 an important
command under that distinguished leader.
who was operating IN the vicinity OF
Petersburg against General Is. +. Butler.
who had been making n diversion IN favor
Of General Grant at Bermuda Hundreds.
| was told AZ the time that General
Bcaureeard eXacted from General Whit
ing a promise that he would not wirlo
with him, use potent liquors. II appears
To be a historical fact that Beauregard had
Butler in what he called sack, ana
Whiting was assigned TO watch the neck
Of it so that the Federal commander.
who. as Grant phrased II, was bottled
up" should not slip away or uncork him
self. There was a huge promise. coupled
with lively expectation, that Butler ana
his whole force would be captured. and
1t was considered peculiarly significant
that the man who made himself noto-
riously obnoxious--to put it mildly-at
New Orleans. should he enmeshed and
made prisoner by the Creole General.
At the very moment when this master
piece Of strategy and dramatic revenge
Of time was about to be consumm1ted.
Butler escaped and the blame is attached
to General Whiting.
KEPT HIS PROMISE
Some weeks af:ervard | happened TO
meet the chief engineer of General Beau
regard near Charleston, and asked him IL
the misadventure was due to General
Writings inhrmity lie replied almost
in these words: You were never more
mistaken. Writings failure was wholly
ascrbcd 10 the fact that, like a man OF
honor and truth. he kept his promise.
Had he had single dram. az the critical
moment 10 clear his brain. Butler and
his whole army would have been prison
eTs OF war"
After this episode. General Whiting
returned to Wilmington. and his subsc-
quent career was at once heroic and in
spir8tional. He performed prodigies OF
valor. and Stamped himself as one Of
the most worthy Of the chevdliers Of the
Lost Cause" by grand tactics at VIII
mingtcn and the sacrifice Of his life in
splendid. hut vain. defence Of Fort Fisher.
ON the ruined ramparts Of that fort h.
fought Ike hero Of old days, and only
ceased 10 struggle when what proved a
mortal wound closed his military achieve
mcuts. There was then. and there il
now. complaint that General Bragg 1id
not come 10 his rescue whrn Fort Fisher
was assailed on the land side by General
Terry. II may be that Bragg was cul-
pablo but it may be also that he could
no more, for the same reason. help Whit
ing than Joseph f. Johnston could olsen
, tangle Pemberton at Nicksburg. This
must Ice solved by experts. Many Of the
men who had consummste knowledge Of
the situation are dead, but they have
left records. and some persons may sur
Vve who can set the matter right. with
out dlspardgement Of any actors I'm the
scene. What prominent general Of our
interstate conflict was free from COM
mission OF error. on either side? The
greatest Of all Robert T.. Lec-ascribed
70 himself the disaster AZ Gettysburg al
though Major kyd Douglas told the
Count OF Paris that Lee needed Just such
2 reverse 70 admonisn' him that Stonewal'
Jackson was dead At Shiloh. General
Besmegards unfortunate order of re-
treat saved tho Federals from capture or
destruction. and made " possible for
Grant to be aftcrward Presiden, Of tho
United States. Colonel Frank Schaller.
now no more. told me that when Bragg
received the order 10 retire from the cow
ering enemy and harmless gunboat fire.
his Indignation was boundless and. in
fury. he broke his sword across his knees.
90 SA%NN0 $4,000 N%NV