The National tribune. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1877-1917, 1896-10-08


abandoned wagons, mbulapces, and limoer-
boxes The enemy has succeeded in carrying
of the guns, but has crippled his batteries by
abandoning the hind timber boxes OF at least
20 caissons. ! am satisfied tho enemys IN
fantry and artillery passed Lick Creek TINS
morning travelling all Of last night. and that
he left to his rear all his cavalry, which has
protected his retreat; but signs of confusion
and disorder mark the whole road. The check
sustained by us at the fallen timber delayed our
advance so that night came npon US before the
wounded were provided for and the dead bur-
ied and our troops being tagged out By the
three days hard fighting. exposure. and priva-
tion. / ordered them back to their camps
where they now are
] have the honor to be, your obedient serv.
ant, w. r. SHERMAN,
Brigadier-Gencral Commanding Division.
Gen. Grant did not make an official
report of the battle of Shiloh, but all its
incidents and events were covered by the
reports Of division commanders and sub
ordinatea Probably no single battle OF
the war gave rise to such
WILD AND DAMAGING REPORTS.
1t was publicly asserted at the North
that our army was taken completely by
surprise; that the rebels caught us in
our tents; bayoneted the men in their
beds; that Gen. Grant was drunk that
Buell's opportune arrival saved the
Army of the Tennessee from utter an
Inhalation, etc. These reports were in a
measure sustained by the published
opinions of Gems. Buell., Nelson and
others, who had reached the steamboat
landing from the east just before night
fall of the 9th, when there was a large
crowd of frightened, stampeded men,
who clamored and declared that our
army was all destroyed and beaten.
Personally I saw Gen. Grant, who, with
his staff, visited me about 10 a. m. of
the 9th, when we were desperately en-
gagged. But we had checked the head
long assault of our enemy, and then held
cur ground. This gave him great salts
faction, and he told me that things did
not look as well over on the left. He
also told me that on his way up
from Savannah that morning he
had stopped at Crump's Landing, and
had ordered Lew Wallace's Division to
cross over Snake Creek, SO as to come
up on my right, telling me to look out for
him. He came again just before dark,
and described the last assault made by
the rebels at the ravine, near the steam.
boat landing, which he had repelled by
a heavy battery collected under Col. }.
d. Webster and other officers, and he
was convinced that the battle was over
for that day. He ordered me to be
ready to assume the offensive in the
morning, saying that, as he had observed
at Fort Donelson at the crisis of the
battle, both sides seemed defeated, and
whoever assumed the offensive was sure
to win.. Gen. Grant also explained to
me that Gen. Buell. had reached the
bank Of the Tennessee River, opposite
Pittsburg Landing, and was in the act
of ferrying his troops across at the time
be was speaking to me.
About half an hour afterward Gen.
Buell. himself rode up to where | was,
accompanied by Coils. Fry, Michler and
others of his staff. / was dismounted
at the time, and Gen. Buell. made Of me
a good many significant inquiries about
matters and things generally. By the
aid of manuscript map made by my-
self, / pointed out to him our positions
as they had been in the morning, and
our then positions; l also explained
that my right then covered the bridge
over Snake Creek by which we had all
day been expecting Lew Wallace; that
McClernand was on my left, Hurlbut
on his left, and so on. But Buell. said
he had come up from the landing, and
had not seen our men, of whose exist
ence, in fact, he seemed to doubt. |
insisted that / had 5000 good men still
left in line, and thought that McCler-
nand had as many more, and that with
what was left of Hurlbut's, w. III. l..
Wallace's, and Prentiss's Divisions, we
ought to have $4,000 men fit for battle.
l reckoned that 10000 of our men were
dead, wounded, or prisoners, and that
the enemy's loss could not be much less.
Buell. said that Nelson's, McCook's, and
Crittenden's Divisions of his army, con-
tanning $4,000 men, had arrived, and
could cross over in the night, and be
ready for the next days battle. |
argued that with these reinforcements
we could sweep the field.
BUELL. SEEMED To MIsTRUsT Us,
and repeatedly said that he did not like
the looks of things especially about the
boat-landing, and | really feared he
would not cross over his army that night,
lest he should become involved in our
general disaster. He did not, of course.
understand the shape Of the ground, and
asked me for the use of my map, which
| lent him on the promise that he would
return it. He handed it to Mat Michler
to have it copied, and the original re-
turned to me, which Michler did two
three days after the battle. Buell. did
cross over that night, and the next day
we assumed the offensive and swept the
field, thus gaining the battle decisively.
Nevertheless, the controversy was started
and kept up, mostly to the personal
prejudice of Gen. Grant. who, as usual,
| IL