The times. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1890-1903, 1899-05-28

war. published on page SIS OF serial 81
OF the War Records. being as follows:
headquarters. near Petersburg.
July 80, 1864, $50 p. NJ.
"1Ion. James A. Seldom.
secretary of War.
General 4. =. HIN reports that Gene
raj Malone. In rctaking the salient pos.
scssed by tho enemy this morning. recov-
cred the four guns with which 1t was
armed. captured u stand OF colors. "A
officers. including Brigadier-Genera Bart
lett and STAFF. and $50 enlisted men. Up
ward OF 500 Of the enemy's dead are ~
ing unburied IN the trenches. HIS loss
slight. "R. T. LEE"
MEMORABLE SERVICE.
II It was General Weisiger. and not
General Malone, whose service on the
30th OF july. 1861. was especially memora-
bic. as one would INFER from the odi-
torial Of The Times rader consideration,
President Davis was IN error when.
three days after the battle he promoted
General Malone TO a major-generalshiD.
and made his promotion date from TIE
day Of what Mr.. Davis referred TO as
chs memorable service iu the follow
ing official communication TO General
Lee. published at page 1855. Of serial IS
Of The War Records:
'Tdchmond, August 2, 1854.
General r. Il. Lee. Petersburg, Va:
"lIave ordered the promotion of Cen
oral Malone TO date from the day Of
his memorable service, S0th OF July.
Have directed the appointment, Temporal
~. Of Captain Girardoy as recommend
eli. Has your attention been called 10
Colonel Dunavant or DcSaussure. tenn
p~orarily TO supply the place of General
Elliott? ! have onquired as to the posi-
ton Of Colonel Butler. and whether ne
can be detached. JEFFN DAVIS.
II the work Of the Virginia brigade I'M
der General Weisiger was a complete
triumph. and General Mahone's work was
as nothing. as one would suppose from "a
perusal Of TIC Times editorial. General
Bushrod Johnson. whose lines had been
broken. was under "a false impression as
10 the true state of things. when IN ms
official report made August l', lo6A ana
published at page ISL, of serial 80 OF the
War Record. he said:
'sTo the able commander and gallant
officers and men of MahOnes DIVISION
10 whom we are mainly indebted for the
restoration Of our lines. ! offer my ac-
acknowledgements for their great service.
II The Times Is right in giving TO
Weisiger. and not TO Malone. the credit
Of VIVA was done 10y the Virginia nfi-
rade i'm the battle of the Crater, there
are many men in the brigade who par
ticlpatel i'm the engagement. VINO Tor
nearly thirty-fve years have been greatly
mistaken in their impressions of It.
GEN. WEIsIGER'S BELIEF.
That General Weisiger, who CALAMITY
commanded his men in this as IN many
other previous and subsequent engage
ments. believed that he "a the order
10 charge at the Opportune moment can-
not he doubted. The writer of this COM
municatiOn distinctly remembers hearing
him in the summer of 1900 give the same
account Of his part in the action that he
gave i'm 1872 in a letter TO General Ma
hone. But il must be borne in mind that
other participants have made statements
tending 10 show that General Welslset
was mistaken, however strong was his
belief that his order, and not an order
coming directly from General Malone or
indirectly from him through his staff
officer. Captain Girardey. put IN mouo
the Virginia brigade when it made its
charge. The conflict IN the statements
touching the point of controversy leaves
the contemporaneOus official records
from which quotations have been maze
as our uroper and only safe guide in
determining what occurred. from which
records there is but one inference TO Dee
drawn. and that is, that, whatever the
actual facts were. General A.. J.. Hill.
General Robert j.. Lee. and President
Davis. who may properly be assumed
TO have voiced the current sentiment oil
the army and people of the Confcderacy
on the subject. which was the talk of the
day. and was everywhere discussed. were
Of opinion that the houOrs of the battle
belonged TO General Malone.
Now for another feature of The Times
editorial, its imputat0n. a very unjust
one, that General Malone was in the
covered way, i'm a place of safety, an
Of the time hat General Weisiger was
with the troops. in the firing line, al
the breastworks. This charge Was made.
for the first time in 1881. some sixteen
years after the battle. Upon its appear
ance in print a committee of four of the
best soldiers I'm the Virginia brigade took
the matter in hand. and a few weeks
later published the statements of a num-
Der Of trustworthy participants, which
made il clear beyond controversy that,
SD far from il Icing true. as charged,
that General Malone remained IN the
covered way from the time General Weis-
iger moved forward with his brigade 10
the time Wncn, dlttl having DctU NNNIN-
el. he met and talked with him CMa-
hone) on his way from the field, it is on
the contrary. true. that within a few min
utes after General Wcisiger and his men
reached the breastworks General Ma
hone was there with them and among
them.
CAPT. TAYLOR'S STATEMENT.
Can w. A. S. Taylor. the adiutant Of
the sixty-hrst Virginia Regiment, In his
statement. said.
ARRIVING at the works. the command
delivered its fire and finished the work
assigned it with the bayonet. In a very
few minutes thereafter General Malone
was at that portion of the works occu-
pied by the SiNty-hrst Virginia, and 1
heard him remark That the work is not
over, and that we must retake the bal
ance OF the line
Mr. II. II. Hines. of Company Is, Six
teonth Virginia Regiment, ia his statc-
megt. said:
seeing q communication in print
from General Weisiger. claiming the hon
or of having led Mahone's old brigade at