Clarke courier. [volume] (Berryville, Va.) 1869-1997, 1900-01-31

w INV NV iA' ocut pcueldi Oudp
man. The attention Grant paid to
us shows that we did him great
deal of harm. Keeping my men in
prison weakened us as much as to
haug them. Major Richards com
plains of the "debasing epithets"
Sheridan applied to us. have read
his reports, correspondence, and Me
mOirs, but have never seen the cpl
thets. Ina common with all Northern,
aud many Southern people. he called
us guerrllas. Although have never
adopted II have never resented as
au insult the term guerrilla" when
applied To me. Sheridan says that
my battalion was 1.-THE most redOubt
able partisan body that he met |
certainly take no exception to that.
lie makes no charge of any act of
nhunanity against rs. The highest
compliment ever paid to the eflicicu
~ Of our command Is the statement
IN Sheridan's Memoirs that while his
army largely outnumbered Earlv's.
yet their line of battle strength was
about equal on account Of the de-
iachments he was compelled 10 make
to guard the border aud his line Of
communication from partisan attacks.
Ours WAS the only force behind him.
At that time the records show that
IN round numbers Early had 1000
present for duty, AID Sheridan had
1000. The word "Guerrilla' i
dimiuutive of the Spanish word
guerra (war), and simply means one
engaged In the minor operations OF
war.
had only five companies of cav
airy when Sheridan came IN August.
1864, TO the SHENANDOAH Valley. 4
sixth was organized in September.
Two more companies Joined me ia
April. 1865. after the evacuation OF
Richmond. They came just in time
to surrender. don't care a straw
whether Custer WAS solely responsible
for the hanging Of our men, or Joint
~ with others. If we believe the re-
ports of the generals none of them
ever even heard of the hanging of
our men; they must have committed
suicide. Contemporary evidence is
against Custer. wonder if he also
denied burning dwelling houses
around Berryvlle. once called at
the White House in 1876 10 see Gen
erAI Grant; sent him my card. and
was promptly admitted. Whea
came out of his room one Of the Sec.
retarieS told ME that General Custer
had called the day before but that
General Grant refused 10 see him
The incident is related in the Life of
Custer \ few weeks aftrrwarl Gus
ter was killed IN the Sitting Bull
massacre:
Our acts our angels are or good or ill
Our fatal shadows that walk by Us still ."
Major Richards further saws that
there was scarcely family in all that
section that did not have Il mem ber
in Mosby's command. Ifthat is true
| must have commanded 4 larger ar
my than Sheridan. | Iii, nj know it
He describes the pathos of the scenes
that might have been if the "severe
and cruel order" had been executed
to transfer the families from that re
glon to Fort Nc Henry, and saws it
would have "paralyzed" my com
mand. II so, that would have been
a more humane way of getting rid of
It than killing the men. Now have
never considered women and children
necessary appendages to an army; on
the contrary. | would rather class
them with what Caesar in his Com
mentaries calls impcdimeata. Hon
er's heroes were not paraly2ed when
Helen was carried off to Troy; it only
aroused their martial ambition. Sher-
idan knew that if be did anything of
the kind ii would stimulate the ac
tlvity Of my men, SO he didn't try it.
AS for cur Lieutenant Colonel, who.
as Major Richards says, married in
that section, | think that if Sheridan
had captured his wife and mother in
law and sent them to prison. instead
of going into mourning he would
have felt all the wrath and initiated
the example of the fierce Achilles
when he heard that Patroclus, his