The National tribune. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1877-1917, 1903-08-13
SOME MORE "sourHERN HISTORY"

The Texas papers are giving much
space TO the oratorical effort of a certain
Capt. p. NJ. Harris. before Camp Ma
gruder, L. G. V. 1t probably contains
more startling pervcrSions of history in
the same space than any others we re-
member to have seen. and is rolled as a
sweet morsel under the tongues of those
who want anything else but the truth re-
garding the war.
The orator begins with the promise to
add ''one drop to the great wave of truth
full history which is spreading over our
land. increasing in volume as the rain
drops of truth fall upon its crest, and will
continue to swell until falsehood is eX
plunged from its pages and the light of
Confederate soldier
With this flatulent prelude he proceeds
to SLY:
Il am one of those who claim that ours
is not Il lost cause. The impartial his
torian will scarcely point to an engage
ment where victory failed to perch upon
the Confederate standard; from Big Bethel.
where Magruder whipped the great Amer
ltdl Spun IHitI. Ill tilf very
of the war. to Bcntonvillc. y. c.. where
Joe Johnston whipped the great American
barn burner. in the very last battle of
the war; nor will he point 10 Il single bat
tieted which the Confedera army left
in disorder. and to the very few which the
Federal army did not leave in disorder.
When thanked by overwhelming num-
bers the Southern army invariably retired
in good order. firing. and woe to the foe
man who dared pursue"
This is Il pretty big contract he has
mapped out for himself. and his thrasOnic
wrestIes with his mighty problem get
absolutely funny at times. For example.
in depicting the great Confederate victory
at Shiloh, he says:
In that engagement we captured Crit
tenders Kentucky Brigade. not one of
whom could speak the English language.
This is news to all the Army of
the Cumberland comrades. First thai
Crittenden commanded Il brigade. and next
that there was any Kentucky brigade in
the army and third. that there was any
where So much as Il single company no
member of which could speak English.
and fourth. that any portion of Critten-
denis command was captured. Well, let
that pass.
At Perryville Harris says that they ad-
ministered "A crushing defeat to Buell.,
captured all his supply trains and enough
commissary stores which were safely con
veyed into East Tennessee, 10 last Bragg
army during the Winter.
He goes on to say that at Stone River.
which the Northern histories falsely report
as drawn battle, we stampeded them
to Nashville, where they held council of
war that night. and some favored re-
treat to Louisville"
This is his pleasant summing-up of the
Atlanta campaign:
AT Chickamauga we Stampeded them
like herd of cattle into Chattanooga.
where they recruited and reinforced Gen.
Sherman's army, with which he COM
menced his thanking movements to Savan-
nah, getting the worst of il mt every step.
as our victories ut Marietta, Allatoona.
Kcnesaw Mountain. Jonesboro and AT
lanta all will attest"
Why they left Atlanta. after whipping
us so decidedly, the fervid orator was i'll
too much of hurry to explain. He
wanted to pass on to the way they beat
Sherman in the march to the sea:
"Whcn Gen Hood took command and
moved the army back into Tennessee, he
left Gen. Joe Wheeler with 1000 of his
cavalry and Gen. George Dibrells Divi-
sion of about / 800 of Forests veterans
to fight Sherman's army Of 10000 or go
600 men. We lowered on his flank and
rear and 'smote him hip and thigh every
day and every night all the way down to
Savannah. and back through Georgia and
the Carolinas, to the end. In the North
they call that line of march 'Sherman's
Bloody Trail and well they may, but the
thousands and thousands of marble tomb
stones which mark his line of march, all
attest whose blood Sprinkled the trail and
are monuments attesting to the yalOr and
craftsmanship of the Confederate cav
airy
Somehow, the Pension Bureau has never
been advised Of more than IL or 30 of
these thousands upon thousands of graves
along Sherman's line of march, which
testified to Southern valor and marks
manship." 1t is singular that so few facts
of the awful destruction of life by
Wheelers cavalry nave developed to claim
public recognition. The rest of the long
speech is very much the same. and these
extracts will serve to illustrate what is
being dished up in many places in the
South as history.