Omaha daily bee., 1903-05-24

bouched into the northern end Of Lookout
valley. All passes in the mountain were
abandoned. for the union line was behind
Chattanooga creek and Lookou valley.
Around ChattanOOEs.
General Rosencrans, in m at
Chattanooga, was in a dangerous position.
and the condition Of his army, shut of as
IT was from its base. was described by
General Grant in his Memoirs as follows:
This country afforded but little food for
his (RosecransO animals, nearly 10000 of
which had already starved. and not enough
were left to draw a single piece of artillery.
or even ambulances to convey the sick. The
men had been on half rations OF hard bread
for a considerable time, with but few other
supplies except beef from Nashville, across
the country. The region along the road be-
came so exhausted of food for cattle that
by the time they reached Chattanooga they
were much in the condition Of the few ami
mails left alive there. Indeed, the beef was
50 poor that the soldiers were in the habit
Of saying with a faint facetiousness that
they were living on half rations of hard
bread and beef dried on the hoof.'"
Grant arrived at Chattanooga on October
%, and the next day General Smith, who
was then chief engineer of the Army of the
Cumberland. with the commandments
reconnoitered the position which the for
mer said he had discovered at the mouth Of
Lookout Valley. General Smiths plan was
to surprise the enemy, seize the hills, south
Of the Tennessee river at Browns Ferry,
build a pontoon bridge, recover the lines Of
communication, and. gain control of the
river. General Grant gave his sanction and
deputed Badly smith to the
forces which were to capture the heights
and Lookout Valley.
The carried out on october q,
was successful and the army relieved,
which allowed General Sherman to reach
Chattanooga, and made possible the victory
of Missionary Ridge. Thanks were ten
dered to General Smith and his officers, and
in general orders No. 265, issued on Novem-
Der Z. 1868, General Thomas, who had sue
ceeded Rosecrans, said:
ITO Brigadier General w. F. Smith, chief
engineer, should be accorded great praise
for the ingenuity which conceived and the
ability which executed the movement at
Browns Ferry. When the bridge was
thrown at Browns Ferry on the morning of
the 9th the surprise was as great to the
army within as to the army besieging Il
from without"
stolen Thunder.
The enemy made no further attempt to
gain Lookout valley. For more than thirty
years the glory for this movement belonged
to General Smith. A few years ago, how
ever, the atlas Of the Chickamauga and
Chattanooga National Park commission
was issued, and in it was the legend which
asserted that at daylight OF October "a
the river line of communication with
Bridgeport was opened by execution of a
plan for recovering Lookout valley. de-
vised by General Rosecrans." Badly
Smith declared this was incorrect, and
asked for an investigation.
On August %, 1900, a board of army off,
GERS met at Governors Island, in New
York harbor, to consider the matter. From
the findings of the court 1t would appear
tina Badly Smith had stolen General
Rosecrans' thunder Among other things,
the report OF the board said:
''Fhe board failed to fiid evidence thai
Smith was the originator of plans for the
relief of Chattanooga by military opera
lions to be conducted on Lookout valley,
but abundant evidence that the plan which
contemplated crossings of the Tennessee
river at Bridgeport and at the northern
end OF Lookout valley, and which was ex-
ecuted by General Thomas October 1928
was devised and prepared by Rosecrans
before relinquishlng command, and that its
execution was begun under orders issued
by Thomas the very night, October 10
that Rosecrans was relieved from com.
mand of the Department of Cumberland
without consultation with Smith"
1t was brought out at the investigation
that General Rosecrans In September. 1863
had issued orders to reoccupy Lookout val
ley by enforcement from the north
which were to operate with troops from
Chattanooga. The plans involved the cross
ing OF the Tennessee river at Browns
Ferry by a bridge. Reinforcements undel
General Hooker arrived at Bridgeport OF
September 30, and Smith, reaching Chatta
nooga about the same time. was told of tn
contemplated movement. According to tn,
testimony, Smith made 10 reconnaissance
OF the river until October 10, the day Gen
eral Rosecrans was relieved. and the latte
was really responsible for the details o
the movement which Generals Smith ant
Hooker, directed by General Thomas, car
' ried out.-New York Evening Post.