The news & observer. [volume] (Raleigh, N.C.) 1894-current, 1904-09-18

POWcIs anu eaSCllSISS'
There was no contemporary journal
ist who surpassed him in perfection
and popularity. He wrote an uncom-
mon book. not much read now, if
ever, and rarely drawn upon. entitled
Memories of the Men Who Saved the
Union.' He is dead now. but he was
horn in Ohio. His book did not
please Yankee idolaters of about third
rate soldiers. There was not a really
second rate officer in the huge North
ern army of nearly 2.S00,000 men,
when he is measured by the high,
just, recognized standards, taking the
few foremost military men of genius
and success in ancient and modern
times-Hannibal, Caesar, Alexander,
Napoleon, Frederick the Great. MARI
borough. In the second rank there
are soldiers (three or four or five who
probably belong TO the first rank =,
Give Lee, Jackson, Bedford Forrest,
Wellington-Who are incomparably
superior to any Of the Northern Cen
erals. The one man who is superior
to all the others of the North is Gen
eral Thomas and he was a Virginian,
and fought against his own people,
which should damn him in history
Some three years ago, Mr.. Robert F.
Beasley the we'll educated and we'll
roe Weekly Journal did useful
work in copying freely from Mr.
Piatts valuable and Independent
work, and publishing several columns
in the Charlotte Observer. Forum
ately / came across the copy recently,
and found what was left, after clip
ping several short extracts from il on
former occasions. Mr.. Piatt set a
manly, most honorable and COM
mendable example to the historical
and newspaper writer's in his fairness,
candor, explicitness, breadth and
strict regard for truth He is no
blind partisan and tumultuous liar,
like so many who have written upon
the greatest of modern'wars in which,
exclusive of a great navy. there We're
arrayed in both armies 100000 men.
All the other armies of the nations
were as childs play. Even Napoleon
never lead q million. and Great Bri-
tain had but some 225.000 in all in
her cruel vengeful war upon the
Dutch Beers.
Read what Piatt says of the game
full untiring South fighting against
five to one nearly, and simply eX-
hausted by the constant fighting OF
four long years:
1.-The men at the South. half starv-
ed unsheltered, shoelesS and in rags,
weakened in their victories, and the
hundred and forty thousand to drive
back sixty thousand. / say this grew
into a possibility, although in his vic
toriouS march, from the RaDldan TO
Richmond the Federal General left in
dead behind him more men than the
Confederates had in the field.
1.-THE Confederacy reached the
zenith of it's fortunes at the battle
of Gettysburg. It fell as rapidly as it
had risen. But it went down fight
ing
Mr.. Piatt is open-eyed and honest.
He sees the facts in the white light of
truth. Hear him writing of the
Northern pets the North offers in
cense to. and believes it finds in them
really great soldiers. Bedford For
rest had more genius for war than all
three named and combined. and 9TH
ers that could be added. Read Wyeth's
life and see what dozen Generals
said of him. overrated old "Cump
Sherman included. But what does
Mr. Piatt say and bravely
'It is no exaggeration to say that
Grant, Sherman and sheridan are
great in the eyes of the multitude
only because they happened to be in
command when the Confederacy fell
of sheer exhaustion. Had they been
put in the field at the head of our
armies when the unfortunate McClel-
Ian went down, they would not have
lived thirty days. The last DOCTOR or
rather the last dose. has the credit or
discredit in the eyes of the ignorant
of the cure or the killing of the pa
rient Grant was not only on horse
back when the Confederacy ended,
but he died under the shadow OF
Lees surrendered sword; and that
shadow saved him and his sons from
the fate of the partners when they
millions army and
navy contracts; and this mighty
shadow keeps his tomb green with
immortelles from n people that could
forgive all to man who was in at
the death of so terrible an enemy.
How that way of giving the truth
without disguise, of any KIND arouses
the anger of the tinpan hero worship
ners. They have got nothing higher
or grander to worship than great fell
lows and how they WhooD ana
urostrate themselves and fling around
their adjectives and explosives. They
are i'm search of heroes. The great,
noble. self-contained generous, hui
name. consummate Lee is worth q
dozen of such fellows of the baser
sort" AS | have aforetime asserted,
ca T here repeat that if General Ice
had commanded in the first battle in
which he met Grants great army, as
MANY soldiers as Grant had. that BAT
tie would have ended the INVASION
and probably the war suppose Lee
had commanded 10000. and Grant
had met him with 10000. what would
have resulted? Grants Whole army
would have melted away like snow IN
sunshine, either captured outright, OF
saved in part by "a terrlnc skee-
dadle' Grant told the authorltles. III
Washington when asked what was ms
view or plan of fighting the Conied-
crates. that it was to fight them every
day, everywhere when they couid pe
found He said when Lee lost Con-
federate soldier he was gone, ana
could never be replaced. But when
he. Grant, lost man he could put
two in his place. This he said when
ordered TO Washington to take COM
\ mand. and it was the most sensible
and penetrating thing he ever said or
did. If you will read Wyeth's life of
n General Forrest. YOU will see what a
miserable failure Grant was in his
career before he went to Virginia.
hen he began his campaign against
neral Lee, he had somewhere about
900 soldiers IN his army at hand
IN easy. swift reach of him. Mr..
SAYS. and with truth and
Il