The National tribune., 1905-12-21


Ninth Corps, and his second in COM
mand as next ranking officer.
Change OF Commanders.
This change Of our commanders. ii
must be admitted, was not altogether
satisfactory: and there was some talk
of making Gen. Mcclellan military die
tator, and of marching upon Wash
ington and taking possession of the
Government" and of pitching Lincoln
and his Cabinet and Congress into the
Potomac, etc. But this was confined to
a few favorites and "feather-heads" of
Little Macs" (the army, as a whole,
was thoroughly loyaD, and duly evap-
GRATED with the early departure Of Gen.
Mcclellan for the historic lines of
Trenton, n. j.
1t must be confessed, Gen. Burn
accepted him and awaited his orders,
as the best Mr.. Lincoln could do under
the circumstances. He had served
creditably at first Bull Run, and won
distinction at Roanoke Island, without
much real fighting or actual general
ship; and had just fought bravely at
Antietam, if not very skillfully And
Army Of the Potomac-125,00 900 strong
"a job requiring first-class brains.
Now, what was to be done, and how
was he to do it?
Burnside sat still a few days, study
ing the situation and gathering up the
reins, and then suddenly decided to
change the plan of campaign and make
dash at Fredericksburg, and beat
Lee into Richmond that way. 1t was
not bad move, and held the potency
and promise Of success il rapidly exc
cuted. But Lee beat him in the foot
race to Fredericksburg, and soon had
his ragged Confederates in a stronger
n of A1nr yn'C Iaic re
and elsewhere there, with the broad
and unfordable Rappahannock flowing
between us.
OF course, Burnside blamed some-
body else for not getting our pontoons
there in time to cross the river before
Lee arrived. But he was the respon-
sible commander, with ample power
and officers, and should himself have
known how to make things "come to
pass
My own division did not get to An
tietam; it was too much used up by the
Peninsular and Pope campaigns. and
was left at Alexandria to recruit and
help man the defenses of Washington.
Nor did we get up to Warrenton. But
we marched first from Alexandria ( re-
ceiyed my second promotion here, to
Division Headquarters, Oct. Is, 1869
to Manassas junction, where We guard
ed the rear of the army while it switch
ed over to Fredericksburg, and then
joined It at Falmouth, by way Of Fair
fax Courthouse and Wolf Run Shoals,
early in December.
The Worst March.
/ think it was the worst march I
in the midst Of wild December storm
of wind and rain and sleet, through
fathomless Virginia mud, and the suf-
ferings of the troops were indescrib-
able. After the first day or so, many
of our poor fellows became barefoot,
and for a week or more after we ar
rived on the heights Of Stafford / saw
Of our men standing guard
or walking their weary rounds as sem
tries in the snow, with their feet
bound up in grain bags or coffee sacks.
Valley Forge (the Americans were in
Winter quarters and had good log huts
there) could not have been much worse
than Falmouth. in those early Decem-
ber days before our supplies got up.
But the Quartermaster Department be-
stirred itself, and soon the army was
again thoroughly equipped, and in
superb fighting trim.
OF course, we had to have our inev-
liable Review" and Burnside-portly
and handsome, smiling and courteous,
with his side-whiskers, mustache, and
beautiful white teeth, but without dash
or grip in his face-sat erect on his
dark-brown bobtail horse, while hun
dred thousand of us marched past,
scanning him closely. I do not think
there was an officer or a man of us
that felt safe in his hands. But we
were there to "obey orders" and to do
and die, if need be, for the Union.
Now came the so-called battle of
Fredericksburg. 1t was rather fore
ordained slaughterhouse, and our
brave boys the predestined victims.
Lee had been given all the time he
wanted, to fortify every hill and flood
every ravine; and SO all he had to do
was to sit still and see us march into
his traps. or knock our heads against
his works.
Franklin's Inacti0n.
We belonged to the Left Grand Di-
vision (Franklin's) and crossed the