Keowee courier. [volume] (Pickens Court House, S.C.) 1849-current, 1906-08-29

all this with loss to the Confede.
rates of 10000 officers and men,"
II, as Moltke AYERS, the junction
| of two armies on the field of battle
is the highest achievement of military
genius, the campaign against Pope
has seldom been surpassed and the
great counter stroke at Manassas is
sufficient in itself to make Lees
reputation as tactician. Tried by
this test alone Lee stands out as one
of the'greatest soldiers of all times.
Not only against Pope, but against
Mcclellan at Gaines's Mill, against
Burnside at Fredarickshnrg and
against Hooker at Charlottesville,
he succeeded in carrying out the ope-
ration of which Moltke speaks and
;n each case with the same result of off
surprising his adversary. None
knew better how to apply that great
principle of strategy, to march di-
vided, but to fight concentrated.
In this action Lee violated both of
the maxims of Napoleon--never to,
divide an army into two columns
unable to communicate, or to at
tempt a junction in the presence of a
concentrated enemy, but Lee knew
his men. He violated the Last SEQ
tion of this maxim because he knew
Pope, and the first because he knew
jackson. 1t is rare, indeed, that
such strategy succeeds. Hasdrubal,
divided from Hannibal by many
miles and a consular army, fell back
to the Metaurus, and Rome was
saved. Two thousand years later
Prince Frederick Charles, divided
by few marches and two Austrian
army corps from the Crown Prince,
fingered 30 long upon the Iser that
the supremacy of Prussia trembled
in the balance. But the character
of the Virginian soldier was of lof-
tier type. 1t has been remarked that
after Jackson's death Lee never again
attempted those great turning move
ments which had achieved his most
brilliant victories. Never again did
he divide his army to reunite it on
the field of battle. The reason is not
far to seek. There was now no
general in the Confederate army to
whom he dared confide the charge Of
the detached wing, and in possessing
one such general he had been more
fortunate than Napoleon.
1t is noteworthy that Moltke once,
at Koniggratz, carried out the ope-
ration referred to; Wellington,
twice,sat Victoria and Toulouse; !;
Napoleon, although he several times
attempted it, never, except at Ulm,
with complete success.
In his "History of the American
War, Lieut.. Col. Fletcher, of Eng
land, says:
"The armies of Grant and Lee
were still in the vicinity of Spottsyl-
vania Court House. The former,
notwithstanding his vastly prepon-
derating strength, was awaiting re-
Inducements. The latter, with only
small and over worked army to
rely on, was expecting the arrival of
troops from the Shenandoah.
cit must ever remain marvel
how this small force, ill supplied,
over worked and harassed by con-
tinual fighting and marching by
night and by day, could hold its
ground against the almost innumera-
BILE host in Grants command. That
it did so, inflicting losses far heavier
than it sustained and creating be-
lief in the mind OF the enemy of
numbers far larger than it contained,
has been already shown.
1.-TWO of the three armies Of Sioel.
Meade and Butler had been forced
to aeek shelter behind fortified lines,
the third had been brought to halt
to await reinforcements and the ar
teries which supplied life to the