The National tribune., 1906-04-26
OF THE
CUMBERLAND.

NJ
| great haste on Thursday night. the 29th.
| On Wednesday the entire line Of Gen.
| IIalleck was advanced from ene-haH to
! three-quarters OF a mile and up into
easy range OF the enemy's works. The
heavy siege guns were put into position
on that day on the works thrown up
by the advanced column. This move
ment throughout was holly contested,
the enemy seeking to keep their oppo
nents at q safe distance. IL possible, un-
til their evacuation could be completed.
They continued to show an unbroken
fl ont, and to work their batteries with
energy and without interruption
| throughout this and the next day. On
/ Thursday morning operations were re-
sumed with the same earnestness rs on
Wednesday. The enemy appeared still
In position, and contested every inch or
the Union advance with the utmost de-
termination. At O'clock on that morn
Ing, however, their musketry filing
ceased and was not again resumed.
After that hour there We're no further
close engagements. The batteries on
both sides. however, were kept in play
though a gradual diIninution Of the
enemy's fire was observable as the day
wore away, and before night 1t had
wholly ceased. During the night heavy
explosions were heard I'm the cnemy's
| works, which were cOnjectured To be
the destruction Of their magazines and
ammunition. which subsequently proved
true. Flames were also seen issuing
from the town in the latter part of the
night. These Indications were plain to
those in the advance of the Federal
lines. and were understood to be the
movements for an evacuation.
Occupation OF Csrinth.
As no opp gition was made to the
advance on Friday morning, some Off
GERS dashed ahead to satisfy tfcms elves
OF the enemy's position. The first party
| rode into the town at $40 in the morn
Jig, and then was discovered the whole
| extent OF the success gained. Dcstruc-
ton, waste and desolation were visible
on every hand. Huge piles of commits
sary stores were smouldcring in the
flames. The remains of buildings de-
| stroyed were conspicuous on the streets.
| The enemy had fed, taking care that
| what they could not carry away should
at least not be left for the victors. One
large warehouse. filled with provisions
| was all that remained unchanged Of
boundless stores of similar goods, suffi-
cient to Withstand a much longer siege.
| Sacks were torn open, barrels broken,
hogsheads knocked to pieces, and their
contents mixed in common piles, upon
ard about which huge bonfires had been
lit.
So complete was the evacuation that
not only was the Confederate army sue
Icessfully Withdrawn, but they took every
piece OF ordnance. A large quantity OF
ammunition was left behind in a dam
aged state.
At Corinth the Confederate line of
| Notifications was about IS miles long,
| with strong batteries or redoubts at
every road or assailable point. Between
the Notifications and a marshy stream,
covering the whole front, the dense tim
Der had been cut down to form a very
strong abatis, through which no cavalry
hQ
Infantry except as skirmishers. The
lines thrown up by the Federal troops
at the end of the days advance were
mere rifie-pits, while the Notifications
around COrinth were, as stated above,
a strong continuous line, constructed
with great care and labor, and indie
pendent Of their position, were in them
selves UNNECESSARILY stronger than the
| mere precautionary defenses on the
| Federal part against any sudden sortie
of the enemy. The Confederate works,
moreover. were on the brow Of a ridge
considerably higher, than any in the
surrounding country, at the foot Of
| which was a ravine correspOndingly
deep. The zigZag course of the line
gave to the defenders the command of
al. the feasible approaches, and hum
dreds could have been moved down at
| Gen. BueIrs Report.
Gen. Buelrs report mentions the diff
| ffculties encountered I'm the slow adj
vance, which required the corduroying
4 of roads, the building of bridges. and
the heavy rains which impeded opera
| lions. Like the rest of the officers, Gen.
| Buell. had no idea OF the evacuation,
and, on the other hand. was so COM
| pletely deceived that he expected an
attack in heavy force at daylight. He
| had massed his troops with reference
to that contingency, and perfected his
| communications with Gen. Pope so a
t. render mutual assistance. He re-
ported that the loss in his entire army
in the advance did not probably exceed
$50 killed and wounded. He says that
he had no doubt that the honor Of first
entering the enemy's work was due to
Gen. Nelson, who was the first to dis
| cover that the enemy was eyacuating.
while the others supposed that the ene-
my was preparing to attack.
| Again Gen. Buell. made no attempt
| at pursuit further than to send some
cavalry under Col. Jackson with a bat
| terry Of artillery which went out about
| five miles. but were stopped at q creek
| by the enemys rear guard, and found
| the road so much obstructed by fallen
trees and burned bridges that the pur-
| suit was abandoned.
After the Evacuation.
Beyond all comprehension, Halleck
ScGIHcu SdllSIcu Will gaining pOSScS-
| sion of Corinth and Beaaregard's re-
| treat, and to lose interest i'm further
prosecution of the war in his great De-
| partment. There was a marvellous lack
| of thought that there was anything
| more to be done. One cannot for an
| instant understand why he did not take
| the magnificent army of 100000 men,
| which, if nothing else, had been organ
| lied and drilled to thorough effective
ness in the long, tedious advance upon
| Corinth, and strike with it at New Or
leans, to open up the Mississippi River
If this did not appeal to Halleck, and
it Is equally incOmprehensible that it
did not, why did he not go to Mobile
or at least to Chattanooga? Either
movement would have shortened the
war at least year. Instead. Halleck
put the Armies of the Mississippi and
Tennessee into comfortable camps along
the line of the Memphis & Chattanooga
Railroad, and for week or two of
precious time seemed to be resting in
utter vacuity Of mind after the long |
strain. Probably he was carefully |
J1,;n ho hi an