The National tribune., 1906-05-24
THE
CUMBERLAND.
tconunued from pass IL


Intervention of night we should have
completed the work. We had captured
10 pieces of artillery by the most dar-
ing charges, killed one and wounded
two Brighdier- Generals and a very
large number of inferior officers and
men, estimated at no less than 4.00e,
and captured 400 prisoners, including
three staff officers, with servants car
riage and baggage of Maj.-Gen. Nc
Cook. The ground was literally covered
with his dead and wounded.
In such a contest our own loss was
necessarily severe, probably not less
than $500 killed. wounded and missing
Included in the wounded are Brig. Gems.
Wood. Cleburne and Brown, gallant and
noble soldiers. whose loss will be Sc
verely felt by their comrades"
Lame, Impotcnt Conclusion.
Thus uncreditably ended Gen. Don
Carlos BuelfS career. All the high
hopes of the Administration and of the
people who had sent their sons by the
tens of thousands to swell the army
were dashed to the ground. Given at
Louisville an army of fully 100 900 eff
fectives, it seemed that there could be
no other result than his triumphant
march against Bragg and Kirby Smith
to their complete destruction and the
virtual ending of the war in Kentucky
and Tennessee. This was possible for
at least two hours on the afternoon of
Oct. 8. Buell. had moved his whole
army with admirable skill up to the
position before Perryville. All three
corps were well closed up within easy
supporting distance, and all that it was
necessary to do to absolutely destroy
Polk while he was SO fiercely assailing
McCook was to move Crittenden's and
Gilberts Corps from where they were
standing in line of battle all day upon
Polk's flank and rear. A march of an
hour at the farthest would have brought
the most remote body of Crittenden's
Corps into Polks rear. The only es-
cape would have been disorderly flight.
The loss to Bragg of three divisions
under Polk would have so crippled him
that there would have been nothing
left for him except precipitate flight
from kentucky, leaving his intermin-
able trains and vast accumulationS of
stores
There are many more or less to blame
that this perfectly obvious thing was
not done, but the two upon whom very
much the most of the culpability rests
are Buell. and McCook. 1t is impossi-
Bile to understand, even giving Buelrs
explanation the utmost weight, why he
did not inform himself more fully as
to what was taking place on his front.
Buell. had been expecting for two days
to encounter Bragg's army, and any
careful, provident commander in such
an emergency keeps himself well to
the front, or has information from
every part of his line at brief intervals.
Buell. was from two and a half to three
miles from McCook, and claims to have
no idea that anything more was going
on than a reconnaissance and Smelling
the woods.T He simply disparages his
own generalship by making such &
claim. Such men as Grant. Sherman.
Sheridan and Thomas never permitted
two or three hours to pass, when they
were in the presence of the enemy,
without having, constantly sent them
the fullest Information as to what was
going on. Not zone of those command
ers would have been three miles in the
rear when expecting battle.
McCook.s share of Responsibility.
McCook was the subject of severe
censure by the partisans of Gen. Buell.
as well as by others. 1t is hard to see
why he waged so desperate a battle for
two hours without attempting to report
to his commanding officer. and without
proper representations to the[eomp1and-,
ers of the other corps. The efforts that
he made to get reinforcements seem sim
gularly incommensurate. According to
his own statement, he sent off two of
his staff officers asking for reinforce
ments. They hardly carried out his
commands in a way to effectually Sc
cure help. Some weight must prob
ably be given the charge that McCook's
ambition to become the commander of
the Army of the Ohio led him to pre-
cipitate the battle, and to try to fight
ii out without assistance. If we accept
this charge as only measurably true it
Still leaves room for the implication
that Buell. and Gilbert, possibly Crit
tenden. were not altogether unwilling
that McCook's overweening confidence
in himself should be thrashed down a
little. Otherwise ii is hard to account
for Gilberts inaction. Part of the time
Gilbert was back at Buell's headquar-
ters taking lelsurely meal with him.
which seems, strange for n man whose
corps had been in immediate touch with
the enemy for about "a hours. When
Gilbert did return to his corps. he does
not seem to have comprehended what
was going on beyond his left, and GER
tainly did not show energy commen-
surate with the occasion.
Gen. Thomas was distant three miles
to the right and with Crittenden's
Corps, which was under arms during
the whole day, but did nothing Gen.
Thomas's warm friends and admirers
explain that he had no Immediate COM
mand, and not so much discretion in
the matter as q corps commander since
he was second i'll command to Buell.
who was supposed to be upon the field
directing matters. Buell. had sent him
orders to await direction. and in this
attitude he continued during the whole
struggle.
a great deal of explanation is nee
essary to show why five divisions of the
army stood around all day taking no
part, while three divisions were engaged
in one of the Iiercest battles in history
and were perilously near absolute de-
Every one of the higher off,
GERS in the unengaged portions of the
army reeds defense for this
There Is no occasion, though, for any
defense of the subordinate officers and
soldiers. The world has never seen
more desperate fighting than they did
whenever they came in contact with the
enemy. While many of the regiments
were new. and were at times thrown
into disorder too easily, yet they were
rallied and fought with a bravery that
could not have, been surpassed by vet
Grams. The terrific losses, which were
only sustained by meeting and repuIs-
ing the repeated. assaults, show this in
contestably.
Gen. Buell. reported his losses as GIG
killed. 2.943 wounded, 4S9 missing; to-
tai, 4,34S. AS there were probably not
over $4,000 actually engaged, this num-
ber shows an appalling proportion of
loss, in which that of prisoners was
singularly small considering the fact
that nIIr line was fnrpad hac.y fnr ,,,o.o