The National tribune., 1907-12-05

CONFEDERATES FORDIN
Ian was a failure; he had the slows;
was never ready for battle, and probably
never would be; but for this exigency,
when organization and defense were
needed he considered him the best man
for the service, and the country must
have the benefits of his talents, tho he
had behaved badly. The President said
he had seen and given his opinion to
Gen. Halleck, who was still General-in-
Chief, but HaIleck had no plans or
views of his own, proposed to do moth
ing himself, and fully approved his
calling upon Mcclellan.
"The President said most Of our trou-
bles grew out of military jealousies.
Whether changing the plan of opera
tions (discarding Mcclellan and placing
Pope in command in front was wise or
not, was not now the matter in hand.
These things, right or wrong, had been
done. If the Administration had erred,
the country should not have been made
to suffer nor our brave men been cut
down and butchered. Pope should have
been sustained, but he was not. These
personal and professional quarrels
came in. Whatever may have been
said to the contrary, it could not be de-
MED that the army was with Mcclellan.
He had so skilfuIly handled his troops
in not getting to Richmond as to retain
their confidence. The soldiers certainly
had not transferred their confidence to
Pope. He could, however. do no more
good in this quarter. 1t was humiliat-
ing, after what had transpired and all
we knew, to reward Mcclellan and
those who failed to do their whole duty
in the hour of trial, but so it was. Per-
sonal considerations must be sacrificed
for the public good. He had kept aloof
from the dissensions that prevailed and
intended to. But said he, I must
have Mcclellan to reorganize the army
and bring it out of chaos. There has
been design, a purpose, in breaking
down Pope, without regard to the con-
sequences to the country, that is afro
cious. 1t is shocking to see and know
this. but there is no remedy at present.
Mcclellan has the army with him"
Enthusiasm of the Soldiers.
George Kimball, of Boston, wrote to
the editor of BATTLES and Leaders"
this description of McClellan's popular
ity with his army: --.f....-
Tho a quarter of a century has
passed since those darkest days of the
war; / still retain vivid remembrance
of the sudden and complete change
which came upon the face of affairs
when Gen. Mcclellan was restored to
command At the time | was serving in
Co. A, 18th Mass, attached to Ricketts's
Division of the First Army Corps. The
announcement of McClellan's restora-
ton came to US in the early evening of
Sept. 2, 1862, just after reaching Halls
Hill, weary from long marching and
well-nigh disheartened by recent re-
verses. The men We're scattered about
in groups, discussing the events of their
ill-starred campaign and indulging in
comments that were decidedly uncom-
plimentary to those who had been re-
sponsible for it's mismanagement. We
did not know, of course, the exact sig
nifcance of all that had happened, as
we afterward learned it, but being
mainly thinking men, we were able to
form pretty Shrewd gueSseS as to where
the real difficulty lay. Suddenly, while
these mournful consultations were in
full blast mounted officer, dashing
past our bivouac, reined up enough to
shout, Little Mac is back here on the
road, Doysn The scene that followed
can be more easily imagined than de-
scribed. From extreme sadness We
passed in a twinkling to a delirium of
delight. A deliverer had come. A real
rainbow of promise had appeared sud-
denly in the dark political sky. The
feeling in our division upon the return
of Gen. Mcclellan had its counterpart
in all the others, for the Army of the
Potomac loved him as it never loved
any other leader. In few days we
started upon that long march into
Maryland, and whenever Gen. McClel-
Ian appeared among his troops, from
the crossing of the Potomac at Wash
ington to the grapple with Lee at An
tietam, it was the signal for the most
spontaneous and enthusiastic cheerine
ever listened to or participated in
Men threw their caps high into the air
and danced and frollicked like school
boys, SO glad were they to get their
old commander back again. 1t is true
that Mcclellan had always been for
tunate in being able to excite enthu-
siasm among his troops, but demonstra-
tions at this time took on an added ana
noticeable emphasis from the fact thai
he had been recalled to command aftei
what the army believed to be an url-
wise and unjust suspension. The eli
max seemed to be reached, however, at
Middletown, where We first caught
sight of the enemy. Here. upon our
arrival, we found Gen. Mcclellan sit
ting upon his horse in the road. The
enemy occupied gap in the South
Mountain, a mile or two beyond. Reno
and Hatch were fighting. and the smoke
Of their guns could be seen half way up
the mountain. AS each organization
passed the General the men became ap-
parently forgetful of everything but
their love for him. They cheered and
cheerad again, until they became so
hoarse they could cheer no longer. 1t
seemed as IL an intermission had been
declared in order that a reception
might be rendered to the General-in-
Chief. A great crowd continually sur
.ounded him, and the most extravagant
demonstrations were indulged in. Hun
lreds even hugged the horses legs and
'aressed his head and name. While
he troops were thus surging by the
ieneral continually pointed with his
fnger to the gap in the mountain thru
which our path lay. 1t was like a great
scene in play, with the roar of the
Guns for an accompaniment. Another
enthusiastic demonstration that 1 re-