The National tribune., 1908-04-02


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In usual liquid form or in chocolate
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c. I. Hood CO., Lowell, Mass.
old turnpike. while Meade, with the two
divisions of his corps, Humphreys and
Griffin's. marched along the River road.
Sickles with the Third Corps, now across
United States Ford. was closing up in
the rear. The troops. soon opposed by
the enemy. drove him at first. and
reached a position about three miles
in advance, and about six miles from
Fredericksburg, on the ridge that runs
there at right angles to the trend of
the roads which they had been pursu-
ing. 1t was an open ground, where the
artillery could have full play, posi-
ton such that the army could not have
expected better. Banks's Ford had been
uncovered by Gen. Meades advance, and
by this if Sedgwick could not capture
Fredericksburg he could easily rejoin
the main army by the route of the
bridges below. But to the astonishment
of all in the advance orders were from
the Commanding General to retire TO
the first position occupied, the lines
which the army had left, the thickets
of the Wilderness. Deprecatory mes
sages were sent to the rear, and slight
modification of orders was received, but
of no moment for the retrograde move
ment had begun, and the enemy had
already taken advantage of the falling
back of Slocum to try to interpose be-
tween the right and center of the lines.
The King of France had marched up
the hill and was now marching down
again. My Cod Gen. Meade is authen-
tically said to have cried, when he
found himself among a group of gen.
eral officers on the lower ground for
which the commanding position they
had occupied had been relinquished; if
we can't hold the top of the hill, we
certainly can't hold the bottom of it. :"
An InexpIicable Weakening.
There can be no satisfactory explana-
ton of this amazing lapse of Hooker
from the constant aggressiyeness which
had characterized him as a subordinate
commander and as Commander-in-
Chief into the weak defensive In the
Army of the Potomac there were always
two opposing ideas on this point. One
party insisted that Hooker had drank
too much whisky and consequently
lapsed into weak inertneSs. while the
other side insisted that he had not taken
enough whisky. Hooker was an habitual
drinker, and consumed a good deal of
whisky every day, which seemed neces-
sary to keep him at concert pitch. 1t
is asserted that the supply of liquor at
headquarters had become exhausted,
and that no more was available in the
light marching order in which the
troops had crossed the Rapidan.
AS psychological analysis is now the
order of the day, we may make the eff
fort to apply this in seeking for a solu-
ton of this enigma. 1t is possible, even
probable, that the mind after violent
exertion for some time becomes as ia
tigued and incapable of further effort
as the body does after a hard and long
continued strain. We have hints of this
occasionally given us in history, but at
that time psychological science was
hardly born. and consequently we have
little material for study. 1t is said of
the Arch Duke Charles, who was Ma
poIeon's ablest opponent in strategy,
that after he had been under the strain
of actual operations for five or six hours
his mind ceased working, and refused
to do anything more until he had had
rest. The same is mentioned of several
other great Generals, and even Napo-
leon himself. with his marvellous activity
and capacity for endurance, was not free
from it. His astonishing lethargy after
the critical period in the great battle of
Borodino enabled the Russian army to
escape from the destruction which he
had carefully planned for it. There are
instances in Lees career pointing to a
similar syncope of his mental powers
after long-continued strain. 1t Is hint
ed at in the actions of both Rosecrans
and Bragg at Chickamauga, when after
a week of the most fatiguing and excit-
ing marching and manuvering. followed
by two days of terrific battling, both of
them left the field of Chickamauga. each
convinced that his army was whipped.
1t seems most strange that Hooker
should fall in few hours from the high
pitch at which he was when he issued
his vainglorious order to his attitude of
weak defensiveness, but psychologists
tell US these transitions are frequently
of lightning-like suddenness. The story
was busily circulated at the time that
a cannon ball. striking column of the
Chancellor House, against which Hook
er was leaning. rendered him insensible
at Il most critical time. The trouble
with this alleged incident is that the
time was placed too late. Hooker began
to be whipped when he did not employ
the bright moonlight of the night of
April 80 to advance to Tabernacle
at o'clock on May l, when he issued
the fatal order for the different COM
mands to retire to Charlottesville.
After all, was it not that other Hook
err" which Stanton, acute judge of men,
so much feared?
An Attempted Explanation.
The explanation offered by many
writers is that Hooker. seeing the fierce
ness with which his heads of columns
were being battered, decided to take up
the defensive, and wait for the effect
upon Lee of Sedgwick's flank attack by
the way of Fredericksburg, and particu-
larry of Stonemans great column of
horsemen sweeping around between Lee
and Richmond, cutting his railroads,
destroying his bridges and putting him
in such a condition that starvation
alone would compel him to withdraw
to feed his army. This explanation is
unworthy of q General of the caliber
necessary to make the magnificent
crossing of the rivers which Hooker had
achieved. No first-class General ever
makes his main movement pivot upon
subordinate movements like those of
Stoneman and Sedgwick. His main bat
tie always is and must be fought by the
main body of the army of which he is
the head and which he accompanies to
the field. If Hooker had expected any
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