The National tribune., 1908-11-19

MON Siopptu tne -rEONeliitH'S Va - "
fantry. He Immediately took the course
that McClellah had followed after An
tletam the year ,ibefore. ihsteaq VI
marching with all swiftness to Har-
per-s Ferry sand placing his army along
the banks of the Shenandoah TO arres'
Lees progress into the Valley Meaae
turned back on his tracks to march 70
tho eastern side of the Blue Ridge and
watch the gaps thru which Lees arm!
might come. Thus instead of taking
the aggressive he threw his army again
on the defensive. He only sent Gregg
Division of cavalry by the way of Har-
per's Ferry to strike at Lees flank and
annoy his retreat. Anticipating this
the engineers by heroic work had re-
paired the great bridge which had been
torn down to prevent Lees retreat.
| The First, Fifth Sixth and Eleventh
| Corps marched back. on July Is and
| 16. thru. the familiar Turner's and
Champions Gaps to where double
bridge had been laid across the Poto-
| mac at Berlin. The Second, Third and
Twelfth Corps went down by the way
| OF Harper's Ferry on the same days.
Lee united the two columns of his
| main army on the main road to Win
| chester, where the roads from Will
| Transport and Falling Waters come to-
gether. On July Is he made camp on
the beautiful plain between Darksville
and Bunker's Hill, where he received
the rations which had been sent him
from Richmond to Winchester In this
position. sheltered by the Potomac on
one side and by the Elue Ridge and
the shenandoah on the other, he could
anord to give his army few days of
urgently needed rest.
While Lee a1d all his principal SUBJ
ordinates had committed the most fla
grant faults and violations of the
science of war at Gettysburg, they had
in measure redeemed their credit by
the mastery way In which the Union
army had been held off and an undis-
turbed passage to the swollen Potomac
secured. Lee had again shown that
amazing correctness of estimate of his
opponent by throwing out the $4,000
men which remained to him in long,
thin line of II miles. and maintaining
this with a bold front for days with
confidence that his enemy lacked the
aggressivenesS to detect his weakness.
Mende,s Report.
Meade dismisses this matter very
briefly and unsatisfactory in his re-
port of the campaign. He says:
After hating day at Middletown
to procure necessary supplies and bring
up the trains the army moved thru
the South Mountain, and by July 12
was in front of the enemy. who occu-
pied a strong position on the nights
of Marsh Run. in advance OF Williams
port. In taking this position several
skirmishes and affairs had been had
with the enemy, principally by the cav
airy and the Eleventh and Sixth Corps.
''The 18th was occupied in reconnois-
sances Of the enemy's position and
preparations for attack, but on advanc-
ing on the morning of the 14th it was
ascertained he had retired the night
previous by a bridge at Falling Waters
and the ford at WilIianisport. The cav
airy in pursuit overlook the rear guard
at Falling Waters capturing two guns
and numerous prisoners.
Previous to the retreat of the enc
my. Gregg's bDivision of cavalry was
crossed at Harper's Ferry. and. coming
up with the: rear, of the enemy at
Charlestown and Shepherdstown had a
spirited contest, in, which the enemy
was driven to Martinsburg and Win
chester and pressed and harassed in his
retreat. 10 80. ,
''The result of the campaign may be
briefly stated in the defeat of the enemy
at Gettysburg, his compulsory evacua-
ton or pennsylvania and Maryland and
withdrawal from the upper Valley of
the Shenandoah, and in the capture Of
three guns. - p standards and 1881
prisoners; 24.918 small-arms were COL
"Our own losses were very severe.
amounting. as will be seen by the ac-
companying return, to 1884 killed. 49,
713 wounded and 6.643 missing; In all,
23,190.'
The Disappointment of the Country.
The disappointment of the country
and OF the army was intense. It was
firmly believed that Lees army had
tyra hfy ha hat Ia Of
burg. and that Meade had been given a
much larger force than he had actually
received. Halleck had kept up a good
deal of telegraphing about the REIN
forcements and batteries he was send
ing. which had given rise to this idea.
A part of these were the militia and
emergency troops from New York and
Pennsylvania. While these, of course
did not have the value of veterans yet
under efficient leaders. they would
have been capable of very good work.
Unfortunately Gems. Couch and Smith,
while technically fair professional SOL
diers. were men of limited ability and
negative character. They undoubtedly
deprecated the raw troops they were
commanding. just as q bad workman
blames his tools for his own poor re-
suits. American militia and short-term
men have always given very good ac-
counts of themselves when led by men
with real earnestness of purpose and
genius for command, such as Nathan
fel Greene. Andrew Jackson, William
Henry Harrison, Nathaniel Lyon and
men Of that type.
Neither Couch nor Smith had ever
made any special credit when handling
the best-seasoned troops, and it is no
wonder that they excuse their nom
performance by blaming it on the raw
ness OF their men.
Grants brilliant generalship at Vicks-
burg, where he had, as usual, DESTROYED
the army against him. was then only a
few days old, and raised public expecta-
tons 10 high point as to the victor of
Gettysburg crowning his fame by a
similar achievement. That he did not
10 so shook at once the confidence of
the people and Of his own soldiers in
him. 1t must be kept in mind. how
ever, that Meade had only recentIy ris-
en- to the command of CORPS and had
been but a few Gays in command of
the army. Among the corps cornmand-
ers such men as Howard. S,.dpwicl,
Slocum and Sykes were his seniors. as
were also many OF the division com
manders. 1t was quite natural that he
should feel difideytce as to overriding
the men who were ftely his colleagues
and even his i':upe''ipIs His charfcIer
lacked that SCI affdence ana ,snutaI
hardness which y aid max. lara as
sumo the role OF master. an 1uire
Sbendience front ,.se so
recently placed anaer him.
Meade Tenders, His RESIGNATION.
At II O'Clock, July IA nJaa5a con,