The National tribune., 1909-07-22
SHERIDAN AT cEDA.. CREEK.
The Historical Facts-Rosser at APP
pOmattOx.

The Historical EactS-Is0sScf at Ap-
pOmatfOx.
Editor National Tribune: 1t is very
strange that men who claim to have
taken part in the battle of Cedar Creek
should differ so widely as to the time
of Sheridan's arrival at the front.
VIM. Cloves, of the 61st Pa, is sur
prised that Comrade A. A Tyler should
place the time as late as o'clock. As
a matter of course, on the face of it
Tyier's claim is an ahsurdity, but not
any more so than is the statement of
Comrade Cloves in putting the time at
z o'clock in the morning.
There should be no controyersy
whatever as to the time of Sheridan's
arrival. There isn't -an-oecurrence or
incident of the war more clearly estab-
iished than this Sheridan himself
should be pretty good authority in the
matter In his Memoirs he says that
he left Winchester just about half past
O'Clock; that up as far as Miil Creek
the pace didn't -exeeedir an ordinary
walk Mil Creek is a rnaise and a half
above Winchester. u Ereni Mill Creek
on he moved at a pretty lively gait but
in places he found The road so crowded
and blocked with wagons and other
vehicles heading fopWinchester that he
was compelled to take TO the fields He
arrived, as he says himself, on the line
of his army at half past 10 o'clock. He
found the army oneIaiiesuorth of Mid
diletown. which wonfG make the, FAM
GUS ride exactly IL miles. 1t can be
seen very readily from the distance COW
| cred in the ride, coupled ourttf the time
of his leaving Winchester, how very
absurd are both thestatements of Com
rades Tyler and CIowes.l Tyler putting
| it at near O'Clock p. m. and Cloves at
! I a. lii. / doubt very much if Gen.
Merritt ever made such statement as
Sheridan's arriving at about 5 O'Clock.
4 If he did, it is pretty good evidence
! that his memory has become exceed
/ tingly defective. 1t would also estab-
lish the. fact that lie never read Sheri-
dams Memoirs. =-r rs =
| The advance of the Union army on
the rebel line began at $3.50. and Sheri-
dan was. then five hours with the army.
/ Fishers Hill is 20 miles above, Win
| chester. Strasburg Is miles and Middle
4 town just H.
| Comrade Cloves is also very much in
error as to the number of guns cap
/ tured from the rebels he, as he says.
1 counting them when parked next day
around Sheridan's headquarters. He
says that he counted SO pieces. The
number captured by us was "a pieces,
and "a of this number were guns of
our own that we lost in the onslaught
/ of the early morning. Nearly all of
those guns: were captured on the pike
about half way between Strasb burg and
Fishers Hill. gave about a year ago
an account in The National Tribune of
| how il was that the rebels lost those
guns. not exactly in the battle but after
they got pretty well along on their re-
treat. -'~.S
7 There is about as much nonsense
said and written of Sheridan's ride as
there is of the surrender at Appomat-
tox. One of the stories Of Appomattox
/ which i read recently was that Gen.
| Rosser, refusing to surrender with the
balance. of Lees army fnassed his cav
airy division Of $500 men on the Union
Hne. cut his way out and made his
escape This is very amusing reading
TO those OF us who were at Appomat-
1 toX. 1t is true that Rosser and his cav
1 airy got away. but not in the manner
i described in this Memorial Day copy
lrighted article, which appeared in many
or the leading Sunday papers on Me-
mortal Day. Rosser took his cavalry
force TO the rear as quickly as he could
DO SO, made q wide circuit around the
Union left and got away. We didn't
know until T. next morning that he
Islipped out; but. the fact is, we didn't
care. Gen. Early always alluded to
i Rosser's generalship with sneer; but
whether Early's criticisms were true or
not, Rosser' wasn't fool 1t would
have been foolhardy undertaking to
try to cut his way thru such an army
as was Tnassed in his front. Rosser.s
foolishness was in ihrSyH s,irrenderipe
with his comrades. ,e Heafeft after the
white flag was raisetf4 4-af Ford, Co A,
leth w. Va. 70 sI5S - %