The Montgomery advertiser., 1909-01-31
THE ARMY OF TENNESSEE
NUMBER TWELVE.

ston's left flank, as he believed. in secrecy marching his whole force to Resaca, fifteen miles in Johnston's rear and on the road to Atlanta.
 Tn the same week of May, Lee marched by Toad he had made, to threw himself across Grants onto Richmond at Spottsylvania Court House, there to fight many. days most des- perately; and JohnstSn marched by a road he had made. to Resaca, to block Sherman's onto Atlanta. Johnston fought at Resaca May 1s, d4 and I5. Gram failed to drive Lee from hlp' front at Spottsyivania Court House ana sherman failed to defeat Johnston at s The retreat of the two Confederate Q armies was now we'll under way. Yet in he case of both, he retret was act- ually a movement to beat the. foe in arr irving at given point for which the Toe had set out already. Lee did not leave the Wilderness before Grant left. but followed Grant; Johnston did not abandon Dalton until Sherman's whole army was on the road at the base of Rockyface Ridge marching for Re-
 It will bs apropos to say here. that Grants army was larger than Sher- mans. while Lees army was larger than Johnston's, but the proposition of strength in the combatants in Virginia and in Georgia was about equal. Grant lost very much more heavily than Sherman as the campaign progressed. and Lee lost very much more heavily than Johnston. General Johnston said. after the war. that when his campaign opened he stood to Sherman as to Il. but when he was removed from com niand he had gained in proportion so as to stand to the invader at 8 to ii. Grant received tens of thousands of re.en- forcensnts and Lee only q small num- Der. so that Grants relative strength as compared with Lee, was greater than Sherman's as compared with Johnstoh's as the campaign progressed.
 Grant fianked Lee after the lighting at Spottsylvania Court House. Lee hastened to encounter him at Hanover Junction. stiil on the direct road to Richmond, but Grant refused battle there and turned his course for the Chiclahotniny. Lee followed. and at Cold Harbor June 4 the campaign in Virginia closed with . terrible and most bloody defeat of Grant. The mil- itary emergency established by the Con- federate Government was in defence ol Richmond. Grant crossed to the south side of the James and the siege of Pe- tersburg began. Grant. the besieger
 was within ten miles of bis water base, City Point; Lees base was hundreds of miles to the southward. The defence of Richmond removed. the Army of North ern Virginia from that description of war, adopted in common by Lee and Johnston. and which. If permitted tc the, end must have continued to demon strate it's wisdom as the true Confed- crate policy. It is estimated that Gen eral Grant last 220,000 men in front of Lee from May 6. 1864 to April i, 1865. The result, however, was that at the latter date Grant surrounded Lees 25. 900 men with 220,00o men.
 z General Johnston ascertatned in inc heat Of the battle of Sunday at Resaca troops and crossing the Oostonaula on pontoons to take the road In the de rection of Calhoun which movement, If permitted. would cut off his line of com munication with Atlanta. M
 That night Johnston crossed the Oos- tanaula at three different points, one his corps darmee. by the railroad bridge, one by the public brodge and the third by a pontoon bridge. There was contact the next day of certain sec tions of the rival armies and some sharp lighting in which Wheeler and his cavalry were the principal Confed- crate factors. Wheeler protected the rear, which was Hardees corps. and also the right flank, next the enemy :. Johnston reached Calhoun fin advance of Sherman and there rested two days, as Sherman did not press forward with energy. When Sherman did move up. Johnston examined the ground seek . ing a field to .offer battle. but found none suitable for the purpose. He next moved down the railroad few miles to Adairsville. rested there some hours. and on to CassvilFe. which was three miles north of Cass station on the rail- road. Now, as the wagon road led east ward out of Adairsville, toward CasR- vile, 1t forked. one fork passing on through Kingston, the point of Junction of the Rome railroad with the Chatta- nooga railroad. the other fork leading direct to Cassville. where the forks re- united. The distance between those two wagon roads at their widest was