The National tribune., 1911-01-05
THE GREATEST CRISIS OF THE
WAR


doubtedly the greatest OF these crises
was in the month of July, when Jubal
A. Early's army was knocking at the
doors of the National Capital
Its exceeding danger came from the
Encouragement of the people, and es-
pecially the financiers, over the failure
of the repeated and immense efforts to
crush the rebellion and end the war.
| At the beginning of every year dur
ing the war the Nation summoned all
its physical strength and financial re-
sources for a supreme blow to crush
out the rebellion at once. After the
humiliation of Bull Run, the country
spent eight anxious months in organic
ing, equipping and drilling such an
an army as the world had never be-
fore seen. Jan. 1, 1862. saw an army
of 575,917 men organized with the
greatest care and equipped in every
way with the very best that money
could provide. To do this the National
debt had been increased to S524,000.-
900, a figure which before the war
would have seemed to spell certain
bankruptcy. 1t was five times as great
as any debt that the country had ever
before known. The country had every
reason to believe, as 1t sanguinely did,
that when the army at last moved, 1t
would end the war in a few weeks.
This hope was sadly blighted, and the
year 1852 ended with the defeat Of
Sherman's army before Vicksburg, the
| bloody ind hat Of
River and the awful slaughter Of Fred
erlcksburg.
The people rallied from this fearful
shock and summoned their strength for
another mighty effort. The Spring of
1863 saw the army increased to 91s.-
991 men, while the public debt had
been doubled and reached more than
billion dollars. That year Vicksburg,
Gettysburg and Mission Ridge came to
encourage them. but the year of 1853,
ended with the Confederate army threat
ening Washington, covering Richmond,
and lying along the line of the Rap
pahannock, from which it had re-
pulsed the Union army, and as inso-
lent and threatening in attitude as it
had been at the beginning of the war.
The Confederate army, which had been
driven from Chattanooga, had only
gone back some 20 miles. and it also
maintained an attitude Of the highest
insolence and defiance. The people
made another prodigious effort to equip
an army which would bring the vast
| ing war to a swift conclusion. The be-
ginning of 1854 saw an army of vet
Grams S60,737 strong, while the public
debt had been increased 100000, 900,
in order to keep the army in the field
and prepare it for the final, decisive
blow.
With nearly s2,O09,O00, 900 indebted
ness. with more than 100000 Of its
best and bravest young men lying in
shallow graves along the battle line
which stretched from the Atlantic.
across the Mississippi and far out in
the Western plains. again the people
buoyed themselves up with high hopes
that the army would, as soon as Spring
came around, bring the awful agony
to a speedy conclusion and complete
triumph. III addition to its awful loss
of life, the war was costing about
100000 a day and the country could
not be expected to stand the strain
much longer. Again came bitter disap-
pointment. The Army of the Potomac
in the sanguinary fighting from the
Rapidan to the Appomattox lost some
thing like 0,000 men, an army in itself
| larger than most of those which the
kingdoms of Europe had been able to
| put in the field. All this expenditure of
blood seemed to have been without
avail since the army was then in front
OF the impregnable works around Rich
mond, with every assault upon these
ending in repulse and frightful carnage.
The other great army, that under
Sherman, was in no better plight. 1t
had fought bloody fights every mile
of the way from Chattanooga, and was
now like the Army of the Potomac
seemingly in full check against the
powerful works defending Atlanta. 1t
was where it could not go forward,
while to retreat would have been de-
lstruction.
Back in the rear was rapidly devel-
oping into frightful proportions that
which was more dreadful than the Con-
federate armies in front. A large
proportion of the population had been
opposed to the war from the first, and
now their opposition was intensified by
the heavy taxes, fear of the draft and
the dread of the young men that they
would be compelled to shoulder a mus
ket and go to the front. The agents
OF the Confederacy were doing every
thing to increase this feeling of oppo-
sition to make the demand for peace
j at any price more insistent. They
were everywhere organizing men to re-
sist the draft and compel a cessation
of the war Fierce draft riots lad
ragged in New York, with a frightful
destruction of life and property. There
was a terribly dangerous movement to
cut the West loose from the East and
establish a Northwestern Confederacy
west of the Alleghenies, which would
make peace with the Southern Confed-
cracy and end the war. At least 400,-
600 men were known to be organized
by the knights of the Golden Circle
Into companies and regiments which
were drilling and arminS in readiness
to strike blow at any moment when
the armies of Sherman or Grant should
meet with some crushing disaster