Year: 1863




n Virginia would have been defeated
captured or driven out Of the State
this week.


Then reinforcements from all the
Eastern and Southeast portion of the
country would have been cut off from
8eauregard. The enemy have Hunts.
Vile now, and with all these designs
accomplished his army would have
been effcctually flanked. The mind
and heart shrink appalled, at the aw-
full consequences that would have fol-
lowed the success of this one act
When Fuller, Murphy and Cain start.
ed from Big Shanty on foot to cap
ture that fugitive engine, they were
involuntarity laughed at by the crowd,
serious as the matter was-and to
most observers it was indeed most
ludicrous; but that foot race saved US,
and prevented the consummation of
all these tremendous consequences.
One fact we must not omit to men,
tion is the valuable assistance rem
dcred by Peter Bracken, the Engineer
on the down freight train which Full
er and Murphy turned back. He ran
his engine fifty and half miles-two
of them backing the whole freight
train up to Adairsville-made twelve
stops, coupled to the two cars which
the fugitives had dropped, and switch
ed them off on sidings--all this, in
one hour and five minutes.


We doubt if the victory of Manas-
as or Corinth were worth as much to
us as the Illustration of this grand
coupd efat. 1t is not by any means
certain that the annihilation of Beau
regards whole army at Corinth would
have been The burning of the bridges
at that time and by these men.


When we learned by private tele-
graph dispatch few days ago, that
the Yankees had taken Huntsville,
we attached no great importance to it.
We regarded it merely as dashing
foray of small party TO destroy
property, tear up the road, &c, Ia
Morgan. When an additional tele-
gram announced the federal force
there to be from II 1000 to 10000, we
were inclined to doubt--though COM
ing from a perfectly honorable and
upright gentleman, who would not
be apt to seize upon wild report to
send here to his friends. The coming
to that point with large force, where
they would he fanked on either side
by orr army, we regarded as a most
stupid and unmilitarv act. We now
understand it all. They were to move
upon Chattanooga and Knoxville as
soon as the bridges were burnt, and
press on into Virginia rs far as.pos-
sible, and take ali our forces in that
State in the rear. 1t was all the deep
est laid scheme and on the grandest
scale that ever emanated from the
brains of anv number Of Yankees
combined. It was one that was also,
entirely practicable on almost any day
for the last year. There were but
two miscalculations in the whole pro-
gramme; they did not expect men to
start ont afoot to pursue them, and
they did not expect these pursuers on
foot to find Maj. Cooper's old "Yon-
ah" standing there all ready fred up.
Their calculations on every other
point were dead certainties, and wo'd
have succeeded perfectly.


This would have eclipsed anything
Captain Morgan ever attempted. To
think of parcel of Federal soldiers,
officers and privotes, coming down
into the heart Of the Confederate
States-for they were here Mt Atlanta
and at Narietta-(so some of them got
on the train at Marietta that morn
ing and others were at Big Shantv,
OF PLAYING such a serious game on the
State Road, which is under the con-
troll of our prompt, energetic and sn
gaciou3 Governor, known as such all
over the State, to seize the passenger
train on his road, right at Camp Me-
Donald, where has number Of Geor-
gia regiments encamped, and run off
with it; to burn the bridges on the
same road, and 90 safely through to
the Federal lincs--all this would have
been q feather in the cap of the man
or men who executed it.