Year: 1865

Officer, standing at safe dis
tance, with his glass in his hand, is to
pass his eye over the whole field, and


when he thinks the time has come to


say to his men, Forward, make the as


saultr - Certainly it does not require


much personal courage in man to give
such an order, but it does require some
little courage TO follow the dictates Of
ones Judgment and save the lives of his


men, when that judgment tells him that
to order an assault would be to sacrifice


them. This ia indeed trial-this is


temptation! At Fort Fisher did my |
duty, and as God lives and / live, if it


all had to be repeated, with all the


knowledge now have, even unto the


stream ofobloquy pouring on my head,


as it hes poured ever since, l would do
SO again. If He would give me strength
to answer my prayer: "Lead me not
into temptation" to act according to
the dictates Of my conscience and judgs
ment, for there was every temptation


to make the assault at Fort Fisher, and


thus take the chance to win honor and


glory at sacrifice Of my men, and none


to forbear to make it and come away.


Great Cheering. But some gentle


man may say, why, having determined


not to make the assault, did you not


stay there and entrench? For three


reasons. Let us examine them in few


minutes. But first bear in mind that /


have not gone into the newspapers in


explanation of This subject, have not


been porter or reporter of it again and


again. Laughter. No, l have come


here to my neighbors, whose hands !


have to take in friendship, with whom


/ must live, whose children are to grow


up with mine, and here make the ex-


planation that l have to make, then


caring not rappee what is thought of


the matter elsewhere. ! have encoun-


tered worse storms than this before, and


l shall live through this also. Good,


good, and cheers. Now, then, why


did not lay upon the beach? In the


first place I had made only partial


landing Of one third of my men, and


none Of my artillety. The sea arose so


high that no more men OF guns could


be landed, and you will see that the


rebel Gen. Whiting, in his report,


states that a great storm came up that


night which injured his garrison very


much, the garrison having been under


arms all night, to meet our approach. /


put on shore 1920 men, and eight hours


afterwards the storm was so severe that


l could not get gun or even box of


bread on shore, except by heading up


the cask and sending tashore on raft.


Again, if we look in one of Admiral
! Porter's last reports, you will sec that


he says, shaving expended in the bonn


bardment almost the last shot and shell
which l had with me, l found it neces-


sary to go back to Beaufort to get a
new supply" l should have looked


very wen, would l not, planting my.
self upon that beach with a handful OF
men, with body of the enemy behind


me, (Hoke's division from Richmand, J


larger than my whole army, my only
support being navy without ammuni'
ton, which was as useless and idle as a
"painted ship upon painted ocean,"
1t took Admiral Porter until the l4th
, of January eighteen days. to get back
, from Beaufort with his new supply ol
, ammunition, and ifmy troops had staid
there and waited for him, what do you
suppose would have happened to us
+ during the time that he was away p
, But, again, if nothing was to be gained
: by it what was the use of staying there
Q at all, and hazarding my menR ha6
, no seige train, yet Lieutenant Genera
a Grant agrees that my preparations ant
: instructions were all correct. coulC
i not besiege the fort. had only twelve
i light guns, and l had seventeen heav.
( guns bearing upon me from the fort
: therefore / could not besiege. Wha
s then could do? Perhaps you will sa,
: that might have stayed there AM
: tried to stop up the river by openin!
o my guns upon blockade runners as the,
:, passed up and down the river, and not
: withstanding all that could have don
S the enemy could have reinforced ant
l provisioned Fort Fisher at pleasure
!, and landed men on all sides of me, an(
5 the blockade runners on all sides ofme
Q and the blockade runners could hav
: passed backward and forward almost a
! freely as the rebel rams passed up an
G down James River the other day, i
n spite of the navy. Laughter.] Wha
= else could have done? Ought t
n have stayed there and maintained
/ landing, so that troops could be lande
: again The fact is, l saw that at any
u time when there was smooth sea
! landing could be effected under cove
: of the guns of the navy, and you re
It member that Gen. Terry landed hi
/, troops without the loss ola man; what
then, was the use of my staying there
t There was none. But, besides, HoEe'
Q division was there. captured sixty-fv
h of them, and, if / had staid there,
# would have been exposed to an Over
t whelming attack and lost my men witt
i out benefit to the service. Besides, b
l. staying there only kept the encm
o there, by going away the enemy wen
It away, supposing the attack to be abar
l. doned, and thus we found no sufficien
i force to oppose Gen. Terry; and now
d fellow citizens, let me state, speakin
N with the full knowle lgc that what / sa
l. is to be heard abroad over the country
t, that l am here to-day on the write
i letter of the Lieut. General to the Pre-
t, ident for my relief, in which letter n
II word is said of Fort Fisher, nor is ther
t. anything alledged against me in rel;
E. ton to the Wilmington expedition o
n the reason Of my being here now, in
a. =. Al l. a L