Never was the Army of Northern Virginia more defiant in its bearing—never more confident in the genius of its leader. Deserters pouring into our lines brought consistent reports of the demoralization of the enemy—gold rose to 2.90, the highest point it touched during the war—while from the west and certain States in the North the clamors for peace redoubled, the New York Herald being loudest in demanding that an embassy be sent to Richmond, "in order to see if this dreadful war cannot be ended in a mutually satisfactory treaty of peace."[1]
"An army," says the great Frederick, "moves upon its belly," and I am not prepared to say that the jaunty bearing of Lee's men, as "shrewdly out of beef" at this time as ever were the English at Agincourt, was not due in a measure to the fact that just then their eyes were gladdened by droves of fat cattle sent them by an old comrade—Lieutenant-General Jubal Early, who, without the trifling formality of a commission from Governor Curtin, had assumed the duties of Acting Commissary-General of the rich Commonwealth of Pennsylvania.[2]
We have seen that shortly after Grant's arrival in front of Petersburg, there was open to him "a swarm of fair advantages," for his superb line of formidable redoubts, capable of assured defence by a fraction of his force, made it possible for him to operate on either Confederate flank with the bulk of his army, or, should the conjuncture favor, to assault in front.
But now, tenacious of purpose as was the Union general, he had, according to his own explicit testimony,[3] satisfied himself that an attack on Richmond from the north side would be attended with frightful loss of life—he had just received humiliating proof that Lee's front could not be shaken by mining or assault—and thence forward the campaign narrowed itself to a continuous effort to turn the Confederate right and cut Lee's communications—a series of rough strokes parried with infinite skill, although at times the "Thor-hammer" beat down the guard of the slender rapier, which so often pierced the joints of the giant armor.
By the end of August, Grant was firmly established across the Weldon road—a line of communication important, indeed, to Lee,
- ↑ I have collected a great number of such excerpts from leading Northern and Western papers (1864), as being not without significance. Certainly no such utterances would have been tolerated in 1861-62.
- ↑ Later (September 16th, 1864), Hampton made his brilliant "cattle raid, "in rear of the Army of Potomac, in which he inflicted considerable loss on the enemy in killed and wounded, and brought off above 300 prisoners and 2,500 beeves—Lee's Official Dispatch.
- ↑ Report on Conduct of the War (1865), vol. i, p. 110.
