was not to be driven from his position. And again a flank movement was decided upon, this time south of the James River. But this movement was much more difficult than those from Spotsylvania and the North Anna, and Grant would not move until his preparations were complete. The result was that we lay for nine days where we had fought.
During this time the opposing lines were very close together, and on our side the troops made regular siege approaches to the rebel works. The days passed quietly, with no fighting except an occasional rattle of musketry and now and then a cannon shot. There was frequently a scare on the line, for the enemy was so near that in the dark our men often thought he was coming out to attack; but it never amounted to anything. As a rule, everything was quiet except the picket firing, which could not be prevented when the men were so close together. The only time when this ceased was during the truces to bury the dead.
While we lay at Cold Harbor, as when we had been at Spotsylvania, the principal topic of conversation was the losses of the army. The discussion has never ceased. There are still many persons who bitterly accuse Grant of butchery in this campaign. As a matter of fact, Grant lost fewer men in his successful effort to take Richmond and end the war than his predecessors lost in making the same attempt and failing. An official table showing the aggregate of the losses sustained by the armies of McDowell, McClellan, Pope, Burnside, Hooker, Meade, Butler, and Ord, in the effort to capture the Confederate capital, is here published. It shows exactly what Richmond cost us from May 24, 1861, when McDowell crossed the Potomac into Virginia, to Lee's surrender at Appomattox; and it proves that Grant in eleven months secured the prize with less loss than his predecessors suffered in failing to win it after a struggle of three years.[1]
COMPARATIVE STATEMENT OF THE LOSSES
Sustained in action by the Army of Northeastern Virginia, the Army of the Potomac, and the Army of Virginia, under command of Generals McDowell, McClellan, Pope, Burnside, Hooker, and Meade, from May 24, 1861, to May 4, 1864, and the Army of the Potomac (Meade) and the Army of the James (Butler and Ord), constituting the armies operating against Richmond under General Grant, from May 5, 1864, to April 9, 1865:
KILLED.
CAPTURED OR MISSING.
WOUNDED.
AGGREGATE.
Losses from May 24, 1861, to May 4, 1864:
McDowell, May 24 to August 19, 1861 493 1,176 1,342 3,011
McClellan, August 20, 1861, to April 4, 1862 80 268 815 1,163
McClellan, April 5 to August 8, 1862 3,263 13,868 7,317 24,448
Pope, June 26 to September 2, 1862 2,065 9,908 4,982 16,955
McClellan, September 3 to November 14, 1862 2,716 11,979 13,882 28,577
Burnside, November 15, 1862, to January 25, 1863 1,296 9,642 2,276 13,214
Hooker, January 26 to June 27, 1863 1,955 11,160 11,912 25,027
Meade, June 28, 1863, to May 4, 1864 3,877 18,078 9,575 31,530
Total 15,745 76,079 52,101 143,925
Grant's losses from May 5, 1864, to April 9, 1865 :
May 5 to June 24, 1864—Army of the Potomac, from the Rapidan to the James 7,621 38,339 8,966 54,926
May 5 to June 14—Army of the James, south of James River ... 634 3,903 1,678 6,215
June 15 to July 31—Army of the Potomac and Army of the James 2,928 13,743 6,265 22,936
Aug. 1 to Dec. 31—Army of the Potomac and Army of the James 2,172 11,138 11,311 24,621
Jan. 1 to April 9, 1865—Army of the Potomac and Army of the James and Sheridan's cavalry 1,784 10,625 3,283 15,692
Total 15,139 77,748 31,503 124,390
Summary:
Armies of McDowell, McClellan, Pope, Burnside, Hooker and Meade 15,745 76,079 52,101 143,925
Armies under Grant 15,139 77,748 31,503 124,390
Grand Aggregate 30,884 153,827 83,604 268,315
Aggregate of Losses from May 24, 1861, to May 4, 1864 143,925
Aggregate of Losses from May 4, 1864, to April 9, 1865 124,390
Difference in Grant's favor 19,535
- ↑ This is the first complete table ever published of the losses of the armies named; but the comparison was first suggested in the New York "Sun" and other newspapers, some years ago, by Leslie J. Perry, of the War Records Commission.—Editor.
