Posted on 12/08/2022 5:00:01 AM PST by Homer_J_Simpson
Sunday, Dec. 7, 1862.
There has been no field movements to-day. Officers, well informed, state that JACKSON has arrived near Fredericksburgh and joined his forces with those already there. They also report that the enemy have extended their lines several miles further down the Rappahannock.
Last night was intensely cold, and some of the soldiers suffered for want of blankets. Ice formed in Potomac and Aquia Creeks from one and a half to two inches thick. To-day the sun came out fair and cheering, but the air continued piercing cold. The roads are hard, and very rough.
The report that Maj. SPALDING, of the engineer Brigade, is under arrest for unnecessary delay in the transportation of pontoon trains from Washington, is unfounded. That officer has been commended by his superiors for overcoming weighty obstacles in executing his orders.
NEWS FROM WASHINGTON.
OUR SPECIAL WASHINGTON DISPATCHES
WASHINGTON, Sunday, Dec. 7.
SECRETARY CHASE'S FINANCIAL POLICY.
The report of Secretary CHASE is receiving commendation from unexpected quarters, and is universally conceded to display an uncommon aptness in dealing with the difficult problems of finance which now perplex the country. Strong opposition to some of his recommendations is being developed on the part of the friends of the banks, who seem to regard them as adverse to the interests of those institutions, but the general expression of opinion indicates that his policy will be sustained by Congress. Little confidence can be placed in statements regarding the opinions of individual members of the Committee of Ways and Means, as these opinions are not expressed with a view to publication, and are liable to modification. The Committee has as yet given the report so consideration, and of course can have reached no conclusion in regard to its recommendations.
(Excerpt) Read more at nytimes.com ...
First session: November 21, 2015. Last date to add: May 2025.
Reading: Self-assigned. Recommendations made and welcomed.
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Link to previous New York Times thread
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From Gen. Burnside’s Army: The Forward Movement Not Yet Commenced – 2
News from Washington: Our Special Washington Dispatches – 2
The War in the Southwest: Another Victory of Gen. Blunt – 2-3
Our Iron-Clad Navy: Completion of All the Nine Monitors – 3
Editorial: The Speech of Vice-President Stephens – 4
Editorial: Diplomatic Correspondence – 4
Editorial: The Hanging of 300 Indians – 4-5
Grenada Captured – Its Importance – 5
Manœuvering War Vessels – The Keokuk – 5-6
Campaign of the Mississippi—The Situation: Consequences of the Battle of Corinth – 6
In recent days there've been two battles in Arkansas, one minor and inconclusive (Reeds Mountain), the other major and a Union victory, though outnumbered (Prarie Grove).
There was also a major battle in Hartville, Tennessee, December 7 -- an astonishing victory by outnumbered Confederates under cavalry leader John Hunt Morgan.
These bring the totals to 161 engagements so far, with 87 in Confederate states, 74 in Union states or territories.
Overall, Union victories only slightly outnumber Confederate victories, 71 to 68, with 22 inconclusive.
Arkansas 1862 Engagements
| Date | Engagement | Military Units | Losses | Victor |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Feb 17 | Little Sugar Creek, AR | Union Army of the Southwest (Curtis ~2,000) & Confederate Army of AR (McCullough ~2,000) | Union 33-total (13-killed), Confederates 250-total (23-killed) | Inconclusive |
| Mar 6-8 | Pea Ridge, AK | Union Army of Southwest (Curtis, Sigel ~10,500)& Confederate Army of the West (Van Dorn, Price, McCulloch, Pike ~16,500) | Union 1,384 total (203 killed), Confederate 2,000 total (unknown killed) | USA (Union outnumbered) |
| May 19 | Whitney's Lane, AR | Union Dept of the SW (Curtis, Steele ~30,000), Confederate Trans-Mississippi (Roane ~1,200) | Union 51-total (unkwn-killed), Confederates 10-total (unkwn-killed) | USA |
| June 17 | St. Charles, AR | Union 4-river boats, 46th Ind Inf (Fitch, Kitty-WIA ~1,000), Confederate AR 29th Inf (Fry-POW) | Union 160-total (58-killed), Confederates 40-total (8-killed) | USA |
| July 7 | Cache River, AR | Union Army of SW (Curtis, Havey ~600, Confederate 12th & 16th Cavalry (Hindman, Rust ~600) | Union 63+-total (6-killed), Confederates ~100-total (30-killed) | USA |
| Nov 27 | Yellville, AR | Union Army of the Frontier, (Wickersham, cavalry from Illinois, Iowa & Wisconsin ), Confederate garrison | Union none, Confederates 60-total captured & paroled | USA -- salt mining disrupted |
| Nov 28 | Yellville, AR | Union Army of the Frontier, (Blunt, Cloud ~5,000), Confederate Trans-Mississippi Dept (Marmaduke, Shelby ~2,000) | Union 44-total (8-killed), Confederates 80-total (10-killed) | USA |
| Dec 6 | Reed's Mountain, AR | Union Army of the Frontier, (Blunt, Basset 3 regiments), Confederate Trans-Mississippi Dept (Shelby's brigade, Monroe +2 regiments) | Union 8-total (1-killed), Confederates 37-total (10-killed) | Inconclusive -- USA tactical, CSA strategic |
| Dec 7 | Prairie Grove, AR | Union Army of the Frontier, (Blunt, Herron ~9,000), Confederate Trans-Mississippi Dept (Hindman ~11,000) | Union 1,251-total (175-killed), Confederates 1,317-total (204-killed) | USA strategic (Union outnumbered) |
Tennessee 1862 Engagements
| Date | Engagement | Military Units | Losses | Victor |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Feb 6 | Fort Henry, TN | Union Army of TN + West Flotilla (Grant, Foote ~15,000) & Confederate Army of Cent KY (Tilghman ~3,200) | Union 40-total, Confederates 79-total (15 killed) | USA |
| Feb 14-16 | Fort Donelson, TN | Union Army of the Tennessee + Mississippi River Squadron (Grant, Foote 24,531) & Confederate Army of Central KY + garrison (Floyd, Pillow, Buchner 16,171) | Union 2,691-total (507-killed), Confederates 13,846-total (327-killed) | USA |
| April 6-7 | Shiloh, TN | Union Army of West Tennessee (Grant, Buell ~63,000) & Confederate Army of Mississippi (AS Johnson, Beauregard ~40,335) | Union 13,047-total (1,754-killed), Confederate 10,699-total (1,728-killed) | USA |
| April 14 | Fort Pillowi, TN | Union mortor boats bombard Fort Pillow | none | CSA |
| May 10 | Plum Run Bend, TN | Union MS River Squadron (7-river ironclads), Confederate River Defense Fleet (9-wooden steamboats) | none recorded | CSA |
| June 6 | Memphis, TN | Union MS Flotilla (Davis, Ellet+), Confederate River Defense Fleet (Montgomery, Thompson) | Union 1- total, Confederates 250-total (~35-killed) | USA |
| June 7-8 | Chattanooga, TN | Union Army of OH (Negley 1 division), Confederate Army of KY (EK Smith) | Union 23-total, Confederates 65-total | USA |
| July 13 | Murfreesboro, TN | Union hospital & PA cavalry (Crittended ~900, Confederate Cavalry (Forrest ~1,400) | Union 890-total (0-killed), Confederates ~150-total (0-killed) | CSA |
| Aug 30 | Bolivar, TN | Union Army of the MS, (Leggett ~1,000), Confederate Army of the West (Armstrong -1,000) | Union unknown, Confederates unknown | Inconclusive |
| Oct 5 | Hatchie's Bridge, TN | Union Army of MS (Ord, Hurlbut, 12,000), Confederate Army of West TN (Van Dorn, Price ~20,000) | Union 500-total (75?-killed), Confederates 400-total (60?-killed) | USA |
| Dec 7 | Hartville, TN | Union XIV Corps (Moore ~2,400), Confederate Cavalry (John Hunt Morgan ~1,300) | Union 2,096-total (unknwn-killed), Confederates 139-total (unkwn-killed) | CSA (CSA outnumbered, Union surrender) |
Summary of Civil War Engagements as of December 8, 1862:
Engagements in Confederate states:
| State | Union Victories | Confederate Victories | Inconclusive | Total Engagements |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| South Carolina | 2 | 2 | 1 | 5 |
| Virginia | 7 | 26 | 12 | 45 |
| North Carolina | 5 | 1 | 0 | 6 |
| Florida | 2 | 0 | 0 | 2 |
| Louisiana | 3 | 1 | 0 | 4 |
| Tennessee | 6 | 3 | 1 | 10 |
| Arkansas | 6 | 0 | 2 | 8 |
| Georgia | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| Mississippi | 3 | 1 | 0 | 4 |
| Total Engagements in CSA | 36 | 35 | 16 | 87 |
Engagements in Union states/territories:
| State | Union Victories | Confederate Victories | Inconclusive | Total Engagements |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Maryland | 3 | 0 | 1 | 4 |
| West Virginia | 9 | 3 | 2 | 14 |
| Missouri | 12 | 13 | 1 | 26 |
| New Mexico | 5 | 8 | 0 | 13 |
| Kentucky | 5 | 6 | 2 | 13 |
| Oklahoma | 1 | 3 | 0 | 4 |
| Total Engagements in Union | 35 | 33 | 6 | 74 |
| Total Engagements to date | 71 | 68 | 22 | 161 |
These three engagements bring total casualties to over 246,000 including over 29,000 killed in action.
Tomorrow's NYT will call this a "disgraceful" and "dishonorable affair."
In case anyone missed it, Johnny Green of the Orphan Brigade was there. His diary entries of Dec. 5-8 tell of his experience. See them in the Harper's Weekly threads for this and last week. Link provided at the former to the latter.
My maternal grandfather was a teenager during the Civil War. He lived in a house on the south side of the Potomac River a mile or so above Harpers Ferry. He wrote a 45 page family history that included his experiences during the war. The area was repeatedly occupied alternatively by both sides. In one case, a northern soldier fired across the river; the rifle bullet went through a front window of the house and hit a baby’s cradle on the back porch. He said he thought the soldier saw a flash of the sun on the window and thought he was being shot at. When working in the fields, if they heard a shot, they would run to get behind a tree because Maryland boys would shoot at them from across the river.
Our editors here refer to Confederate Vice President Alexander Stephens -- of the "Cornerstone Speech" fame -- as "Aleck", first time I've seen that name.
Some people refer to Jefferson Davis as old Jeff Davis, but I doubt if anyone ever called him "Jeff" to his face... could be wrong about that.
Anyway, this is a great editorial, making arguments I've made on these threads many times, but also some I never thought to make, this one in particular:
With characteristic rebel willfulness the rebel Vice-President mutilates and perverts the doctrine of the Declaration.
What he quoted was only part of the sentence.
The very next clause qualifies it so as absolutely to make the passage dead against him -- its language being, "Whenever any form of government becomes destructive of these ends (i.e., life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness,) it is the right of the people to alter or to abolish it."
The very crime of the Confederacy is that they have undertaken to destroy a Government which was not destructive of these ends; in other words, that they rebelled without necessity.
The whole body of the Declaration is taken up with a recital of the "long train of abuses and usurpations" which could gain no redress, and which left no recourse but revolutionary resistance.
In the judgment of our fathers, it was not enough that they desired a new Government; they had to show that the old Government was an insufferable engine of oppression.
The Declaration upholds revolution only as an extreme resort.
Its whole tenor is a recognition that nothing short of virtual necessity can justify resistance to established authority.
The right of revolution is like the right of taking life.
There is such a right, but only in an extreme case.
Self-preservation alone confers it.
For ALEXANDER H. STEPHENS and his fellow-criminals to plead the example of our fathers as a justification of their acts, is as brazen as it would be for a wanton murderer to plead the example of a mad who had used the knife to save his life.
The murderer might as decently appeal to the code on justifiable homicide, as these rebels to the Declaration on justifiable revolution."
In a way Stephens sort of embodies the often chaotic and disorganized nature of the Confederate cabinet. Absenteeism and truancy were rampant in the Confederate cabinet. So much so that it made often impossible for anything to get done.
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