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CH. I.]

BURNSIDE'S GENERAL ORDER.

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ed; both were readily to be obtained; ment; and certain noisy politicians and

both were obtained; and despite more or less of factious opposition, and sympathizing with secession and its destructive purposes, the work went bravely on. Conscious of rectitude and of the perfect justice of their cause, the people, as a body, never wavered, never admitted a thought of giving up, never faltered in urging forward the war to its conclusion.

In this position of affairs, and actuated by these principles and views of duty, the government steadily sought to render the army and navy as efficient as possible, and through the able and energetic officers and men to attack and subdue the rebel strongholds, and places occupied by them, so soon as the work could be accomplished.

Burnside, who had been succeeded by Hooker in command of the Army of the Potomac, at the close of January, 1863, (see p. 244), was put in charge of the department of the Ohio, on the 26th of March following. This department comprised the states of Ohio, Michigan, Indiana, Illinois, Western Virginia, and Kentucky east of the Tennessee River, including Cumberland Gap, with headquarters at Cincinnati. The position was an important one, and by no means easy to fill. It required nerve, decision, and activity, all of which Burnside was thought to possess. The southern borders of Kentucky were alive with those pests of the war, the guerrillas, and the state itself was again seriously threatened with invasion. There were, too, in this department, considerable disaffection and lukewarmness towards the govern

sympathizers with secession were doing all in their power to annoy, and vex, and hinder the efforts which were being put forth to break down the rebellion. These were comparatively few in number, it is true, but they were bold, loud-mouthed, and unscrupulous; and it was deemed a matter of duty to apply the proper remedy.

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1863

On the 13th of April, Burnside issued his general order, No. 38, which was expressed in very decided terms: "The commanding general publishes for the information of all concerned, that hereafter, all persons found within our lines, who commit acts for the benefit of the enemies of our country, will be tried as spies or traitors, and, if convicted, will suffer death. The habit of declaring sympathies for the enemy will not be allowed in this department. Persons committing such offences will be at once arrested, with a view to being tried as above stated, or sent beyond our lines into the lines of their friends. It must be distinctly understood that treason, expressed or implied, will not be tolerated in this department; all officers and soldiers are strictly charged with the execution of this order."

The warning contained in the docu ment just given was significant, and clearly evinced the determination of the government. An opportunity for the application of Burnside's order speedily occurred. There was in Ohio, at this date, a number of gentlemen who were styled, or styled themselves, " peace democracy." Prominent among these was C. L. Vallandingham, a member of

the Circuit Court of the United States for the writ of habeas corpus. A letter from Burnside was read in court, setting forth the considerations which led him to make the arrest, after which Vallandingham's counsel made a long and able argument on the case. The writ was refused, and Burnside's course was justified on the ground of military necessity.

Congress from Ohio. He had made himself conspicuous at Washington for persistent efforts to hinder, obstruct, and carp at the proceedings and views of the government in regard to measures for suppressing the rebellion; and being now at home he indulged himself in public speaking in various parts of Ohio. He was one of those who, under claim of privilege fairly to discuss and review public proceedings, On the 16th of May, the military took occasion to denounce the govern- commission, of which Gen. R. B. Potment in unmeasured terms; he declar- ter was president, found Vallanding. ed, in a public speech, that the war ham guilty of the charge brought was “wicked, cruel, and unnecessary," against him, and sentenced him to close "not being waged for the preservation confinement till the end of the war. of the Union," but "for the purpose Mr. Lincoln changed the sentence to of crushing out liberty and erecting a transportation through the Union lines despotism;" characterizing Burnside's Vallandingham was handed over to the order, No. 38, as "a base usurpation rebels under Bragg, and finally made of arbitrary authority," and inviting his way to Canada.*

resistance to it by saying, "the sooner In the further carrying out the rethe people inform the minions of usurp-pressive policy in his department,. ed power that they will not submit to Burnside, on the 1st of June, prohibit such restrictions upon their liberties ed the circulation, within the limits of the better." his jurisdiction, of certain newspapers, This course of conduct was held to which, in his judgment, were quite as be so inexcusable, and so injurious to active in doing mischief, and quite as the effective prosecution of the war necessary to be restrained, as popular against the rebels, with whom Vallan-speakers like Vallandingham and others.† dingham evidently strongly sympathiz- Prominent among these was the New ed, and whose traitorous designs he York World, whose articles and opincertainly favored, that Burnside took ions, it was alleged, tended "to cast steps at once for his arrest. The speech reproach upon the government, and to referred to above was made on the 1st of May, at Mount Vernon, Knox county, Ohio, and, on the night of the 4th of May, he was arrested by order of Burnside, at his residence at Dayton, carried to Cincinnati, and imprisoned. The next day, Vallandingham applied, through his counsel, Senator Pugh, to | Corps," pp. 265—277.

*We may state, in this connection, that Vallanding. ham was nominated by his political friends for gover nor of Ohio, and much use was made, in his behalf, of

charges of cruelty, usurpation, etc., on the part of the John Brough was elected over Vallandingham by 100, government. At the election, however, in October, 000 majority. In June, 1864, Vallandingham was allowed to return to Ohio without hindrance.

+ See Woodbury's "Burnside and the Ninth Army

CH. I.]

THE REBEL AGGRESSIVE POLICY.

weaken its efforts to suppress the rebellion, by creating distrust in its war policy, and its circulation in war-time being calculated to exert a pernicious and treasonable influence." The publication of the Chicago Times was also, at the same time, ordered to be suppressed, "on account of the repeated expression of disloyal and incendiary sentiments." President Lincoln, in view of the great delicacy and difficulty of questions connected with the liberty of the press, revoked this order of Burnside, and the newspapers were allowed to go on their own way as usual.

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ber, and Burnside gladly took the requisite steps to secure their service at the earliest moment.

A movement upon East Tennessee was arranged between Gens. Burnside, Rosecrans, and Thomas; and Burnside, on the 2d of June, proceeded to Lexington to take the field; but a dispatch from Washington, received that day, required him to send reinforcements to Grant, operating against Vicksburg. As, by this order, some 8,000 men were taken from him, Burnside was reluct antly obliged to postpone, for a time, the intended movement into Tennessee.

It will be remembered by the reader, as was noted on a previous page (see p. 320), that the rebel leaders, at this date, thought that an aggressive policy would be better for their interests than the one they were pursuing. In accordance with this view, Lee, as we have seen, invaded Maryland and Pennsylvania, with high hopes and expectations. A similar desire for making inroads into the loyal states was felt in other

Burnside, on assuming command of the department, felt the necessity of an increase of force, to enable him to accomplish the work of establishing and maintaining order and efficiency, as well as to secure the deliverance of East Tennessee. At his earnest request, two divisions of the 9th corps, then in camp at Newport News, were sent to him. By the aid of these he was able to do something towards checking Pe-quarters, and a plan was laid by the gram's movements in Kentucky. Burnside's line of defence was necessarily long, and had various weak points in it. Troops were posted in localities offering most favorable means of guarding the line and repressing the enemy; and the lines of railroads, leading to the extreme front in Western Kentucky and Tennessee, then held by Rosecrans, were watched and protected with great care. Still, Burnside was painfully conscious that his available force was inadequate for the work to be done. Congress had authorized the organization of a body of troops in Kentucky, 20,000 in num

rebels to break through our lines in Western or Central Kentucky, cross the Ohio, plunder the southern tier of coun ties of Indiana and Ohio, and either escape into West Virginia, or make a bold march through Pennsylvania and join Lee in his invasion of the North. The leader of the projected expedition was the noted rebel raider, John H. Morgan, a man excellently adapted for this kind of work, by his dashing energy and skill, and his utter lack of scrupulousness in seeking to attain his ends. This famous raid was remarkable in the annals of the war for the reckless

zeal with which it was prosecuted, the to the houses. The town was sacked wanton destruction of life and property which attended it, and its ultimately complete failure.

Morgan's command having been strengthened by several picked regiments from Tennessee, his force being between 3,000 and 4,000 cavalry, with a battery of artillery, set out, on the 27th of June, from Sparta, Tennessee, and, by a rapid march, entered Kentucky, reaching the Cumberland in the vicinity of Jamestown. Here he was watched by a brigade of cavalry, with artillery, under Colonel Wolford, but managed, on the night of the 1963. 2d of July, to cross the river lower down, at Burkesville, the water being high, improvising a number of flats for the occasion. There was some skirmishing with the Union cavalry guarding the fords, and in the vicinity of Columbia, whither the enemy proceeded. Morgan then moved on Green River, where, on the morning of the 4th of July, he found his progress arrested at the turnpike bridge, by some 200 men of the 25th Michigan cavalry, under Col. Moore, in an entrenched position. An attack was made by Morgan, which, however, resulted in a repulse and very severe loss, especially of officers.

After this mishap, Morgan crossed above at New Market, and by the next morning reached Lebanon. He found the town garrisoned by a force of about 400 men, under Col. Hanson, who, stationing his troops in the depot and other buildings, kept up a contest of seven hours, but was at last obliged to surrender, the artillery having set fire

and Morgan's command freely supplied with arms and ammunition from the captured regiment. From Lebanon the enemy proceeded to Springfield, on their way toward the Ohio. At Bardstown, on the 6th of July, twenty men of the 4th United States cavalry were supris ed, and after defending themselves in a stable, while their ammunition lasted, surrendered. At Shepherdsville, on Salt River, Morgan stopped a passenger train from Louisville. Twenty soldiers in the cars were captured, and the express and mail matter, with the valu ables of the passengers, freely pillaged.

Passing through Lawrenceville, Mor gan and his men reached Brandenburg, on the Ohio, on the 7th of July, a place which, it was said, had many southern sympathizers among its inhabitants. There they were speedily enabled to cross the river into Indiana, by gaining possession of two steamboats which came along opportunely for their pur poses.

On the morning of the 8th of July, the crossing commenced on the two boats. There was some resistance offer ed to their passage by a company of home guards, with a single gun, from Leavenworth, in the vicinity, on the Indiana shore. The party, however was speedily overpowered when Mor gan's advance landed. The guards were cut up or captured, and their Parrot gun taken. On the morning of the 9th, Morgan's entire force was landed on the Indiana shore.

The Union troops, which were gather ing on the track of Morgan in full pur suit-Colonel Wolford, with his brigade

CR. L.]

MORGAN'S RAID AND FLIGHT.

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from Jamestown, joining Gens. Hobson for two weeks, Morgan, by his boldness and Shackelford at Springfield-arrived and skill, managed to keep ahead of his at Brandenburg just after the crossing pursuers, traversing the highways of of Morgan. Hobson was in command, Indiana and Ohio, and ravaging some his entire force of Kentucky and Ohio of the best of the southern portions of cavalry and mounted infantry, with a those states. howitzer battery and section of artil Fleeing with all speed through the lery, numbering about 3,000. Gen. south-eastern counties of Indiana, haJudah's division was also summoned rassed meanwhile by the militia along from Southern Kentucky, but not arriv- the road, Morgan more than once ating in Louisville till after Morgan had tempted to find a crossing back into crossed the Ohio, was sent up the river Kentucky; but was in every case bafin boats to intercept the rebels on their fled. After a brief rest in Harrison, he retreat. Hobson immediately crossed crossed the state line into Ohio, July the river at Brandenburg, landing his 13th, burning the bridge over the White force on the Indiana side before dawn Water River behind him. Some apof the 10th of July. The rapid and prehensions were felt at Cincinnati, serpent-like movements of Morgan, now owing to exaggerated accounts of Morthat the pursuers were upon his track, gan's force; but he had no intention of were desperate efforts to escape, rather visiting that city. Passing through than any settled plan of invasion. Glendale, Springdale, and other towns, allowing his men only time enough to ravage in every direction, and seize upon all the horses within reach, he crossed the Miami River at Miamiville, at which time our troops were only four hours behind him. A portion of Morgan's force endeavored, on the 14th of July, to reach the Ohio by way of Batavia, but did not succeed. Onward dashed Morgan and his men, now al most desperate; onward pressed our determined cavalry, despite the serious inconvenience arising out of the rebels having carried off the fresh horses, and left the jaded ones behind. Day and night the pursuit was kept up. Judah led his column along the roads nearest the Ohio; Hobson and Shackelford pressed forward by roads farther from the river; while the gun boats on the Ohio were on the alert, and gave the

The alarm speedily became general. No one knew when or where, with any precision, the bold raider would strike; but all were well aware that complete ruin, burning, robbery, pillage, and such like, followed in his train. Gov. Morton, of Indiana, called the people of the state to arms, and the response was universal. In Ohio, Gov. Tod was equally on the alert.

1863.

Large war meetings were held at Columbus, Ohio, and Indianapolis, Indiana. At Louisville, Kentucky, on the recommendation and under the direction of Gen. Boyle, measures were taken to organize the citizens to resist the enemy. At Cincinnati, Gen. Burnside was in consultation with the authorities, providing for the defence of the city. Troops were being gathered on all sides to resist or intercept the invaders. Yet,

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