Show THE CIVIL WAR general B T blew lew wallace and a gen e noe 1 eral mccook at shiloh OA W abc lr L r 1 t 7 since e the tha publication in the century J ot my article on the battle of shilon 11 I 1 have received from mrs NY it II L wal wallace lace widow of 0 the tha ea 0 gallant llant was killed lit in tile first days fight at that thai battle 1 tetter letter fro from to general lew wallace i to him bini dated tho the morning of the ath at tile tho date dale of una ibis letter it was veil rell known the confederates lad bid troops out along the mobile and ohio kail road west of crumps landin landing n and pittsburg landing and were also collect collecting ng near shiloh shi loli this letter show s that general lew wallace was making preparations for the emergency I 1 that might happen for tile the passing of re rc beleen beaw acu ecu sho and nd his 9 position on extending from crumps 1 landing westward es isido and ho he sends tho tha letter t over alv the ron road I 1 run running liln c from adamsville Adams ville to the pittsburg landing and arliese two r roads olds intersect tic nearly arly a 1 mile west of the crossing of the latter aier owl creel creek where our right rested lit in this letter general lew wallace advises general gener it 11 L wallace that he will send tomorrow and his letter also says april 5 which is tile the samo same d day ay the letter was dated and which therefore must ii have live been written on the lah ath some cavalry to report to him at his headquarters and su suggesting guestin tile the prop propriety biety of general IV W 11 II L Wal wallaces lacos sending der a coin company hack with them thein for the purpose of having tho the cavalry nt at tj the le two landings familiarize tit themselves em selves with the road so that they could net act promptly io in case of emergency as guides to and from tile tho different camps this modifies very in materially ateria lly what I 1 have said and what has icell been said by others of the conduct of general lew wallace at the battle of shiloh it shows that lie naturally with mill no more experience tit than an he had at tile the time in the profession of arms would talce take tile the particular road thit he dill did start upon in the absence of I 1 orders to move by a 1 dif differed feren the mistake lie io made and which probably caused his hiis apparent dilatoriness was hint of having bavine advanced sonic some distance after I 1 lie le had bad fo found und that the firenz which jillich would be 10 it at first directly to his front and tile off to tile alie left had fallen back until it had 0 got ot cy cry much in rear of alic position ll 11 of his advance tin this s falling back had taken place before I 1 sent general wallace orders to move up to pittsburg landing and naturally my order was to follow tile road nearest dearest tile the liver but my order was derbal and to ton it staff off officer licer who was to del deliver lve r it to general wallace so that I 1 am ain not lot competent to say just what aliat liat order the general actually rec received ched general wallaces division was stationed the arst brigade 0 fit at crumps landin landing the second out two miles and the third two slid and a half miles out hearing the sounds of battle general walace wallace early ordered the first aud anti third brigades 0 to corice concentrate on oil the second if tile position tid of our front bad biad not changed tile road which wallace took would have ave been somewhat shorter bporter to our right than the river roid road lit in this article I 1 state stale that general 3 It Cook who inho commanded a division of brells buells study aimy expressed some ill unwillingness A to pursue tile the enemy on oil monday sy aprill 7 because of the condition of ilk troops general Genc ril in hit history also malca the same ata statement telli ent on oil my authority out of justice it to general I 1 mccook and liis his command I 1 must say that they left a 1 point lucity t two 0 miles L cast of savannah on oil the llie morning of the gai front from the heavy rains of a few days previous and the passage of tr trains ains and artillery the 11 roads 0 ALIS were necessarily deep in mud which raade in I arching slow the division lind had not only marched mir marched ched through this mud dud the day before but it ha had 11 ll been ill in tile the rain all night night 0 without rest res it was engaged 0 in the ihu battle of the second alland da yand did as good service as its position po allowed in fact an opportunity occurred for it to perform a conspicuous ocl act of 0 gallantry tile the highest 0 commendations ions from division commanders in the army of tile tennessee general sherman ill ii both bolh his ili slid and reports makes mention of this fact general liim him se if belongs to a family which furnished bany many volunteers to the array I 1 refer to these with minuteness because I 1 lid did mccook injustice it in the alie article thou though 0 ii not to in au extent one would suppose froni from the public press I 1 am ain not willin willing to do auy ally one ODO an all in injustice justic and i ft it convinced that I 1 bae done dolle one I 1 am always willium willing to make inake the fullest addiss admission lot U S gita T lopint K N Y juno june 2 1685 1885 |