Life and campaigns of General Robert ELee . having nothing else left for him, General Grant was forced toabandon the campaign, and seek a new base and a new sceneof operations south of the James. The losses in the campaign were very great. On the sideof the Confederates they amounted to about eighteen thousand,while the Federals lost sixty thousand men, — more than tenthousand above the total strength of Lees army.* Yet, in the face of all this, it is the habit of the majority ofwriters on the Northern side to describe the campaign as suc-cessful for them. I can only say that a few more such s
Life and campaigns of General Robert ELee . having nothing else left for him, General Grant was forced toabandon the campaign, and seek a new base and a new sceneof operations south of the James. The losses in the campaign were very great. On the sideof the Confederates they amounted to about eighteen thousand,while the Federals lost sixty thousand men, — more than tenthousand above the total strength of Lees army.* Yet, in the face of all this, it is the habit of the majority ofwriters on the Northern side to describe the campaign as suc-cessful for them. I can only say that a few more such suc-cesses would have brought the Union cause to total ruin. Before passing to the narration of the movements which fol-lowed the battle of Cold Harbor, I must ask the readersattention to matters in other quarters, bearing immediatelyupon this campaign. VI. THE CAMPAIGN IN THE VALLEY. The reader will remember that a part of General Grantsprogramme was for General Crook to move through South- * Campaigns of the Army of the Potomac, p. 490 LIFE OF GENERAL LEE, ment. He then attempted to plant his army between Lee andRichmond at Spottsjlvania Court House. In this he wasfoiled, and every effort to drive Lee from the line which barredthe advance of the Federal army was repulsed with loss. Theflank movement upon the North Anna was made only to findthe Southern army in position across the Federal line of marchagain. The renewed effort to outflank Lee by way of thePamunkey also failed, and the last great effort to force thepassage of the Chickahominy at Cold Harbor was thwarted,and made at the terrible cost of thirteen thousand men. Then,having nothing else left for him, General Grant was forced toabandon the campaign, and seek a new base and a new sceneof operations south of the James. The losses in the campaign were very great. On the sideof the Confederates they amounted to about eighteen thousand,while the Federals lost sixty thousand men, — more than tenthousand above the
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