NEWS: Items from The Alleghanian, December 11, 1862, Cambria County, PA Contributed for use in the USGenWeb Archives by Patty Millich Copyright 2008. All rights reserved. http://www.usgwarchives.net/copyright.htm http://www.usgwarchives.net/pa/cambria/ _________________________________________ The Alleghanian, Ebensburg, Pa. Thursday, December 11, 1862 Volume 4, Number 11 Local Etchings Governor Curtin has appointed a Provost Marshal for every county in the Commonwealth, among the rest, Abraham Kopelin, Esq., of Johnstown for Cambria county. Our friend, Thomas D. Litzinger of Co. A, 11th Penna. Reserves who has been at home for some six weeks past left to rejoin his regiment last Saturday. Luck go with him! Corporal Elisha Foultz, Sergt. William A. Leavy and Francis A. Leavy, all of Co. A, 11th Penna. Reserves, have been discharged from service and arrived home. Sergt. Leavy was disabled by a wound received at the battle of Gaines' Hill, while the two others are incapacitated for service by reason of sickness. Joseph Shoemaker, of Johnstown, who was convicted at the late session of the United States Court at Pittsburg, for making and passing counterfeit coin, has been sentenced to pay a fine of $100 and undergo an imprisonment of five years in the Western Penitentiary. It is reported that an attempt will be made to procure a pardon for him from the President. We were favored with a visit on Tuesday from Lieut. John Porter of Co. A, 55th Pa. Vols., Col. Dick White, stationed near Port Royal, S. C. Lieut. P. has just arrived North from his command and reports the Cambria boys as a general thing in excellent health and spirits when he left. Owing to indisposition, he has been obliged to resign his commission. A grey eagle, measuring six feet six inches from tip to tip and three feet two inches from beak to end of tail was shot in Frankstown township, Blair county, one day recently. It was in the act of devouring a turkey when shot. So says the STANDARD. Which leads us to remark, friend Traugh that this may possibly have been the identical turkey which was to but didn't come to hand for your Thanksgiving dinner. Eh? Narrow Escape One day last week, Mr. Morris Peat, a worthy resident of this place made a most narrow escape from sudden death. It appears that some butchers were endeavoring to muzzle a huge bull in the outskirts of the town, preparatory to metamorphosing the same into an article of beef, when the animal became maddened at the operation and "charged" upon Mr. P. who happened to be passing at the moment on horseback. The animal struck the horse full in the side with his horns, inflicting so terrible a wound as to cause the entrails to protrude and precipitating Mr. P. to the ground. Strange to say, however, it failed to follow up its advantage and Mr. P. was enabled to get out of the way. He was but slightly bruised in what might have been a terrible casualty, fortunately resulted in something less. The horse, although badly hurt, will probably get well. Court The proceedings in the Quarter Session last week were mainly of a trivial and uninteresting character. Young Hartzell, charged with the murder of the Somerset mail boy near Johnstown last summer, - the particulars of which affair our readers no doubt remember - was acquitted. David Pugh, charged with the larceny of money and papers to the value of some six hundred dollars, the property of Mr. Hugh A. M'Coy was also found "not guilty." The attendance the second week has not been large. General Halleck's Report The report of the Commander-in-Chief of the armies of the United States, Major General Henry W. Halleck has been made public. That report is the most important document yet given to the American public. It is the history of the war on the Potomac and begins with General Halleck's visit of inspection and consultation to the Army of the Potomac at Harrison's Landing on July 25th, 27th. His object was, if possible, to cause an advance on Richmond from the James river, or if this was not possible, to unite the armies of M'Clellan and Pope for combined operations on some other lines. He relates that General M'Clellan at first required 50,000 additional men to attempt the assault of Richmond. He was informed that only 20,000 could be spared; offered to make the attempt with their increase, but when Gen. Halleck left him, once more changed his hand and telegraphed that he would require 35,000, a number which he already knew it was impossible to send. As General M'Clellan thus gave up, in effect, the attempted assault on Richmond from the James, he was ordered on July 30 to prepare for a removal of his army to Acquia Creek. General Burnside ordered to the same point with his army on the 1st of Aug., reached it on the 3d. General M'Clellan ordered on the 3d of August to withdraw his whole army, sent a protest on the 5th of August dated at noon on the 4th. To this it seems General Halleck replied with what will appear to many singular mildness, next day, the sixth; and not till eight days after he had received the order for moving his army, did Gen. M'Clellan begin to obey. Meantime the rebels were pressing Pope. On the 11th, six days after M'Clellan had been ordered to move - the battle of Cedar Mountain was fought. Dispatches captured showed that the whole rebel army was moving towards Pope, who was ordered to fall back. Though the army of the Potomac was so long delayed, yet General Halleck reports that on the 27th of August there was "every prospect that Jackson would be destroyed before reinforcements could come to his relief." M'Clellan's army had [word faded] arrived at Alexandria. Hooker and Kearny were already with Pope. Heintzelman also came into action the next morning; but Fitz John Porter "ordered to be at Bristow's Station of the morning of the 28th," "for some unexplained reason did not comply with the order, and his corps was not in the battles of the 28th and 29th," the decisive battles of that campaign. General Halleck complains that some of the corps of the Potomac army behaved very badly. On the 3d of September Pope brought his army within the defenses of Washington where it came under command of M'Clellan. He was at this own request relieved. Thus ended this movement of which General Halleck makes his simple but pregnant remarks: "Had the Army of the Potomac arrived a few days earlier, the rebel army could have been easily defeated and perhaps destroyed." But the reader of the report will remark that, had General M'Clellan promptly obeyed orders, instead of frittering away eleven precious days, the Army of the Potomac would certainly have "arrived a few days earlier." Order to Cross the Potomac The following is a copy of the official dispatch from General Halleck to General M'Clellan ordering him to cross the Potomac and pursue the defeated enemy after the victory at Antietam: Washington D. C. October 6, 1862 MAJOR GENERAL M'CLELLAN: I am instructed to telegraph you as follows: The President directs that you cross the Potomac and give battle to the enemy or drive him South. Your army must move now while the roads are good. If you cross the river between the enemy and Washington and cover the latter by your line of operations, you can be reinforced with thirty thousand men; if you move up the valley of the Shenandoah not more than twelve or fifteen thousand can be sent you. The President advises the interior line between Washington and the enemy but does not order it. He is very desirous that your army move as soon as possible. You will immediately report what line you adopt and when you intend to cross the river; also at what point the reinforcements are to be sent. It is necessary that the plan of your operations be positively determined on before orders are given for building bridges and repairing railroads. I am directed to add that the Secretary of War and the General-in- Chief fully concur with the President in these instructions. [Signed] H. W. Halleck, Commander-in-chief