HANGING IN THE BALANCE.





HERE, my son, is an exact portrait of the general who fought the
great battle of Gettysburg. When he had rested his army a sufficient
time he began moving in pursuit of the enemy. The rebel general fell
back into old Virginia, taking his time as he went along, and being
in no temper to hasten his steps. In short, we followed him back
timidly to Orange Court House, where he made a settlement for the
winter. There was a good deal of small fighting done during the
autumn and winter, but neither side seemed to gain any advantage.
The fate of war hung in the balance. If we gained an advantage one
day, the enemy would do something to offset it on the next. This
state of things was a source of great grief to the nation. The
people wanted something more positive for the great amount of life
and treasure they were wasting. They called for more earnestness and
more resolution on the part of our generals, and a better system of
carrying on the war on the part of the authorities at Washington.
So, my son, the people's impatience was at length heeded, and when
spring came (I mean the spring of 1864), and the people were weary
of the war, and demanded a change in the policy of conducting it, so
that an end be put to it as speedily as possible, the government
began to wake up to its duty. We had fought battles for two years
and hung the nation in mourning, and still Washington was as often
in danger as Richmond. Indeed, the fortune of war seemed in favor of
Richmond. Then the government began to see that if we would gain
victories our armies must be commanded by soldiers, not politicians.