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L. DARPED,EDITOD. AND PROP-RIETOR
PITTSBURGH:
SATURDAY MORNING, MAY 6
TjlE. VOICE OF. PENNSYLVANIA!
FOR. PRESIDENT,
.J.AXES . I3 of VCIIANAN,
su k frct to the derision the National Convention
IDERIOcRATIC ELECTORAL TICKET.
*7"
SENATORIAL ELECTORL
WaLtilig BIGLER. of Clenrfield
DAVID D. Wratrama. of Northampton,
EEPRICHLPITATIVE ELECTORS.
I. lizicitt L. BENNER, Philadelphia County
-,- • . U. Hoart It. Ktruisi' Au City.
pII. Irmael3norinc, do County
' '''' 0 • ' IV.A. IL.,itCHIMPORT. do do
.: '- , ' %. JACOB S. Yosr; Mont gotnery uo
: - • VI. Rosy= E. INratoirr. Lehigh do
•
VII. ill'n.zurs W. Dowstmo, Chemter do
VIII. ENRY HALDEMAN,II
.I.l.;lslilep do
... IX. P asse KLurz. Berk' do
- ,-,:.'' • - I C. BEELNAEDS. SCHOONOVER. MOIHNHII do
I..Wit.SWETLAND. Wyoming do
.•
XII. JONAH BREWSTER. Ttogn do
XIII. Jolla C.. - Iklmo.', Clinton do
, . • '.
XI V. JOHN WEIDMAN. I.rhanon do
- ".- • •-... XV. ROVERT J. VOSHER. York do
' - ' ':XVI. FRIEDFIIICE SMITH. Franklin do
'' .. ~.. --., XVII. /nun Cittswkii, llontingdou do
--, ~,..X VIII. CHARLES A. BLACK, Greene do
. -• XIX. thrthltriE W. Itowur.N. Bedford do
N.C. Join R SdAvrov Beaver do
' ' ' XXI. GIO/Mal: P. HAMILTON. Allegheny do
, ", XXII. W. 11. Dem, Crawford do
' , XXIII. Thiorttr Ivan, Potter do
...XXIV. JAmss G. CAMPBELL, Butler do
- --
FOR CANAL COMMISSIONER,
~- .IBRAE.L PAINTER,
Of Westimwebrnd County.
WY — :THIS PAPER. THE LAI'S OF TIIE UNITED
STATES. TREATIES. WESOLUTTONS OF CON
GRESE,.tc.. ARE PUBLTSHF:D BY AUTHORITY.
fitd.ritintt Post Sob - Printing Office,
EX)llNkfi. OF IVCIOD AND FIFTY STREETS.
;E:r Sea advertisvnaent on the first tinge.
117".. Artretti, art rm. Aved to hood is
. theit:farors before
o'tiet.k. P. M. Thin :ante he eon, olinf 'tuft. erden to in
't: 7-itltrt an bltrrtion. When it is possibk, an ersrriin . hour would
- ptSferna.-
• .
r.. w. CARD. United Sintp• Newminper Agertry
Son BniMora.. N.. corner of Third mid Dock streets,
rind .100 North Fihrrth street—iii cuff 011 i y authorised Agent
fir Philadelphia.
Fingle copies of the Morning Post. may he had at
tho Store of Georce M Erisliin & Co.. N. E corner of
the Diamond and Ohio street. Allegheny City. !Over
lixements left there before 5 P. will be inserted the
',":lltattAdity..
ID- A largo number of Advertisements. new and old.
have been crowded ont of teeday's paper. We shall
muye all right hoes uer.
113` . Several annoying errors, occurred in our Bank
Nate Table. as published in yesterilay's paper. The
List,ris published this morning. will be found correct.
cr. The Order fur the ;Funeral Honors in behalf of
Com. 'Barney. I.iout. Porker, and S. D. Sewell, will ap
pear in Monday's paper.
C.. B. Psusoics.—Wc understand that this gentle
-triati-s-. formerly an actor of fame and llanag.cr of the
Viltiliorg'h Theatre fur one IWEISOll—who is now a Aletltt,
diet Trencher, located in T.outsville. is in this city. attend
thisittinza of the Conference. ,
The idnian of fire yeetcrday watt filler. We no
. Aited nn'llliigine called the "Clipper." 'Where did it
tonic from? Another like it, and the town would Le
geom! •
; ME. 31 At VI'S LETTER.
:We insert, to-day. to the exclusion of other matter, the
able Letter of the Secretary of War, in reply to a letter
Qm General Scott. dated Mexico on the 24th of Feb
. t ll2tltl last. This latter, we arc sure, will he read with
interest by every friend oftheAdministration. throughout
_:. ::Alto country. - It is a full. frink, fair nod manly defenee of
Fitosident and Secretary of Wor, ogainst all the petty
attacks which have been made upon them by their oppo
--- tient!„oti account of the state of our affairs, from time to
in Mexico atal certainly places Gen. Scott in no
enviable position.
tonsetwence of the. anqnalified bravery which he
throughout life. his long and faithful see
vied. in the army ; and the unbending love of country al
.
, ttansys evinced by hint ; we have felt reluctant, at any
'Airrta,pa niter a word, that mild be even unfairly eon
. strait:tint° a disparagement of lus merits, and his chatae
- lteens - ixtrton and an &Leer; but the position in which
qiii#ralScott has placed himself. thy his course from
early part of 1846. tip to t Ito date mentioned.) is such
, trarsiit'motild not have occupied by any art of his enrmics,
;wren admitting that there are those connected with the
• 7 . - ioneral administration who stand in that relation to hint,
vie/deb we deny. tic has maiiiiested. from the very be
' ';:ghtfiting of his hasty plate: of soup" correspondence, a
testiness, petty jealousy, and regard for the merest trifles.
„.110cizether beneath the exalted position of a veteran
commander t , and hos - magnified into personal hostilities,
the administration,' which none but a quarrel
,
svoman Would ever have thought of a second
and which only such a one would have referred to.
If iir'svith profound regret see feel 'rolled on to write
Olins,"of,..ottefor whom we had ever felt genuine respect—
• of whom, front childhood, we lind ever entertained the
".: opinion—until the commencement of the
War Witti'Mexieo showed him to possess traits of charae
:', iiiiknown to' any truly great, magnanimous and noble
• mind.. But, because Gen. Scott has served his country
falthfully,'lwa are not bound to magnify his foibles—the
littleness he has displayed—into virtue ; nor to condemn
s • iit4#o,: . *:hose patriotism stands as unquestioned as his,
~.ziterely to gratify his whims, or through tear of ()Gliding
There arc men still in the country as iudis
',.*iiiittbleio her prosperity as Gen. Scott can ever ; and
;1000 we, ould not do lion any inju.tice, we are equally
stetsvilling that they shall he unjustly assailed by him and
f'lliteSpecial political friends, merely because, by a possi
:. „lop, they may be called on to vote for his elevation to a
ldgher'odtce than that which he now occupies.
':Artitinsert this letter as au olf-set to that of that of Gen.
. I . ,,,ficent,viiiieb was given by,our neighbors of the Gazette,
• .atiewtlaya since, lied they been disposed to publish the
Sieretary Marcy, we would have presented to
.. ,.-tenders that of Gen. Scott also : but they declined
doing ;' and we ,therefute give the fetter of Mr. Morey
We would remark, however, that a full idea of
of, bell. Scott into be obtained from the letter of
'"Arpiaretary of War. .1 '
r _ k ire
, m 'Off
arey s Letter.
.WAR DEPARTRENT,
Washington, April 21, 1848.
it would not be respectful to you to pass on
your extraordinary letter of the 24th of
Falun:try, nor just to myself to permit it to remain
unanswered. on the files of this department.
'To attempt to.dispel the delusions which you seem
-to have long pertinaciously cherished, and to cor
. rect . the errors into which you have fallen, devolves
upon me a duty which 1 must not decline; but,.in
preforming,it, I mean to be as cautious, as you pe
--
fen to have been, to abstain from any "wanton dis
courtesy;" and I hope to be alike successful. Your
prudent respect for the - 4 3 th article or war" has in
duced you to hold me ostensibly responsible fur
many things which you are aware are not fairly
• eh trgeable to me. The device you have adopted to
assail the President, by aiming your blows at the
Secetary of War, does more credit to your ingenuity
7 . . • ss in accuser, than to your character as a soldier.--
4pretuiditited contrivance to avoid responsibility
• does notigalicate an intent"' not to do wrong.
.;•_ The Vinare' aspect of your letter discloser aft
ititiUt design to create a belief that you were drawn
farth'frocu your quiet .position, in a bureau of this'
deparunent, and assigned to the command of our
•
armies in Mexico, fur the purpose of being sacrift
,.. ced,; and Oat ..to accomplish this end, "neglects,
diaaPpeiniments,-injuries, and rebukes" "were
ilititedu op-you, *llll the Deems try means of prose
•.•-'.eittlitif the lvar with success withheld; or, in other
'•:• • woirds, the•government, after preferring you to any
• tither of gallant generals within the range of its
elioice, had labored•to - frustrate -iti.oWn plans, to
bring derma upon its own armies, and involve itself
ia'ruiwand disgrace, for an object so uniinportant in
iti; bearing upon publiatifialrs. - -:A charge so entire •
ly preposterous; so Utterly repugnant to all the pro
: babilitiei of human conduct, calls for no refutation.
For other purposes than .te cOmbat this fondly
- . cherished chimera, it is proper.that I should notice
senie of your specific allegationit.,.. - .'
•It i s true , that,• , 4fter,you were designated for the
alumina. ot .our armiesi.the-Eresident was
that your departure should nil lie unheces
bUt.yoti,, wore not restricted, as you
".. L . , ,allige,t6 6 . , only , four:daye to make . , the necessary
preparations WathingLijll..: were, n ot 4;rd-eyed
. itOrat .Irittil•Ytin'lntilireptiOtid thatthese preparations
• dririaltilfaiciiitiPleted:th - atioutpreagnee here was
kingerretitiired.:-`Tieit,itisteed-or going di
ly to Mexico, you were permitted, at your OWlre're7
quest, t6lake a circuitous route through thltfiekrOrk*
and tberrs;•tOjrernitina few days., You dila at tie*:
York nwirly;he entire.weeki-xspifitot until the
of Decembnii (twenty sit dayol*(tei leaving Wahl,
ington,) veaclvNew .Orleans, *here riu •
-
w,,p,hl ha re iti;Seven days = ; if yieir had been
rr.tited to lake the ditect. r et:ie.-11ns ealicited:in- -
dolgence, by which your a - 04, w Orleans was
delayed nearly three weeks, is incompatible with
your allegation that you were allowed "only four-1
days at Washington where twenty might have been
most advantageously employed." This complaint I
has relation to facts within your own knowledge;
error, therefore, is hardly reconcilable with any
solicitude ti. beacccnrate. As this ia your opening
charge against the War; ;Department, and may be
regarded as indicative of 'those which follow, I shall
make the refutation of it still more' complete, for
the purpose ofshowing with what recklessnesoyou
have preformed the fuections of an accuser,
and
how little reliance, in the present state of yourfCel
jugs, can be placed on your memory. You are
the witness by whom your allegation is to he dis
proved. On the day ofyour departure from Wash
ington, you left with me a paper in your own hands,
writing, dated November 23,1846, with the follow:
ing heading:
"Notes suggesting topics to be embraced in the
Secretary's instructions to General S. drawn up
(in haste) at the requestofthe former.
From that paper I extract the following paragraph:
"I (the Secretary of War) am pleased to learn
from you (General Scott) that you have in a very
few days already through the general staff of the
army here, laid a sufficient basis for the purposes
with which)ou are charged, and that you now think
it beat to proceed at once to the southwest, in order
to organize the largest number of troops that can be
obtained in time for that most important Expedition"
—(the expedition against Vera Cruz.) -
Here is your own most explicit admission that
you represented to the Secretary of War, before
leaving NVashington ' that arrangements were so far
completeilt that you thought it best to proceed at once
to the army in Mexico; and yet yt,u make it your
opening Charge against the department, that you
were forced away to Mexico before you had time
fur necessary preparations.
I present the next charge in your own language:
"1 handed to you a written request that one of
three or our accomplished captains, therein named,
might be appointed assistant adjutant general, with
the-rank of major, for duty with me in the field,
and there was a vacancy, at the time, for one. My
request has never been attended to; and thus I h ave
had no officer of the Adjutant General's Departm ent
with me in the campaign. Can another instance be
cited of denying to a general-in-chief, in the field
at the head of a large army—or even a small one
—the selection of his chief of the staff—that is, the
chiefin the department of orders and correspon
dence?"
Were the case precisely as you have stated it to
be, you have given too much prominence, as a mat
ter of complaint, to the President's refiusal to be
controlled, in his exercise of the appointing power,
by your wishes. Had there been a vacancy such as
you mention fur "one of the accomplished captains"
you named, no one knows better than you do that
your request could out have been acceded to with
, out departing from the uniform Ole of select-on for
staff appointments, without violdting the right of
several officers to regular promotion, and offering an
indignity to all those who held the position of assis
tant adjutants general, with the rank of captain.—
The rule of regular promotion in the staff is as in
flexible, and has been as uniformly observed, as that
in the line. ' It must appear surprising that you, who
were so deeply "shocked and distressed" at the
suggestion of appointing, by authority of Congress,
a "citizen lieutenant general," or vesting the Presi
dent with power tkevolve the command of the
army on a major general without regard to priority
in the date ot his commission, should, in your first
request, after, being assigned to-command, ask the
President to disregard the rights of at least four of
as meritorious as "the three accomplished cap
tains" named by you. The President's views on
this subject undoubtedly differ from yours. His re
gard for the rights of officers is not graduated by
their rank. Those of captains and major generals
have equal value in his estimation, and an equal
claim to his respect and protection- I cannot ad
mit that it is a just ground of censure and rebuke a
gainst th” "head of the War Department" that the
President did not see fit, in order .to gratify your
feelings of rivoritism, to dieregeff the claims and
violate the rights of all the assistant adjutants gen
eral of the reek of captain thenla commission.
But, to far as it is'inatle a ground of complaint
and reproof, this is not the worst aspect of the case.
You aro entirely mistaken in the assertion that there
was then a vacancy in - the adjutant general's stair,
ith the rank of major, to which either of the cap
tains recommended by you could have been proper.
ly - appointed. There was no such vacancy. To
show the correctness of this statement, and to dem
onstrate your error, I appeal to the Army Register
and the records of the Adjutant General's Office.—
Your mistake as to an obvious fact, lying within the
range of matters with which you are presumed to
be familiar, has excited less surprise than the dec
laration, that by the non compliance with your re
quest, you "have had no "officer of the Adjutant
General's Department with mc" [youj in the cam
paign." Cvery officer of that department—at least
eight—was, as you well knew, subject to your com
mand. When you arrived in Mexico, there were
with the army at least five assistant adjutants gener
al, all at your -service. That you chose to employ
none of them at your headquarters, and detached
from other appropriate duties an officer to act as an
assistant adjutant general, may well be regarded as
a slight to the whole of that staff then with you in
Mexico, and a cause of complaint; but certainly not
a complaint to emanate from you against the War
Department. Willing as lam to presume, though I
unable to conceive, that circumstances justified you
in passing over all the assistant adjutants general
then with the army, and in selecting an officer of
the line to perform the duties or anjutant general at
your headquarters, I was much surprised to learn
from you that, when General Worth sent to you one
of these "accomplished captains," the first on your
list, under the belief that you desired his services
as an acting assistant adjutant general, you declined
to employ him in that capacity; and I am still more
surprised to perceive that you have made it a distinct
;pound of charge in your arraignment of the War
Department, that you were not permitted to have
him as an assistant adjutant general at yourheadquar
tern. Had you , selected hint instead of another, as
you might have done, you would have been bereft
of all pretext for crimple nt. Though there was no
vacancy in the Adjutant General's staff of the grade
of major, fur which only you recommended the"ac
complished captains;" and to which, only, they
were properly eligible; there was a vacancy in it of
the rank of captain. For this piqiition you recom
mended an officer in General Wool's staff, then on
the Chihuahua expedition. This officer was subse
quently appointed asristant adjutant general with
the rank of captain, as you desired, and has ever
since been at the headquarters of that general.—
Tim it will be - perceived that your request, so far as
it was proper and reasonable, was actually complied
with.
The next specification in the catalogue of charges
preferred against me, is that a court-martial was not
instituted by the President for the trial of General
Marshall and Captain Montgomery on your charges
against them. The offences imputed to them were
certainly not of an aggravated character. The one,
as was alleged, had been incautious in relation to a
certain despatch under circumstances that might ad
mit of its coming to the knowledge of the enemy,
and the other had not carried e- despatch with as
much expedition as you thought he might have done.
As one was a general officer, a court to try him must
have been composed of officers of high rank. Be
fore the order for assembling it could have reached
Mexico, it was foreseen that your command would
be at Vera Cruz, and probably engaged in active
siege of that city. Officers could not, therefore,
have been then sent from your column to Monterey
or the Rio Grande, (where the court must have
been held,) without great detriment to the public
service. Had you been deprived of several officers
of high rank at that critical period by order of the
President, it would have afforded a better pretence
of complaint than any One in your extended cata
logue. Had the court been composed of officers
taken from General Taylor's command, it would
still further have weakened his condition, already
weak.in consequence of the very large force you
had withdrawn from him. Subsequent events have
proved that it was most fortunate the President did
not comply with your request, for had he done so,
some of the officers highest in rank, and most con
spicuous at Buena . Vista, might, at that critical con
r
critical-con
juncture,
e d e
e te n r g e ;g h e e d o n have
b ee a
;ut sepa rated
t f
distance
„jowl scone of action. It in not fanciful to suppose
that their absence might have c ha nge d
of that eventful day 4 and that, instead.of rejoicing,'
as we now do, in a triumphatit . tic! o ry--amonir the
moat brilliant in the whole emzrae ,
might have had to lament a most disastrous 41'4t,.
and the almost‘total.loss orthe whole force you had
!elite sustain that froutier. ;tiro man has more reason
to rejoice than you_that_no order,came from Wash
ington, though requested by youi.whickweeM have
further impaired the efficiency. of General Taylor's
command in the crisis that then awaited him.
My letter of 14e . 22d February, conveying . the
President's views in :regard to your Order de rising
Colonel Harney of his. appropriate command, is se-:
verely arraigned by ,you as offensive, both in man
ner-DTI matter. .
The:, facts in.. relation to this case of alleged griey-
Juice are now - before the public; and a brief rillosion
6 theni frill , place,the"tiatisaeLori in, its titielight.
[Snider your. orders (Mosel Harney hail bit:ought
companievothis'regiment—.rtheld dragoons
from Monterey to the Brazos, to be under your.
"%mediate command; ; and two othara-zaleing as of
the regiment in Mexico—were expected to follOw
within a few daye.,:itto.lie tnidst.efhisliigh %pee
and ardent desire for tretivenervielir YililiAutkrroni
him the command of his own - ; - fregleieet;devedved it
. on one or his junior. officers, and Oidered - hinx back
th General Tayleraline.tO 'Onk file Whitt was 'net in
appropriately denominatedimaginary corn.
mend." Outraged in - hisfeelings and inirued in. his
rights, he respectfully rentonstrated ; his appeal to
your sense of justice was unavailing. Neither to
this gallant officer nor to the President, did yOu as
sign any sufficient or even plow-Bile reason for this
extraordinary proceeding. 'The whole army, I be
lieve, and the whole country, when the transaction
became known entertained but one opinion on the
subject— and that was, that you had inflicted an in
jury and nn outrage upon a brave and meritorious
officer. Such an act—almost the first of your as
suming command—boded disastrous consequences
to the public service, and devolved upon the Prest
deut the duty of interposing to protect the injured
officer. This interposition you have made grave
matter of accusation against the head of the War
Department, and have characterized it as a censure
and a rebuke. It may imply both, and still, tieing
merited, may leave you without a pretence for com
plaint. The President, after alluding to his duty, to
sustain the rights of the officers under your com
mand, as well as your own rights, informed you
that he did not discover in the case, as you had pre
sented it, sufficient cause fur such an order; that,
111
in his opinion, Col-Harney hada just cause to com
plain; and that he hoped the matter had been re
considered by you, and the Colonel restored to his
appropriate command. Your own subsequent course
in this case demonstrates the unreasonableness of
your complaint, and vindicates the correctness of
the President's proceedings. You had really re
buked and censured your own conduct; for even
before you had received the President's views, you
had, as he hoped you would, reconsidered the mat
ter, become convinced of your error, reversed your
own order, and restored Col. Harney to his com
mand ; thus giving the strongest evidence in favor
of the propriety and correctness of all the President
had done in the case. I give you too much credit
for steadiness of purpose, to suspect that you re
traced your steps from mere caprice, or for any oth
er cause than a conviction you had fallen into error.
After the matter had thus terminated, It appears un
accountable to me that you, who above all others
should wish it to pass into oblivion, have again call
ed attention to it, by making it an item in your ar
raignment of the War Department.
You struggle in vain to vinvicate your coarse in
this case, by referring to your own acts in the cam
paign of 1844. You then sent away, as you allege,
againt their wishes," three senior field officers eras
" many regiments who were infirm, uninstruded,
" and indfrient, in favor of three juniors, and with
" the subsequent approbation of Major General
" Brown, - and the head of the War Department."
This precedent does not, in my judgment, change
the aspect of the present case. Colonel Harney was
not "infirm, uninstructed, and inefficient;" you did
not assign, and, in deference to the known opinion
of the army and country, you did not venture td as
s'gn, that reason for deposing him. Ido not under
stand the force of your logical deduction, that .
be
cause you, on a former occasion, had deprived of
ficers under you of their commands for good and
sufficient reasons, with subsequent approval, you
may now and at any time, do the same thing without
any reason whatever; and if the President interpo
ses to correct the procedure, you have a just cause
to complain of an indignity, and a right to arraign
the War Department.
As your animadversion upon the tone of my lever
is probably not a blow aimed at a much more con
spicuous object, to be reached through me, 1 ought,
perhaps to pass it without notice. On revision of
that letter, I cannot perceive that it is riot entirety
respectful in manner and language. The views of
the President are therein confidently expressed, be
cause they were confidently entertained. It seems
to be sidelined by you, that "if dictated to the green
est general of the recent appointments,” the letter
would not have been exceptionable. I was not aware
that it was my duty to modify and graduate my style,
lo as to meet, according to your fastidious views,
the various degrees of greenness and ripeness of the
generals to whom 1 am required to convey the orders
of the Preaident; and fur any such defect in my of
ficial communicatienn ',hat e uo apolegy to offer,
In the same letter wherein you complain of being
censured for your course in relation to Col. Harney,
you say: "lam now rebuked for the unavoidable—
" nay, wise, if it had not been unavoidable—release,
" on parole, of the prisoners taken at Cerro Genie,
" even before one word of commendation from guy.
ernment had reached this army on account of its
" gallant conduct in the capture of those tironets.r ,
Accident alone— not any oversight or neglect on my
part—bas given you the apparent advantage • f the
aggravation which you have artfully thrown into this
charge. My letter commenthug yourself and the
gallant army under your command for the glorious
achievement at Cerro Gordo, was written and sent
to you on the Ifith of May—eleven days before that
which you are pleased to consider as containing a
rebuke.
But I meet the main charge with a positive denial.
You were never rebuked for discharging the prison
ers taken at Cerro Gordo. Thi■ issue can be tried
by the record. All that was ever said on the sub
ject is contained in the following extract from my
letter of the 31st of Blast
" Your course hithereo, in relation to prisoner. of
war, both mon and officers, in discharging them on
parole, has been liberal and kind; but whether it
ought to be still longer continued, or in some re
spects changed, has been under the consideration of
the President, and be has directed me to comment=
cate to tou his views on the subject. He is not un
aware of the great embarassment their detention, or
the sending of them to the United States, would oc
casion, but, so far as relates to the officers, he thinks
they should be detained until duly exchanged. In
that case, it will probably be found expedient to
send them, or most of them to the United &etc..—
You will not, therefore,except for special reasons
in particular cases, discarge the officers whe may
be taken prisoners, but detain them Withjeu,or send
them to the United States, as you shall deem most
expedient."
If I understand the force of terms, there is no
thing in this language which by fair interpretation,
can be made to express or imply a rebuke. I cannot
conceive that any mind, other than one of a diseas
ed sensitiveness, over anxious to discover causes for
complaint and accusation, 'could imagine that any
thing like a rebuke was contained in this extract;
yet on this substantial basis alone rents the charge,
over and over again presented, that you were re
buked by the War Department for discharging the
prisoners captured at Cerro Gordo. If, in a case
where it was so easy to be right, and so thirteen to
get wrong, you could fall into such an obvious mis
take, what may not be expected from you in other
matters where your perverted feelings have a freer
and a wilder range?
Before considering your complaints for not having
been supplied with sufficient means of trensporta.
tion for the expedition against Vera Cruz, I will no.
tice your" four memorials to the War Department,
in which you demonstrated, as you state, that "Vera
" Cruz wee the true basis of operations, and that the
"
enemy's capital could not probably be reached
" from the Rio Grande."
I cannot discover the pertinacity of your allusion
to these four memorials, except it be to put forth a
claim to the merit of originating the expedition
against Vera Crux, and of being the first to discover
that the most practicable route to the city of Mexico
was from that point on the gulf; but your known
abhorrence for a " prurity of fame not earned,"
ought to shield you from the suspicion . of such an
infirmity.
I am sure you are not ignorant of the fact—but if
you are, it is neverthelesi true—that the expedition
against Vera Cruz had been for some time under
consideration ; that gloat pains had been taken to
get information as to thedelences of the city, the
strength of the castle, and the difficulties which
would attend the debatcation of troops; that maps
had been procured and carefully examined; that
persons who had resided there, and officers of the
army and navy, had been consulted on the subject,
and the enterprise actually resolved on before the
date of your first memoir, and before you were
thought of to conduct it.
As early as the 9th of July, 1846, within two
months after the declaration Of war, and before the
main body of troops raised for its prosecution had
reached the 'Scene of operations, coosiderate atten
tion had bean given.to that subject. Oa that day,
a letter from this department to General Taylor thus
alluded to a movement from Vera Cruz into the in•
terior of the enemy's country :
If, from all the information which -Yon-,-may
communicate to this department; as well actimede
rived from other sources, it should appear that the,
difficulties and - obstacles ter the conducting a. cato.
paigti -, from the Rio Grande, the present bite Of
your Opeiations,:lbieny ionsiderable distance..into
the interior lir Mexico , will be 401 . great,'thivde- -
partment,will consider whether:: ther.ruale
should not ultimately. take .place.:from , sorne point
on the coast—say; Atztrica, or stwool'other taint - 4i=
the vicinity of Vera Crux. -This suggestion is made
with a view, to call yntir'stiention„ta.it,,and-l„opti:
min Rum you such informitiottai you May too able
to impart. Should it be determined that theresie .
*rely should invade Mexico , at some other point
than the Rio Grende—say th e -vici n ity . or yens c rux
sufficient—a large-and number of tr ansport
could be placeciat the mouth of the Rio Grande by
tlielime the healthy season. sets early
November.' The main army, with ell its munitions,
could be transported leaving a sufficient force he
-hind to- hold:and occupy tht: Rio Grande, and all
the tdwns and -prOvincei -.which you , may,have con
quered before that tillte. , i n the event such being
t o-
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the plan . of ope,mtions„.your npieion desired.as to
what increased forceAfily, - walfiei rkquired to carry
it out with success. Vre - leati that the - army could
be'dincfmharked few•ttillepiiis(aotfriOLgera Cruz,
and - readily..lifveisethe. town felts reit riefithout com
ing within the range'of .the goes. of the fortress of
San Juan &Mott. The : town could be readily tak
en h iand,:,While the.fortreris, being ; :invepted by
lam) and sea, and all communications cut off, must
soon fall. From rera Cruz. in the city of Mexico
there is a fine road, upon which "the diligence' or
stage conches run daily. The distance from Vera
Cruz to the city of Mexico is not more than one
third of that from the kio Grande to the city of
Mexico."
The subject was again brought into view on the
13th of October, in the sane year, and more particu
larly on the 22 d of Octnber,. in letters addressed to
General Taylor. At the last date, the plan had
been so far matured, that several officers of the staff
and line were indicated for that service. This was .
nearly a month before it was determined to employ
you with the army in any part of Mexico,
It was never contemplated here to strike at the
city of Mexico.-from the line accupied by,General
Taylor, or through any other except that from Vera
Cruz. If the war was to be pushed to that extent,
it required no elaborate demonstration—no profound
military talents—tiothing more than common saga:
city and very slight reflection on the subject to see
the propriety and the necessity of making Vera Cruz
the base of military operations.
An alleged deficiency of means to transport the
troops in the expedition to Vera Cruz seems to be
most prominently presented, and most confidently
relied on to sustain your charge against the War De
partment for neglecting this branch of its duties.
I issued, it seems to be admitted, the proper or
der, so far as the means of transportation were to
be drawn from the north; but the allegation is that
it was issued too late,.and was never executed. It
was homed at least four days before your arrival at
New Orleans, on your way to the army. If prompt
ly executed, it was a reasonable calculation that the
" ten vessels," alluded to in yourJetter, would have
arrived in season to receive the troops as 'bon as
you could collect them from their remote and scat
tered positions in the interior of Mexico, bring them
to the seacoast, and prepare for their embarcation.
Whether an order for ships to be sent out in ballast,
issued the 15th December, was or was not in season
for- the service they were designed for, depends
upon the time when the expedition could be got
ready to sail. To deterinine this, a regard must be
paid to what you required to be dupe preparatory to
the exlibdition, rather than to what you may have
said on•hat subject.
A reference to two or three of year requisitions
will show that no rational hope could be entertain
ed that; the expedition would set forth before the
middleir the lasted February. You required as one
item of the outfit, one hundred and forty surf-boats
—all to be constructed after you left Washington.
Though thetdepartment urged a less number, you in
sisted onalf . You estimated the expense of each at
$200; and thought, by putting the principal ship
yards on the Atlantic coast in requisition, they might
be constructed by the Ist of January. -To show
what reliance was to be placed on your calculation,
I refer to the fact that, though due regard to econo
my was had in procuring these boats, each cost on
an average s9so—nearly five-fold your estimate.
Conceding that you erred much less as to the time
within which they could be constructed—nay more,
admitting they could have been ready by the Ist of
January—and sooner you did not expect they could
be made—by no reasonable calculation could they
have reached the coast of Mexico- before the Ist of
February. The expedition could not go forth with
out them. In your letter to me dated the 28th Feb
ruary, off Lobos, yitt state that but a small part of
the transports engaged at New Orleans, under your
orders of the 28th December, Sic., had arrived, and
" not one of the ten ordered by your trity) memoran
" dum of the 15th of that month, and the whole were
" due at the Brazos on the 15th January." Having
thus shown, by your own opinion, that under my or
der " the ten vessels " ought to have been at the
Brazos at least fifteen days before the expedition could
have been ready to sail, I have vindicated myself
time your charge of having neglected my duty by not
issuing that order at an earlier date. If issued ear
lier, it would have involvqd a largely increased ex
penditnre for demurrage, and resulted in no public
benefit.
But the graver part of this charge is, that none of
these " ten vessels" ever arrived; " Relying (you
"say in the letter now under consideration) upon
" them (the ten vessels) confidently, the embarca•
" lion was delayed in whole or in part at the Brains
"and Tampico, from the 15th of January to thei sth
" of March, leaving, it was feared, not half the time
needed farthe reduction of Vera Crux and its cis
" the before the return of the yellow fever." To
whomsoever the calamitous consequences of the
non arrival of these " ten vessels," and your "cruel'
disappointment" in relation to them, are imputable,
he has certainly involved himself in a serious re
sponsibility. I hope to remove the whole of it from
" the head of the War Department," and entertain
some apprehensions that it will fall in part upon the
commanding general of the expedition.
The execution of the whole of the moat difficult
branch of duties appertaining to a military expedi
tion—providing for transportation—is, by the diatri-
Whin of the business in the War Department, allot
trd to the Quartermaster General. As an expedition
against Vera Cruz had been resolved on some time
before you were asigned to take command of it,
General Jesup had gone to New Orleans to be in the
best position to make the necessary preparations for
such an enterprise. From his great knowledge and
long experience in military affairs, not only in his
appropriate department, but as a commander in the
field, the government thought it fortunate that you
could have the advice and assistance •f so able a
counsellor.
Your suggestion that it might be necessary to
send ships in ballast from the north for transports
was not neglected or unheeded by me. Whether it
would be necessary or not, depended, according to
your statement to-me, upon the means of transpor
tation which could be procured at New Orleans, &c.
My first step W 1 1 to virile to the Quartermaster Ge
neral, then at that Place for information on that
subject. In my letter to him of the 11th December
I said
" It is expected that most of the vessels in the ser
vice of the quartermaster's department can be used
as transports for the expedition. It will be neces
sary that the department here should know what
portion of the transportation can be furnished by the
ordinary means which the quartermaster's depart
ment has now under its control for the purposes of
its expedition. I have to request that information on
this point should be furnished without delay.
"Another point on whiCh the department desires
information is, what amount of means of transpor
tation for such an expedition can be furnished at New
Orleans, Mobile, and in that quarter.
" The expense of procuring transport' from the
Atlantic cities will be exorbitant. Freight is very
high, and most of the good vessels are engaged for
the ordinary purposes of commerce."
It is important to bear in mind that you saw this
letter on your first arrival at New Orleans. In writ
ing to me from that place, December 21,y0n observe:
"I have seen your letter tin the hands of Lieut. Col.
" Hun We the Quartermaster Generallated the 11th"
You could not mistake its object, because it was
clearly expressed. I asked distinctly, what means
of transportation for the expedition could be furoish•
ed at New Orleans, &c., and referred to the I :pen
sea and difficulty of procuring transports from the
Atlantic cities. You could not, therefore, but know
that my course as to sending ships in ballast from
the north would be regulated by the Quartermaster
General's reply. While waiting for this information,
sod in order to prevent delay, and be sure not to
deserve the imputation you now cast upon me, I
issued the order on the 15th December, to which
you refer, knowing that it could be modified and
"conformed to the exigencies of the service, accord
ing to the answer which I should receive from Gen.
Jesup. His reply is dated the 27th of December,
and in it he says:
"Transportation can be provided here for all Me
" troops that may be drawnfrom the army under tie
" command of Gen. Taylor, and for all the ordnance,
" ordnance stores, and other supplies,which may A be
" drawn either from this depot (the Brazos) or from
" New Orleans. The public transports—l mean those
" owned by the United States—that can be spared for
" the contemplated operations, it is estimated, will
"carry three thousand men with MI their supp'ios.
" Vessels can be chdrtered en farorable terms for any
additional transportation required." This letter
was submitted , to, and read by, you, as appears from
yotir endoribmtjad thereon.
And referringto some other matters in the letter,
you conclude your endorsement as follows: "I re
commend that. Brevet Major General Jesup's seg.
gestioni le adopted." This fact shevrathat the letter
received pier particular:attention.' When thin let.'
,tor, yeas- knew . - forwarded to the depert
.menOwelhercreceiv4—shOwing that your.appro.
handed - difficulty •iti obtaining MUlEcient traimportion
at the sinithWas oefinindrid, , and.. that It eoultlbe
provided in thittlAtiailtirlit'great hfititidMiee On facer;
able terMit r ;oty. Order etthai loth Decemler,m&r,
:and. only so far as related,tosending- out.easels in
ballast, was;enuntennthdede ,- It is strange; indeed,
that, after you ' were made aCquaintexl* th Hier Ob
ject rif,triy enquiries, and Gen. Jelnip"elletter litheply
,them, - you should hive.leaked fur transport yes.
Sala hidlnarfrom the-Atlantic citletc end,atill more
strange that their , non;nriltral should bo the proof
you rel , on to convict - me t.f having 'neglected 'my
duty in ibis instance., if, in pink, you delayed the
eipedition'nearly two months fox these transports,
lam blameless. Tbel responsibility is in another
quarter. - It cannot"be said that this statement as to
the sufficiency of transports to be obtained at the
moth had an implied reference to what I had ordered
from the Atlantic cities, for my order was then an.
known to Aerate an,d the Quarterthastez geeeral.
You first received a of it seveptUdiiliztlie
date of GerOestip's letter to of yeti-en
dorsement thereon:., [See your litter to me:ot the
12th'of. , a - ntizry.]., Resisted as yen- were by lead'
winds, enveleped in "frightful northers,": and, op
pressed with complicated - and. erplexing duties in
arranging and preparing the expedition against Vera
Cruz,some temporary bewilderment may be excused;
but, to charge the War Department with your own
misapprehensions and mistakes, is 'inexcusable.
My reply to your accusations forces me to expose
some of your misstatements of fact. You allege
that the expedition, for the want 'of "ten vessels,"
was delayed from the 151 h .1 January to the 19th of
March. You certainly mean to be understood that
on the 15th of January your troops were ready to
embark, and mere delayed for want of these trans
ports. But this was not so; and I am indebted to
you for most abundant proof to establish your inac
curacy. The great body ofyonr troops for the expe 7
dition was drawn from Gen. Taylor's command at
Monterey and in the interior of Mexico; and no part
of them had either reached the Brazos or Tampico—
the points of embarkation --on- the 15th of January.
In your letter of the 12th of that month to Gin.
Brooke, at New Orleans, you said : 5 ' thieve now
" to state that it is probable the troops I have called
" for from Gen. Taylor's immediate command to
"embark here (the Brazos) and at Tampico, will
" not reach those points, till late in the present
"month, (January,) say about the 25th." In a let
ter to me of the 26th of January, you remark that
Gen. Butler responded to your call for the [coops
with the utmost promptitude, and that Gen. Worth
made an admirable movement. "The head of his
" division arrived with him at the mouth of the Rio
' 4 - Grande the day before yesterday." (24th January.)
When the remaindencame up, is not stated; yet one
of your "naked historical facts" places the whole
command at the points of embarcation waiting for
the "ten vessels" at least nine days before the ac
tual arrival of any part of them. But if they had
been there, why should they have been detained for
these vessels? In the same letter—written but two
days after the arrival of the head of the first division,
and probably before the other troops had come up
—yo u say that "the Quartermai ter General, (Brevet
" Major General Jesup, at New Orleans,) I find, has
" taken all proper measures, with judgment and
•,' promptitude, to provide everything depending on
" his department for the despatch and success of
'• my expedition." Ilmore was wanted, cumulative
proof might be drawn from the same source—your
own correspondence--to show not only that this
charge against me has no foundation in truth, but
that you can have no apology tor having preferred it.
Alter showing how unfortunate you have been in
your specific charges, I may with propriety meet
those of a general ad sweeping character with a
less particular detail of proofs to show their grouni
leanness.
Though the "ten vessels" were not, for the very
sufficient reasons 1 have assigned, sent out in bal
last from the Atlantic cities, yet a very large num
ber were sent thence with stores, supplies, and
troops, to co-operate in the expedition.
In Generallesup's letter to me of the 17th inst.,
• copy of which is sent herewith, lie states that fifty
three ships barques, .brigs and schooners, were
sent from the north, and t he department actually
furnished at New Orleans, Brazos, and Tampico,
for the army, before it took up the line of march
into the interior, one hundred and sixty-three ves
sels.
I have alluded to the large , number of surf boats,
and the great difficulty or procuring them, as the
cause of the delay in their arrival. I have also a
similar reason to offer in reply to your complaint for,
not having seasonably received the siege train and/
ordnance supplies. The delay is to be ascribed to'
the enormously large outfit you required. If it was
necessary, and despatch *as used in procuring it,
en one is in fault. If too large, you certainly-should
not regard as a reprehensible delay the time neces,
wily taken up in preparing it. To show that it
was largo and required much time to procure it, I
Will select from many a single item. You demanded
from eighty to one hundred thousand ten-inch shelli,
and forty or fifty mortars of.like calibre. This error.
mous quantity of shells; about four thousand tons;
was mostly to be manufactured after you left Wash
ington.. All the furnaces in the country, willing to
engage in the bisiness, were set to work; bet, with
the utmost diligence and despatch, the supply of
this-one article, or even •two-thirds of it, having to
be manufactured and transported to the seaboaid
froui'the firrn'aces,(loratel in most instances in the
interior of the country,) at a season of the , year
when water communications were obstructed by ice,
could not be ready to be sent forward to you in many
months after your departure from Washington.--
Had your requisitions been moderate; and undoubt
edly more moderate ones would have sufficed; they
could have been furnished at a much earlier period.
The memorandum which you left the siege -train
and ammunition therefor," was submitted to me by
the Ordnance Department, on the 26th of Nevem.
ber, with en intimation that it could not be complied
with in season for the expedition to go forward -as
early as you had contemplated. I endorsed upon it,
"comply with the above as jar as practicable,•" and
this order, I am SatiaSed, after full examination, was
faithfully executed.
What could be done at Washington; was promptly
done. Yoe had with you the Quartermaster Gener
al, with all the means at the command sif the War
Department, and with unrestricted authority to do
whatever you might require. -He was under your
supervision, and subject to your orders, able and
willing to execute them. You have never intimated
that be, in any respect, failed in his duty; but, on
the contrary, you have spoken in highly commenda
tory terms Of bill eMcient services.
I have already quoted your acknowledgment that
he had taken all proper measures with judgment and
promptitude to provide everything depending on his
department for the despatch and itleCtill of your ex
pedition. In an issue of fact between you and the
head of the War Department, his testimony, next to
your own confession, is the best that can be offered
to correct your misstatements and to refute-your
charges.
In his letter to me of the Ind of January, 1847, he
says: "General Scott left for the interior on the
"29th ultimo, and I arc taking active measures to
"have everything depending upon me ready for his
"operations. The quartermaster's department, I
"find, is called upon to do a great deal that should
"be done by other branches of the staff. So far as
"General Scott's operations go, I shall_ have every;
"thing done that is. necessary, whether it belongs to
"my department or to other departments to do it."
You had with you, and subject to your orders, not
only the Quartermaster General, but officers of the
other staff departments. They did not look to the
War Department, but to yourself, for directions; and
it was your duty, and not mine, to see that your re
quirements were complied with. That they were
so ' to'the utmost practical extent„l have no reason
tedoubt; but if they were not, the fault, if any, is
not with the War Department. You also gave the
instructions in relation to providing the means of
land transportation, and the officers charged with
that duty were under your immediate control ; and if
there is blame anywhere for any deficiency in this
respect, it cannot be imputed to the War Depart
ment. Your whole correspondence with me, and the
staff officers with you, shows that you very properly
took upon yourself the whole charge of giving di
rections in this matter. In a letter to Captain Het
zel, senior quartermaster at the Brazos, speaking on
the subject of the land tiansportation which may be
needed after the desceat on the enemy's coast near
Vera Cruz '
you say I " I have already discussed and
" arranged with you the detail of the early land
"transportation train," dm. On the 18th of March,
you furnished General Jesup with your estimates
and directions on this:subject. The staff officers
being with you, and under your orders, nothing
further was, or properly could be, required or ex
pected to - emanate from Washington, beyond the
supply of funds; and, this being done, if you were
disappointed in not realizing your expectations, you
have not a colorable pretence for imputing blame to
" the head of the War Department,"
As a just ground of complaint, and a matter of ac
cusation, you refer to your deficiency of means : to
make the descent, and to capture the city of Vera
Cruz and the castle of. San Juan d'Ulloa, andassume
that the extent of that deficiency was the difference
between what you received and what you required.
It would be quite as correct reasoning to say, that
what you had having. proved sufficient to the pur. ,
pose, that difference showed the extent of the errors
in your estimate. The truth lies, perhaps, between
the two extremes. You had less, probably, than
you should have had, and you required much more
than was necessary. That you did not have more,
and, Indeed, all you asked for, I have already shown
was ztotAe fault of. the War Department.
Gen. Jesup was. eith you at Vera Cruz, ea* 4 yOur
means, and is 'capable of forming lin - ,estimate of
their. sufficiency. is, as his letter herewith
shows, disposed to be just,and even *nitrous' to
your fame.. To his opinion on. the subject, no' well
(minded exception can be,take'n. He soya; in refer
enceteijoitr-eeinplaintariti accou n t'of a'deficient
supply of 'and:Wats, siege train, Mid...ordnance
-stores r-t" The- result-shows that he (General Scott)
had surfthottis.ao - d derai l beeugh`li" -And of the
*day 'of which you complain, heTally. exonerates
Ahlt War: Repartroent, and aseribis the whole.to
yourself, and to unavoidable accidents. The impu
tatioU that yOu were'designedly crippled.in your
'inn* is a charge 'MI preposterous as it is nn
founded,
411113.1V11M0 thet4he.execution or some of the many
arrangemente for the Vera Cruz expedition was ob
structed and delayed by accidents,, but they were
such as common sagacity could not foresee, or hu
man agency control. They were not, however, more
than a considerwe mind, bringing into view all the
vast difficulties of the case,, would Ursa expected.
Whed your complaints matins subjeat wertkArat re
-
•
;;
ceived here, evincing,nathey.did,thalyein intended
.to hold the department thi(ioligite tbtATOVASPw" .
and event , the heads..ofilio'ieseetalliiird r i le;Were
called on by mete shoW hemittheinnifixebuteefehe
duties which bid been;ceinfiditlita than; partiCularly
in regard to waters referred to liy;iou. The evi
dence they presentedielhajtifig:donenll Oat Was re
quired, or could have been eXpected, convinced me
--and I venture• to say.thitt, - ;on a full ezinsination,
it will satisfy any mind.opea to conviction—that all
your complaints, so far as 4'4, imputed blame to
the War Deprrtment, or any ',etf , its branches are un
founded. lt will do much more—it will show that
great industry, promptnessi , uncommon capacity,
and extraordinary exertions, in relation to everything
connected with the war,,nave characterized the ac
tion of each of these subordinate departments. As
a commendation justly merited. by these several
branches of the department,nsdailed as they are in
directly by you, I see no gok reason fur withhold
ing my opinioni that an instance cannot be found
where so much has been done,;and well done, in so
short a time, by any . similar b ody of officers under
similar circumstances. ;,; j
As you have, by implicat: r od,! laid a he avy hand
upon the bureau which ischtirged with the,onerous
duties of executing.the laws!;and erderi fur raising
and sending forward the reciuAs and leviei, feet
bound to a ffi rm that you hav e dtine to that branch of
the public service the greateat injustice. ;140 indus
try has been spared—no posaitile effort omitted—to'
raise the forces which were authorized, and to send
them to their destination within;the briefeet practi
cable period. The numerous orders issued from the
Adjutant :tleneraPs office, and its voluminous corres
pondence on that subject, s will sustain this assertion.,
you have pressed with enWented zeal the charge
inxr lotion to diverting the detachments of the new
regiments under Gen. Cadwaladees command to the
Brazes; and have indulged in ithe wildcat specula
tions as to the sad consequene.es which attended this
imputed error. Assuming that my orders diverted
these troops, or any others; tan assertion which I
shall controvert hereafter,) the circumstances justi
fied the measure. The critical condition of Gen.
Taylor, according to all accounts received here at
that time is stated in my leper to you of the 22d
of March. To show that theidepartment acted pro
perly, though it incurred yenit ;reproof, it is neces
sary to recall the facts as they! then - ameared here.
They are presented in the fulfill:ring extract from th.tt
letter: it
"The information which has: just reached us in
the shape of rumors, as to the ;situation of General
Taylor, and the forces under-tibia command, has ex
cited the most painful apprehensions for their safety.
It is almost certain that San*Anna has precipitated
the large army he had collected :1i San Luis de PO
tosi upon General Taylor; add ; - it may be 'that the
general has not been able toe:Mint:ant - the advanced
position he had seen fit to takeltit Agtia Nueva bin
has been obliged to fall back !on Monterey. ' lt is
equally certain that a Mexicali „force' has been in ,
terpoaed. between :MontereOnd the Rio Grande:,
and that it has interrupted the line of communica
tion between the ewo..places, and seized large sup
plies which were on the way to General Taylor's
if the hostile force lietWeert the Rio Grande and
General Taylor's army is as large as report represents
it, our troops now on that riXermay.not be -able to
re-establielfthe line, nor will it, perhaps, be possi
ble to place a force there sufficient for the purpose,
in time: to prevent disastroue; titosequeneea to our
army, indent aid can be afforded from the troops
. adder your immediate comMand....
From one to two thousand; of the new
;recruits
{,rthe ten regiments, will Veen their way to the Bra
zos in the course of three dr four days.. ,All the
other forcei*ill be directed to ;that point, and eve
ry effort made to relieve .Geaeral Taylor from his
critical situation. You will - hare been fully apprized
before this can reach you ofFtlie condition Of things
In the valley of the ..-Rio Grande, and at, the
.head
quarters of General Taylor, end hard taken,l trust,
such measures as the import:Mee of the subject re
quires. I need not urge uptin T,yOU the fatal conse
quences which would result from any serious dins
ter which might befhe the,: army under General
Taylor; nor do I "doubt that YOu will.do what is in
your power to avert - mach a :calamity." •
-The course pursued by the War Department on
that occasion, which-you. coeirert into a. charge,
mat r on revision, I think; OM:need itselttolanii,
ral approbation.: ttadit -bees - indifferent . to the
alarming eondition of •,' General ; Taylui'd army, mid
forborne to use, at the earlielt, . moment, the most
energetic mensurei , io guard 4041 st - the fatid come
quences Cifits defeat, then -too • probable, it would
have deserved an arraignment as severe as th tt
which you have - made Againat;ie for having done;its
duty in that' critical ;whinge:icy. When you first
received the reasons :assigned for the course adopt
ed here, they appear to have been satisfactory..
your despatch of the 28th of April, you say : " Yes
terday I learned, by your letter of the 22d, and
" the Adjutant General's of-the 26th ult. that all
" the recruits of the regiments=-some 3,ooo—raised
"or likely to be raised in tune for this army, have
" been ordered to the Rio Grande." You did not
then intimate the slightest dissatisfaction—not even
a •premenitory symptom of that deep distress with
which, instantly on Mr. Tristis• arrival in Mexico,
you represent yourself to hate been seized. It is
a coincidence not unworthy •of notice, that the .rit
ter containing your first condemnatory - remark. en
this subject, was written on the day of the date of
Mr. Trist'., firit note to you, and only the day before
your captious reply to it; ; and in - both you: assail
the War Department. Your Withering disappoint
ment seems to - have slimbered. for ten days,' and
then to have been aroused - by the appearanceof Mr.
Trist in Mexico and your qu nail with him..: If the
order from the War -Department bed. in fact:" di
verted" the forces with General - Cadwallader, still
it was fully ; ified by - the' tiiimatening • aspect,of
affairs on the Rio Grande; but I sm quite, sure it did •
not divert them.- - No previous, 'order Born the de . .
partmentlhad designated anyloev place 'of rendei•
volts than the Brazos for the troops that were tejolo
your column. It was well understood, before-you
left Washington r tbat all the irpopl fur both. armies
were to be sent to that placerand there to fall under
your command. . • . .• • .
This arrangement was not, nor was it expected
that it would be here changeduntil. you had pene
trated so far into the enemracourftry as to render
your communications with that' place of general
rendezvous difficult and dilatory. t
Yisu also complain that the order Was -not coun
termanded. If there had beea Such an order, and it
bad been countermanded, what would bare been the
consequence? - The troops would have gone for
ward from the United States under the former orders
of the department, which would bare taken them
to the same place. • . . • • ~ •
You allegq that " the nevii .. of the victory of
" Buena Vista reached Washington in time to coon
" termand Caddraladerls orders! for,. the •R -Grande
"before his departure from New Orleans." :leo- .
tice this specification of negleet of duty, to Chew
the extent to which you ha ve' carried your fault
finding, and the industry" with Which yen' liaise.
searched for occasions to indulge it.. .
Your assumption is, that the news of the victory
of Buena Vista should have Satisfied the War De
partment that Cadwalader's fories were not needed -
on the Rio Grande; -sad thit . the omission to coon-•
tennand,:as 400 E( as that news was received, the or
ders to send them there, was atieglectdeserving se- .
sere animadversion. How did'-you ace-under simi
lar circumstances ? With better means . Of informa
tion as to the actual .condition Of -the . Rio Grande
frontier, alter the victory of ; Buena Vista, you did
not deem it prudent, after' being forty-one „days in
pouession of the newt of that victory, to lean pee-
Wye orders to remove a single Man from:that -fron
tier ; yet you venture to cens u re me fur not having
sent the troops away the moment the news reathed
Washington.. . ,
information
You received of that victory,on. ; or be,-
lore.the 14th of March, for onehatelay you peel:dm- -
ad it in orders ticyour artny.: On the 25th,of April,'
Moreehan forty days thereafttr,You issued to order
to the commanding officer at the Brazos toeinbark .
for Vera Crut "such deheehmerits of the-new ref.
-meets as ma Y have:berci Ordered: by the W.nr<De
partment to Point Isabel;" but, you made it condi- .
tional with reftwente to the safety of the lies of the
Rio Grande ; and said to that.Olficer, thiit.yoit relied
upon hie " glued judgment to detennineon the spot
" whether that line would not he too much exposed
" by
.ffie withdrawal. of the troops -in question.'
Thus it appears that . you . do not ' hesitate to impute
neglect of duty ha' Me, for ncie having adopted and
acted on Abe, conclusion that the line -of the... Rio
Grande was. safe the inoment.Eheirdorthe vieiOrf
-of Buena. Vista; but, when acting on the same' aut:=,•
jectr yeu•dared not adopt that conclusion-, idthoigh
-you had been in. possession of the same infortnation
• forty-one days.> Your -own conduct- in this matter
completely refutes .. thiti :Chars:eel your:, against the
• Wer•Department.- -It-does-mare: it shows how- raili
and.inconsideratey.on have blei4.ig sOec,;itirtiTiegi
for attack. • . • '
But the most serious conseqiences are ,attributed
to the long delayer these troupit at the. Brazos: For
your sake,l sincerely hope these consequences are
mdch eiaggerated, becausel;arer quite confident it
will be shown that you aloneare responsible' for the
delay. The .War Department;did: not —and it:was
proper Outfit 'should not--issue any order in regard
to the Movement of these troop, after their arrival in
Atterien. The order from thedepartmengof the 30th
of April, making a division the new levies be
tween the two columns, doe. not contradict this as
sertion, for theie levies were mostly then within the
United States; only portions of them had then reach
ed Mexico. Until this 'order :took effect, the troops
at the Brazos, and, indeed, ite 4he Rio Grande and
with General Taylor, were _tinder your entire and.
unrestricted command. Ad! to this matter, you
were under no znisapprehensien ; for on the 25th of
April, before you were inihrmed -What had been
done bete to secure the Rae drande liue,)ou issued
1=11)IM
• .
an' rdei in relation to theta:elves; the Briaos - . - This
place, you well knew, was the general rendaZions
of the new I. vies from the United States, and before
you sailed on your expedition to Vera Cruz, you
were notified that the Mexican army were advancing ,
upon General Tayler. To have assumed that you
had not left at the Brazos, with a view-to -meet any
probable contingency, orders for the proper disposi
tion of the troops whiCh were, or might be tent -
there, would have implied an opinion that you Wirt- '
ed suitable qualification, for the high station which
had been assigned to you.
These troops were a part of your , command,sed ,
subject to your orders; and ifthey remained one day
at the Brazos after it ;Vas there . known that' they
were not needed on the Rio Grande line, and would
be seriricable with your column, the fault was entire-.
ly your own, and in nowise r imputable - to the Wax
Department. -Ifyeur opinion be not eitrivagatit--
iuid you say.it is not—that but for the diversion of,
Gen. Cadwaladees forces from you, and the 'Deitch
precious timet lost at the Brazos; you' "might easi
-1
yy have taken this city [Mexico) in the - month of
June, and at one-fif h of the loss sustained in Aa
gest and September,” you have,. indeed, 'a must
fearful-account to settle with your country... -
I cannot, however,. but regard your speculatite
opinions ou . this subject as fanciful and wild. You
greatly . over-estiritate-the force whichitinderlat the
Brazos and subsequently joined you. Front the best
calculation that can be made' from details in the A
djutant General's office, the 'number waa 'Mich' less
than you imagine, and did not probably exceed one
thousand. As the refutation of your charge against
the department for diveiting these troops is ia no
wise impaired by the number, he it more or less, it
is not important.to inquire into that
..matter.' But
there is a question of serious import, to which I
think .the country will expect you to answer. ; '
If these new levies, which had just entered the
service, would have enabled you to capture the city
of Mexico in June, with a comparatively small loin, -
why did you, at the very time that you discovered
that they were to much needed, and would 'ye
been so useful, send away from your " army lb e
1) y
times as many volunteers, who had been ma
months in service, and 'w. e i, as you aerknowled e. -
"respectable in - discipline -and . tficacye , and alto
had distinguished themselves at Vera. Cruz and Cerro
Gordo- and, in the.hOur of peril, bad fought by the
side of your veteran treqs, and merited an honor-,
able share in the , eerier/ of those memorable con
flicts. The period of their engagement had . notes.
plied. --i When. thus sent:away, but one of the seven'.
regiments had .less than thirty; and most of th eta
had forty-fire slays to serve. • According to . your
own opinion , concurred in by the department. they
could have 'been legally retained on your line of
operations till the last hour of their engagement. If
not deemed expedient to "take thein ow towsirdi•
Mexico with you, their services, at that critical
period, would have been of inestimable vetee,hl t
holding the post at Jalapa- . --so iMportaet, and so
unexpectedly abandoned—and in keeping open Ahe
communication between Veracruz-and your headr
quarters, whereby supplies, munitions, and recruit.&
could lie safely and expedithmsly , forwarded l to, yitio;
Had thii been done, you woold..trate
-hien Spared;
the trouble of i editing - ra n ny itema . ef grieva aces aid .
complaints against tire War. Department forlhePiek
failed to furnish .them. .11 yee - had .
_retained, HI
twelve months' volunteers -until-the end .of their,
agreement—and no -sufficient reason . has yet beep
shown' for their premature , discharge —% ou Might,
fur a season at. least, have 'received, without much
abstraction, supplies 'from the' mainAlepnt
v eit' the
Gulf; the army might have - been strerigthened - by
reinforcements at an earlier period; and
,matitef
the revolting sceneri of butchery' on' the I - noel:an
Vera Cruz to Jalapa, in - which 'so' may' liiislit
our fellow - citizens have
.been sacrificed by, the
ruthless geerillers, 'would not : have :occurred. t.
.1.
Another and still more, lamentable calamity iii-t
think fairly to be ascribed to the early obstrectionirtf
thisimpertant line of-communieation.- -The b"ritie
and,patriotic men . who were" talied on te' Mexico;
in small detachment?, in order ''. to; reinforce 'jeer
army, we re unexpected'n'tditeecessiinly, detained
at Vera Cruz until the numhers there, collecreyl
were tUnkiept to force theih'Way ilweriglithe Stro3tk
guerilla bands which held the iliflieelt 'o:liaising the
Jalapa road. „While thug that irdiaspi.'
table,coapt,in the sickly seation,theyiivere expoied .
to the attacks of . WI 'trepan- pestilence,' , zebre . de,
attractive, thantlie Mexican army.. - - , i -'r ,:::- -
When the unwelcome news of - the rent:aura
discharge of this large body' of:volunteers:was 'tell
ceived here, unaccompained by anY , explariatiOn la
show the ne es,thly of the 'act 01 ' exe ited - fury gerii , i,='
al surprise and' regret. Its consequence's "were it'
once Bowen; but theetep . hail liceritaken, and could
not be retraced.. It -Was ,oddly- Condi miaii.L.-lilarii,
did not believe that a measure which appeareirto
be so unwise and so . injurious to the operations .or
the army - , could have .emanated from yourself;Sut
they core-less charitable towards the President and . :
Secretary of War. Bode sr; re denounced ' fur'whiit
you had done; they were unteritpulionly charkell'
with weakni sr and ins: Parity; with being , aCleated'
by hostility to you, and a desire to secirtekialaily •
with the volunteer,. Nor w. ea:these. bitter asseutti,
intermited, until it began tube suspected_ that they
were misdirected. - , •.. . . •
If you really regarded on the 6th ofMay; the aug
mentation of your fortes as being of such •viol
portance, it is a'nvost ',difficult to recount livr
course taken to re-engage the 't olunteers, aster'
their premature discharge. I am ousted by. intik:..
mstion, on which I ought to rely, if many.OUtivere
volunteers would not have continued in rierriets,' ir._
proper measures had been - laken at ilatapai-whili
they were indulging the hope - of prticimiting
further triumphs, and rif being 'among those
Would enjoy the - enviable distinction' offirstentaring
as-vieters-the proud capital--of the Mexican repub,
lic.' Though the. subject was there preiented
their:consideration, no vieorons efforts seem to hive
been made--anattempt t.i fo m new iminpaniet--ot
• muster thero;it to service, until this powerful 4nduest- '
ment was weaken," ur vriithdrauntil-iliey'had
been 'detached from a victorione rimy, self nolo&
ger deemed northy to be' .a part, of
miles towards their homes into a pestilential region, -
and there brought within the sympathetic influence
of the sentiments which was natural that many
should feel' and manifest at the moment Of embark...
ing to return to their ffimilies and friend.... Consid
ering the manner in which the President*" oriter on
this subject was atteinpted to be executed, it is Rat
strange that, among more than three thousand pa
triotic volunteers, emit away by your Order of the
4th of May. only about " fifty individuals" were
found willing to re-engage.
You seem to have suddenly conceived the notion
of converting the army," like Cortez," "
self-sustaining riuzehine and to make th,reiem
blance between yourself and the Spanish hero more
complete, yeu indulged a dream of fancy, until you
seem to have aopdted it as a matter of belie; that
you were "doomed at Washington," and you be-,
came, "like him, always afraid that the next ship
or messenger might recall or further cripple you..
It should not be forgotten, that the design of thin
unaccountable military movement was first , cow, '
munisated to Mr. Trist, before yeu had given any
intimation. of it to your gevernment;afid.while un
der-the perturbation of ,mind which his unwelcome.
presence in Mexico had produced. ,Had ;you confi
ded this estivionlinary plan of a .campaiati to-bias
after the " happy change " in your relanomi--after
you had digested his " farrago 'Of insolence,
emit,. and'arrogance "—and ';alter . 6e,. too, mistaking
notoriety for fame ' had sought to win it by disobey.
ing the orders of his goternment, defying its au..
thority, and assailing its conduct.-this distteguish.
ing mark of
.)otir confidence in hird would have ye.
casioned much less surprise. This, no se' oneep-•
tion, so soddenly adopted, was as suddenly
out; your army As, indeed, converted' into-ai
self-sustaining machine ;" you discharged the,teplye
months' volunteers, and_brolin up your posts at
spa, and on the way to your main depot, •' resole.
ed," as you announced, " no longer to ilepend on
Vets Cruz or home"—yoo put yourself beyond'the
reach` of the - "applies which bad been - provided itg
government, and rendered yourself, in a great me,
sure, inaccessible to the recruits , and levies (except&
in strong parties, which h .d been raised to augment (
your. command. In this way, yeu rendered unavarl., .
ing, fOr a time at least, all that had been or conkd
be done by the assidinus and incessant labors of ihn
War Department in all its branches; and thenyou.
recklessly put forth the groundless complaint of "a.
total *aut of support and sympathy" from it. ~
Your letter of the Sloth of July,- which *as not,
received at Washington. until the 36th of-- Decero.
tier last, abounds with complaint...against the-de,
partmeat, and, refers in strong terms to "the wants,
and suffering" of the army at-that time.. Before you,
ventured .6" 'make. its then destitute condition .a.
ground of charge against the War Departmentomu t
ought to have recollected %Wilhelm laintmes • fell
upon it in the midst of your, experiment- of , reskihe :
it 't a self-sustaining machine"...and - ware the' le-.
gitimatefroits. of that experiment, These ituffiez,.
frig* came upon it before your estimatedl'frerioil,of •
isolation from "Vera Cruz and keine" had half ei
pired. .When you had dissigaedly and unnetessati,
ly abandoned both, and entered . upori.your self-sus
taining position, "cut off from all supplies aid rein.
foreementi from home;until- perlmps lateitiliroveM."
bar," by what pretence of-justice do you complain
of the War Department for the distresses you thus
voluntarily inflicted upon yourself and the gallatit
army under your commands, Something very differ.
emit fmm tenapre and reproof is due for the (minor.
dinary efforts/which were successfully made Wretch
you with recruits and supplies in your sequetitered
situation, and to rescue you from the.embarmarmeats
in which your ill-judged measures had involved you.
I. have brought into view this unaccountableinove,
meat of yours, with no, purpose to make any cram,
,ment upon it as • military measure, but solely to
show .that the evils resulting from it are not just
grounds of accusation against the War Department;
A , %i ;