The Conduct Of The War

Since the rebtrfUon began nothing has aeen the light which s so calculatod to give aid and comfort to the enemv and to di.ihearten .the peo:. Ie of the loyal Stutes as the disgracel'ul report on "The üonduot o't the War," i.sHiied by the pint uommittee of (Jongress. " 0, that mine enemy would write a book ! ' is u proverl) ot i very old date ; and Jefl. Daviá may well exult that his ene my has not only wrilten u report, hut that he is about to reproduce it in pamphlet fonn, as if it were not suffio.iently homiliating to the nation that it shoulil appeur in the newnpapers. The comraittee havo been two years at vvork, and what thcy have produued at last recalls the fable of the inountain in labor, which brought forth a ridioulous inouse. The main design of the report is evidently to damuge General McClellan ; and so on sidfd a document uever before emanated from a Congressional Cominittee. It i. more like u epeeeh of a public proaecutor againstfl primuser l.hatj the charge of an impartiul judge, exhibiting the evidence on boih nide., without tour, favor or afföction. But in their anxiety to injire bim they liave effect ually dainaged themselves, and brought reproach upon all in military authority, front) President down to the Brigadier General. For who is re sponHiblrt lor the conducr oí the war? Not the subordínate Generala, but the authoriiies at Washington vvho appoint them. The ftippaney with whioh a cmnmittee of civilians giva expreszon to rnililary ópinions, and speculate upon what would ■ r might huvn boen had General MuClellan dona this or ornittud to d fhat, is quite in keeping with their profou.id ignorai'co of the subject on .vvbich thev tieat. " Fools ruh in ivhere angels fear to tread." They am all lika a sat oí' sehoolboys playing soldier when the schonl-inaster ia out, - The most burly of thein, Ben. Wadu, snouts that they are all wrong, and títnkes right hrití left, after the faahion of a buil iu a chinu thop. He hits the tall boyrt like Lincoln under the filtn rib, and the short boys line McClellan on the bridge of the nose. The mili tary crit.cisma of Ben. Wade & Co. are about as valuable as ihe prattle of children. But, whilö their bpïnirtha are not Wörth a rush, the facta vvhieh thev bring to light, present a inelan choly picture óf the iolly and ; ty whieh havo markod the conduct i ' ttie ar in the cabinet and in the camp. Thev represent Abo Lincoln, an Ilü nois lavvyer, playing the part of Napoleon the Great d.eiating to his maráñala. This woulcl be eXtremëiy iarci cal were not the consequenties invo'veil of the most tnigic nature. The reporl thronglioiU is a cutiré on the President In one portion of it, indned, a most serioud charge is mude, namely, to the effect that Mr. LiuC"ln and the two gróat men who wit by nis de, Hallei'k and Stanton. let out the secret of Burn side'tj plan of carnpaigh, ao ttiai it reaclied ttie eneuiy and compelled the abandoninent üi' the plun. The report is ns remarkable for what it omits iis nhut it cont iph. O.iü i.f the most brilliant and succfisstul baltle of the war, that of Hanover Court Houe, won liy Gen. McClellan'.i righi wir.g under Fi z John Porter - a vi.torv frodi uhich the capture o! Riuh" mond vvould have ibllmved hut f. ir the action cf tbs atithoiivii-s at Washing ton - w coinpletely ignored. No men tion is made of' the lailure at that criti cal mi unent of McDowelI's ad vanee Ir.im Frederick-iburg lo co-operate wi h McGlehau, thoogfi his advanoe guard had henrd the oll!ld of thu cannon - a lailure caused by the positive orders of the War Di-partinmit fbrbidding MoDowell to move McClellan üi.l his part well. The nulliorities at Washington spoiled all. The omision of this ia a specimen of the of the report tor fuirness and impartiaiity. As to Guneralship, goes to prove that the 8..fetv of Washingtoii hun it was not even endungured was sacrificed to everything els ; tlmt we havu not a nuin froin Alie Lmouln down who i"n fit to lead 50,000 men; and that in the priixsipui butilos i'n whiuh we had an irmyof upwurdi of 100,000 men in the field not moro than a portiñn ot them, hardly 20,000, could be brought into actio'.i. Tliu our Generáis llave ulttiiys had mora troops th;m théy knew what to do ivith. The decisivo baitles won by the mantera oí' the art of war, stich as Napoleon Hnd FreiJ eric, were the result of' a skill which Irought to bèar their whole for;u a"uii,st the enemy. Most of the bat Hbs fought in this war rtave buen inere scènes ot sluüghter without resul t. - Tho ohiet canse of hiiliiré lrw in nn ÍK norant interfereneo at W.afhirtgtoa with the Generáis in the tiold. The nly man who uppeui'öd to onderstand his business in theory and to havo mude pruik-i noy n tho practice of ihe military art was General McCliillan, md he was disiiiirised jnst vvlien h talento and capabrüliea were bcing devoloped bv experiuix. It ia traë he h;is faults an3 ïhat 6e irrade spraa niitakos;_ b ;t he hun been ttivvarted in ihe most ma lignant niannur from tha very outsel by tbo politiötM in Ooflgress and tre radicáis in the Cabine;. ïne greatent fuult iinputeii to liiui i excessivo cantiun and laek of' self oontidemit). Bnt thia arises íVom a ja.-t jjpreeiHHon nf the liifBculty of life tak. Au inferior mind would be blind lo this, and commit sneh terrible blunéwa us that. f Burnside ut Fredürick-ibiirg. MuOlel 1 . ti was gradually feoling tus way and fitting Iniuself to be a greut military leader. He was beuoming bolde and ! bolder evory day, and more export in íandlinsf a larga armv, as tt Antietam, whon liis carear was out short by an rder from Washingtuo, and interior men put in his piuca. It ii not in a year or two years that so'dier, even with a gnod military edcatión, but has seen litt'e or no eerice, can rise frorn the position of a Captain of cavulry to that oí a riicessful General comtnanding 100,000 nen How lont? did it take to make he victor of Watcrloo ? How muny nittles did he fifjht in India and in the Spanish Península bef'ore he attained he skill to cope with Napoleon? At At an early peiiod of bis history Bona)arte asserted with truth that he did )ot know oue man in Europa who was capable of eonductinfr tifty thonsand men to batt'e. Why, then. should tho 'ruita ni the ripe experience of year and genius combinad be expected from o ynung and inexperienned an oflicer as ü-en McOtellan '! By the greatest military jiidge in the country, the vet eran Öcott ha h is been recentlv pron unced-t.he ablest General the war has 'et dtíveluped. Ue hs done the best lia ciremnsfanees a'lowed, and would lave matured into a first class General as rapioly, (lerhaps, as any whn ever ireceded hi'n with two or three rare exliibitions. But he Was reckleusly sacriticed last fall by a oombination u' jarty spirit and imbeciliiy, and (rom that day to thi.s the Annv of the Potomac has made no progresa, while it has suffered serious disaster. VV fear that, through the same blundenng which lias churacterized the acts of the War Depaitmunt and tho performance f so iiianj of our Gwnerals d the luid, oiher diensters niuy bo in atora "or our iriny in the present oampaign. But there is one tource of consolalion and national prida in the report - one distingtiishin; feature oí the war - and that is that the inconipetence of Generáis and of thu V:ir Department has been redeerned by the inte'ligeot courage and discipline of the men.- They have tought like héroes on every field; and even when they knew that, they were inarching into the jaws of ileath, without ■■ ny advmtage to the cause, they shrank not from the sacri fice. This was the case at Fredericksburg, where they said to oach other : - " Boys, we are going into a slaughter pen, but wo must do it ; cnme on."- And even after the dreadful defeat ivhiuh thoy untiuipaied they ware ready lo try it over again nexl day. Thare is ni) example in hUlory of troops fitriiting so brávely md so well who havo heen so badly ied. By their brillian' fiijhtina qiuilities they have won imperishiibiö renmvn. By the conduot of tho war from first to last tho country has been disgraced.