The Sun.
London, England, 1862-07-10 00:00:00

uniform, and his writing-case and portfolio vi -ere laid
beside him. With this, and.a bundle of hay older
his head and the address on he cover of the box,
lie
was sent home to his mourning friends.
Ninety degrees in shade.
ON BOARD THE MAIL STEAMER GEORGIANA,

June 17.

I am on my way back to Washington. Up to this
morning I have not received the letter promised by
General van Vriet, nor an answer from my friend,
the Colonel of M'Clellan's Staff. I believe they do
not want European eyes there, not because foreign
correspondents might give information to the enemy,
but because they are perfectly independent from all
party interests here and very likely to speak truth
and nothing but the truth. I shall however try in
Washington the regular way, and hope I shall suc-
ceed. Having got a pass like other correspondents
I shall return to M'Clellan's army. Ido not think
I shall be too late, for it is the general impression
that weeks will pass before M'Clellan has finished
his circumstantial preparations. However the Con-
federates may attack, and if wise they will do so,
just because M'Clellan does not like
If you ask me what is
my impression in regard to
the result, I must candidly tell you
that I am by no
means certain on that point. When Napoleon shut
his telescope he could frequently say, " These peo-
ple—the enemy—are already beaten." M'Clellan
is no Napoleon, and after having used his fieldglass
he is not much wiser than before. In the battles
here everything is guesswork, and military science
goes for nothing. In fact, they are ao battles, but
only fights on a large scale. One little accident may
bring
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here who call him a traitor, and M'Dowell also.
Nonsense. He is no Republican fanatic, and does
not forget that on the other side are not foreign
enemies, but people whom he once called friends and
brethren. His friends praise him for his forbear-
ance and care to spill as little blood as possible.
To me it seems that he is exorcising the Devil by
Beelzebub ; the sword would not devour half as
many men as the swamp fever and the negligence
in the quartermaster's department does.
By people coming from the army—and there are
a surprising number of officers going home on fur-
lough--I hear that the negligence there is very
great in every department, and they complain parti-
cularly about the imperfect arrangements in regard
to the wounded. Even now they pick up from the
battlefield at Seven Pines not only single dead, who
sometimes evidently died by:neglect, but dozens of
them. I spoke to many persons of every condition,
from the high officer down to the waggoner, and all
I hear only confirms my above expressed opinion.

There are some wounded and other officers from
Blenker's division in town, and I hear from them
many interesting details about the battle at Cross
Keys. The colonel of the De Kab regiment, which
was not in front, went with another regiment as a
volunteer, and was shot through his leg, not the
breast. Col. von Gilser is here, and hopes to be soon
in the field again. About the colonel of the Bth New
York Regiment strange stories are told. Leading
his regiment against seven regiments of the Confe-
derates—l hope they were not in buckram—he at
once dropped from his horse into a corn field, where
he remained. Arriving in hospital, he protested
against his being attended before his soldiers, but
when the doctors insisted they found no scratch on
the colonel, but a rupture which he got by his men
trampling on him when advancing over his body.
When the soldiers heard of this story they wanted
to shoot their colonel? who, however, hearing the
rumour against him, at once left the hospital and
joined his regiment. Blenker behaved very well,
' and intended to renew the battle next morning, but
was ordered to keep quiet by Fremont. His be-
haviour in battle has reconciled many of his ene-
mies. I think Blenker will become a major-general
soon. He is expected to arrive here.
Old Papa Struve is also here. He was with
Necker, the chief of the revolution in Baden in 1848
and 1849. Not being a military man, old Struve
entered Blenker's regiment as a private, and is now
a very brave and zealous captain. He is a very
learned man, with some peculiarities about
him. He is a vegetarian, and to look at his
healthy face was the best recommendation of the
system. However, now he looks horribly altered
by all the hardships of that campaign in Western
Virginia. He has become so used to bad food and
a few biscuits a day that his stomach cannot bear
other food. The sufferings of the poor soldiers in
Western Virginia surpass even those of M'Clellan's
army, and beggar description. General Charles
Schurz is brigadier in partibus, and attached to the
Staff of Fremont. He has picked out four of the
best regiments of Blenker's division, but Blenker
said he will give in his resignation if Schurz got them.
The Secretary of War is trying all possible means
to induce people to enter the army, the ranks of
which will become thinner by and by, but the recruit-
ing goes on very slow ly. No wonder, for the sad
tales and faces of the returning poor sick and
wounded are not just the sort of thing to induce
people to place themselves under the care of blun-
dering generals, negligent doctors, and roguish
quartermasters.