Boon's Lick times. [volume] (Fayette, Mo.) 1840-1848, 1840-09-12
MAJOR GEN. GAINES.
HIGHLY HONORABLE TESTIMONY IN IA
YOUR OF GEN. HARRISON.

HONOhAbBG lESllMON1 In L A
YOUR OF GEN. HARRISON.
0@3-We ask the earnest attention Of every reader
to the following extract from n recent letter Of
Gen GAINES, to Gov. CANNON, of Tennessee,
which we find in the "St. Louis New Era" Of the
ID inst. Let the Van Buren, leaders read this let
ter and hide their heads, and we trust the men ul
the party will perceive the .anderous and dishonest
practices by which they have been gulled, and
abandon bandith who care for nothing but them
selves. But to thu extract, which should be read
and pondered upon by every freeman in the nation,
TIE EXTRACT
! Having disposed of the subject Of my system
of national defence until the meeting oil the next
Congress, will now proceed to notice the efforts
made by some Of the party tdcticianS SapperS and
miners, to misreprcsent my views in respect to
| Major Gen WIN. IlENRY HARRl SON, and with
out attempting TO repeat my answers TO numerous
questions asked me in reference to that disn.
guished individual, will here state such facts as,
according to the best Of my recollection, will
afford an accurate outline Of what have said in
my answers
served under the orders Of General HARRrsoN
in the North Western Army during the principal
pant of the summer and autumn of the year 10 Is
during part of which time held the appoint.
ment Of Adjutant General, which brought me in.
to daily, and often hourly intercourse with him,
and though never with him in battle, had many
opportunities Of witnessing his vigilance and de-
votion to the service, and Of admitting the energet
ic simplicity and systematic accuracy Of his
views, and the zeal and promptitude with which
he marched to and from Fort Meigs, through the
deep swanps, from post to post, when momently
expecting to enter combined savage and British
ambuscade of from four TO five thousand Red and
| White savages from whose cannon, rife and
tomahawk, General Harrison was often protected
and escorted by fewer men than the Life Guards
who accompanied our distinguished General
Jackson upon his Seminole campaign in the
year 1918, while the force opposed to him was
rot half as great as that with which Harrison
was menoced. With an equal knowledge of
Jackson and HARRISON | should be unjust to
both, and false to my country il did not declare
that, upon the occasions here alluded to, more try.
ing to the real soldier than any thing the field Of
battle often presents, have never known Gen
Jackson, whose military honors are beyond all
: dispute, to evince more chGeriulness under the
: prvations of food and rest, or more in.repidi,y
Of purpose in danger, than Harrison uniformly
exhibited And, although had the deep MORT
r Detroit, in the pursuit Of Tecumseh and Proctor,
which terminated in the battle of the Thames,
October s. 1913, yet j was assured by Gov.
, Shelby and Commodore Perry than whom there
never breathed truer, or more chivalrc spirits,
that Harrison proved himself 10 be an able Gen.
eraI, "without fear and without reproach."
1t is true, that in the early part Of the war
in the fall and winter Of 18l2-13-I felt and
expressed freely the apprehension, that Harrison
possessed too much of the milk of human kind
} ness, and 100 much caution in his movements.
for an efficient U. S. COMMANDMENT. Chief
, was strongly inclined to blame him for not sus.
tanning the gallant army headed by our esteemed
Winchester, defeated at the river Rasin; and
for not controlling and saving the brave Dudley
/ and his regiment on the 9th Of May, at Fort
. Meigs. But a careful investigations OF the cir
cumstances that surrounded him. convinced me
that his discipline, though mild and paternal.
was strictly conIOrnable TO our military law :
and that without great caution, such as put it out
Of his power to reinforce Winchester. or to save
Dudley, the principal part Of his dsnosabIe
force would probably have been sacr feed, in
these, or in other unavang efforts to bring the
war in the \ or,hwest TO speedy termination by
a great battle; when, at any time before Perry
victory, great battle lost by General Harrison
would have exposed to almost certain massacre
hundreds Of families, on hundreds Of miles of a
frontier more difficult TO defend than any other
part OF the national frontier, not excepting that
; of Florida 4 frontier where, from the great
depth oil ri'h soil and muddy roads, forced
+ march oil few successive days, often resulted in
= loss Of effective strength nearly equal to tina,
Of well fought battle.
have often admitted, what could not now