Weekly national intelligencer. [volume] (Washington [D.C.]) 1841-1869, 1847-05-29
SATURDAY. MAY 20, ls47.
THE ADMINISTRATION AND SoNGkEss.

eminent paper, moi content with peremptorlly eX
GENERATING the President from the charge (Which
we had never preferred) of collision with SAINT;
Anna to procure the defeat of Gen. TAYLOR, under
took to disprove it crcumstantiay and in doing
so, repeated accusations against Congress which j
mas heretofore made but which we have not before
taken the trouble, as we now shall, to controvert
The statement of "the Union! to which we re-
fer must for the better understanding of it, be here
repeated, as follows
"The President did undertake to weaken Gen. Tay
ors force. The Secretary of War had submitted the militia
y arrangement 10 the discretion Of Gen Scott for the with
drawa therefore, of any portion of Gen. Tayors force, th'
responsibility with the Administration, but is, III,
contrary with Gen. Scott The intention of that officer Il
withdraw part of Gen. Taylos force from his command il
stated distinctly in Gen. SCOTS letter to Gen. Taylor, under
date of the 25h of November 1916. Gen SCOTS Language
in that letter is 5 follows
lam moi coming, my dear General TO supersede gou
henmediate command on Operations rendered illus
t'ous by you and g6ur gallant army My proposed theatre
rs dLGvent.'
Bu mn aea- General IsiaH6e Obliged 10 take fran, yon
most Of tie gallant officers and men (regurs and rohiner)
,rtom you hare ling and so molly commanded am
afraid Mat SHALL By mperious necessty-e apprpach n
ge0o ftpy on The Gi coasf-reolce you, far time, 10
stand on Me offensive. This ,cR be infinitely pa,tuli0
yo and FIR that distressing 10 Bra rely upon
your patriotism 10 submit 10 the temporary sacrifice mih
eteerfuneSS.'
The Administration had, indeed, determined, will be
perceived from the above extract that expedition against
The Mexican capital should be made under the command of
Gen Scott aud by the way Of Vera Cruz But far from
intending weaken Gen. Taylor, it well known that the
President, and his Cabinet used the jealous efforts and
made the urgent appeals Congress pass the regi
bill for the troops raised take part Gen.
SCOTS operations.
The 'Union." in the extract here quoted, saws
that the administration is IN no way response
bic for the reduction of the force of Gen. TAYLOR.
All that it did, the Union" argues, was to resolpe
upon an expedition against the Mexican capital by
way of Vera Cruz, the execution of which was as
signed to Gen. SCOTT, who. iii the exercise of the
discretion given him, found that an :. in1perious
necessity required him to use part of General
Taylor's troops. Nor, it appears, did the Pres-
dent and his Cabinet even intend 10 weaken Gen.
TAYLOR. lfther" most Jealous Efforts and most
urgent appeals 10 Congress" had been duly heed
ed, the Ten Regiment Bill would have become a
law sufficiently early for the troops raised under it
10 have participated in General ScoTr's operations
Such IN substance, is the argument of the Union
that portion of it which relates to Gen. ScoTT be-
ing so ngenlously put together as to throw undue
responsibility upon him, and then, for perhaps the
twentieth time, to strike at Congress, largely com
posed OF the Presidents political friends and sup
porters, for having hestated moment in maturing
The Ten Regiment Bill, and the important measures
necessarily connected with it,
In refutaton, first, of that part Of the Unions
defence Of the Administration which is designed to
relieve it from all responsibility or participation in
the withdrawal of troops from Gen. Taylor's COM
mand, we have only to remark that reference To
The Correspondence Of the War Department will
show that this measure was, from the beginning, an
essential part of the Executive scheme of invading
the capital city of Mexico, by way of Vera Cruz.
This is made evident by the first letter which was
written to Gen. Taylor by the Secretary of War
after IT had been decided to fit out this expedition
In that letter. bearing date on the 22d of last Octo
Der, the Secretary, after informing Gen. Taylor oil
the decision of the Government to attack Vera Cruz
appealed to him in terms urgent for part of his
force as 10 place the General in position that com
PEELED him to incur the risk of some inconvenience
by complying with the wishes of the Department
rather than assume the responsibility of delaying or
defeating the all-important movement then in con-
temptation. This appeal of the Secretary is in the
following language:
In looking al the present disposition of the troops ap-
pears To he scarcely possible get the requisite number Of
regulars without drawing Of those with Monte
e or on the way to that place Should you decide against
holding military possession of place Coahua Chihua-
hua, and order the troops under Gen. Wool join you
presumed that lie requisite force far The expedition 10 Vera
Cruz could be detGchsd without interfering with your plans
operation Whilst the Government is anxious tina. nothing
should occur to Prn the expedition Vera Cruz regard
ing Of great Importance yet it. by Withdrawing from your
immediate command the force necessary for this purpose the
army with you may he placed in danger this expedite on must
for the Presen, be Uttered abandoneda result reay 10
be regretted"
Nothing more than the above can be necessary.
We presume, 10 satisfy every candid mind that the
withdrawal Of Gen. Taylors troops constituted a
part of the plan of attack Vera Cruz as resolved
upon by the President and his Cabinet, leaving out
of the question the fact that Gen ScoTr was not ap
pointed 10 the command of the expedition until the
18th Of November. nearly month after the letter
above cited was written.
The other charge Of the " Union that agains
Congress OF having thwarted the most zeaou.
efforts and dIsregarded the most urgent appeals
OF the President IN relation TO the Ten Regimen
bll-has been so often repeated by the official pape
and other Administration prints clearly TO establish
the existence, IN their opinion of such an emeroenc,
as should have called forth from the Executive zeal
Gus efforts" and "urgent appeals" such as those ",
L.. r Al. u