The daily union. [volume] (Washington [D.C.]) 1845-1857, 1848-04-30


General scott's attack upon the War Department,
and the secrstary's defence
We surrender columns to-day 10 the publication Of
these important documents. They will be read, we
doubt not with the deepest interest Throughout, the
country. We shall publish them in all the editions Of
our journal. and in our Congressional Register. We
trust that our friends OF the democratic press will
rate with us in giving them general circulation The
very extraordinary attempt made by wing members OF
the House to suppress the Secretarys letter. when uner
peeediy communicated in response 10 their own prema.
riure and hurried call, imperatively demands such a
courses while the mastery and victorious ability OF the
Secretays vndicaton of his department, and of the adj
mInslraton from the assaults Of General Scott makes
The wide circulation of his letter as emneny expedien,
and desirable under the circumstances Of the case
just and proper
While aostalnng from any extended comment upon
these documents and leaving the facts which they Sc
forth, AMI the spirit displayed either side of the con
oveg'y TO speak for themselves we cannot forbear to
allude to one point which stands out most prominent,
on the face of General SCOTS letter 1t does no
at all purpor to be written-as official dispatches
are always supposed to be written-in the due pro.
cess and transaction OF the public business. 1t is moi
business paper ALL 1t is. and it processes to be- on
the contrary, nothing else than violent and sweep
ins official assault-an elaborate an deliberately pre-
parel deiama'ory diarbe upon the War Department
and the administration, by the general to whom at his
urgent request and certainly not without mag
nanimy on the part of the government, the chief
mand In the war had been assigned. With what war
rant of facts to sustain him in unprecedented
and extraordinary General Scott has thought fit hurl
this mere official accusation in the face of his govern
ment while the is not yet denitvely closed
will appear in the perusa of the documents and to
the judgment of every candid man, so enlightened are
content to leave it. But the whole design of the Gene
rails letter is apparent its face. is studied attempt
to present himself before the country unofending
Uictim of EIeeuc perseCution And his ultimate object
in assuming such attitude will surely not be doubted
by those who regard him as now somewhat prominent
among the proposed candidates of the wing party for the
Presidency
Nor will his letter permit any reader for moment to
forget that General Scott. in order thus to make himself
out victim of persecution has not SCRUBBED to charge,
boldly and broadly, upon the administration crimeor
rather whole series and system of crimeswhch if the
accusation is just ought unquestionaby subject the
perpetrators OF them to the severest punishment which
betrayed country and an outraged people can nfct The
scope O uentIu oCONs CudiSc ludt Inc
ton sent him and his gallant army Mexico TO be
fced; and that in pursuance of this most nefarious de-
sign, the War Department Indignantly withheld from
him all due sympathy and support in the enemy's coun-
try Ii is beyond all doubt, fearful ISSUE either to the
general who makes it, the government which meets
it before the country By these documents, and by the
rest of the record, let it be tried
We commend to the especial admiration of the country
the calm and dgnihed power with which the Secretary
of War has promptly met and utterly crushed down this
most astounding accusation all the details and all the
preences on which it assumed to rest Never was an
official vinlcaton absolutely complete and Ti-
umphant Rarely has good cause been placed in
hands so emineny adequate to do it full justice So
gross provoca,on certainly challenged corresponding
asperty in the reply But it at once honorable the
character of the Secretary of War, and indicative of his
entire confidence in his and in himself, that his
vndcaton, REFRESHING the indignation naturally arising
under accusation alike groundess and offensive,
tents ITSELF even in its most searching and pointed pas
sages, with being calmly and severely just.