The New York herald. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1840-1920, 1848-05-06
THE C0RRESP0 NDENCE
BETWEEN
Gen. Scott and the Secretary of War.
GENERAL SCOTT TO sKeRErARv MARCY.


GENERAL SCOTT TO sEeRErARy MARCY.
MIxIco, Feb "a, ls49.
sm-On tho 18th inst received your two letters Of
the 18th u,timo and diat.ly issued tie General
Order No so IA copy snclosed) devolvipg the command
Of the army in Mexico upon Msjor General Butler:
As tn detailed for the Court Of Inquiry be-
fore which ordered to appear - criminal ere not
known 20 have arrived in the country avail myself Of
pointmspts Injuries and rsbukes which been in
fic,ed upon me by the War Department 81 CO my de-
parture from Washington: Nov %, 1886
To mo the business OF recrimnation, however pro-
voked, has been painful. In this summary shall,
therefore, indulge in 70 wantonness Of language but
copuo myself naked historical facts leaving conclu
sions to men ofssnse and candor.
In the hurry OF preparation for MEXICO only four days
have been most advsntsgsousy employed in the great
bureaus hore of the Chief of Engineers Chief Of Ord.
nance. Chief Quartermaster and Chief Commssary OF
Of hrse of accomplished captains therein named,
might be appointed Assistant Adjutsnt General with
there was a vacancy at the time for Myrequest
has been attended to- and thus have had no off,
Cor Of Adju'an Generals Department. with me IN the
o Generan Chie'. In tho field, at the head Of large
army small the selection Of his chief Of
the it, the chief in the Department Of Orders
and Correspondence?
Early in the following Januar, asked that General
Court Martial might be appointed the OF the Pre-
sdent for tho trial Of two officers (named bv ms
conduct each had committed that endangered, In high
degree the success Of tbs impending campaign; and
specially referred to the Nous and fatal act of Con-
gress MAY 30 ls30) which prohibited tbs eccu
pros, from ordering the court for the trial of
neglect alone ought carly to hsve admonishsd that
had hope of support at Washington, in attempt
might make asin;s certain to n ns
field Il left Washington highly Asttersd with the conf
denoe and kindness the President had Just shown me
in many long personal interviews military matters
For than two months my expressions Of gratitude
daily and fsrvent, were they much less emphs-
tic toward tho head the Wa Department Proceeding
y sal hazardous
learned January st the Brszos Santiago that at
tempt on foot to create General to take
comma in the field Shocked and distressed,
alo we'd Of relaxation In my efforts to serve my
country, resolved. for the short time was ksyto
main In commission, to be
True as the dial 10 the sun,
Although 1t be not shined upon"
an act for the citizen Lieutenant General bill was
pressed upon Congress to auhorss tue placing aunior
Mejor General jast appointed he ssme individually in
command all the old Msjor Generals then in front
will here trust myself to add soldiers comment
not allow them subsequent injuries to break dswn
entirely the spirit aud Abilities (such they are with
Fossepg at washington that from the great demands
of commerce, At the moment it would be dcult if not
impossible to take up perhaps at sny price sufficient
port regiments of my EXPEDITION from the Rio Grands
frontier to Vera Crus to impress upon the
North.rn sud Eastern ports certain number Of large
ships II ballast in order that the expedition might not
be and Ia view Of the nxed fact the return
delsy Of few weeks likely to prove total defeat
In a paper transmitted to ms-headsd Memorsn-
DUN for the Qusrtermaster General marked" War De-
psrtment December l5 6" and signed by the seorata-
~, which received January Sit is said =
Independently Of this number Of for troops
qured say Eve ships for the transportation of the surD
boats now bel prepared besides which ten vessels
must taken up out in ballast or troops
Less be put board TO mako the number
[4o] required by tho Commanding General
than three weeks afther INV reausien and departure
from Washington or not ono Of the ten veesels" In
ballast or with stores eaving room for troops) have
heard to this day Relying upon them, confidently
the delayed in whole in part at the
Braxos and Tsmpco from the 18TH January to the 9th
March leaving 1t was feaIed not half the time needed
for The reduction of Vera Cruz end m castle before tho
of the yellow fever But bali the surf boats came
ct ALL and Of the seige train and ordnance stores only
replaced thoss of the United States on those
formidable places We eucceeded ct last, in reaching
the pou of attack in the midst Of frghtful northers
by in great part of trading craft small and ha
sirdous picked up accdentalyat the Brssos and Tam
pico and when the army gotta shore ana vsos
ordnance stores.
The FIRST letter that received from the Department
after entering the captured city, contained an
rebuke dated Feb 22) for having ordered Colonel
Hsrney, I'd drsgoons remain In the command OF the
cavalry with Major General Taylor, SO as to leave
arm In my expedition. There was no great difference
In the number of cavalry with the Two armies
gu.d tho highest professional experience In such mat
tere and could not have bsen more confident 10 Its
Tone il dictated to the greeres general OF the recent
appointments Yet without the power of selecting com
msnders of particular corps no would
venture to take upon himself the conduct OF critical
campaign Such selections were slways made by the
Father his country and the principal generals under
him. s, in the campaign of 1914, myself sent away
against their wishes three senior Held tcers OF as
many tgments Who infrm, uninstructed and ine
fcent In fever Of juniors, and with the subse
uuspt appreciation of Major General Brown his join
nd tha hoad Cf no Drpartment.
were well acquainted with the customs Of war In ike
at bone and abroad and without that ensrgy on
my par 10 highly probable that American citizen
would have cited the battles Of the Niagara with
.igh for his country. am happy, however, that
and indeed before it could have had any knowledge Of
the Question had decided to take with the frank
and gallant Colonel and hops soon to learn that he and
very many other officers have been rewarded with bre
vets their highly distinguished services in the
camps'ga that followed
It was in reference to tho rebuke, that in
might very we'll coptrovcrt the military principles
70 confidently laid down by the department lin the let
ter 2ad February but believing that the practice
of the United states army, in tho two wars with Great
Britain, would bsve weight in the particular case
waive further reply. having 1t the moment leisure,
and no inclination for controversy
transports train and stores then already
expesienced, wrote to tho department from Losos, Feb
Perhaps no expedition was ever so unAccountably
delsyed-by want Of foresight ment or ener
Nv on my part as dare affirm and under circumstan
ces his critical to t6is entire army for everybody
relied upon, knew from the frs 30 well as knew II
would be fatal to US to attcmp. military operations
this coast af pre- badly, the first wses 10 Apr and
here are at the end Of February Nevertheless this
army 10 in heart and crippled am in the means re-
quired and promised shall 20 forward, and expect to
take Vera and its castle in time to escape, BY pur
suing the enemy, the psstilence of the coast {"
Tie city AMI castls captured March 20; and
with about one fourth Of the necessary for road
train uo fault of mine) the retreat in pursuit OF the
enemy was vigorously commenced April . Tho battle
of Crrro Gordo followed and We occupied Jaiapa
and Psroe where obliged to wait Tor supplies
from vsrs Cruz In those positions | YVES made to
writhe under another cruel disappointment.
In NV four memorials to the department. on the further
prusec uton OF the sg ainst Mexico. written at
Wa,bir gtor AID dated respectively October AZ, Nov
u 49, AID al DC only intmsed to me in the night
OF Move absr Is that might prepare myself for the
feld)-pspsrs in which demonstrated that Vera Cruz
was the true OF operations and that the enemys
capital could not probably be reached frem the Rio
Grande estimated that, after taking that great sea-