Wilmington journal. [volume] (Wilmington, N.C.) 1844-1895, 1848-05-19
TERMS: - so I'm advance.
WHOLE NO. 1879.

, strong partles) which had been raised to aug
: ment your command. In this way, YOU rem
dered unavalling, for time at least, all that
had been or could be done by the assiduous
and ncessant labors of the War Department
!. in all its branches; and then you recklessly
put forth the groundless complaint of &c a total
want of support and SYMPATHY" from it.
Your letter of the 18th of July, which was
: not received at Washington until the 30th of
December last, abounds with complaints a.
galnst the department., and refers in strong
terms TO the wants and sufferings of the army
at that time. Before you ventured to make lis
then destitute condition a ground of charge a.
galnst the War Department, you ought to have
recolected that these affections fell upon it in
the midst of your experiment of making it ga
selt-sustanlng machine and were the legiti-
mate fruits of that experiment These suffer-
lngs came upon it before your estimated Pc
Rod of isolation from '' Vera Cruz and home"
had half expired. When you had designedly
and unnecessarily abandoned both, and enter
ed upon your self-sustalnIng position, " cut
OF from all supplies and renforcements from
home. until perhaps late in November" by
what pretence of justice do you complain of
the War Department for the distresses you
thus voluntarily inflicted upon yourself and
the gallant army under your command? Some
thing very different from censure and reproof
Is due tor the extraordinary efforts which were
successfully made to reach you with recruits
anu supplies IN your sequestered situation,
and TO rescue you from the embarrasSments in
} which your i!l-judged measures had involved
you. have brought into view this unac-
countable movement of yours, with no purpose
} TO make any comment upon it as military
measure, but solely to show that the evils re-
sultng from it are not just grounds of accu-
satlon against The War Department, and that
the labored attempt to pervert them to such
! purpose discloses the manner and spirit with
: which you have executed the assumed task of
: its accuser
AS you have INDUCED in the widest range
OF speculation in regard to the alleged sinister
: motives and covert designs of others, feel
less reluctant to present my views as to the
2 main object of your last communication
, Throughout the whole of it, and particularly
in the concluding part, you manifest the ut
: most solicitude to place yourself in the posi-
ton of an injured and prosecuted man. With
all the aid You can derive from deXterous STRAIT
egy, you will be likel y to fail in your attempt,
: unless you can have the full benefit of your
high coloring of some facts, and your forget
fulness of others, together with all your fancl-
full conjectures and surmses. Your recall is,
: you assert, the long suspended blow of pow
, er," which you had the sagacity clearly to
predict. 1t is somewhat remarkable that your
, predictions preceded the events which you
imagine provoked that blow. AS early as the
, 25th of July, soon after L" the happy change
in my (your) relations, both official and pri-
, vate, with Mr.. Trist," you looked, you say,
''to be dismissed from the service of my (your
country" If your recall can be regarded as a
Dismissal YOU are entitled to all the credit of
the fufIment of your own early prediction
i In presenting in its true light the Presidents
5 compliance with your own request 10 be re-
| called, which you now denomnate your dis
mssaI, may be obliged to strip il OF the en-
belshments you have ingenously thrown
around it; though. in doing this, you may be
deprived of much upon which you depend to
t sustain your claim TO be considered persecu-
5 ted man.
} AS early as June, you begged TO be recall
t ed. You alege that this application was re-
? bukingy declined' This is not saying the
exact thing. The reply TO your request was,
; g that it would be decided with exclusive re-
"ference to the public good. When that
as shall render it proper in his 1.-THE Presidents
: "opinion 10 withdraw you from your present
: &c command, his determination to do so will be
&c made known to YOU" This was not de-
NAL, but suspension of present action, &C.
! companied with an assurance of future action
5 on the subject. Your request was still pend
ing a regard to the public good then stood in
the way of the Immediate qualification OF your
wishes but the President promised 10 act de-
f fnitively on the question when that obstacle
t should be removed. Judging from the state of
e things al the headquarters of the army in jan
uary, he concluded that it was removed, and
] that he ought no longer 10 require of you re-
5 luctant service as commanding general. This
certainly cannot be called persecution or pun
, ishment. do not deem it proper to comment
on the state of things at the headquarters OF
the army, to which allusion Is made IN the let
2 ter granting your request; nor to express an
opinion as to the share OF responsibility there.
: for, which rests upon yourself or others that
matter is, 10 considerable extent, involved in
l the investigations before the court of inquiry
r now sitting in Mexico. Your request to be
recalled thus ultimately granted, was prefaced
with imaginary complaints, which could not
: be passed without notice, nor noticed without
l exposing their groundlessness. If the expo
r stIon has given offence, you can blame only
E yourself for introducing complaints so entire
e ly unfounded.
f the simple fact that you, and ''the three ar
rested offcers,' care all 10 be placed together
l 90 before the same court-the innocent and the
"guilty-the accuser and the accused; the
, "judge and his prisoners are delt with alike"
: 9 Most impartial justice! - you eXclaim. And
: why is it not impartial justice: On what
ground OF right can you claim to have your
case Disseminated from theirs? 1t is true you
? have aSsuernd to be their Judge, and have
pronounced them guilty; and complain and
} repine that the laws of the country do not al
low you, their accuser, 10 institute a court to
register your decree. But You are not their
rghtful Judge, although they arere your prls-
e oners. Before that court You ali stand on the
E, same level, and all have equal rights. Though
p you may have the satisfying conviction
. that you are innocent and they are guilty, the
government could act upon no such preSump-
I ton. By becoming an accuser, you did not
e place yourself beyond the reach OF being ac-
r cused; and unless you are clothed with the
n immunity of despotic power, and can claim
n the benefit of the maxim ''that the King can dc
5 no wrong" | know not why your conduct
r when made the subject of charges, may not be
T investigated by court OF inquiry; nor can
;, perceive what other or better right you have
, to complain of and arraign the government,
. than the other officers whom you have accused
: and whose cases, with yours. were referred 10
the same court If yours isa hard case theirs
r is not less SO. If you can rlShttully COM
"A lTNlo of b1rf no