The New York herald. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1840-1920, 1848-05-06

presumed to be familiar has excited less surprise than
the declaration that by the plsnce with your
request, you shave had officer of tho Adjuant Co.
neral's DEPARTMENT with me [youl in the campaign"
Every omcer OF that Departmental least eght-was
as you well knew, subject to your command When you
arrived In Mexico there with the army ct least
five assistant adjutants general all at your service
That you chose to employ Of them at your bead
quarters and detached from other appropriate duties
be regarded slight to the hole of that staff then
with you in Mexico, and CT complaint but GER
tany not complaint TO emanse from You against The
War Department willing as am to presume, though
unable to conceive, that circumstances justified you In
passing over all tho assistant adjutsnts general then
with the army and in selecting officer Of tho liue to
perform the duties Of asutant general at your head
quarters was much surprsed to learn from you that
when General Worth sent to you one Of these accom-
rshed Captains" the first your list under the belief
that you desrsd his services acting assistant ad
jutanr general you declined to employ him in that
you have ado 1t distinct ground Of charge In your
arraisnment Of the War Department that you
at your headquarters Had you selected him instead of
another you might have DONE you would have been
bersft of oil for complaint Though there
vacancy In tho Aeutant Generals staff Of the grade Of
major, for whch oulv you recommended the accom-.
pished oaptains-and to which, only, they were pro-
perry ogible-there 8 vacancy in 1t the rank of
captain For this position you recommended an oficer
In General Wools staff then the chihuahua expedi
ton This officer was subsequently, appointed assistant
adutant general with the rank of captain, you de-
Sired and has ever since been at the headquarters Of
that general Thus 1t viii be perceived that your
~ complied with.
The next specification 10 the catalogue of charges pre-
tutsd by President for tho trial Of General Marshall
aud Captain Montgomery, your charges against
them The offences imputed to them certainly not
OF an aggravated character. The one, alleged,
had been incautious In relation to despatch under
circumstances that might admit Of its coming to the
knowledge of the enemy and the other had not carried
q despatch with much expedition you thought he
might have done AS general ofhcer, q court
to try him must have been composed OF officers Of high
H.. RAfn ha Orhar mr. Nou1d hava
resohed Mexico, it WAS foressen that your command
would ba at Vera Cruz and probably engaged u an &C.
have been then sent from your column to Monterey
the Rio 0rsnde (where the court must have bean hed
without great dstrlmens 70 sne PUBIC service HAD you
critical period by the order Of the President would
have afforded better pretsnce for complaint than any
composed OF officers taken from General Taylors COM
msnd, 1t would have still further have weakened his
force you had withdrawn from ntm subse quent events
have proved that most fortunate the President did
not comply with your request for had he done some
of tho officers highest In rank and most conspicuous at
Buena Vista might at that critical unoture have been
separated from their commands, and engaged court
ct distance from THAI glorious Of action. 1t 10
not ancul to suppose that their absence might have
changed the fortune Of that evcntful day. and that In
H, dH n vhao !"
war-wesmight have had to lament q most disastrous
defeat an the almost total loss OF the whole force
had left to sustain that frontier No has
than yourself to rejoice that no order emsnated
from Washington though requested by you, which
would have further impaired the efficiency of General
Tsylor's command In the crisis that then aitsd him
My letter Of the 22d Of February conveying the Pres
nts views in regard to your order deprivng Colonel
Harvey Of his appropriate command 10 severely arragn
ed by you as offensive, both in manner and matter.
The facts in relation to this OF alleged grievance
before the public, and brief alusou to them
will place the transaction In its true light Under your
orders Col Harvey had brought seven companies of his
M
others being all Of tho regiment in Mexicowere ex
pected to fellow within few days. In the midst Of bis
high hopes and ardent desire for active SERVICE you
took from him the command Of his own regiment, de-
vovsd it Of his junior officers and ordered him
back to General Taylors line to look for what not
appropriately denominsted ian imaginary command"
Outraged In his feelings and injured in his rights he re-
a o . 20
to the President did assign any sufficient or even
psusbcreason for this extraordinary proceeding The
transaction became known entertained but opinion
the subj and that that had inflicted
fcsr. Such act-slmost tho nrst on your assuming
communicated disastrous conseQ uences to tho pub.
lie service and deyoyea upon the resident the duty Of
position you have made grave matter Of accusation
against the head OF the War Department and have cha
racterizsd 1t as censure and rebuke II may imply
BOTH and still being merted, may leave you without
pretence of complaint The President utter alluding
70 his duty to sustain tho rights OF tho Officers. qn-
formed you that he did not discover In the case
you had presented it, sufficient for such
complaint and that he hoped the matter had been
sdered by you and the colonel restored to his appro
demonstrates the unressonablsness of your COM
plant and vndcates the correctness of the Presidents
proceedings You had really rebuked and censured your
conduct for before you had received the Pre-
sdents views you had, he hoped you would reoons
dered the matter become convinced Of your error
your order aud restored Colonel Harvey to
bis commando thus giving the strongest evidence in "a
Of the propiey and correctness Of all the President
had done in the case give yeu too much credit for
nf IN
steps from caprice or for any other cause than
q conviction that you had fallen into error After the
that you, who, above all Others should wish 1t to
pass into oblivion have again called attention to it.
BY sking an item In your arrangement OF the War
Department.
You struggle In vain to vindicate your in this
by referring to your own acts In the campaign OF
1914 You then sent away, you allege against their
Wishes three senior field ofcers of many regiments
who inrm, unnsructed and inefficient In favor Of
three juniors and with tho subsequent appreciation Of
Major General Brown and the hesd of the War Depart
ment" This precedent does not, In my JUDGMENT,
change the aspect of the present case Harvey
assign In difference to the known opinion of the
rmy and country you did not venture to assign that
Of your ioses DEDUCTION that because you on formsr
occasion had deprived officers under you OF their COM
msnds for good and sufficient reasons with subsequent
approval you may now, and at any Tins do the same
thing without any whatever and the President
inteposs tho procedure have just cause
to complain OF iudignty and right to srrsigu the
War Department.
Az your upon the tone Of my letter 10
probably blow aimed ct much moro conspicuous Oh
jsct, to be reached through me- ought not perhaps
pass 1t without notice. On revision OF that letter
osnnot perceive that s not entirely respectful in
ner and lar gusge The views Of the President are
therein confidently expressed because they cond
ienty entertained 1t seemed to be admitted by you
that dictated to the greenest general of the recent
appoutmen tbs letter would not have been excep.
tionable was not aware that Il my duty to modify
aud graduate my STYLE to meet according to your
faidous views the various degrees of greenness aud
ripeness of the generals whom required TO con-
vsy orders the President and for such defect
my official communications have apology to offer
In the Same letter. wherein you complain OF being
censured fer your in relation to Col Harvey you
say -" / am nov rsbuked for the unavoidsble-nay,
WISE il 1t had not been unavoidable release on psrole
Of the prisoners taken at Cerro Gordo before on.
word Of commentator from government had reached
this army account of its gallant conduct In the cap
ture Of those prisopers.n Accident slone-not any
oversight or neglect my pat-hss given you the sp-
parent advantage Of the sggravston which you have
artfuly thrown into this charge Ny letter commend,