The daily union. [volume] (Washington [D.C.]) 1845-1857, 1848-09-16
The next publication in order is in the New 0dean.
PicaYnne Of April D. and opens with this paragEaph


by the baiq ie Ca,hscine Captain swift from Havana
We have Tate advces from otl ,ornia Capt W. IT,
Emory. Of the e9rpi q logog.aPn,g snsia,'g. es pas
ru Of The # the tcs "a Pace q CaIain Iarner Uho
10 the eosiaaad Of The H Dragons after the death
II Capt Moore, and IN thts capacity mas o sn home Nv
Ga Ksarny report the rseO"qHst 81 Ca4yorna, aud the
condition and resources of that cony From Capt
SWIM learn the following particulars dsrSsd BY him
from Capt Emory"
Now, if there were other evidence Of the author.
shipIl there were not the word OF Capt Swift, OF the
baque Caharne, that he derived the particulars from
Capt Emory, and II there were not other internal and
evidence, there single phrase the
above paragraph that would fix the authorship The
reader of any OF Kearnys letters dispatches the
government can hardly have failed TO note the ambitious
and sounding title with which he dubs the party Of
100 who went as his escort into California
them the way, and to them safe through "Htcd-
quarters Army of the Vest" is the flourish with
which he introduced the bulletins OF travel OF him.
self and sUte. OF the subordnaies would i'm
tate the style of the General" The WY promoted
"actng ad utant general" Captain" Emory, would
not long neglect to trumpet the title OF the recon,
reconques ii had achieved First however, he sounds
his own honors-(why not? there was no one to sound
them for him)-and 'n,e undersigned, acting assistant
adiuant general" figures in the Panama letter. first of the
series The ''army Of the west waits for terra fma 10
be introduced and even then only tail to lis ''acng
adjuant general" The two epithets them would alone
beiray the author OF the piece IN that acng aiuant
general of the army of the west" himself and no other
In no other place, will venture to say, either phrase
to he found applied. than in the letters and dispatches
OF Kearny in the report of his first actiDg adjuan, gen.
eral Turner to Gov. Stockton OF the melancholy con-
dltion of that 'army OF the wes after the massa-
of San Pasqua and finally IN the reports spread in
the United States by Captain Turner's successor 'acug
adutant general Emory, who, returning home ''in thar
capacity could not allow his honors to waste their fra
GRANGE Kearny the inventor OF the "army OF the
west" This pompous title had not then been published
in the United States, and was not, officially, until the
publication OF Kearny's official dispatches that at
that time-the time of these letters and publications
there chance for any except hearny and his mill
tary family to know that such ridiculous appeaton
had been arrogated And surely one could have
guessed it. And more, has applied it, except
Kearny and his adutans Wherever II met, then one
may count OLA certainty tina, he is the track OF Kear
ny, or one or the other OF his "adlutants
The announcement of Emory's appointment to this
Office made with the same particularity and nearly
the same words, both IN tins newspaper summary and
Emory book account The two paragraphs worth
quoting together;
Pieayune account Emory, Report, Lp.ilD
Capt Emory as mae ] eeS oa @ as pfs e re-
the We" in place Capt Fur Kearny my party San
mahd OF the LIST dragons a,s Acting as,aa"t r General
s ss.nsat S Sy nn h to Il. s ssn
pany Of the list Dragons , GUM
stated in the beginning of this branch Of examina.
tion that Emorys mission home appeared to be hreefo
to magnify kearny and the " Army OF the Vest as the
conquerors of California; to villfy and undermine the
reputation OF those who had truly won for the country
that superb conquest; and to deny and face down the
truth about the dsgacefu defeat and butchery-dsgace
full, mean, to the commander not to the brave men 50
wantony sacrificed to his ignorance and sehshness-su
fered at San Pasqual All three OF these objects are
Swallowed forth in the introduction above quoted to the
Picayune report The author too conscious OF his
Grand and TOO full OF it not to betay it; and he shad
owed it forth in the introduction, he well fulfilled iii
the particulars" which followed.
He was to report the reconquest of California" The
first thing, then, of course, to show that there had
been something to reconquer and accordingly the fol-
lowing the first OF his particulars" furnished TO
Capt Swift for publication in the Pcayune:
General Kearny reached the mouth of the CHA
about the 18th November Captain Emo,y while n'akins,
reconnaissance Of that river, captured The Meriean mail
By this Gsnsra Ktarny learned the Californian. had
Anges dripen all the Americans the interior Of The
yf the seaboard and defeated the erpedo" Of Captain
This is the acting adntant general of the army of the
west, returning home in that capacity" all over 1t
has burden. q General Kearny and Captain Emory
learned that and happens that Captain Enjoys re-
port is pitched TO the tune: &C and the General
being the principal figures of the volume, Ego, e. rer
meuS"
mouth of the river ella, is feat which has had two his
toriesnamey, in this present report to the editor OF the
Pcayune and in subsequent report to Col Albert, head
of the typographical buea-but only one historian ud
Emory Neither the San Diego letter. nor
the Generals dispatches touch it. Luckily the hero OF
it wore pen as well sword; and when he took up
the former du not orket MS ProWeSS Wneh BTdeu WIN
the latter; SO that have two histories; and in the
obviousness of all other historians to this particular
point, able TO trace these two unfailingly to the
same hand. "Ob, that NINE enemy would Write book
the wise mans exclamation three thousand years
ago. 50 report! report OF military reconnaissance
with parallel passages TO anonymous newspaper bels,
he might have said, had there been the like OF the pres
ent case in those days.
Capt Enorys first history very brief, suits news
paper summary. The book more in detail, as
suits the style of narrative Here it is, (page of the re-
port 95, '6:)
"Nov. 3. Warner, S;anly and myself saddled up to
visit the junction of the CHA and Colorado.
" On return met MEXICAN, well mounted and
muied in his blanket asked nm where he going;
he said 10 hunt horses AS he passed oberUed in each
his holsters the neck of bolc and his fresh
made SACK with other evidences OF preparation for Jour
ney Much against his taste, inpsd him oou me to
camp; several times he begged let him Tor mo-
ment, that he would return His anxiety 10 be re-
request took him General kearny aud explained to
him the suspicious circumstances under which had taken
him, and that his capture would prove of importance
He Immediately searched, and his wallet found
opened"
No fail to perceive in the times repeated
ego Of this passage the modest hand that notes the
same act with but single acor-the same one-in the
Pcayune account.
The concluding portion of the above quotation from
the Picayune deserves notice another account Ii IS
in these words:
BY this Gen. kearny learned the Calfornians had rsen
captured the American garrison Pueba de los Angeles
driven all the Americans, NC and defeated the erpedtong
Captain DIerpinc and Colonel Fremont"
This last is OF set of nefarious lies against Ere
mont with which Acting Adjutant General of the army
of the vest Emory and Lieut.. Col. Philip ST. George
Cooke seem TO have been specially charged; but the CT
Cuation of this particular OF the set do not trace 10
any but Emory, and am glad of an opportunity to re-