Burlington free press. [volume] (Burlington, Vt.) 1827-1865, 1852-07-30
From The .\c.0 York Duly Timcs.
Stray Talk upon Current Topics.

What an ordeal must be passed, what a
gauntlet must be run, by the distinguished cti-
zen who may be placed III nomination for the
first Office in the gift OF Republic. Now
that the Illustrous ScoTT is before the people
for election, we sec III partlzan prints cndea-
vors made not only to dspragc his personal
qualities, but to weaken and even to decay his
claims TO eminent military rcnown. One Jour
nal worse for protesting entire political ncu-
traltyl says that "Gcncral Scorr meyer plan
ned the attack at Lundy's Lane, nor does he
deserve the honor Of the victory = while an
other paper actually accuses HIM of cowardlce,
and "ducklng" and "dodglng" bullets Oh the
fled
But this kind Of traduction Of great men is
no new thing. 1t Was 50 in the days Of Gen.
WAsHINGTo> and were Il man las pure as
SNOW and cht,tc a. ice, he should not 'scapc
calunny." Yes, a man who had many supper
tcrs who had defenders ; who had been The
friend of WAsmINGroN, aud whom WASHING
ToN had bctrlcnd ed, wrote of hiu as follows,
IN 1896, and his pamphlet WAS widely read -
widely circulated, and by an opposition party
widely commended and aPproycJ:-
"Mr. WAsuI>GroN had the nominal rank of
Commando Chief, but he not SO in
fact. lie had only separate command. lie
ihad no control over, or direction Of, the army
10 the Northward, under GATES, that captured
BURGoYNE, nor Of that to the South, under
.GEEENE, that recovered the Southern States
~
Chief, seemed to throw upon him the lusrc Of
those actions, and to make linn appear AS the
soul aud centre Of all the military operations
III America.
"lIc commenced his command IN June, l77J,
during the time the Massachusetts army lay be
fore Boston, and after the affair of Bunker Hi,
The commencement of his command was the
commencement Of Inactivity. There was IL
spirit at Concord and Bunker lllIl which his
presence Stllled into cold defence. lie was
accountable for the cases and ml,orlunes that
marked the gloomy cmpaign OF 1916. Ills
positions taken wCrctilhcr Stands or n1ckS of
land. Ju the former he enemy, by the aid of
their ships, could bring their whole force
against part Of General WASmINGrohs, as
III the affair of Long Island, and IN the latter
he might be shut up as IN the bottom Of bag,
This had nearly been the Gaze at New YORK,
ana IL WAS 81 III part II WAS dClilN INC case
at Fort Washington; and 1t would have been
the case at Fort Ice, if General GrEtNr had
not moved prcclptatcly of, leaving every ding
behind, and by gaining lIackcn-ack Bridge,
got out Of the bago IIcrgcn Neck. Nuwon-
der We see 80 much puSanmty IN the pEEsl-
DrNr, whcn We see 50 little enterprise III the
GENEEALm
Let General ScoTr take courage. No one
has yet denounced him, as the writer of this
pamphlet dad General WAanNGroN, with be
ing ''trcachcrous to private friendship, and
hypocrlic IN public life y man concerning
whom the world would be "puzzcd to decide
whether he was an apostatc or AN lnlposor;-
whether he had abandoned good principles, or
whether he ever had any" But all this, and
worse, Judging from the present, mpy be sand
OF General Scurr before his election.
A recent English paper mentions the clrcum-
stance of a JonNNr BULI, who, travelling IN
the nolghburhood of Kilkenny, came to a ford,
aud hired boat To take hun across. The wa
ter beng more agnajcd than waa agreeable 10
hln, he asked he hoatman # any person WAC
ever lost on the pas eagc "NCper' SAID the
man my brother was drouud,d here last
week. hu We tnIud hluI apJln the uCA1 dav !"