The Washington union., 1858-02-23

scanty means, and inadequate forces hold the main
body of the British army in state Of Siege IT did
nothing worthy of its prestige its strength effected
nothing except the occupation of two or three cities which
it held mainly by Of the British naval superiority
and the war which 1t maintained chiefly for the
means sulsstng itself i'll those places And yet often
during this period the regular forces of Washington did
not reach half the number Of its enemies In short
hc entered upon this with inadequate as to
render the chances Of apparently hopeless Ills
army consisted Of le,cs, which, according To the
earlier sacs of the war; sbandcd against his earn
est rcmonsanccs almost they could be train
ed and disciplined, requippcd and III appointed they
inferior in numbers to the veterans whom they
encountered Out Of such materials he had to create
everything cornmissarat, qtartennastcr's depart
mcnt and the entire military Organization and to main
tain the army for many years by system which lit
tie better than one of voluntary contribution The civil
organization to which lac must lock for support was
still more defective for the purposes of long and
difficult war loose confcderscy Of States was gov
cncd by a congress Of deputies which acted upon
the States themselves, and whose laws had little
more force than mere request. 1t had neither
money such recognised position In the great family
of nations to enable 1t to command credit abroad
whilst Its Of collecting such scany supplies the
people could furnish at home only persuasive Be
hind all this he had to look to the public opinion of the
country for the only power which could sustain him
through the long and wcasoe years such struggle
1t he, and he only, who could command it WHO
could animate its fading hopes rally its falling energies
its determinations, purify its aspirations and reason
with its wayward moods He himself became the point
of union; in his wisdom and justice In his patriotism and
fottu,lc all trusted to him they looked for counsel and
by his faith they measured their hopes It he only
who could mediate in the dangerous disputes which
times between suffering army and destitute gov
ennlent quiet the irritatons Of sectional jealousy
The States raised far they could their quotas of
and money In the confidence, which never dis
appointed, that the common woud be justly I'D
mnistercd by him for the common benefit
None but a character constituted like Westinghouse
| could have commanded the public opinion of such
country through SO long Of alvcrsiy and trial
and nothing but the force of such public opinion could
have encountered successfully the combination Of civil
| and military power which opposed to it. Such
achievement Is unparalleled in the history OF the
world and what is still more remarkable, it cons'lm
mated without violation OF law single departure
from the rules Of virtue the obligations Of patriotism
Nor could he have thus continued to command this pub
lie opinion and confidence by his moral qualities alone
it required the union of these with high military talent
to constitute the consummate leader for remarkable
an emergency. This talent he did exhibit throughout
the whole of that palyzng the main body OF the
British army with inferior forces he stripped himself OF
and at the expense of OF ibis own noble
aspirations for fame to maintain the American superior
ity in the war of detail upon which he mainly rested
his hopes of To hold them in check in one
place and to ovcrwhclm them in Others were the great
objects OF his strategy, from which, with rare
! and noble perseverance, he suffered no temptation
to seducc him. And yet no man could be more
entcrpiisng, strike daringly, where the con
juncture of circumstances justified and required him to
stake much upon the event II is remarkable that he
vent,ed when his situation seemed most desperate
1t when all seemed lost that he struck those blows at
Princeton and Trento which were the more deadly Tor
being entirely unexpected 1t was soon after the defeat
at Brandywinc that he made the attack Mt Germantown
the first moment that the division of the British forces
afforded prospect for 1t when the public
hope lowest and the public mind was most despcnd
that the trumpet OF the leader proclaimed loudcs
and with uncertain sound his faith in the aid of Prov
idencc and the ultimate OF the cause Then, in
decd it that the shout OF king amongst them
These things he did he know the chief strength
of its defence lay the public opinion of the country
whose forces whilst maintained the true reserve
on which his army might depend with absolute conf
dence Such the with which he wresed
! q mighty empire from the most powerful nation on
earth IT, then have said before, military genius
is to he measured by what it accomplished, need fear
the comparison between Washington and the most dis
tngushed captains Of the world Alexander maneuvrcd
upon larger scale and conquered in battles where multi
tudes engaged and there greater numerical
odds against him. but he led people aud an army tar
superior in all the arts of peace and war to the sbgaon
OF inferior nations who had common bond except the
fact of acknowledging the master He struck with
his mailed hand at social system mighty 1t is true, but
it was tecaying structure which crumbled into ag-
under the force of the blow and yet he built UP
and constructed organization, leaving it to his
Successors form other combinations out of the ruins
Washington wrcstcd empire large in extent from
greatly superior power with undiscplncd troops and in
ferior means Nor did he full to complete his achieve
cnt for he mainly instrumental in erecting upon
the ruins Of the old new social system which, from his
time until the present. has been daily developing new
combinations beauty and of strength and has become
the study Of statesmen and the hope and the delight Of
the friends Of liberty throughout the world.
Hannibal attacked equal and with troops perhaps
but little superior to those whom he encountered Break
ing the barrier OF the Alps he passed through Italy
with series OF battles and far striking
than any thing in the wal revolution and consti-
tutng, perhaps, the most wonderful military achieve
mcs of antiquity. But he failed in all the objects of
the war; and baled in the final result Of his
pagls which ended in his defeat by Scpio at ma and
the entire sujugaton of his country to her hated rival
If Washington could not have freed the barriers Of the
Alps and fought the battles Of the Trcba Ihrasymene,
and Cannm, as did Hannibal, it is perhaps still more
probable that the latter could not have conducted
ccssflly tie Of the American revolution with such
placed Mt the disposal of the former. j
hazard perhaps little in saying that Washington would
have made skilfu of the disaection TO the
Roman power which prevailed amongst many conquer
cd italian States than did Hannibal; Is it probable
that he would have permitted entire army to march
unnocstcd before his face to the destruction of his
brothers forces which rested his only hope of
1 cess. 5...t s+4-..
The great Caesar who has been dcnomnated AZ the fore
in all the world by the greatest master of the
human heart who has swept its chords can hardly
be said to have failed in any object of his serious pursuit
but he too, always commanded troops who were supe-
rior their opponents in discipline and efficiency except
at that battle in which he near suffering defcat
from the sons OF Pompcy. His wars were mostly with
blrbaans which 1t is true he accomplished great
eults and made few or mistakes. But If his results
were large SO were his and in his the two
were far more equally proporoned than with Washing
ton He the first of his oountrymcn to comprehend
the fact that the Roman empire hal grown beyond the
capacity OF its municipal institutions govern It, and
upon their ruins he established organization of