The New York herald. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1840-1920, 1859-08-09
The ssncoaAt - ef.pces OF the Unitsd States
How ssew York Ia Protected
TO THE EntroR OF THE HERALD

to THE Eprroa OF THE HERALD.
WASHINGTON, August 8, 1852
III e HERALD of the Gath Of July appeared
sop munication which commented on the defences
% New York, on recent pamphlet by Major u.
Barnard, United States ariny and on some pub
iished views Of Lieutenant Mortons on that subject.
That eosssy nicsticn is calculated, probably mad
yertenty, 20 mislead some of your readers IN re-
gard to 40 or three points Major Barnard pre-
sumo, d les not claim any particular graitnoe on
The p of the public for calling its attenuon' anu
that .of tse war Department, 10 the prooaoiity OF
inv~ so,.s or our So, frontiers His memoir was not
pre- seated to the War Department ti the present
,r mr.. 1850. Du.ip the preceding year the views
sha, Department in this regard had been cfhc'al'y
eyu,rssse, IN a variety of ways. Ia its sanual re
port 10 Congress of December 5, 1868, the following
language is used
Al v,es Of The prodieious deycopeueut tn the m>riue
~ bo ara Of Europe, sai Of the increased fane
@ieh ,hsJ esesn nzyes eua0e th"u 10 exert she n
aasst s.leI a,b OF inelr land bymes vel &c hlarng
i.sfces / o. mat ~ some oro7ise4 AGAINST
seecens upcn c.ssts az boe ernle-, CO operating
weh s,s s, rsats In prvyo eapsvts
10 seat6 tpey III Z .sntiVe ~hicl you'd
nkr,zt-ne reo.' 10 cass o. war, (,
vevvai saores o. The system which They ps'
srea M s-oettapo knoarn ODESSA, SfuS9oig ana Il
caafsula with such destructive elect
The Secretary Of War in a fo'eFtng paragrr n
refers especially to New York, which place he has
personally visited and inspected the defenees of
7urrg the preceding year.
The War Department had also given publicity TO
its warningto The country, and It's desiSts Is 10
Aseetipg possible emergencies, by printing two
memoirs (Which Lieutenant NJ. was perrlt;ed to
prepare) which elaborate the IDEAS fCcciuctiy
Srnached in the report. In TIE preface 10 the first
of these pamphlets, OF January, 1885, ooe1rs the fol-
towing extract
lam .moodepea to Try ny hand a subject till lately
oves~rl-n aud -xbao-ss,, b. re1ecs,ns that
orey sreaoy t5rthei, aas elnce orsgn
yfoees dtusa TO oscredn the existing def.ncss Of their
FespOive states, tor otaas is ia
81 In eec'>se het me syetems Of fort'ScA
hsve bssu folo xhese
~ logger so~oe, e'asr 10 their pf,Dc,
p.ee proportions sb.nIy noortaLs ooses,
No e- teuts of tos caunL-, und he re spt i'm
IN of s.sscy dsp syed oy
Ft.aFe spd England have to hfr for consieratioa
VI and seacoas 10 5s s.ioD which hsr
csoay sslte- Of TOR The
ssrta,n h,ebs importap. 3on's Shsre mlst
sho,5 consiructed aud -bcn eeadv be sdsced
tpese o'h.r LOCALITIES ED.re to- EXISTING worgs may be
shawn De OF suited 10 neps part thai oevoive
them uh'an l. suited bo,n or asag
IN The o-tspos Tor resssns rnen brought it
ss Toe enemy toe prnv.d ar cry and small arms jat
Dtroduotc SID ~hea Ne ~ sfn,1 "a, o1 ssc.e p'oP'r
tsrnale the and plated lmeuts add
1Niliss OF France aud Eos's5a
And in The memoir on the Dangers and Defences
of New Y orkf Ga tile borrowed subs 9queutly by
Major b, will be found reiierations of the same
ideas, at greater length, aud regarded in their ap
plication TO New FORK alone. For example, in
chapter ", which states briefly r,e conclusions
drawn by Lieut. NJ. from preceding analysis of the
causes of good or bad success of naval military ex-
pediuons, occurs the following extract
90 IevewiDg hssty the four Gu pers j1s concludei
tie oloTiua po'ps viii De found 20 have bean iocoa-
beslaoty estsb thed--
InAt the Unitet states being above all the Powers
In Sue wotle ootd,toD oe'y oshsc sotts OF
sack sl be- 10 any future var, tltjacled 10 seris
o. nzvai mlta'y expedLcns ~ n EnA have ipf or Ct
tba dfrt uc11p OF l5e govern laval es<bGb meats
ana he ruin Of oac con ONfcis ctss
2 That tntFs e2ped!saus VII o. Gu most immsgss
rcs,s, gro loTuosDe a. well from the se scieonte All
'n'aTy Improvements IA EaiS'e, as ftm ia nn nocrs
Ut ire idf cs'tlotf Of dee ;eat
3 That these expedition wih follow a nedala'y UPON
the fecsIauou of s4v, be smu'sneoas E,ta bs
inferred fr0n The ursge OF ua'oos and Of Great
Upecaiy, curing :he ST dfay !esrs
q And setly, u s Certainly 1pen that thoae # on.
aboard cires viii ~ hr5t Rus ken sh of.r the
Trizs sud wnc1 IL Roli3 sa m,st
10 ruiz (commtfcals o. nat ny and wnlea poSses5
the easi esplciiy of rssist.poe.
&. These expedieoos may be Of an entirely naval
sssrsoser, tDeg 10y dsscsns "a which sas l5et
cosc operate sl,n the LAM f9roes ether os1syey
merely fnr uioy erf protecting tue
7bd retreat of an srruy or oebafkAlo1 or may
both oil toeie ceesciies.
Isia agsus attacks ssspors by hee.s alone tia.
the seacoasi for,6aione Of the United
I'd. TINS appears from tha ur- OF the tnern.
seivs which are mostly stone c4etes looking upon
tpposE TO haf ros1etesSs, merely
prevent enemy's fleet from ofesDg rendezvous, or
tasirs shelter OF nRsng their for bloc nag
pvfT1ees Ihis sel is toe theory which IL stated ex
prtss ~ the written reports Of the 1biaf Engineer oil
ate army, Eqd it especially lai doTn m the Assem-
bAe Of letters py several Of oshest ocars OF the
SDrps. which lOu0d General TJL.su'a
Be.nlt "a he National Deenas OF 1851
therefore prcpnsa os saooement 10 The e.l:ial
sysem OF American or0 stoFs for de'spd,og ZOE
cast cities from naval dvsJsrts. Of which tue
a features hfst the use az for ,zti)ns OF caasp
cescripuon ana adapted 70 toe Of The Aius riffs
equivalent the regulation United atstes rss
Inusse'; aoi second, that the main reiisnce, 10
'sroe OF thse wo,ks is tue militia and volunteer fegt
mspts belonging 20 the CITY Rhi;h may be attacked
Tee cisy OF New Yotk. WITH is great nateri. wealth
prlv pubiia odloiuss alores navy aaa
sbio aros ts lscarsa rna ONE spoos 40 iouadriss
add s all z 10 itseG ~
oajecs Tor grand expedition; but me al
enemy to attempt susn enterprise would include BE-
rides. he hope Of parayzns, 10 certain extent,
trace Of ihose great oi,tctA OF country OF which Nsw
YORK Is tie conu-9Scial cenEse.
These published manifestations of the views and
Intentions Of the War Department al appeared the
year before Major BIS manuscript was presented
to il, and one Of them a twevemonth before SO
that it cannot be properly claimed for Major BIS
pamphlet that it is otherwise than super0g dtory as
regards IFS exposition of The Dangers of New
York" Your correspondent may indeed. have
been led to his expressed opinions in this respect
by some passages in that pamphlet, which proba-
bly, uniutentiOnalIy, ignore the existence of the
published manifestations referred TO above For
example, on pages and S, Major Barnard says:
IF the conclusion that arrive at is well founded
it demands the instantaue attention of the War
Department and Of Congress- at is a
species OF folly approaching to insanity for nation
SO constantly holding mp TO its neighbors the mo-
mentous issue of war" &c, ito leave this great
commercial metropolis liable the very dav almost
that war IL declared, 20 the most fearful blow
and 81 trust sir, have succeeded in
impressing you with vivid idea OF the dangers ia
which New York Is exposed and Of the Importance
of its perfect defence These passages. among
others are apparently Indicative of a desire ~
claim credit that ] have shown cannot fairly he
awarded to the author. But have no doubt that
If that gallant ofcers attention is called To tbep, he
will repudiate such an Interpretation Of them.
Some OF your spondentsrem arlls are however,
nnJustAlable on any grounds; "a, for example the
paragraph beginning with the declamatory query:
Shall We continue to trust this great question 10
politicians and spoil menN | regard such Ian
guage as impertinent and as conveying slanderous
in the hands of politicians and spolsmen'T
Your correspondent seems to have thorou rbIv
confused together the general views broscled in
LIT. MoItons first memoir, above alluded to. with
the special plan for New York defence adyanced in
the second. 1t. Morton docs not propose to aDDly
his system in its entirety to the defence of Tia