The weekly pioneer and Democrat. [volume] (Saint Paul, Minn. Territory) 1855-1865, 1861-12-27
THE WEAKLY PIONEER AND DEMOCRAT



The Cleveland Lsadst thinks vary good
artillery Captain VA apoilt to make 1 very
poor Brigadier General, 10 the person Of
Thomas W. Sherman Of Rhode Island. It
says !: =. q IA y II i. -
We fsar th6t III mania Tor proclamations
win yet carry off come Of onr Generals. Il Is
an epidemic That few Of them escape, and it is
not the loes dangerous that Il always takes
mad fosm, The occupants OF the territory
!" invaded may be the -veriest cut.thr0ats inn.
aginable, but they always ind themselves ad.
py people, and are always assured that the
Federal army don't want to hurt them.
The above Is specimen paragraph Of
the stuff that fills the radical papers to the
detriment Of our best Generals, if the
phraseology Of their proclamations happens
to be Objectionable to their sensitive tastes.
The people Of Minnesota know General
SHERMAN, and they know that in the whole
list of Generals in the field, there is not one
more heartily engaged in suppressiDg the
rebellion. The croakers will find before
long, that the blows be will deal the rebels
are not gagged by the mild words he employs
to win them back to their allegiance.
We find in the New York Times a letter
from Beaufort of the 9Th instant, that
shows what little ground there is for the
incessant complaints of the inactivity Of
General SHERMAN. The writer says:
Those in command here are far from idle.
Although the country may not every day
recognize the step taken on that day, / be-
live, indeed, that every day is suitably ems
ployed. The completely Of the duties inn
posed upon General Sherman is remarka.
BILE; he has not only military operations to
direct; not only to consult with the ma
val commanders before many of his most
important operations can be undertaken
not only to direct the administration of
government over 10000 or $4,000 people
and supervise the establishment of city in
camp, on shore where no supplies reach it
except from distance of 700 miles but
also to remember the peculiar and political
circumstances in which he is placed be is
carrying on war, and yet in his own coun.
try ; the enemy is rebel, but so powerful
as to be recognized abroad as belligerents
then there is this intricate slave question
forced upon him in a manner different en-
tirely from that in which it is presented to
any other commanding General and ne
the important subject of the seizure of cot~
ton is added to bis other cares. The
man who is able to administer all these
various departments creditably should
have fair chance to develop his pols
icy and attempt his undertakings. And
yet Gen. Sherman is beset by every mail by
anonymous correspondents, who abuse and
berate him for not instantly freeing the
slaves, for not having occupied Beaufort the
day OF the battle, for not having marched
to Charleston, for not having taken the
rebel army prisoners, for not having seized
the cotton before, for issuing so conservas
tive proclamation, and for doing and not
doing a thousand other things, some of
them utterly impossible, others premature,
others already d0nel The structures in the
Northern newspapers on such points of bis
conduct as can not be understood until his
knowledge is at the disposal of his critics,
are balanced by those in the Savannah
journals. The impatient radicals at one ex-
IRENE of the country are indignant at his
slowness and disguised with his moderation.
Extracts from papers brought here b. tugi-
tives from Savannah, call him worse in
cendiary and abolitionist than Wendell
Phillips or Horace Greedy. He gets no
credit from the rebels for his forbearance,
no appreciation from the emancipationists
for bis patriotism or bis sagacity in both
OF which, /, who know him not at al in
timately. and am certainly unprejudiced in
his favor, see great reason to confide.