The national Republican., 1861-11-11
The Sleeping sentineis--Deatht TO be the
Penalty in Fa,ure.

Penalty la Fa,ure.
General Order No. Is from the headquarters
of the army of the Potomac, embraces the pro |
ceedings Of general court.martial holden at
Arlington, OF which Colonel Walrath, Twelfth
New York, was President aud the judgment of
General Mcclellan upon them.
The most important cases are those Of mum
Der Of privates, convicted Of sleeping on their
pasts In the case of john O'Connor, whom
the court found guilty of both charge and spec
fchtiou, and added, but in consideration Of
his having been put on guard two nights In
succession, attach no criminslity thereto, aud
do therefore acquit him, the order remarks:
at appears by the findings Of the court, that,
though guilty of sleeping on his post, the fauI'
was not so much with him rs with the officers
whose improper exaotiods exhausted his pow
ers of endurance. IL the findings OF the court
be regarded rs an asCertainment OF the ftc'
that the prisoner had really been ordered to
undergo guard duty every day for n week, and
was In the course of ulflling this harsh sen.
tence, when he yielded to the seductions OF
sleep, on the second consec cutve night OF guard
duty. the officer who imposed on tho prisoner
this oppressive and most reprehensible Durdon,
is more Justly to b regarded as guilty of the
infraction of discipline that followed than the
prisoner, and should be placed on trial for his
offence"
Upon the cases Of priva'es John NJ. Sher-
man, company D, Thirty fifth regiment New
York volunteers, De Meirous Glenn, compa!
D, T, urteenth New York volunteers, and John
McChesney. company A, Twenty-third New
York volunteers found guilty of the offence Of
sleeping on their post, in violation OF tnelf
duty as sentinels. and sentenced, the first to
forfeit one months pay and to be confined fot
one month In charge Of guard, with ball and
chain attached to his leg !" the second |" to for.
felt one months pay and to be confined III
charge of the guard on bread and water toT
five days.; the third to forfeit one mon,h's
pay and to be confined at hard labor In charg'
of the guard for Eve days" the order comments
as follows:
the sentence Of the court ia strikingly ou
of all proportion to the gravity OF the Grim"
charged and proved.
the proceedings of the court in these and
other instances, give proof that there has beet
a most culpabe laxty and neglect OF duty on
the part of the regimental and company ON
| GERS in instruct'ng the priyates respecting the
| BILE to speak In exagger tied language OF the
| Importance of this duty. neglect Of 1t may
| compromise the safety of an army or a nation.
| No penalty exacted OF such as are faithless I"
| 1t can be regarded rs unduly severe. Every
sentinel should feel that the safety Of his com
pany, his regiment, his brigade, perhaps OF
| The whole army, depends upon his vigilance
| fidelity, and valor, during his tour Of duty. To
be wanting in hdelity or courage, would. by
universal consent, justly call down capital pun
ishment on the offender. But pigildnce Is al
| least as Indispensable military virtue III
either of the others.
"The conviction is forced upon the major
| general commanding that the lenty of the sen
tences pronounced by the court in the three
cases above enumerated Ia mainly due to the
| opinion entertained by the court-in which the
| major general commanding shares-that the
| officers of the guard are largely partakers OF
/ tha arI, Ia hn nls fpre nnT
ing on their posts. Nothing but the suggestion
| of u totally imperfect presentment to the mind
of the soldier of the solemnity Of his duties
while guarding a slumbering camp, could have
| prompted punishment so very dspropor.ionet
10 the crime of sleeping while clothed with sue
II trust, AS a short confinement, and trihinI
suspension pay. The punishment denounced
against the offence by the Articles of War II
Death, and 1t Is not possible to name any mill
tary crime which more loudly calls for the in
Fiction of this extreme penalty. Few thing
can be more subversve of discipline than mis-
taken lenity to fagrant offences. The majol
1 general commanding Is resolved to spare tbt
| gallant army he has the honor to command The
risk of becoming demoralzed by any such fee
| blensss.
| "rnore are, however, cogent reasons which
| induce the major general commanding to re
| frain from remanding these cases to the court
with instructions to pass sentence In greater
conformity with the findings. One of these
reasons is to be found in the exigencies Of thu
| public service, which do not allow the time %
20 many officers to be engrossed by oourt.mar
tial duty. Another is, that no small part Of the
penalty for the delinquencies in question shoult
be visited rather on the officers, who have neg
iected to instruct their men AS to their duty NJ
sentinels, than on the prisoners themselves
But let none fail to take warning for the future
All excuses for this most pernicl"us and un
military offence have been heard for the las
time. Upon the regimental and company Off
GERS is enjoined the duty of impressing on thos,
under their charge the fagrant nature of tn,
Offer CO of want of vigilance as sentines, AM
the tremendous calamities which may ensue t.
the army frem neglect Of This duty. No fu
ture want of such vigilance need hope to escap,
the extreme penalty denounced against the Of
fence by the Articles of War"