, 1861-12-23

washington Is still In quite an Opaque tgno-
ranca Of the contents Of the document. Imet
three Senators this morning who confessed
t1atthey knew not sy1lab1e Of It's revelations,
Hence It cannot be said that it has created any
business it is to ransack ali such volumes and
giyo the gems to the public as FAST as pogsfble
In the course Of day or Two more, there viii
be gnashing Of teeth here, II not weeping md
waling, over the pages Of that report. There
are some mysteries about It which defy solu-
ton; The clearance Of the steamer Cata-
line is one The only things that can be found
ont are, that Collector BMneY refused, uniler
the regulations Of the Treasury Department,
to grant clearance for her cargo-that re.
peated efforts were made to procure the clear
ance-that finally IhusloW Weed got mill
ta1J pass for her fUm Gen. Wool, and that
Gen. Wool shortly afterwards sent WORD to
Collector Barney that he had been Imposed
upon, and that the Cataline must be prevented
nom sailing. A steamer Was sent after her,
put II was too late; not moment had been
LOST oy the captain OF the Cataline after get
ting his pass. The. committee have examined
everybody and everything: to elucidate the
mystery, but in vain. Another very strange
thing 1s the influence or motive which induced
Gen. Wool to direct Col Tompkins to charter
vessels from Capt. ComstocE. Comstock ia
Who introduced him to the confidence of Cen.
Wool? Still another query is this: What
manner Of man is BIZ. James Humphrey. tbe
confidential clerk Of Alexander Cumminps
Who is he? Where did he come from
Where did he go to? We know only that he
was recommended to Cummings bT Thuriow
weed, and that be Eent up to Albany to buy
beef aud pork of the hardware firm of r
Gorning d Co. In fact, the nose Of ThurloW
Weed is hardly less prominent in this part Of
the report than it is on his own face.
To belieTe that there is really 4 plan for
Rf11t1nF the tn 4 GrrraeEf31
that tdat plan is military plan, and that it is
en1eIta'ned by the commanding General, is
sImth1ng. know many persons here, reputed
20 oe wise, Ragaclou5, penetrating men In the
states or districts which they represent, who
utter the conviction audibly. Yet I believe
mere is such aplan--a military plan, and not
diplomatic or Z financial plan. Whether It
contemPIates fighting The enemy in the usual
way, or destroying them by fire balloons, or
frightening them to death With gongs, know
not: I rejoice in the belief t6at there is
military plan. The range Of debate in both
Houses Of Congress for two or three days
past has rather implied want Of confidence
N the Executive branch Of the Government,
t2 both as to Its civil and military functions.
out Of ills conaiet Tit6 r national # aag, ea
national motto, history which posterity will
not blush to read, We shall have more abun-
dant cause to thank Almighty God than did
cur 1athef5 II tnr dreary season Of Valley
Forge. Whether this feeling is well OF III
founded, let the reader Judge. Unless the
news from England has disconnected the pro-
posed operations in the field, predict that
there viii soon be genuine war where the pub
lie have learned to look only for sham battles
and waste Of gunpowder.
The speech Of Mr. Carli1e, of Virginia, in
reply to Gen. Jim Lane, was, in feeble way,
almost as unpatriotic as anything ever uttered
BY Mnson or Hunter. It has been frequently
remarked, since its delivery, that the country
= f,as Z rot 1 gnined much by sending one Of The
+. rs to Fort Warren, and conferrinE S., COO
per annum and mileage on another. Mason
had some brains; Carli1e las none. The only
part q his argument which had any vitality
was rehash Of Brcckinridges speech 1t the
extra session. fact which Gen. Lane yery
pointedlY turned against him. All else vas
the usual balderdash about "negro thie7es''
and the ''inhuman, unho1y crusade against
Amer1ean A1 TH!1 constitutional l'berty''-by which
liberty on the slaves of rebels.