New-York daily tribune. [volume] (New-York [N.Y.]) 1842-1866, 1861-10-29
THE CASE AT FOBT PICKENs.
,-r..pona.noa ofrhe n. Y. Tribune.

FoRT PicEsss. Oct. IS, 1861.
You will receive per Mcclellan which calls To-Day
for New-York full particulars OF The ATTACK in''oe VI
the u,orning of the oh inst. the encanpment OF
BiIy Wilsou'e Zounyes on Sauia Rosa Island.
Tbere are some facts connected with operations IN
tis ouart.r which have lot yet beeu made public,
and which Will serve to explain what mas seemed 10
cop no less than TO us u most inexplcabe state OF
things
When Fort Sumter fell, in consequence Of the
erection of girdle of batteries which the fatal indie
dsop Of the buchanan Administration allowed 10 be
.ompletsd, The country hoped, and had a RICH, to
bo. @. that 10 siu ar act of imbecity would be
tolerated in any other quarter. Certainly, the cir
euu snces Of sggravation and disaster witch have
marked the progress Of the war since that event
ave afforded no ground for any concession 10 the
Rebels of any advaDgtagee which the exigences OF
war did not compel. Eos months We have been in
condition to reposeeps Ourselves of the Navy-Yard,
and TO scatter the Rebels who have menaced us.
or months that we have been ia this state Of prep
arstion and efficiency, tho Rebels have gone on
under very eyes erecting additional batteries anc
perfectng those already commenced, and preparing
10 Te-enact TIE role of Sumter
The reason for this tolerance on our part is more
Surprising than the fact itself. During all this time
ne eommaHdaHt Of The fart has been acting under TIE
,hsructioHs sent under the BuehGnN0n AdmiRisty0'
ton 1-tich Instructions hare neVe bern eouRtcrmaRd
I'd on amended. There instructions were and are
hat under no circumstances IS he TO open fire on
he Rebels except in the ent Of their batteries open
ing irst upon hin.
L. "a nd hat bis fact ahould BIZ
known. What motives OF poicy may have actuated
the Administration we cannot know, and II Is im-
possible to conceive. The mmauoer Of position
Ike this who snonld of bic will pursue the course
which the commandant of this fort bias pursued
would deserve to be shot, and 10 difficult TO under
stand what views of policy can be of sufficient force
justify which, i'll military point Of view,
h not only ndefensible, but criminal.
Ii is sad that our commander bias three several
times written to the authorities in Washington, beg
ging permission 10 ops fire the Rebels and also,
/ know not with how much of truth, that notice
has been taken Of his letter.. TIE Rebels boast
that their preparations for the attack complete,
certainly il they not successful, whenever they
shall have completed their works, and With the
choice OF time left wholly with them, it will he
no fault of the authorities ut Washington, whoever
they may be- who are responsible for this unheard
of bluuder To us il seems as thous the fact Of war
the humiliation aud disgrace which
has been heaped with such proiusion upon the Union
o &C. was not yet recognized. We still treat the
l.ebels as though they were frowsrd children who
would voluntarily return 70 sense Of their duty,
when the present paroxysm should be over, and as
though our object wac TO inilict as little Injury Ne
possible, meanwhile.
believe il il fact that AT the time Of the spirited
attack on the judith, it was agreed between the OFF,
Ger IN command Of the expedition and Col. Brown
that in the event of the Confedeates attacking him
white engaged in destroying the judith, the latter
should support him by irc from the guns Of Pickens
lie was 30 attacked but Col. Brown failed 10 sup
port him, because that, on reading hiS Instructions
again. under the actual circumstances OF the case, he
cou d fud no authority fof such acton.
Again the attack on Wilson's eDcampment was
auticpated but the Instructions already referred TO
tied Col. Browns hands.
/. II no, time that tie pretepse Of keeping up q
host attitude laid aside, or that the fact OF war
should be recogn zed aud the commander of tie fort
released from instructions which emanated from the
imbece Buchanan dynasty, Ind which, for reasons
inscrotabe to human wisdom, still perpetuaiedf
short time ago Col. Brown wrote for the third
time to Washington asking to be released from these
instructions. 1t may be that the affair of Wilson's
Zousves WI open the eyes Of the autboritiesi and
that before this reaches you orders will have been
transmitted which will allow us TO break the spell
which has bound us. At ali events if we must wait
for the rebels st further carry their works all
here will do their duty, and eudeavor to avert dis
grace from tie National arms, although disgrace
would seem 70 lave been couned.