New-York daily tribune., 1861-08-10
The WAa FOR The union.
wRo1r WASHINGTON.
a ssp, neent Egcn aud Things at the FedeTaf
Capital.
rpeu an Occasional Correspondent.


WASHINGTON, Aug. z, 1901.
The difference between Washington in the
kuyust of this year and the came Washington IN
spy other previous August, would S'fIAo .Ao
most superficial observer. HERETOFORE aui"s
the raging of the dcgstar, its hofe's' stfee'S' 1
public buildings and grounds have reSe"0''.
those of watcrDg.place in ms" WINTER
bearer of foreign dispatches, CLAIMANT upOl 'I'
..,, = voTLea Inventor after letters paten', !
i. half aoyep army and navy officers, and a ie"
w7,tcd souihrons, beiUg 10 Saratoga 10 Spehu 'n0
,receeds of q couple of negroes ere inc So''on !
waped. would usually constitute tbe SUN 'o'"i ',
the transient population of the feoer" e'p'''i
during this sweterug month
Now. the city is tossed on the bilo"s oil an
,D,recedspted commotop. Prom GO,G0O to 1O,-
e0O troops are intrenched and encainped and
around il. On the streets IN the squares, On
the hills. stand the brown barracks and whiie
tents of the soldieIy, each surmounted wita
,t,en,ning bapner On one of the beautiful after
moons Of tSs week, just 80 the sun was prepar-
ing to sink behind the Virginia hills / saw With
my glass, here clearly, and yondcr Only IN q
ekmmer, the evening parade of four and thirty
regiments on either eide Of the POaOmac. AS
their weapons glistened in the sheen, and their
Instrumental bauds aud drum-eOrps swelled and
died away on the breeze, l was proud to know
that these were only about half the brave men
wnom the loyal North had sent hither for the
deeeBse of t6e Union and the Constitution.
One capnot cross the street without seeing &c
glance that the pride, pOmP and circumstance
Of war psnoply the city all over. Ambuances
and hospital wagons meet the eye at every turn.
Mounted orderEes dash by at every crossing
Long lines of baggage wagons loaded with every
.kpecles of werlke munitions and appliance, rum
bic through the thorcughfares. Recently, stand
Dg on an elevation, aud looking down the
avenue toward Georgetown, / counted $50 army
wagons all in line; and an hour aiterward,
more than 200 noble horses passed in one drsye
ever the Long Bridge
Gen. McClelians recent order has thnned the
hotels of officers and privates, they swarm from
basement to rafters with spoils-hunti1g Polti-
clans aud carriOu-crOw contractors after army
Jobs; aud, sipce the engagement at Bull Ran,
hundreds Of honest men have arrived here from al
tie Free States, on the piOus aud patriotic
errand of looking after relatives friends, and
peiehbors, who fell on that disastrous field, or
were borne from it to the hospitals, or carried
into captivity by the enemy.
/ bave spoken Of the salutary order of Gen.
Mcclellan requiring officers and men not 10 leave
their quarters except on pressing emergencies,
which are to be certified by written pass from
tber commanders. Before the issuing of this
srder, the streets were alive with soldiers and
oficers the dining rooms Of the hotels were lined
with them, and the drinking and billiard saloons
resounded with their hlarity and din far into the
night The scene was scandalOus to the eye aud
utterly demOraiiziDg to the service. Tie extent
to which the privilege of "leaye" was abused,
will be seen in the fact that day or two before
fhe order was promulgated, in the course of a
leisurely walk from Wizards to the National,
distance of half mile at about noon, had the
curiosity TO count the number Of struggling off.
GERS and priyates whom met, on my side of the
street, between those two hotels. II reached 504,
fully 0nethrd Of whom were commissioned Off
eers-enoush to furnish Eve regiments. The quick
eye Of the new commander detected this abuse,
his clear head appreciated its demoralziBg ten
denotes, and his rigid discipline promptly applied
the remedy.
1t is hardly necessary to repeat that al fears
about the safety of Washington, since Mcclellan
assumed command on both sides of the Potomac,
are imaginary. Full as many troops are now in
and around the city aud stretched along the Po.
tonisc as when Mcdowell moved southwark
three weeks ago. SO good an engineer and
strategist as Beauregsrd viii never assail it in
front, except as a feint in combination with a
real attack in the rear. Even if the enemy
were able TO storm the formidable intrench-
Dents over the river, few heavy cannon on
this side would speedily demolsh the Long
Bridge and the Chain Bridge, and plunge into
the Potomac any columns the foe might attempt
TO send over by these ordinary means of crossiog.
IA TO an attack on the noTthery side OF the
eity, after having forced the fords of the river
far above Washington, Mcclellan and his troops
Will only be too happy to meet Beauregard and |
HE skulking soldiers outside of intrenchments, n
the open fields, where woods and iungles will |
not shelter them from our shot. shell, and steel.
A perusal Of the Southern accounts of the Bull |
Run engagement, in the light of Beauregard's |
conduct of the battle, leaves no doubt that |
somebody, coenizant of McDoweIis plan of az |
tack, communicated it to the rebels during the |
evening or night previous to the conflict. Hence, |
Beauregard knew as well as Mcdowell that |
Richardson's heavy cannonade, all the morning, |
aud onward at intervals till noon, near the site |
Of tho collision Of Thursday, was mere feint |
10 distract his attention from the main attack, |
Bsintzelman, and Tyler. This plan was