Indiana State sentinel. (Indianapolis, Ind.) 1861-1865, 1862-03-24
MARCH "a, 1862.
Special correspondence Of siie Chicago Times.
Prom Washington.


considered as a strategic moueneHf--Danger to
neutrality-suspicious. from the Merrrmac-
The great Union gun at Fortress Monroe--De-
scription Of Beanregard's impregnable detences
at Manassas-Mr. Lincola playing Jokes on the
Pofhfnder-The Presidents War Orders.
WASHINGTON, March IA.
As the facts come TO light in regard to the re-
treat of the Conederates from Manassas it is seen
that the movement was really most mastery
piece of strategy. To move an army of $50, 600
men for distance of sixty miles, with all their
artillery and baggage, in the face of an enemy of
superior numbers, and to do this successfully, is
feat which has no parallel in modern warfare,
and few in the annals of history. Yet the Con-
federates have done this. 1t is now ascertained
that they are posted in force along the Rapidan
and RappahanDock rivers, where they will, un-
doubtedly, give battle to our advancing army.
1t is more than likely too, that large portion of
their force. quite equal in strength to Burnsides s
whole army. have been rapidly transported Gown
the railroads to Suffolk and Weldon, and will at
tack Burnside, with the intention of cutting him
off from his ships, and defeating him compel
ling him to surrender.
Burnside is aware that Manassas has been
abandoned, and that the army there are moving
southwark; so that he will notte taken unawares.
But, unless he is strongly reinforced, be is by no
sent to his reinforcement have every reason to
believe. But these troops were sent by way of
Fortress Monroe On arriving at the Fortress,
it may be that their presence may be required
there The rebel commander at Yorktown is
busily engaged in preparing to attack Gen. Wool.
While the Merrimac was engaging the Monitor,
strong rebel force made demonstration toward
Newport News. 1t did not amount to anything
at that time, probably because tie presence of
he a1 ax,la c.f tl,.,
msnder of the Merrimac- But the next time the
Merrimac sails out, the land attack may be re-
newed; and, if so, Gen. Wool will need all the
troops he can command.
In spite of all reservations to the contrary, the
most serious apprehensons exist here and in New
York and Philadelphia in regard to the Merrimac.
Ii is ascertained officially that she not at
all injured in her recent duel near Fortress Mon
roe. With the single exception of the Monitor
there is nothing aioat that can Withstand her.
The risks attending a sea voyage to New York
or Ph&delphia for so heavy vessel, will prob
ably deter her from going to either of those cities
But the order of Gen. Mcclellan to the officer in
command of Fort Trumbull at New London
directing him to keep sharp lookout for the
Merrimac, and to stop her if possible il she tries
to run past, shows that it is considered in her
power to run the blockade of Fortress Monroe.
If she does this there is nothing to prevent her
from running no the Potomac to Washington,
battering down the Capitol and Presidents house
and returning at her leisure. Such is the fruit
of having an incompetent Secroary of the Navy.
1t Is likely that the large force of workmen
now known to be engaged on the Merrimac are
making whatever improvements her late expert
ence- has demonstrated to be necessary The
idea of boarding her is absurd-it is physically
impossible. Ii is probable that having demon
strated that she can sail much faster than the
Monitor, and is so much stronger than the latter
in every respect, she will be rgged with such
graphing irons and chains may enable her to
seize the little Monitor and bear her off prize.
The engravings showing the relative sizes of the
two vessels, indicate that this is not an impossi
bic contingency.
The question has often been asked, but never
satisfactorily answered, why did Lot the great
Union gun at the Rip Raps give the Merrmac a
touch OF her quality during the recent encounter?
All past experience has shown that this immense
piece of artillery is practically useless. 1t was
Gen. Buffers favorite amusement to point and
experiment with this great gun. and to watch the
enormous missile kissing through the air and
throwing up clouds of spray from the water, as
it sped FIVE or six miles towards Norfolk. twas
supposed that these experiments (snd they were
very costlv) had determined with accuracy the
exact range and capabilities of the gun Yet its
elevation is being constantly altered, and it re
Qures so long to load il lit is sight to see its
gunner's crew tugging at the bail TO get it in)
that, during the operation, the Merrimac might
sail to several new positions and be out of range
before it is ready to be fired 1t is the opinion
of scientific artillery officers that not more than
one shot in fifty fired from this monster would hit
the Merrimac.
If those carpet knights who sneered at General
Mcclellan all winter because he did not advance
on Centerville, will now go and examine the en-
emy's works there, they will find in them a suf-
fcient reason. They are left uninjured, and are
literally impregnabe The principal forts are so
arranged in the form of terraces, that, even if
we had succeeded in capturing the lower line of
terraces, those above them would have been be
yond our reach, even with scaling ladders. Shel
ling the works would have been of no avail, for
the rebel troops were all protected by casemates
So much for Beauregard's skill in engineering
The magazines we'll supplied. as the trace
OF shot and shell show. But all these, with the
heavy guns, have been removed. The places
of the latter supplied before the evacuation
by wooden guns, painted black, with derisive in
scriptions written on them with chalk All these
and many other circumstances show that the re-
treat was conducted at perfect leisure.
Mr.. Lincoln will go down to posterity as the
great joker of the nineteenth century His ten
dency to humor is well known. HIS recent jokes
have been OF the PRACTICAL ORDER and the funniest
of all is the tub which he has thrown to the Abo
lition whale in Congress, by appointing the idol
of that faction, John q. Fremont to command a
department created expressly for him, composed
of the mountains of Northwestern Virginia. Mr..
Lincoln is convinced that there is a new road TO
Richmond somewhere in these mountains, and he
wants Fremont to find it out. In this extensive
domain the great Pathfinder can be grand, gloomy
and peculiar, without doing any great mischief
either to friend or foe. There no rebels to
fight in his department But, if he attempts to
proclaim the slaves of the loyal Virginans free
the slaves of the constituents of Senator Carlile-
he will raise tempest that will overwhelm him
in its waves. The country has right to expect
great things from the Man of the Mountains We
shall see whether it shall be disappointed
If the incendiary Abolition sheets had not pre-
disposed the public mind by chstorting and mis-
representing facts. nothing would seem mege
proper than that Gen. Mcclellan should be re-
lieved from the genera. supervision of the mill
tory operations of the West as long he is in the
field at the head of the army OF the Potomac.
This is what has been done by the Presidents
War Order" and nothing more than this. If
Mr.. Lincoln means, however, by his somewhat
pompous "war ORDERS" that he has yielded to the
Abolition pressure, superseded Gen. Mcclellan
and is really going to take the fald himself and
direct the military operations of the campaign, il
requires no prophet to fortel the result War is
trade And this war can be no more success
fully conducted by Mr.. Lincoln than shoemaker
can write a tragedy or bod carrier can perform
one, or that carpenter can preach the sermon of
his pastor or a blacksmith make watch. There
is sense in the homely maxim, Every man to his
trade" The sublime genius of the General-in-
Chief has brought the war thus far to victorious
elimination. Let the sword be now taken from
his hands and the general conduct of the war at
tempted by any one else, and in less than six
months the tide will change disaster will take the
place of victory, we shall have lost all that we
have now gained, and we shall be then further
than ever from the successful termination Of the
war.