Fremont journal. [volume] (Fremont, Sandusky County [Ohio]) 1853-1866, 1862-04-04
Washington correspondones Of the Fremont Journal.
Letter from Washington.
WAsHiNoroN, March o6. 1862

| washington Sofreepondence OF the Fremont Journal
| Letter from Washington.
WASHINGTON, March 26, 1862.
| Mr.. EDIroR:-Itis is now more than two weeks
since the grand army Of the Potomac started to
make the advance, and as vet nothing has been
done only to capture the gunless forts of Cen.
trevillo and Manassas. 1t is not little dis
gusting to witness the manner in which certain
editors wish to delude their readers by short
| paragraph now going the rounds In their pa
| papers, in which Il is stated on the authority OF
two Coloncls, that no wooden guns have been
discovered at Manassas This is true; no one
said they were discovered at Mandssas, but they
ioere at Ce'trcviRe. The fraud perpetrated by
these editors consists in SO mixing up Centre
vile and Manassas, to make them appear to
be one and the same place although they are
| seven miles apart. This is a fair specimen of
the way in which these pro-secession editors
tell the truth on every thing having political
| bearing, which does not originate with them.
This is the manner in which some two years
since they represented the prospective course
of Republicanism. The Southern papers copied
their representations and the South believed
them Hence the readiness with which they
entered into the rebellion. 1t is a well known
fact that the arguments now used against the
| Government, were the arguments first used by
these editors against Republicanism. They
were framed so as to be as irritating as possible
to the Southern mind.
They are Just as true and valid now against
the Government as they were too years since
against Republicanism,--so that we must con
clude that these editors have done their full
share toward creating our present troubles
| The leading editors South, know that the de-
sign of breaking up the Democratic party, was
| to bring on rebellion and break down our Re-
publican institutions, and establish in their
stead institutions of n Monarchical character
| This fact they would not dare make known to
their own readers, because they could not unite
even the South on such question as that.
In looking about them to see how they could
bring the mind of the South to the. rebelling
point, without telling what they really intended,
they discovered that certain Northern papers in
opposition to the Republican party furnished
! them with all the necessary material 10 influ-
ence the minds Of the coolest Southern people
to the needed heat and opposition. All they
had to do was to quote from the aforesaid North
ern papers.
These are the same papers which now detail
falsehoods, such as the one alluded to above
and they are the same papers which have been
SO very Jealous for the reputation of Mcclellan.
| One very significant fact will mention, and
your readers may draw their own inference
Our army was within one days march of the
rebels and so remained for more than six months.
They knew what our force was They knew that
our army was vastly superior to them both in
numbers and equipments, most of the time be-
ing nearly three to their one, and some of tho
time greater proportion in our favor. Yet, in
spite of all these facts, they went to work and
built themselves good log dwellings put board
floors into them, had good hunks nailed up
along the walls, furnishing good dry sleeping
places for their men. In very many places they
had board walks from one building to another
They had outdoor ovens, and were in the act
of building more when they began their fight
thus showing, by continuing their improve
ments that they intended to remain much lon
ger. Now / ask, with these facts before us, is it
within the range of human possibility to sup-
pose that the rebels would go to work and put
up these conveniences, unless they had an un-
derstanding that they would have the use Of
! them sufficiently long to compensate them for
the labor of preparing them? They may be
| ignorant of Northern courage, but they are not
| ignorant of common business rules if the men
| are, the officers are not
They knew very well that our army, by one
day march, could come upon them, and take
these buildings and use them for their own COM
fort. Yet Notwithstanding all these facts were
well known to them, they went TO work and
built themselves good comfortable quarters
The only way to explain such an unusual course
on their part is by supposing that they had au-
thortive intmation that they would be permit
ted to remain long enough in the use Of their
Improvements to make it paying operation.-
Who gave them such an intmation may yet be
discovered. 1t is certain no loyal man did, and
besides that there are but two parties who could
give them this information The President is
one of the parties and of course he did not do it.
The rebels were in winter quarters, our troops
were not. just notice in this connection the
deceit practised upon our people. We were
told all through last Fall during the fine wealth
er, that our army should not go into winter
quarters, and told that, too, by the General who
assumed to command the United States Army
1t is very plain now that he never intended TO
move his army this whole winter, if he everin-
tended to move it at all. The word "quarters" /"
in military usage, means 6uitdiags and when the
General said the troops should not 20 into win
ter quarters he intended to say they should live
in tents all winter instead Of buildings. When
the General promised that the troops should not
go into winter quarters, we outsiders all consi-
dered it promise of forward move through
the winter We did not then see, as we see now ,
that this was a mere play upon the use of the
word quarters to stop the popular clamor for
forward movement 1t is doubtful il the
President saw the trick. If he had seen it, or
suspected it, his order to move the army would
most likely have come on the 9th of Septem-
Der instead of on the 9th Of January. This is
another specimen of the means made use of to
procure delay in behalf of compromise.
Gen. Mcclellan speaks in his address TO his
army, of sharing their privations with them
&c, DC. In the following manner he exhibits
his mode OF so doing He, and his staff, have
for their own accommodation thrty-five four
horse wagons loaded with the aprivations' which
he and they have to endure. Each company of
men, numbering from 80 to 100 men, have one
four horse wagon TO carry their necessaries
Now it will not need much arithmetic to cipher
out the immeasurable distance between their
privations and his comforts.
So much accustomed have we been, as a peo-
pie, to bow down to Southern rule and dicta-
ton that even now, under Republican Ad-
ministration, we have men elected by the Re-
publican party to the United States Senate who
render themselves supremely disgusting by
their toadyihg to Border State influence, thus
hoping to show their great fitness and conserva-
tism, so as thereby to gain a seat on the Su-
preme Bench of the United States Court
They strive to surpass one another in bestow-
ment of favors and compliments upon the Bor-
der State Senators. They try to see great and
immense difficulties in the way Of confiscation.
They take as naturally to the Border State men
as young duck does to water.
Any one Of these competitors for Judicial
advancement would, If on the bench, sustain
the Dred Scott decision, or any decision that
that fogyist Of all Judges-Judge Taney, would
make. These men are, in their voting as un-
certain on the questions in which the Border
States have an interest, as any dough face ever
was in his voting on the question Of Slavery.
They would tomorrow have no objection 10
letting the Border Slave States dictate the man.
ner in which the war ought to be conducted;