The Portland daily press., 1862-10-31

Wood We say in .facor of Mcclellan; we
take that back, for we believe Mcclellan is
thoroughly honest and a thoroughly loyal
man; and the disloyal only sag they are in
favor of him, while their pretended love is the
merest sham. More than this: we believe Nc
Clellan is, perhaps, the best man in the nation,
militarily, tor purely defensiue operation, his
excessive caution being so active that he would
never cease to strengthen his position; never
feel perfectly safe so long as blow could be
struck that would add to his strength. Wheth-
er he is equally fitted for ofensice warfare,
to invade the foe, and to become the attacking
party, he has yet to prove. His friends con-
tend he is fitted for such work; we trust he
may be found so, but we confess to strong
doubts.
But one of the worst things for McClellan's
good name is, not the attacks of the Portland
Prese, but the praises of such doubtful papers
as the Argus and Advertiser, and of such per-
sons as the Woods and Van Burens,-papers
and persons notoriously opposed to the Gov
ernment, and as notoriously in sympathy with
the rebels. But this is the misfortune of the
Commanding General, for which he suffers in
the estimation of many good men.
We had supposed it enough that the Consti-
tuition was held too sacred to be trenched
upon in order to sare the Union. Jefferson,
jackson and Douglas-three great luminaries
of Democracy--did not consider IL too sacred
to yield to necessity-to the law Of national
selfpreservation. But the Advertiser and
Argus have trinity of deities, neither of
which must be even questioned; no, not to
save the Union and all our free institutions! !!
Equal in sacredness to the Constitution, in
their estimation, is the sacred "nigger"-
sacred only when in bonds Not one of his
chains must be touched, not a rivet disturbed,
though the salvation of the nation hinge on
the act. Then they have another sacred OBJ
ject, and that is Gen. Mcclellan. To doubt
his perfection, is treason. To tell truth that
can be construed into reflection upon him,
is damning sin. The Union is nothing, nor
are Presidents, or Cabinets; the army is moth
ing, nor the vast expense of delay; the peo-
ple-the only sovereigns-must be estopped
from all questions and all doubts, and not al
lowed even to state a fact-the object of their
own eye-sight-if it happens to bear in di-
rection not approved by them. We confess to
no such reverence for men or things. "The
Union-it must be preserved" So said Jack
son, and we believe nothing political or per-
sonal is too sacred to yield to this necessity.
Much as we respect even the President, did
he assume to stand in the way Of the Unions
preservation, we should dare insist upon his
yielding to the imperious necessity.
The Advertiser very imperiously calls for
the name of our correspondent We will only
say that our correspondent is a man of so
much integrity, that his bare ,cord, spoken in
ordinary conversation, would be believed
quite as readily as the oath of the man who
makes this offensive demand; and if we should
call his name, with those in Portland who
know him best, il would have more weight
than as many Arguses and Advertisers, irith
their editors throrn in, as could be cross-piled
in the whole of Exchange street.