Marshall County Republican. (Plymouth, Ind.) 1856-1878, 1862-03-20

he considers General Fremont responsible
for his death. read. first letter from
Lyon himself to Asst Adj. Gen. Harding.
at ST. Louis:
"SPRrNeFIELD. Mo-, July II, 1861.
''Sm: i inclose you copy Of letter to
Col. Townsend on the subject of an order
from Gen. Scott which calls for five CON-
panies Of the second infantry to be NTH
drascn from tie West and sent 10 Wasting
ton. II precious order ,rithdrows tie mount
ed troops, as / am informed, and were it
not that some of them were en- route to this
place they would now be in Washington.
THIS order carried out acoufd not now leape
at IT. Lcavenworth single company
hare companies b and T. second infantry
nop under orders for Washington, and II
all these troops leaye me can do nothing,
and n.ust retire in The absence Of other troops
to supply their places. In fac, am badly
enough off at the best. and must utterly
fail if my regulars all go. At Washing
ton troops from all the northern. middle,
and eastern States are available for the
support OF the Army in Virginia. ard more
are understood to be already there than are
wanted. and it seems strange that so many
troops must go on from the West. and strip
as Of tie means of defence; Jut If IL is the
intention 10 give up the West. let ii be So"
l omit severe allusion to Gen. Scott.
because do not wish, by reproducing it
here. even to give it currency. feeling that
General Lyon, in his great anxiety, did
him injustice. The letter concludes:
Cannot your stir up this matter. and
secure us relief? See Fremont, if he has
arrived. The want ofsupplies has crippled
me so that i cannot move, and l do not
know when / can Everything seems to
combine against me at this point. Stir
up Blair. Yours truly.
n. LYON, Commanding.
Colonel HARDING, 50. Louis drsendl, No. "
! would not allude to my friends broth
err at all if it had not been that he himself
alluded to him in his speech, and the only
allusion / shall have occasion to make to
him is the one am now about to make
want TO use his evidence TO show why
General Lyon was not reinforced. On the
26th of July last. Montgomery Blair wrote
/ to General Fremont as follows:
"WAsHISGToS. July 26, 1861.
DEAR GENERAL: | have two telegrams
from you. but find it impossible now to get
any attention to Missouri or western mat.
ters from the authorities here. You will
have TO do the best you can. and take all
needful sponsibility. TO defend and pro-
tect the people over whom you are special.
ly set.
Yours, truly. and in haste.
NJ. BLAIR"
That was five days after the battle o.
Bull Run. and when this city was suppo
sed to be in imminent danger; and doubt
not tha. fact explains why the West wa,
comparatively neglected. / shall assum,
that and blame no one, for my object ani
resolution is to attack no one to day. bu
simply to give reasons for the faith that i
in me.
shall read now some more extracts
from General Lyons correspondence. be
cause the one | have read was not the only
protest lie made. The next is from a let
ter from General Lyon. written to Colone
Harding on the day after Fremont got t.
st. Louis. and ten days after the prcvicu
letter. He says. under date Of July 81:
; ''1f tie Government cannot give due at
; ton to the West. her interests must hav
corresponding disparagement.'
And in memorandum from Genera
Lyon, sent by Colonel Phelps to Genera
Fremont. dated Springfield. July 27. h
says:
: "7Ae safety Of tie State is hozarded; or
ders from General Scott strip the entir
; West of regular forces. and increase tn
chances of sacrificing it."
But want now to read the statement o
; his assistant adjutant General. Colone
Harding. 1t is long. but it does Justice t,
the dead general and to the living general
who. from his confidential relations will
his chief. knew his thoughts best of al
men now living:
Looking then, to the position of affair
; in this State on the 26th July, 1861. i
will be found that General Lyon was il
tie southwest in need of reinforcements
, There was trouble in the northwest, re
quSing more troops than were there. Il
the northeast there were no more troop
than were required to perform the task al
/ lotted to them, while in the south ant
southeast there was a rebel army of sufi
cient force to endanser Birds Point, Cap'
Girardeau, Ironton. Rolla. and st. Louis
aDd no adequate preparation was made t.
meet it.
General Fremont sent the eighth Mis-
souri, to Cape Girardeau, and the fourtl
United States reserve corps (whose tern
of service was to expire on the Sth of An
gust. to reinforce Bland at Ironton. HI
took some of General Pope's force from
him, added to it two battalions of the frs
and second United States reserve corps
(whose term Of service was to expire OF
the 9TH Of August equipped Buell's ligh
. battery. and started about the first Of An
gust for Birds Point. with the troops thu
collected. being something less than thirty
,, eight hundred men. and being also all TIT
available troops in this region. expecting
to find an enemy not less than twent]
; thousand strong.
Subsequent events showed that the
rebel force was not over estimated. ant
nothing tut the reinforcements sent to th'
point above named and the expedition
down the river prevented it's advance upol
them. Common report greatly magni6ee
these rcinforccments; and it was generally
believed in the city. and no doubt so re
,