The Portland daily press., 1862-11-01
Saturday Morning, Nov. 1, 1862.
That ssSoldier,s Response.

That ssSoldier's Response"
The Advertiser of yesterday published a
communication signed "W. c. NJ and head
ed "a Soldiers Response to the attack in the
Press upon Gen. Mcclellan and the army of
the Potomac" This pompous title was put to
1t in the Advertiser office, and not by the
writer. We know this, because the Soldier"
young man Of eighteen summers, certainly
not over twenty, who is a Sergeant Major in
Massachusetts, regiment, came into our office,
and offered his communication to the Press
He is well-appearing, intelligent and, we
judge, well-educated young man, but, like
most young men of his age, probably knows
with positiveness some things that at thirty he
will doubt, at forty will dispute and at fifty will
deny, and yet we were pleased with his gener-
al appearance, and strongly disposed to ac.
commodate him to the fullest extent. We
learned from him that, while he proposed to
refute the statements of an eye and ear wit
ness who had spent week in the camps of
the army of the Potomac, he had never been
In those camps, that he had been in McClel-
lan's army on the Peninsula, and not since,
that he had not been with the Potomac army
under Mcclellan in Maryland, and, therefore,
did not know thing personally, of the facts
of which he proposed to speak, or of the state
ments which he proposed to refute.
Still, we did not decline his communication,
but told him to leave it and we would look it
over, and he could think it over, and then if
he thought best 10 have it inserted it could be
done Saturday morning, but not conveniently
before, as our columns were crowded. We
suggested to him that our correspondent,
whom he was disposed TO dispatch very cava-
ierly was a man of keen eye-sght, not more
liable to be deceived in his facts than most
men, and that he was an honest man who
would be actuated by no desire to do wrong;
that If he had facts with which to meet facts
they would be Legitimate rebutting testimony,
but that suppositions and speculations were
poor material with which to set aside unpleas-
ant truths. We reminded him that the matter
upon which he was not only sensitive but pos
tive, Is one in relation to which military
men differ; that Hooker, and Burnside, and
Sprague-all Democrats, and, therefore, not
iuuucuCcQ u1 lcelillS-uiUtT lIOu
Porter and Franklin, and under such circum-
stances it was barely possible that he might be
mistaken. We advised him to think the whole
matter over carefully, and then, if he insisted,
his communication should be fairly treated.
He preferred not to accept this advice
but withdrew, taking his communication with
him, intimating in no equiyocal manner that
he was not particular about its publication at
all. So much for the history of "a soldiers
response" &C.
"W. G. NJ" proceeds to tell what he knows
Of McClelan's army from what he "has seen
and heard during life of fifteen months
among them" 1t seems to us he commences
by drawing rather a long bow, for Mcclellan
did not enter the field at the head of the army
Of the Potomac till March 14th, and on the
10Th Of August that army left Yorktown, after
the Peninsula campaign, since which time, our
young friend informed us, he had not been in
1t, but had been in the brigade of Gen. Sickles.
1t is not our purpose to defend our cores
pondent, Portland" or to follow "A soldiers
Response" but We will notice two points only
He quotes our orrespondent,-"The army
would be enthusiastic If powerful and earn
est spirit was at its head, ITO convict him of
alleging that the soldiers are not satisfied with
their present commander. His logic is too
imperfect to call for reply. A whole army
may be destitute of spirit and earnestness,
and yet no dissatisfaction exist between supe-
riors and interiors. 1t was not soldier-like in
our young subatern to say to US, with earn
estness and emphasis, as he has intimated in
his response" that change of commanders
would demoralize the army-that the soldiers
would not fight under new commander. If
soldiers derive such spirit from their COM
manders, no matter who they may be, the
"change" cannot be made too soon, for our
army is to follow its commanders, placed over
1t by the highest authority, and not to revolt
and undertake to dictate terms to the Govern
ment.
The editor of the Advertiser has caught at
sad Ignorance of geography betrayed by our
correspondent, who is made to speak of the
difficulty of obtaining a pass to "cross Navy
Yard bridge to the Virginia side, and pass
Ootu ccutIics az each elu Oh the DflQge, ana
return without unfolding the pass" Because
Navy Yard bridge does not cross the Poto-
mac, but simply the eastern branch, and both
ends of it are In Maryland, Nv. C. NJ" very
brilliantly infers that the "uniaithfu pickets
were guarding some hen-roost in the region
which Portland mistook for the Old Domin-
ion."
And the editor makes flourish, as though
such a mistake upse; all the unpleasant dis
closures made by Portland" as the result of
his personal observation. Now suppose port
land" to have been mistaken, and that he did
cross Navy Yard bridge, aud did not go to
Virginia, the material fact would remain un-
changed; for if passes are granted-and are
obtained only with diticulty-to cross that
bridge, Unto region where there are fortif-
cations and large bodies of troops,) but the
passes are not uvolded to sentinels, does not
the laxity of discipline appear precisely as
stated by our correspondent pa laxity not in
Gen. McClellan's command, but somewhere
else.