The New York herald., 1862-11-02
xaply Of Ex-President Buchanan to
General Scott.
Mk EARLY DAYS OF THE REBELLION
/. lmbec iiity and Folly Of the Late
Administration
INTERESTING HISTORICAL RECORD,
&c, rAx 6c.. &e.

1he last tbs of the admins, regard the
iions was greatly surprised Il appearance such
n paper. In aspect, nowrvsr, II was highly crafty
-sc,eSy Necessary ha. scuA no longer reanan s,en.
IN respect charges which have been long vaguely crcu
hating but endorsed BY the responsible name OF
l. Tho drst ana prominent among these charges 10
my refusal msediaely 70 garrison nine enumerated for
coring se recommendation Of General Scott, in his
and 3ot October 1859 And il has been alleged
that this had been done might have prevented the
civil war
tho influence Of Governor Floyd All my Cabinet must
bear witness that was the President, myself re-
sporsbe for all the acts Of the administration and
it that during thu last sixth months previous
the 10Th December $780, the day which he resigned
tho administration than any other member Of the Cab
net Mr.. Holt was immediately thereafter transferred
from the Post Office Department to that OF War so that
from this time until tho 4th March, 1861 which by
far the most important period OF the administration he
performed the duties Of Secretary Of War to my entire
But why did not Immediately garrison these for
tfcations IN such manner 10 the language Of Gen.
Scott any attempt any one of them
BY surprise or coup de main ridcuousf There is one
answer both easy and conclusive, other valid
cons did not exist There were no available troops within
reach which could be sent 10 these orcaton To have
within the President power would have been
simply absurd. or this Gen Scott himself seems TO have
been Tor on the DAY after the date OF his st
views to the War Department in which he Sales.--future
(regular) company in Boston here lat The Mar
rows) ono 1t Pttsburg, one at Augusta ga at Ba
ton Rouge"-in all five companies only within reach
garrison reinforce the forts mentioned in the "vews"
Five companes-fcur hundred men-to occupy and
reinforce nine Notifications in highly excited Southern
States The force "wi,hin reach entirely made
quate that nothing more need be said on the subject To
nave attempted such military operation with feeble
force, and the Presidential election impending. would
have been an invitation to collision and secession Indeed
the whole American army, consisting then of only six
teen thousand men, had been withn reach" they would
have been scarcely sufficient for this purpose Such was
want of troops that although General Scott believing
in opposition to the opinion Of the committee raised in
The House Representatives that Inauguration Of
Mr. Lincoln might be interrupted by military force
only able TO assemble Washington late the 4tb
March hundred and fifty three men, Gle Of
the army. And make up thslnnmber even the appere
and miners were brought from Yves. Point.
But why was there no greater force within reach?
1hs question could be better answered by General Scott
nimsel than by any other person Our small regular
oue OF reach on our remote frontiers where had been
continuously stationed for years, TO protect the inhab
rs % ~ gtan Oh srs way as1s. @ ,ne
General Scott and myself had cndeavored pre-
vail Congress to raise several additional regiments
FOR this purpose In recommending this augmentation OF
shs army, the General stes in his report the War De-
partment, Of November 1887 THAT 'it would
Siorida Texas, New Mexico CALIFORNIA, Oregon Washing
son Territory, Kansas Nebraska Minnesota, leaving
company for Utah And again IN his report Of Novem
Der, 1868, he says
This want Of troops TO give reasonable sesnrty to @
plains, scarcely strongly stated; su viii only
as that o as off often , as we have been obliged to withdraw
points have been instantly attacked threatened
These views of General Scst exhibit the crude no
lions then prevailing even among intelligent and patriotic
men on this subject Of secession In the frst sentence
the General while stating that ITO time the right
secession may be conceded yet Immediately says ths
= instantly balanced by the correlaveght the part
States TO re-esablsh by force necessary, its orAer
continuity Of territory" tFor this be cites "Paiey's
- there, but have been unable 10 find it) While
il difficult to ascertain his precise meaning this pas
his supplementary views IN these he says;-"h
will be that the views only apply aeass of Sc
cession thai makes gap 10 the present Union The fall
OF, say Of Texas, of all the Atlantic staes from
eAc Pctomc south (the very which has occgrrcdl
was not within the scope Of General SIS provisional
remedies that say, establish by force neces
Sory tire continuity OF territory lin his views he
whatever line lines that political madness may contriye
ane there would be no hope Of recruiting the fragments
cep by the acera,ion and despotem Of the To
such result the intestine wars of Mexican neghbors
would in comparison with ours, sink into mere chld's
play In the Generals opinion "a smaller evil than
these intestine wars) would be to allow the fragments
We great republic TO form themselves into
federacies, probably four He then points out what
ought 10 be the boundaries between the Unions
- the cd OF each goes far even TO Indicate the
cities which ought to be the capitals Of the three
This side OF the Rocky Mountains. TO wit'sColumbia
South Carolina !" Anton, or Quincy Illinois y and .sAI.
hany, New York excluding Washington city altogether.
his indication Of capitals contained in the original now
n my possession curousy omitted in tho version pub
tshed in the Ndi;nndi In,eIigencer lie desgnatcs no
capital for the fourth Union the Pacific The reader
vii Judge what encouragement these views. proceeding
from distinguished source must have afforded to the
= secessionists IS the cotton States.
trust l have said enough, and more than enough 70
cenvinCe every mind why did not, with force OF two
Sn ~ ss 70 re0tSs For fS Jackson s i1S s
Forts Pckens and Mcae in Pensacola aTbor Fort Pu.
!ssLi, below savaunah Forts Moultrie and sumter,
Chareston harbor and Fort Monroe, in Virginia.
These views, 'both original and supplementary,
were published by General Scott the National Iseii
critical period Of tho administration. Their publication
81 shat time could do TO possible good, and might do
nucn ha m 10 have published them, without the Presi
dcnts knowledge and consent was as much in violation
q tho sacred confidence which ought to prevail between
commanding general oi the army and the Commander
lnChef as II would have he Secretary OF war TO
publsh the same documents without authority What
- OF more importance, their publication was calculated
njuriousy 70 affect the compromise measures then pend
ing before Congress aud the country 10 encourage
the seccssinsts IN their mad and wicked attempt 10
shatter the Union into fragments. From the great re-
spec which then entertained for the General passed it
ever in 3 encs.
Is worthy OF remark that soon after the Presidential
election representations OF what these "vews contained
oi less correctness were unfortunately circulated
specially throughout the South The editors Of the Ma
nonot f.genco IN assigning reason for their pubica-
toD, state that both iu public prints and public
speeches allusons Ind made them, and some
m,sappr.hensions o their Character had got abroad.
II and III General Scott states that he arrived in
wls1ligU,r On thc l2ia and acc,nplnied by the Se
crefary Var, held convorsitln with the President
o. the 18th December Whilst have no recollection
correctly Tint did refuse 20 send three hunired
men 70 reinforce MAJOR anderson "a Fort Moultrie
whc had net then removed 10 Fort sumter The
reAton for this refusal II manifest 70 all who reco.
icet the history % the tsmt But twelve DAYS before
IN tho annual message OF the % December had urged
1pon Iorgrccsihc adoption Of amendments e. ire cops
snfion q tbe same character with ID 50 subsequently
Proposed oy M trittenden called HCfitenden com.
ptomsch AZ taat time high hopes were onteriaiuod
nrnngbolt tho country that thes. would be adopted
iDesine-, oe.eyeu--ahd ths correctly as tho event
proyedtla, Major Anderson was then il, no daneer az
atts.k inaeef lc and lis command were then treated
xhh narsod kindncse by the authorities and people of
Charleston. Under these circumstance 20 nave sent
sucb force there would have been only 10 IMPAIR the
hope 81 compromise, ~ provoke collision and disarpopt
.sbe country.
There details Of this conversation regard 10
~hich tue Generals 3emory must be defective AT pre-
sent SHAH epcefy only could not have stated
Enatyon future contingent occasion would telegraph
Major Andoffon of Fort Msultre, % hold the forts
khouiiro aud sumter) against attack y because with
gTndcm precauon, this lad already done several
ahys bsore through special messenger sent 10 MAJOR