The New York herald. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1840-1920, 1862-07-07
The Misma n . cement and Misma mai gers
or the War Department..

| There is time to keep silence and . time to
speak. The campaign has concluded with our
repulse from before Richmond. The campaign
to come will require new troops, new plans
and new combinations, with, perhaps, new
emergencies of foreign complications. The
time has come therefore, to expose, rebuke and
correct the errors and mismanagement OF tho
| past, in order to secure thorough reformation
| for the future.
Tie weak point OF the nation is the War De-
| partment. From the gross errors, reckless mis-
mans gene Mt and criminal intrigues which have
disgrnced tina. department can be traced all the
disasters, oil the defeats, all the repulses which
our arms have sustained. The errors Of the
War Department have been Of threefold cha
racter: errors caused by ignorance and inca
pacity; errors caused by personal and political
jeaiousies and Atrigues, and errors caused by
fanat.csi abolit.onism. Some of the blunders
u tie Secretary of War and his advisers ap-
pear ipstigsted by q combination Of oil of these
faults We shall endeavor, however, to
sufficiently distinguish them, and to demon
strate by results that either an ignoramus. an
ntriguant or fanatic il unfit for Secretary
OF War. How much less qualified, then, is a
man who combines these three unpopular char
actors? And we must state in advance
that it will not do for President Lincoln to at
tempt TO father StantSns blunders, a. be en-
dorsed Cameron's extravaganza. The people
will allow such fclf-devotion for once: but If it
be too often renewed the people may take the
President OF his word. 1t is better to change
Cabinet officer than President. No Executive
has right to sacrifice himself in the respect Of
the people in order to save tie credit Of an IN
popular subordinate.
To first refuse, then accept, then again refuse,
ard tLen again call for recruits was an error
Of ignorance, conceit and incapscity. or the
same character is the error of not receiving all
recruits and organizing them in camps OF in
struction. 50 as to have them prepared in case
OF emergency. 1t IL an error Of incag acity to
take State troops to Washington and keep them
there, on some triling purctilio, without being
sworn Ia, and consequently without pay. No
,siness man hangs his worst goods at the
door OF Ills store; but the Secretary Of
War scatters his hospitals tbroughout all
cru.ins Offices in our PARIS, and expects men
70 enlist with all the horrid mutilasions Of war
staring at and dscouragBg them. New re-
crnils consider il an hosor TO belong to vete-
ran regiment of tried valor but ssch regiments.
VIXEN deeiinated in battle, are not filed up, but
are allowed to dissolve and merge into other
regiments Thus tho prestige, the eciat, the ex-
-
cruits, who are obliged to form new end raw
regiments, like some in Casey's brigade at Fair
Oaks. The Secretary Of War makes no provi-
sion for accident or emergency, aud issues q
call for three hundred thousand troops, not
Just before battle. when the people are enthu-
siastic, but just on the heels Of repulse, when
the people are depressed. Whom stanton d.