Muscatine weekly journal. [volume] (Muscatine, Iowa) 185?-1890, 1862-07-18
xxxvIIh Congress .-- LIST Session.
INTERESTING DEBATE IN THE
SENATE ON McCLELLAN'S POLICY.
Adoption of Senator Chambers Resolution,
calling for Nc Ciellan's orders, number 81
Troops, DC.
WASHINGTON, July l


Department transmitting copies of all instruc
tons to the Generals in the army, in pursu-
ance of the act of Congress, August 9th, 1861,
relative to freeing the slaves of rebels.
Mr.. Wilson, of Mass, from the Military
Committee, reported back the House joint
resolution authorizing the Secretary of War to
furnish extra clothing to wounded and other
soldiers. Passed
Mr.. Doolittle, from the Indian Committee,
reported back the bill relative to the trust
bonds distracted by the late Secretary of the
Interior. Passed.
Mr. Chandler, from the Committee on Com
merce, reported bill providing for the APP
pointment Of surveyors, &c.
| Mr. McDougall offered resolution that the
President be requested to have prepared full
report of the foreig On and domestic trade and
commerce of California, Oregon and Washing
ton Territory to be submitted ut the next
session. Laid over.
Mr.. Lovcjoy asked but failed to receive con-
sent to introduce resolution instructing the
Committee on Ways and Means to take meas
ures to prevent specie paying banks from in
| terfering with Treasury notes to the serious
injury of the public credit.
Mr. Anthony introduced bill to define
the number Of Brigadier and Major Generals
in the army. The bill provides for reduc-
ton in the number of Brigadier and Major
Generals. Referred to the Military Com
mittee.
Mr.. Chandler called up the resolution call
ing for all the orders issued by Gen. McClel-
Ian, his correspondence, the number of his
force, &c. He then modified the resolution
so as to request this information if not incom
patible with the public interests.
Mr.. Wright said he had been mortified at
and regretted the tone of Senator Chandler s
speech. When he (Chandler) offered this res
olution it was to his (Wright's) task in this
hour of the country'S trouble to make any
charge against or throw any obstacles in the
way of the Generals in the field In the
opinion of Senator Chandler Gen. Mcclellan
must have committed an atrocous crime,
worthy of the severest penalty of the law
Gen. Mcclellan has not been newspaper
General, written up by correspondents, but he
has been most indscreetly denounced by them,
yet he has never made any reply. He
(Wright) would not 90 back to the operations
of Gen. Mcclellan on the Potamac, but ven
!, tured TO say that Gen. McClelan's ten days
campaign in front of Richmond fighting an
Infatuated enemy, would arouse as much add
miration among the people of foreign coun-
; tries as it had awakened confidence and hope
: among our own people. He Wright was in
favor of a vigorous prosecution of the war and
in favor of strong contiscation BILL but he
would do nothing to divide the true Union
men of the country This was not the place
to press such resolutions as this, though sane
toned as they were by the speech of the Sen
ator from Michigan If the President can
trust Mcclellan and Secretary Stanton, he
(Wright) was willing to trust them. He
would stand by Gen. Mcclellan, who was
fighting the battles Of his country.
: Mr. Chandler said that the Senator from
5 Indiana Wright must have mistaken his
(Chandler's) remarks that the press of the
country has been filed with denunciations of
the Secretary of War; for what they said was
military crime on his part not sending rein
5 forcements to Gen. Mcclellan. 1t was in
tended that the assault upon the Secretary of
| War should be deadly and lead to his re-
, moval. He denied that Secretary Stanton
was guilty of the crime, and he simply called
for the evideuce in the case. 1t is plain to
! every man in the land that when the army
was sent off to the Peninsula, there should
: have been a force sufficient to defend the
: Capital. He had the evidence Of nine Major
Generals taken before the committee on the
conduct Of the war; in which they said il
was absolutely necessary to retain force
here for the defense Of Washington. Geu.
Richardson in his sworn statement said it
would require 10000 and d corps of $4,000
: men to stop the movements of the enemy
, above or below the city Gen. Franklin
thought that from $4,000 to $4,000 men
would be necessary, and the others said 80, 900
, to $4,000 men must be left here for the
proper defense of the place. When Gen
, Mcclellan went to TT. Monroe it was found he
had not left a solitary regiment here except
: the 10Th, and that he had not left solitary
, gun on wheels for the defense of the Capital
| Had this gone on, the enemy would have
taken the Capital before the month of
April, but the President intcrposed and
| stopped it, and reported corps for the de-
Tense of the Capital. Was it not proper that
these facts should go to the country? Was
it not right that the people should know
what the facts really are. The President
and Secretary Stanton sent every solitary
man, every musk It. every sabre and every
bayonet to the army of the Peninsula, that
could possibly be spared, from the defense of
the Capital Nothing was refused to that
army that could by any possibility be spared
Was it not fair then that the President
should stop denouncing the man (Sccrctary
Stanton) who was opposed to this division of
the army, but who was in favor of marching
the army straight into Richmond?
Mr.. Lane, of Kansas, moved to postpone
the further consideration of the resolution
until December
Mr. TrumbuIl was in favor of the passage
of the resolution. Let the facts go to the peo-
pie of the country. He was willing to trust
| oil fbo poorlo r,.;tI, 4bo f,ot
Mr. Wilson, of Massachusetts, said he
would not vote on any speech that had been
made on the subject but simply on the reso-
luton calling for the facts, which ought to 90
to the people.
Mr.. Cowan thought such resolution
should not have been introduced, but now
that the issue was made the resolution ought
to be passed, that the facts might come forth
! Mr.. Henderson thought this resolution was
going to have the effect to make two parties
| in the country. In regard to the operations
of the Generals in the field, if reinforcementa
are sent to Mcclellan, the rebel capital can be |
| taken in a month. Cease, then, these mis-
chievous resolutions, which only tend to ex-
cite party feeling.
If any General is incompetent, let the Pres
ident remove him at once but he had seen
no incompetency in front of Richmond. We
are always prone to underrate the force of the
rebels We must have more energy and
larger force, Or we shall never put down this
rebellion. It is useless to close our eyes to
the fact that the rebels are as strong as we
are. The people may as well know the fact.
The papers have long been saying, for months,
that the rebel army is starving Is it posi-
BILE that there is such ignorance as to suppose
that with the climate and soil of the South
the rebels can be starved out? 1t is perfectly
idle to attempt to conceal the facts from the
people, They ought to know everything
connected with this war. The South are &c