Staunton vindicator. [volume] (Staunton, Va.) 1860-1896, 1863-09-25
ROsencranz.

military sagacity and judg ement of Gener-
al William FL. Rosencranz. of the Federal
army. The common verdict, even among
our own people, places him in the front
rank Of the commanders of the North, and
some are willing to acknowledge him the
greatest military leader the Yankee army
has yet produced. Not few are willing
to yield him the yictor's laurel, who has
never won victory. or even gained field
advantage but through an unfortunate
blunder an oversight on the part Of his ad-
versary.
We cannot with our recollection of the
past two years history of the war, and Gen
eral Rosencranz' participation therein,
reconcile oursef to Judge him other than a
very ordinary man. We are not Of the
multitude who accord to him all the mod
ern military accomplishments Of the time.
and assent to his right to stand at the head
Of the class in President Lincoln's acad-
envy for the graduation of young and SUD
den field marsbals. Like few of the gen
erals of our own army, he has been spoiled
by premature elevation to power. His
capacity is over estimated; his skill in the
higher tactics OF the profession of arms is
misjudged bis stratcgical invention and
his quickness Of perception are BY no
means so, extensive as many Of his coun-
trymen are willing to believe. He is
simply a cunning. cautious, calculating,
moral coward. He was born under a
lucky star. While he has gained no great
or important victories in the field, he has,
either through circumstance or position,
sustained no defeats, and has by the
chances and changes of war, b.en placed
in position to gain many material advanta
ges without struggle. To chance and
the dilatoriness Of our own Government,
and not to the superior skill and immense
inteliect of General Rosencranz, are the
abolitionists Indebted for these advantages
gained in the west. The poverty Of intel
lect the absence Of military judgement,
and the absolute lack of common sense in
the planning of the Federal programme for
the occupation of Tennessee. have been
overlooked in the successes which have at,
tended the march of much superior army
of we'll disciplined western troops, against
a small army Of brave aud patient, but bad
ly handled. Southern troops.
Rosrncranz has done nothing in this war
to en,itle him to the consideration ofsshis
countryman. nor the applause of his enc
mics. He was no match for the cool, sa-
gacious and intrepid Lee, in the mountain
wilds Of Western Virginia, and siuce his
removal to the Department Of Tennessee,
he has added tut little to his military rep
utaton in the honest judgement Of his
peers. With large army, composed Of
the best troops in the Federal service,
splendidly equipped, abundantly fed and
clothed, and well disciplined, and with a
force opposed to him, scarcely more than
half the number Of his own, poorly fed and
badly clothed, and fighting under the dis
enlargement Of repeated retreats, he has,
for one entire year, been occupied in the
,1f,rt to recover the vantage ground lost by
his predecessors in the tall of 81. We
firmly believe that if the army of Tennes,e e
had been reinforced in the Spring by TWEEN
ny thousand men from Virginia aid Missis-
sippi, as it ought TO have been, and hurled
against him at Murfrcesboro, he would
have been driven with his army in irretre-
yiable ruin and disaster from Tennessee
aud Kentucky, and by this time would
have been numbered among the disgraced
and dccapitated Generals Of the North
His campaigns have been marked with sig
nal success, aud good fortune has attended
him from the beginning. But according
to a vulgar but title axiom among the back
woodsmen Of Tennessee, nthere is no tell
ing the luck Of lousy calf-he lives all
the winter and dies i'll the spring" There
is no telling the luck Of the military calf
Rosencranz golden calf that the
heathens Of Yankeedom have set up TO
worship. We believe that he is about at
tre end Of his row. He has lived throu Oh
the spring and summer, but we are of opin-
ion that the axiom of the ''losy calf is to
be reversed in his case, and be will 60 the
way of all Northern Generals in the COM
ing winter. We think his plume and epau-
lettes will cease to wave and glitter in
Tennessee before another snow The cross
ing of the Tennessee river has sealed his
fate, or ours Upon the issue we have the
mightiest stake depending that ever a ma
ton battled for-not alone Tor separate
nationality, but for freedom. from the in
suits and tyranny Of people more ruthless
and remorseless in their revenge than ever
cursed christian age Chattanooga Daily
Rebel.
Description of the Vessels.
from the Manchester Examiner, August 81.
One of the two iron steam rams built by
Messrs Layard at Berkenhea cad was launch
ed at their works on Saturday, August 20,
in the presence of larg crowd of specta-
tors, who were freely admitted into the yard.
The vessel launched Saturday was chris
tened the Ell Monasser, or Victory; her con-
sort, launched few weeks ago. being
named the Ell Tousson. When launched,
both vessels bore the English flag astern
and the French flag amidships.
Each are $50 feet long. ~ beam and ~
feet deep Their measurement is l, 500
tons, and their engines are 350-horse power
They are plated With four and a half inch
iron on a teak backing of great thickness,
bolted on to the frame Of the ship, which
supports the inner she'll
The decks are also iron plated, and the
iron bulwarks are hinged at the lower edge.
so as to be thrown down in action. Each
tram is nierced for six guns on each side,