The New York herald., 1863-11-11

| rom frederlOk6Ourg 70 tne ouonhuooHo vealey,
when, with half this force advanced TO the PEN
insuls, In June, Mcclellan would have cele-
brated the Fourth Of July; 1862, In the rebel
capital. We are glad to believe that the oon-
sequences which followed the opposite policy
have taught the War Ofaos that Fredericksburg,
Winchester. Harper's Ferry and other second
airy places amount to nothing, and that the
main rebel army, upon which the loss or gain
Of all these places depends, is everything. And
yet there is some danger that General Halleck's
system OF scattering his forces at this point
that point and the other, may result in some
| misfortunes which will involve the sacrifice Of
another general or two. We have some appre-
tensions, for example, that General Burnside,
| at Knoxville, is in position which is not re-
lieved of positive danger.
For the purposes Of the present campaign we
may consider the army Of General Meade in
Virginia, the army of General Burnside in East
Tennessee, and the army Of General Thomas,
over hundred miles farther west, as the three
grand divisions Of one great army-Thomas
holding the right wing, Meade the left, and
Burnside the centre Here, while the two
wings are doubtless strong enough for oil con-
tingencies, the centre is supposed to be so weak
as to invite movement against it from both
Bragg and Lee. The safety of Burnside de-
pends upon the activity Of Thomas and Meade.
We conclude that this fact is thoroughly CON-
pretended at Washington, and that accordingly
neither Bragg nor Lee will be permitted to in
dulge in any such pastime rs the "gobbling up"
Of Burnside and the spoliation Of the loyal
farmers Of East Tennessee The rebels have
given sufficient warning OF this design, and the
removal Of halfa dozen generals will not avail
to save the administration from the righteous
Judgment of the country should this transpa-
rent purpose Of the enemy be carried out
They have told us that the provisions
of East Tennessee are indispensable to the sub.
sistence of Bragg's army; that he must have
them, and will recover them at any cost. We
have great faith in the skill, activity and vigil
lnnce of General Grant; but we suspect that
General Burnside owes his present position to
the peculiar military combinations Of General
Halleck, and that some special authority will be
needed from President Lincoln to rectify them
Bragg will settle the whole question. A de-
cisiye defeat of either of these armies at this
juncture Of exhaustion and impending famine
in the rebellious States will assuredly be fatal
to tho Davis confederacy. The right properly
belongs to the Army Of the Potomac to admin
lister this finishing blow and, if simultaneously
supported by active operations against the
enemy at all other points East and West we
may reasonably expect that General Meade
and his brave soldiers will achieve the glorious
distinction which IT is their ambition to win,
Change I'm the Policy Of Engiand and
France Towards this Government.
England has deemed it best TO stop tho rams
which the I,airds were building for the rebel
service. Earl Russell announced the fact in
such terms az admitted of no doubt that in this
affair the British government was in earnest.
We are now assured by our Secretary Of State,
Mr.. Seward, that France, upon the firm repre-
sentatiou Of our Minister at Paris, has ordered
the stoppage Of tho six rebel rams which were
being constructed at Nantes. This step on the
part Of Napoleon will take tho Southern con
federacy by surprise, and will no doubt create
panic among those misguided classes in Sc
cessia who still cling TO the hope Of foreign in
tervention or recognition. France, in thus
following the example set by England, proves
that had the latter government acted with
less precipitancy in recognizing the rebels as
belliceren!s our civil war would long since
have terminated.
England extended favor TO the rebellion, and
France fastened to follow her example, as also
did Spain. Thus buoyed up, Davis and his fol-
lowers have struggled on against good cause
and fearful odds, because they were sapgune
that, sooner or later, England, France and Spain
would recognize them. But we have, fortti.
nately, had such men as Mcclellan TO win 1t
Antietam, Meade at Gettysburg, Grant and
Rosecrans in the Southwest, and Gilmore at
Charleston, who added their weight to he in
iuence we brought to bear upon our evil wishers
in Europe; and, with 'swainp angels" and
iron-clads thrown into the balance, up vent the
cause Of Davis into vapory uncertainty. Long
ago would he have abandoned hopeless strife
had England and France acted at first as they
now seem disposed to act. These European
nations have at last ascertained that tho real
power and strength Of the American republic
are in the loyal States of the North and
West and they will abandon the South because
Il is weak and unable much longer to resist tho
legitimate influence and authority of tho United
States government.
The people in France, who have all along
been averse to any course on the part OF their
government which might bring about war be-
tween US, will be all the moro indisposcd to
any such policy from tho failure Of the Mexican
expedition. This affair, as viewed in all its as
poets, must be considered a failure, aud its
difficulties will but enhance in popular estima.
tion in France the perils of war with this couu-
try An enterprise has just been started in that
empire which will have vast influence upon
the American question. We refer TO q pro-
jected line Of steamships between this country
and Brest hitherto a military port In France,