The Plymouth weekly Democrat. (Plymouth, Ind.) 1860-1869, 1863-04-23
Progress Ofthe Wharf.-The Way the
Administration "Makcs u Sure
Thing oft"

Administration "Makes Sure
Thing oft"
Of what avail is the bow of Achilles in
hands too feeble 10 bend il? The abo :
tive attempt to take Charleston after m an Y
months of elaborate preparation is OF
piece with the whole conduct OF the war.
1t is still the old story Of enormous expen-
dture and feeble results. Here were con-
centrated the flower of our navy, our
proudly heralded fleet Of Monitors, and all
the appliances which money, science, and
inventiveness could bring together. The
result is fiat failure. The idea that
Charleston is to be again within any rea-
sonable time assaulted by Admiral Du-
pont, is preposterou.. The protested pur-
pose in the assault that has miscarried,
was to make the armament SO powerful
and the preparations so complete as to rem
der success absolutely certain when the
Job was undertaken 1t is obvious that the
fleet of iron clads cannot this summer be
assisted by land forces 80 as to give bet.
ter assurance of success than was enter
tanned on the first attack. Of tie nine
iron clads on which we placed our main
reliance four were temporarily disabled and
one totally destroyed.
Nobody supposes that the gallant Du-
pont and his brave off are to blame.
but the administration that compelled him
to incur hazard wholly d,sproportioned
both to the chances Of success and to the
value OF success had it been attoaned The
attack on Charleston was an enterprise un-
dertaken more for prestige than for solid
military reasons. 1t has shared the fate
which commonly attends difficult underta.
kings at disproportionate risk not sane
toned by sound judgment. A twentieth
part of the exp,nse lavished on it would
have SO strengthened the blockade as TO
render it as efficient as blockade can prac-
ticaIly be made. But except for the pur-
pose the blockade is intended TO accomplish,
to-wit, the extinction of rebel commerce
the present possession of Charleston
would be of comparatively little value. I'm
til the rebellion is subdued elsewhere, no
cotton would be furnished for expectation,
and the importance of Char lesion depends
mainly on the fact that it is the chief cot
81 ., IN
of its forts is indeed highly desirable; but
they were built for protection against hos
tile approaches from the sea, and the rob
ell forces lie in the other direction. AS a
means of approaching terra 6rma and land,
ing troops to operate in the interior,
= Charleston was not worth this great ex-
peEditure and risk, as we had abundant
, access to the coast elsewhere. Unless.
therefore, the probabilities had been Sc
greatly in our favor as to have made
, success the same as certain, the capture oil
Charleston should not have been attempt
ed till latter stage Of the war, when II
/ might have been taken from the land side
with comparatively little resistance.
!. The country has had quite enough o.
Secretary Stanton's famous strategy o
knowing straight upon the enemy's
: works. expecting them to fall by the ex-
d, hibiton Of an uncalculating courage. rs il
f the days of Joshua the walls of Jericho Eel
a by blowing trumpets of rams horn. IL
!. say nothing of Big Bethel, Balls Bluff, anc
James Island, the more recent examples o
Fredericksburg, Vicksburg. and Charles
|. ton afford demonstrations that were no
It needed of the falsity Of Stanton's dictun
!, that courage and a bold attack is "a mill
g tsry combination that never failed"
g In Gods name how much longer are
j the resources and prestige of the country
: to be thus squandered! Never did a pat
is riotic people SO ungrudgingly pour ou
g men and treasure, and never since the day
e Of Xerxes, have the vigOr and success o
the war been in such Notifying dispro-
+ portion to the mighty magnitude of tn
= preparations 1t is related by Herodotu
: that among the protents by which Aerxe
st was warned against the ill-fated expedition
n into Greece, was that Of mare, the nutu
t, raj mother of var steeds, bringing forth
,e hare. This fabulous incident TALES a
: well with the history of Mr.. Lincoln a
= with that of his satrap making prototype
s. The seizure of the rebel ENJOYS WAS tn
a mother of war horses, their surrender tn
re birth Of the timid hare; the same hgur
n applies to the vaporiug beginning of tn
ct Pope campaign, and the !repidatlon
al Washington at its close, to the soundin
promises and SANDER performances 8
~ vicksburg; to the mighty results promise
,e and the no results realized from the emal
e cipation proclamation. md, in fact. to II
h whole operations Of the war, both in the
"a ensemble and i'm their details.