Richmond Whig. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1862-1865, 1864-05-10
CEN MCCLELLAN AID FsE So oN0 BATTLE OF
MANAsSAS

writer in ths New Y fz fi'1ei Gas, ia SIXTIES VI
articles been severely c'iticsirg Gen hcOlslans NIL
i,arv career. The following sx'rAes relative to toe
.seo,s hattie of Manassas viii shOS the auimus of the
writer:
TIE 2sM of AUgss-On the morning Of the 2sth,
Halsck .slegraphs directly TO RrGRklin:
aOa parting With Cen. Mcclellan, about 2 o'clock
this m ,rning il understood that you 10
with your corps to-day toward Manassas Junction, to
drive the enemy from she railroad. have Just learned
that The General has not returned to Alexandra. 1t
you have not received his order, act on this"
To this, at P, Mcclellan, not Ftankli'., replies:
"Your dispatch 10 FranIln received. have been
doing all possible to hurry artillery and cavalry The
moment Ffanklln can be startea with reasonable
amount Of artillery he shall 60.
Please see Barnard, and be sure the works to-
wards Chain Bridge perfectly secure. | look upon
those works Ethan Allen aud Marcy, as Of the first i'm
tanee."
At $50 P. NJ, HAlleck impatieatly tolegraphs Nc
Oelhn;
UNot moment must Be- lost in pushug as large force
as possible toward Manassas, as to communicate with
Pope 5sfore ne enemy Is reinforced"
To this Mcclellan replies ~ 4.40 P. NJ:
r"Gea FrankiiR Is Nth me hsrS | will know in afew
minutes the condition Of artillery and cavalry. We are
not yet in q condition u mcVe--may De 6y to-moTTo"
Al $40 Pm, HAlleck still more iupsrA!Vsly telo-
graphs:
sThere must be no further delay in moving Frank
line corps towards Manassas; they mast go to morro
pcr1,in0 Teady or not ready 1t delay too long TO
get readv there will be no necessity TO 60 at ell for
Pore piH either be defeated victorious WitioHt oar
add If there Is a want of wagons, tho men must
carry provsons with them till tbs wagons can come to
their relief"
To which Mcclellan replies at 10 P. NJ:
''Your despatch received Franklins corps has been
ordered TO march ~ 6 o'clock tomorrow morning
Sumner has abon; IA 600 infantry, without cavalry or
artillery, here"
O6ssrSation-These dispatches give the history of
the 2Sth of AUGUST. Not one Of these Is published 6y
Gen MeCelldi, IN his Report. They show the reiters
ted orders General Mcclellan received 10 send REIN
forcsmens 70 Pope and the imminehoe of tho crisis
that was upon that General They show on the part Of
Mcclellan the shsllOF subeIuges be employed to avoid
obeying these orders In his whole series of excuses
tteTe is but one that presents The shO1 OF cub
stantiality-namsly tbe supposed LEX OF transport
ioD; but the utter ban ucss OF this preienoe made
manifest by desoatca OF General HaecS day or two
afterWard in which ne sayS: 81 learned last night
(29sh) that the Qaaytermss,ers Department would have
given him (Ffanklin) plenty Of transportation II he had
applied for Il tine since has drtaL at Alexandria.
The 29h of August AT length, two whole days alter
the imperative order given 70 General Mcclellan TO
have Franklin move out by forced marches, he IS
able to say, "Frankio's corps Is 10 notion. To be
sure General Mcclellan contesses that his repeated
Franklin forward were all sham, Tor he says: should
not have moved him but for your pressing orders Of last
night" Still no is ct length under way, and there is
yet poss b;lty that he vii reach Pope in time Vain
hope he halts Franklin at AnsEdse ard cooly tele-
graphs to Haleck:
DO vou wish tie Increment of Franklins corps to
continual He is without ammunition and with
out transportation"
Ger Ralleck mus. be very mild hammered man, for
be simply replies:
cant Frdkli,s corps to 90 far enough TO iadOu
something about The enemy Perhaps lie may get suca
information Ansndale TO prevent his going further;
otherwise be ni push on toward Fairfax Try TO get
something from direction of hSnsssa3 either by tele
grams or through Frankn's scouts. Oar people must
nOge more actively and tBd cat ObCre the enemy iS
/ am iirsd of gue sses"
Gen Mcclellan had nov exhausted all the resources
of diabolcal Ingenuity in order TO keep Pope from
receV ng Tentoicsm lie had by this means gained
two days and half; that i from 10 A ii. OF the 9Th
ill p. N. of the 1872 He kasw that Pope had by
this time the whole reoc army upon him. He kRsV that
great battle that very morniog and afternoon
going on for the roar Of the artillery 10 bis
at Algxlndra Wh,re he held hiry thousand loyal
Americans in the Leach, while their bro hers IN arms
we're being oVerWhelu cd IL was crisis with hcCtl-
Ian and he mus. either et tbs troops go forward
Pope or devise new system Of tactics He could no
longer pretend that be did not kuo5 where Pope
be could nc longer pretend that he did not know how
far Gen. Halleck wished Franklin 20 advance. He
DsOugll 10 the wall DJ NSu- udutCh puhIC OtutI
" oar people must find ont '5hsre hs enemy is "
General Mcclellan EGs equal TO tho emergency. He
dTOps the correspondence with Halleck and cooy in
dtes to the President of tho United States the follow
ing despatch the most extraordinary penned by
any maa wearing soldiers uniform. We pause for
moment to ask the reader to take in full realizing
sense Of the import OF the following amazing words
'sThe last news received from the direction Of Ma
nassas was from saggsrs to the effect that the enemy
were evacuating Cenuevle and retiring toward Thor
oughfaTe Gap. This is by no means reliable | am
clear shat one Of two should be adopted ls To
concentrate all our available forcss TO open communi
cation with Pope I'd 10 leave Pope TO get out of his
scraDs ard Ct once oil means make the Capital
perfectly sae No middle eourte oin now ansNer.--
I'll me What you wish me to do, snd will dc all in my
power 10 accomplish it. l visa to know Whss my Or-
ders and authority are. ask for nothing, but will
obey whatever orders you give. only ask prompt
decision that may at once give the necessary orders
Il will not DO 10 delay longer"
EXPIRES i've silence is the only comment we have for
this astounding proposition fOs the profound horror and
contempt such words inspire take away all power OF
cool dissection. l. IS said that when Mr.. Lincoln read
this despatch be fell bsek in his coair in ha-hntiDg
and at this distance Of time it 10 hardly possible
TO read il Nithout 4 sinking Of the heart
General Mcclellan, in tae above proposition, suggests
two courses. We Eeod say ;hat they substan.
TALLY one AID the came. lie knep ha Lees junction
scik Jackson sds i0l0 certain FIz John Porter had
attended.to that In either case therefor Pope
perfectly certain to be lett TO get OEt Of his SerGpe