New-York daily tribune. [volume] (New-York [N.Y.]) 1842-1866, 1864-07-22
HOW TO DEAL WITH GU1D-
RILLA0.

The order which Con. ROsocrans has recenue
addressed to the citizens of North West Mis.
souri, declares his resolve to suppress guerrilis
warfare on the only principle which can posi-.
bly, be made effectual. Gen. ROsecrans hat
now been long enough in command Of the De.
partment of Missouri 10 understand what 10
has to deal with, nor was he lacking In exps.
rlence before he went there. Yet his order con.
fesSes he had been deceived into arming popu.
lation which used arms only against the friends
of the Union. He will not commit that mis-.
take again, nor would he have been likely 10
sels Of men identified throughout the Missouri
struggle with the enemies Of the Government.
The testimony which Gen. Rosecrans now offers
as to their fidelity ought to be conclusive. He
says:
Your best men have assured by word sad letter tsA
you mean TO behave lawsbidng and peaceful ciizeas
They have assured Of your pledges and pledged themselves
for you have ntrused the peace your keeping Ihavs
supplied You with ammunition and lea your hasds
You have given fair promises while you allowed Rebda
and gueras to live and recruit among you. You CO.
ceaied from su,hodts these and their proec Zee
have robbers and nurdere joined by the very wife
defend agsins. them The and snmuniios
delivered you the defense Of Law and have
been used 10 destroy then. You guilty Of ali The bosl
that will be she'd by the Of these and the hands wi
have baey betrayed both you and the country You hsvs
nothing e before you bu. wholly TO and hds
to pursue and extermae these enemies Of mankind
your country viii become de.Oson."
The last sentence strikes the keynote Of his
policy. There is but one way to destroy guer-
rillas-hOld the country which they infest 70.
sponsible for every outrage. That is the system
henceforth in both Kentucky and Missouri. Il
proceeds upon the just theory that continu,
ance of guerrilla warfare is impossible except
by the connivance and support Of the district
which it infests. The guerrillas have no mill.
tary organization, no commissariat, nc means Il
existence except by the help of those who syn.
pathizo with them. One is as guilty and de-
serves as little mercy as the other. Hence Cen.
ROsecrans declares:
Any one who knowingly and Willingly edvies counssla
Dives consent food direction. information. assistance 10
bushwh,cke paraker Of their crimes and ought 10 bs
their punishment
Hitherto this determination has been rs-
luctantly enforced in practice. The troops IN
der Col. Ford = which have swept rapidly Though
Platte and Clay counties, did but half their
work. They broke up Thornton's band. taking
no prisoners, but the citizens were simply
warned. Col. Ford says: 81 have killed No
citizens-none but those in arms fighting usi
but any amount Of the citizens need killing.
NiDe-tenths Of all the citizens arc assisting
Thornton, giving him all the information, and
keeping everything from me-" Bat the wan.
ing now given is the last, for Col. Ford in
another dispatch says: " In passing through
the counties have told all the prominent citi.
2ons that from this henceforth l should hole
them responsible for every act committed by
the Rebels; that this passage Of mine through
the country was only for information, but that I
should return and woe la IN fhnso nau,oo that
had recorded-nanes given me by Union pee
pie that have been driven from their homes" .,
Now there is no question-even the Rebela
make none-that this method of dealing viii
guerrillss is sanctioned by the laws of war, aad
that it will extirpste these robbers and mur'
derers--the pirates of the prairie And we dc.
sire to ask why. In view Of the long series d
outrages in rth-Eastern Virginia, in the bell
of country between the Potomac, the Blue
Ridge, and the Rappahannock, where Moseby'!
gang has been and still is supported; where
Virginians take the oath of loyalty, farm in the
day time, and murder by night-why there,
also, the Missouri system has not been put u
force' Until it is, until the inhabitants Of those
counties are held personally responsible foa
Moseby's operations there can be no hope o.
holding the country in secure military posses
sion, nor of protecting the few Unionists that
may be found among the people. Duty and
policy alike demand that it shall be done.