The Burlington weekly hawk-eye. [volume] (Burlington [Iowa]) 1860-1876, 1864-03-19

Sunday last and a lecture upon " Tha % on
ture 5Of Iowa." ut the Methodist Chnroh y
Monday evening. He has been invita- ~ =
repeat it before the Legislature. y
! YOURS Dies MorNss,
We are very sorry to see that there !. -
other inquiry into the conduct of the Ta ~
mandeS Of the Army Of the Potomsc r.a
going on, based on complaints nada NJ
officers serving under him, We hons ~
interests OF eternal truth" or aeterns, ~.
tice,' or some other magnificent abstys.
| ton, are promoted by these investieat;o...
for there is nothing more certain than tSss
the discipline of the army will be. r ~
not already, utterly DESTROYED bv th.,. %
We say, deliberately, that there car =
nothing better calculated to render or =
my utterly worthless, than the practice !.
| which Congress and the Government = ~
dicted, Of listening to charges made hv m /
GERS against their Chief, touching his ~.
egy or tactics. The only complaints vh;os
they should ever be permitted to make -
which, by any sound and generally-adont.
ed theory of military duty they ara ~.
mitted to make, are complaints Of persar.,
wrong done to themselves. These ara 4.
matters for examination; because exar;r' H
atoms may be often necessary, to preyer,
the General from degenerating into natt.
tyrant. But to allow any officer to arra;ar. !,
his superior before ally tribunal-we donct
care how cOmposed-to answer for his man
ner of handling the army in active servics
for retreating, or advancing, or fighting
so subversive of all discipline, Of all nrone.
subordination, and all proper sense Of -.
possibility, that we confess we cannot m.
derstand how any intelligent friends Of ~
Government, in Congress or out of IL en-
possibly countenance it.
We are no advocates Of General Meadao =.
any other General. We acknowledge ma
test OF military ability except the result ~
campaigns. But we protest strongly arains
Sickles and Doubleday, or anybody al
who serves under him, for an order he gays
at Gettysburg or anywhere else. It Is mi.
| versally acknowledged that there is noth.
| ing more fatal to the usefulness Of an arfnv
| than the prevalence among subordinatesx
| the habit of criticisin9 the plans of m,
chief. 1t has already worked terrible mis.
chief in this Army OF the Potomac, and In
had much to do with its various failure
But there can be no better way OF fosterinc
and developing this habit than making Is
charges, which are the natural fruit Of crit.
icism, the subject Of Governmental invest.
CATION. 1t inevitably converts corps ana
division Generals into knots Of intrieue1
and indictments; destroys all unity Of &C.
ton, makes every battle an experiment
performed by unwilling hands and de-
prives the Commander in chief of that con.
hdence in those around him which il tn
first condition Of success.
The military experience Of all the great
military nations proves conclusively that
it is better on the whole, that a General
should commit fifty blunders, than those
serving under him should be allowed for
one moment to imagine that it is any part
OF their business to oversee him and set him
right. If, therefore, Gen. Meade had want
ed to retreat fifty miles from Gettysburg.
instead of seventeen, IS is alleged, and had
given an order for that purpose, it would
perhaps have been a very unfortunate
thing; but-we say it with all respect due
to two very brave sOldiers-it was not the
business of either General Sickles or Gen.
eral Doubleday to correct or to criticise it,
Their business was simply and solely 10
obey; and Congress would serve the covn.
try and the army far more by letting IL
pass than by citing General Meade 10 ac-
count for it. He did not retreat: the bat
tie of Gettysburg was fought and won, and
he has since then, by his conduct in Wiz.
ginia, given decided proofs of q high order
Of talent. We know that he is the only
General who has commanded on the Poto-
mac, 70 far, whom General Lee has not
Outmanpuvered. 1t is in the highest de.
0ACC OOouIu ~ uuI AOA A0vIDk VI
dered a retreat, after the first days fight.
ing at Gettysburg, unless somebody is abb
to say what would have happened II b.
had retreated. Until we can find this out
it is about as sensible to try him for having
intended to retire, as it would be tpaty
him for not having advanced further. III
fact that victory is won in particulf
place, is not legal or any kind Of proof tint .
it would have been . crime to have fu6ht
anywhere else, and by any body of militia
ry men whose brains were not muddledby
politics, it would be considered very ride
ulous. 1. We submit that we have Id
enough Of this folly. Pope's campalgn W.
converted into horrible butchery becape
Mr.. Fitx John Porter took il into bis ihsG4
that he was bound to correct Pope'sstf1te
gy. Burnside's campaign was sinilaflv
marred, by his officers undertaking b caf
~ their orders to w ashingtoh and held Z
caucus over them before obeying then;
and we greatly fear we shall SEE Msads
sacrificed during the coming campaign y
the baneful and mischiovous delusion thae
Generals OF division are conEressionA Z.
spectors of strategy, charged with To - Il
OF detrscting and exposing the blundo0
and shortcomings of their commanding q
ficer.-N. Y. Times. 'i" aiilA. n 3i.4f4
F4E34 .~....l. W Hs}t8x$Ha n