Muscatine weekly journal. [volume] (Muscatine, Iowa) 185?-1890, 1864-04-15
Gen. Mcclellan ON the Peninsula.

Gen. Mcclellan ON the Peninsula.
The New York Times is publishing, in a
series Of articles, crushing review of Gen.
McClellan's Report" exposing the charla-
tanism of the 'Young Nopolt on" from his
own record. From the latest of these arti
cles we quote the following, which refers to
the Peninsula campaign. -
"ae complains sgain and again fthe small
ness of his force during period at the beg n
ming Of which (when therebels were weakest,
he had twenty times their number, and at the
end If which when, through his own pecu!
lar tactics, they were strongest, he had still
more than twice their number. But though
Gen. Mcclellan is constantly whining alb ut
the weakness Of his force he strangely enough
nowhere comes down to precise figures.
In what purports to be complete "Report"
of the military transactions of this period,
one would suppose he could hardly fail to
give detached statement of the strength Of
his army. Yet this capitol point IS entirely
overlooked. Fortunately we have had the
means of supplying this unaccountable DIFF
cit. The ''morning report of the Army Of
the Potomac for April 80, 1862, vouched for
BY the Adjutaot General Of the army, shows
the following figures: Total aggregate. $780,
s7s men; aggregate present for duty. 112,-
392. Remember that this was while Gen.
Mcclellan was still besieging Yorktown
Afterward he received reinforcements; from
Ice, 900! Almost the only definite statement
Of the strength Of his army given BY Gen.
Mcclellan is in dispatch of April 7th, in
the following terms. .,., z,1
"Whep my. present command all joins, l
shall have about (85 $1,000 eighty-fve thous.
and men for du:y, from which large force
must be taken for guards, scouts, ETC."
But this is replied to by the President in
dispatch of the subsequent day.
There is curious mystery about the
number of troops now with you. When
telegraphed you on the 9th, saying you had
over hundred thousand men with you, |
had just obtained from the Secretary Of War
statement, as he said, from your own re
turns, making 10s,0O0 men then with you
and en- route to you You now say you will
have but $4,000 when all en- roHte to you
shall have reached you. How can this dis
| crepancy of % 900 be accounted for p"
We may add here th.t this ''curious mys-
terry" never was solved. It is wrapped up
| in the secrets Of that extraordinary legerde-
main which Gen. Mcclellan always brings to
the treatment Of numbers. - VS. e : 20 d
The pertinacity with which Gen. McC Clellan
dwells upon these alleged causes Of ofcomplaint
| only serves to show the determined spirit 10
which he seeks to throw the blsme Of his fail.
ures upon others, and thus turn attention
away from its true causes, which must bt
sought first, in the inherent difficulties Of the
car paign, which should have prevented it:
having been undertaken altogether; and sec
ondly, in a. characteristic element of the Com
mander of the Army Of the Potomac, whici
the President appears to have appreciated BY
his repeated allusions, in his letters to Gen
Mcclellan, to what he calls his ovsr ca,sfio'
and his indisposition to act.