Weekly national intelligencer. [volume] (Washington [D.C.]) 1841-1869, 1864-10-13
weekly NatIonaI InteIIigeneer
THURSDAY, OCTOBER 1s, 1864
MR.. LINCoLN,s RECORDING. ".

Is.
We have brought our review down to point
where the transactions of the Army Of the Po-
tomac and its relations to the President are fresh
in the recollection of every reader.
We might proftably direct our attention to other
theatres of the for the purpose Of tracing in them
the progress Of our arms under the conduct of this
Administration. That progress has been made in
exhausting the material forces Of the insurgents
and in reducing the resisting power of their armies
is apparent to all But the question which it con-
Germs the Administration to answer is this: Ravs
zoe made Meprogress achich Mepeopie aeere entitled
to .rpect from tbs resources of men and money
placed az the Administration's hands, To this
inquiry propose to address ourselves very briefly
We have already seen that in the beginning Of
the war the President expected to end it with
four hundred thousand men, at cost of four hun
dred million dollars This was the number Of
men and the amount of money which, in his first
message to Congress, convened in extraordinary ses
sion on tie 4th of July, 1861, he asked the Ma
tional Legislature to pac, /" at the control of the
Government"
1t appears from the report Of Secretary Cameron,
made on the 1st of December, 1861, that II ,S75
men were raised during that year under the first
call made by the President for three months
men" Immediately after the attack on Fort Sum-
ter And under the legislation Of Congress at the
extra session, which opened on the 4th Of July in
that year, the number Of 66O,97l men had at the
date of his report been enlisted for three years.
After giving the figures in detail to this effect, Mr.
Cameron proceeded to say:
Congress during its session. authorized the army
to be increased by the acceptance OF volunteer force Of
100000 men, and made appropriation OF FIVE hundred
millions of dollars for its support call for the troops
immediately made bat numerous were the offers
that ii found difficult to discriminate in the choice
where the patriotism of the people demanded that there
should be restriction upon enGstments Every portion
Of the Loyal States desired to swell the amy and every
community anxious that it should be represented in
that appealed TO the nobes impulses OF our people
80 thoroughly aroused the national heart that
have doubt this force would have been swollen TO mil
hon. had not the Department felt compelled restrict it,
in the absence of authority from the of the
people to increase the limited number. 1t will be for
Congress decide whether the army shall be further
mented ,ouh piep to speedy termination Of the
,0ar ohsher IL shall be confined to the strength already
fired a Iu the latter CASE with the object Of reduc
ing the volunteer force to 100000 propose, with the
of Congress to consolidate such of the regiments
may from tins to time fall below the regulation stand
ard The adoption Of this will decrease the num-
Of the army"
In the month of April, 1862, after the successes
which in the spring campaign of that year had al
most every where attended our arms in the execu-
tion of Gen. McClell,n's wellmatured plans, the
Administration decided to put stop to all further
recruiting for the army, in the belief that the re-
bellion was virtually at an end This decision was
announced in the following General Order, number
thirty three, dated "Adjutant Generals Office,
April 3, 1892"
"The recruiting service for volunteers will be discon-
tnued eDery State from this date The officers detached
volunteer recruiting service will join their regiments
without delay taking with them the parties aud recruits at
their respective stations The superntendents OF voun-
teer recruiting service loU dsband their parties and close
their Offices after having taken the steps to carry
out these orders The public property belonging to The
ponfecr recruiting service mill be sold 10 the best adpan.
tage possible aud proceeds credited the fund for col
lecting, drilling, and organizing volunteers.
"By order of the Secretary Of War:
/" L. THOMAS, Adjutant General"
In the month Of May following, less than two
months from the date Of the foregoing order,
We find Mr.. Stanton, after recovering from the in
Auence Of Jackson's foriy on Gen. Banks, in the
Valley of the Shenandoah, writing to Governor
Andrew, of Massachusetts,, as follows:
ts WASHINGTON, MAY looI.
Governor AEDRkw, Boston; The President directs that
the militia be reessed and the enstments made for three
year: or during The 'oar This think oW practically,
Gen. Banks states that he has saved nearly his whole
mand with small loss Concentrations of force have
been made Which i is hoped will capture the enemy
EDWIN NJ STANTON, Secretary of War.
On the 9th Of May, 1862, it was the calcula-
ton Of the War Department, we see, that the war
would be ended on the 9th of May, 1868
On the 1st Of July, 1862, after the (" meddling'
Of the authorities in Washington had brought the
campaign in Virginia to disastrous issue, new
call for 100000 more volunteers to for three
years, was made by the President and answered by
the people This call, it will be remembered, was
made by the President in response to proffer of
that number of volunteers from the Governors of
the Loyal States, which profer Mr. Lincoln ac-
cepted in the following terms
- ,fsss I WAsHIHGToN, July J., 1862.
GENTLEMEN; Truly concurring 10 the wisdom of the
views expressed to me in patriotic by you IN
your communication Of the 2Sth day Of June have decd-
ed to call into service additional force of three hundred
thousand suggest and recommend that the troops
should be chiefly Of infantry trust theymay be enrolled
without delay bring this and
eiDa sSsr to speedy and satisfactory oonciasion
SO il will be seen that an additional force Of
three hundred thousand men wa, to bring "this