Daily State sentinel. [volume] (Indianapolis, Ind.) 1861-1865, 1864-09-10

familiar to all Indiana Whatever credit tbel
wss alta. rhing to the Western Virginia campaig
belonged chiefly to Gen. 7. A. Morris, of our on
State. The ~Sole plan Of operations. beginuin
with the moveGaect on Phillippa and ending
, two brilliant strokes, the one by himself at Ca
. rcks Ford. the other BY kosecrans at kie
Mountain. was his own in every particular Dui
ing the entire campaign Gen. Morris displsye
the Qualities of a true soldie. and great Ger
eral. How his services were a. oSeca'ed We
know-they have been lost TO d country eve
since Another development of tLe eAnPais =
was that strange faulty of generals mp "n'e
made Rich mond the objective point Of he va
transferring il entirely from the real reSe. hou
States. and from remote districts where the RET e
would have been deprived of interior lines ol
which to move their armies. and compelled. in
word to every disadvantage We have lab0reC
under by this strange blunder.
Convinced at last of the magnitude of th,
work before him. anxious TO DO something anc
that something for the best. becoming restivs
under the exacerbsting structures of the press
anc sensible of the continued popular pressure
Mr. Lincoln next called for hslf million OF men
and the energetic efforts a once put
forth 10 equip and place in the field at the earl
est possible moment the new levy of troops
Grat6ed by this display of energy on the part o
the Executive, the people readily responded tc
ences, and the requisiton for men soon 6lled
and the first OF November saw them well In the
| field. armed. equipped soldiers never be
tore and ready for offensive operations: but this
spasm of sensible effort had been too much for
the Presidential constitution, and relapse the
former condition of apathetc indifference and
stolid insensbility soon followed.
i Overcome by the unusual physical luxuries
and indugencies incident TO bis new and strange
position, the President seemed utterly incapable
of any greater effort than required in the
peddng out his immense Official patronage OF
the preparation of pointless jest. Unfortu-
nately,for the country. il the utter un6tness OF
the Executive caused a stand-sti in our affairs
the rebellion. warned by the large army already
organized and ready 10 invade its territory at any
moment. of the spirit and temper of the people
of the North, made rapid onward strides aud the
precious time so wantonly squandered BY US was
improved by them.
In the summer of 1861, General A. NJ Mitch
ell. OF Christian and heroic memory, had sub
mitted to the President plan for the organiza
ton of an army to be called the Army OF the
Cumberland, for the purpose Of seizing and for
tifyipg the gaps in the Cumberland Mountains,
/ through which alone access could be had into
Kentucky from Virginia; also to occupy and
fortify Bowling Green, Kentucky, and, il prscti-
cable, make the same disposition of Nashville
| A glance at the map, brief recurrence to the
movements of the rebel army in the Southwest.
and the peculiar condition of Kentucky at that
| time, will render almost incredible the statement
that attention paid to the urgent solicta
tion OF Gen. Mitchell that the plan be carried out
Do you need be told TO night the advantages
that would have followed this movementi Suf
fee it 10 say, that had this wise and comprehen
sive plan been adopted by the Government. a
rebel squadron would never have bi, ouacked on
the soil of Kentucky; that political aud costly
monstrosity styled Kentucky neutrality would
never have been heard of; the country would
have been spared the painful exhibition OF Buell.
treason; the slaughter at Perry vile and the vast
amount of blood and treasure expended to Sc
cure that very marketabl and doubtful article
known as Kentucky loyalty. The Southwestern
Mountain Zone OF the Confederscy would have
been occupied and made unavailable to them
and all military history and science concur in
making such occupation the master stroke of any
military policy. After Richmond was determin-
ed upon as the objective point of the Eastern
campaign, had the same policy been adopted with
reference TO the Shenandoah Valley, fortfying
| il at the head, and every mountain gap opening
into it to its base. the rebellion to night would be
thing of two years ago, and its bones in the
hands OF the anstomists of history General
Mitchell was rebuffed at the Executive Mansion
relieved Of his command and Gen. Sherman. the
ablest General now i'm the field was ordered to
his department, the brave patriot accepted a
minor or subordinate place. and shortly after had
the satisfaction of knowing that Gen. Sherman
| approved his plan and had informed the Depart
ment at Washington that it would require one
hundred thousand men to conduct operations sat
isfactorily in his department For this absurd
conduct he was declared insane. st once relieved
OF his command, and the more plant General
Anderson ordered to take command of the Army
of the Ohio Nor will this conduct of the De
partment of War seem strange or inconsistent
when attention is paid to every circumstance
| How q General could expect an army of one
hundred thousand men to be entrusted to his
command at so great distance from Washing
ton City as Louisville. Kentucky, where il would
be completely from under the control Of Cabinet
! aud Executive influence, aud beyond the reach
| of meddlesome politicians, could only be &C
counted for on the theory OF insanity
| The fsr-seeing and able General, W T. Sher-
man. was soon called, however, to another field,
and be stands to day one of the very few cases
where a General of ability and integrity has
been retained after variance with the Erecu
tive. To what good fortupe Gen Sherman owes
this result so full of good to the country, sm
| not advised
| Gen. Anderson retained command of the de
| partment but short time, when. i'll health com
| pelling him TO ask TO be relieved, Gen Don Car
! las Buell. was ordered to the command When
/ Gen. Buell. reached his department he found an
army ready organized. fully equipped and amply
sufficient at that time to have driven Buckner
from its i'm mediate front and take position at
Nashville, had the General been 20 disposed but
quarters at the Gait House in Louisville were
preferable TO quarters in the field, and as the
weather was bad and the roads muddy General
! Buell. sc, himself 10 the work of urdong every
thing bis predecessors had done be tore to pieces
| regiments. brigades aud divisions, and set the
whole army, officers and privates, TO swearing
worse than "our army in Flanders" !" Out of il
all grew q splendid army, lacking only one
thing to make it rresistible-a commanding Off
Ger Poor General Mitchell, still remaining with
| his old army, subjected to daily insults by
| Gen. Buell., his junior in rank. brains and good
breeding. but be bore il all for the good Of the
country
While matters were running in this fashion
| ia Kentucky, events Of a still more eYasperatinr
character were transpring in Missouri On the
9th day of July. 1861 General John c. Fremont
was ordered to take command of the Department
Of the West: be arrived at ST Louis. the head
quarters of his department. finding 900 men all
t5d. with 20, dollar n money or gun. at
hand With this force at his command he was
expected TO clear the State Of Missouri of rebels
Aid keep open the Mississippi river On the 9th
f! lay Of Septem 1861. with his limited
sources, with the State government at war with
| hrs purposes foes at work against him IN every
quarter. all assistance or countenAnce denied him
at Washington, he had organized snd armed an
.,nv .na s,.rtad from =, Iouis with thir,e.,