The Hillsdale standard. [volume] (Hillsdale, Mich.) 1851-1909, 1865-02-14
General Butler at Lowell
is His Interesting Statement fn
Regard 10 the Wilmington Fail

.,ril ..-a n, ure. sUt
! The telegraph gave brief sketch of
the speech of General Butler on the oc-
casion of his return to Lowell, where he
was cordially welcomed by his old |
neighbors and friends. The full speech
would fill nearly dozen columns, and
is devoted mainly to military operations
in his own Department. We omit all
that portion preceding the lombard
ment of Fort Fisher. After describing
the failure of the powder boat explo-
sion, Gen, Butler said: 10
Well, q hombardment was opened
upon Fort Fisher, aud it seemed to be
conducted with a considerable skill, the
fire being directed with good deal of
accuracy. This for one day. Arriving
at night, / sent my staff officer to Ad-
miral Porter to say that would con-
suit with him about the attack to be
made in the morning of the next day.
The Admiral sent the word that he was
tired, and could not see me that night,
but that he would see me or my officers
as early the next morning as we were
ready. Intending to attack the fort,
and seeing, as we thought, a days work
before us, we did, as we generally do
in Lowell, set about it at daylight
Gems. Weitzel and Comstook went on
board the Malvern, at six o'clock, but
the Admiral was not up. They arran-
ged, however, that we should attack at
8 O'clock, but it was IL o'clock before
the navy reported that they had cover
ed the shore so that we could make a
landing. / landed 2,200 men. 1t was
beautiful smooth sea when we landed,
! but a storm was coming on, and within
eight hours after we began landing, the
surf rolled so high upon that beach,
that no man could get on or off Not
a gun had been landed save boat how
itzers. j sent the ablest engineer Off
Ger that / knew, Gen. Weitzel, accom-
panied by Lieut. Gel. Comstock, Engn-
Ger of the Staff Of Gen. Grant, who had
been detailed by the Lieutenant Gene
raj himself to go with me upon this ex-
pedition, and who did 90. sent those
. two officers on shore and they both re-
ported to me that the face of the fort
was uninjured, and that in their judg-
. ment it was useless to assault. Judge,
then, whether was derelict in my du-
ty to my superiors and to the country,
, and whether 1 ought to be bounded
down, and price almost set upon my
head, like a wolf, because did not or
| der an assault which two of the best en-.
gineer officers in the United States adj
r vised me not to make, and in reference
: to which one of them said to me, q use
his very expression,) "If you order it.
| General, it will be murder" Suppose
I. ! had made that assault, after these
y well-instruoted officers had advised me
against it, and it had failed, ought r Of
| to be tried for murder? And / should
y have been guilty of that crime in the
2 sight of my God and in the eyes of ev
! cry honest man. Every one would have
G had right to join in the cry in tha
s case: "Ah, he was volunteer General
: he wonld not take the good advice Of
G fered him by well-instructed army Off
i GERS. Rash fool, see the result % You
v sir, who had lost brother-you, mad
g am, who had lost son in such an as
l. sault, could l have looked you in tn
:. face if had ordered it? Again, it ha
# been said that | was not to go with th
h expedition that it was to be command
d ed by General Weitzel. Upon tina
v question might shelter myself unde
g the fact that the department under m,
e command was the Department of Vir
|. ginia and North Carolina, and that tn
.e operations were within my department
% and so had right to go. But j scor
s. all subterfuge or indirection. l accom-
te panied the expedition with the flu
knowledge and consent of Geners
l. Grant, verbally given. Nay more,
" you will examine his orders for the e1
n pedition to me, you will sec that he say
" s'The execution ofthe details of this ol
A. der is intrusted to you and the subol
Of dinate officers of your command, not t
re General Weitzel, alone" Still further
D. as ] have said, Lieutenant Colonel Com
:, stock, Engineer of General Grant
n staff, was by himself in person detaile
20 to go with me upon that expedition
Dr. and left General Grants headquartei
x to 60 with me down the river on tn
h same boat when / started on the expt
r. dit;on. Again, lay at Fortress Nor
a roc from the 9th of December till tn
i4th, receiving frequent kilograms froI
4. General Grant, which have been pull
,r lished, while my answers have bee
is suppressed. IF you will read these te
Is egrams, you will SET that each and Q,
10 cry one ofthem says: When will yo
,e get Off" When will your exped
d ton sail?" and though / have lad fr'
D. quent conversations with General Grar
o upon this, for me, unhappy expedition
j. yet never by letter, dispatch or by wor
s, has General Grant intimated to me tn;
Ill he did not expect me to accompany til
or expedition, or chide me fol going wit
n it. And last of all on the 9th day {
ID December last, while / lay in Beaufol
harbor, as commander of the exped
Is ton, | sent report ofprogress to Ger
ct eral Grant, which he forwarded I
is Washington, without a word of disser
C. that as not the authorized commai
: der of the expedition. The first int
nation from any quarter that ever ha
IS, that was not properly there was whe
d. / read in the New York Herald, an il
ne dorsement upon my official repor
n which Endorsement is in the haRdwr
Id ting of staff officer Of General Gran
lst and was not filed In tho War Office q
We several days after General Grants lie
Id ters to the President, asking for my r
cr lief upon other grounds than any actio
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