The New York herald. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1840-1920, 1865-01-18

Richmond Dispatch said "they viii find the fort
in much better condition for resistance than
when Butler made his attempt upon it." And
SO they did, and hence the severe losses in
killed and wounded suffered by the assaulting
columns of General Terry. Thus we see
that while little boldness on the part
Of General Butler would have been
the exercise OF wise humanity, his
unfortunate timidity rendered the capture Of
the fort impossible without considerable
sacrifice Of our brave men. OF all the mega
tive qualities Of q military leader. when carried
to excess, the quality of excessive caution Is
the worst, because it achieves nothing and ends
in the very disasters which 1t seeks to avoid.
The Committee on the Conduct Of the War
need not trouble themselves much more about
General Butler. Fort Fisher settles his case
General Terry, volunteer, who has gallantly
fought his way to his present position, is not
West Pointer. It is thus apparent that West
Point jealousy Of our civilian generals df we
may SO call those not educated at West Point)
had nothing to do with.the removal Of General
Butler. His removal may be justified upon tho
single ground Of disobedience Of orders; or
upon the plea Of established incompetency as
the leader of an army against the enemy. His
vocation is that Of lawyer, and, in connection
with this war, i is the vocation Of a military
governor, invested with the power of declaring,
defining and executing upon intractable rebels
the primitive restraints of military law. In this
capacity he is as bold and remorseless as SUI
warrow, while as soldier Fort Fisher has
shown him to be as docile as Quaker.
In General Buffers removal, General Grant
is relieved Of the chief of those political gene
rails and the scheming cliques Of politicians
behind them, who have spoiled the best laid
plans of our best officers from the begin
ming of the war. Having no more favors to
ask of his party cliques Of mischief makers,
President Lincoln can afford now to allow the
war to be conducted on military principles and
by military men. Down to the appointment of
General Grant as the directing head of the
army, the arrangements by the Washington
Directory Of the officers and operations of our
military campaigns were parcelled out to con-
ciliate this clique and that clique Of politicians
as much as for anything else. The mere mention
of the suggestive names of Mcdowell, McClel-
Ian, Pope, Burnside, Hooker and Meade, in
connection with the brave old Army of the
Potomac, will furnish to the reader abundant
evidence upon this point
IF Grant and other generals In the West,
meantime, were more successful, it was because
they were less embarrassed by the political
cliques Of ignorant fanatics controlling the
Washington Directory. But even General
Grant, since he came to the East, though APP
pointed by the special Intervention Of Congress
to the general control Of our armies, has been
hampered and seriously embarrassed by some
of these political or politician generals fastened
upon him for mere partisan purposes. Take
the case ofGeneral Butler, for example. There
was nothing in his military career to designate
him as the leader Of the army movement up the
James in cooperation with Grants movement
from the Rapidan in May last Butler, we
must conclude, was fastened upon the army by
the Washington radical abolition politicians.
We dare say that, in bis place, any one Of q
dozen Of tho regular army officers in Virginia
az tAot suuo Woulu uoVc CdIIicu tuc Army VI
the James into Petersburg before he would
have been required to stand upon the defen-
sive.
In any event, the removal Of General Butler
from the army is no loss to the service His
place can be readily supplied as soldier,
though it is possible there is rebel city or
two in which, as military dictator, hereafter,
his peculiar qualifications may be useful in
paving the way to loyalty, law and order. On
the other hand, however, from the gracious sub
mission Of Savannah to General Sherman, in
GLIDING some of the ringleaders of secession,
we may conclude that no more such stringent
examples of discipline as those of New Orleans
will be needed to bring the people even of
Richmond or Charleston to terms, with the res
toration therein of tho "old flag" of the Union.
And SO, while admitting that General Butler
has "done the State some service" we are gra-
tilted that his Improbable military career has
been brought to close. When subordinate
general assumes authority not set down in his
instructions he must succeed or bear the conse-
quences.
The Canadian Parliament.
QUEBEc Jan. IL, 1865
Tho Canadian Parliament meets Thursday A CabI
net meeting will be held to-day TO nish the programme
f0r The coming session.
noticeable feature Of the passport system il that
they demanded on RAILWAY hi, ,r az.