The New York herald. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1840-1920, 1866-04-18


The War I'm South America.
Our letters from Rio Janeiro and Buenos
Ayres, published yesterday, giving an accu-
rate detail Of the present condition of the Plate
war, indicate the possibility that we may once
more have q notable application of the old
rule, that the battle is not always to the
strongest When 1t was known that the repub-
lies Of the Argentine Confederation, the ORR
entail republic and Brazil were all united on
one side against the single State Of Paraguay
on the other, 1t seemed as if the result must be
only question of time, and that the combined
strength of the many must inevitably soon
crush out the comparatively little resistance
that Paraguay could make. But that was Q
too hasty view; and there is some promise in
the present state of affairs that the determine
ton, courage and energy which Paraguay
brings to the contest may yet be more than q
match for the numbers and the great array
of power on paper made By her enemies.
The allied interest suffers from causes Incl
dent to the unwieldiness of the alliance, want
of direction, purpose and spirit The position
of the allies has its analogies with the position
in which we ourselves stood during the first
years Of the war against the rebellion. As we
did, they suffer from the laundering ineficiency
of officials in every position. They suffer from
corruption in contracts to such an extent that
it is limited the real question now is not as to
the movement or power of forces, but whether
the Paraguayan army or the Brazilian treasury
can hold out the longest; and while the ex-
penditure is on the largest scale, the army
suffers for the want Of quartermasters' stores,
commissary stores and everything else.
Another remarkable similarity with our own
situation is found in the fact that distin-
guished man of the allies promises to end the
war Gin thirty days" In our own case
similar promise was made for sixty days.
Though the time is different the point is the
same. In each case it shows clearly that the
men charged with the direction of affairs do
not appreciate the struggle they have under
taken. That is grave fact for nations which
wage war.
While the allied generals promise much and
do nothing, the Paragraphs are all earnest
ness and activity. They have improved the
time given by the slow motions of their adver-
saries in the fertilization Of a position on the
Paraguay river. This position must be taken
before the allies can reach the Paraguayap
capital; before they can infiict any damaging
blow on the defiant republic. All the ap-
proaches by water are INSTRUCTED; the river is
said to be filed with torpedoes, and the OBJ
structed points are covered with heavy guns.
The approach by land is equally difficult, and the
twenty-one miles of hostile territory that the
allies must traverse to reach Humaita Is re-
ported as filed with series of Notifications,
by which the Paraguayan army will retire,
step by step, fighting all the way.
If the Paraguayans show in the defence of
those forts the same valor. shown in every fight
of this war, 1t will be many day yet before
the allies get into the stronghold on the Para
quay river. It must be remembered that the
we have made between the allies
and the United States holds good only to GER
tain extent. Though we Numbered and did all
very stupidity at first, we did better afterwards,
and came out victors finally. We must not as
sumo that the allies will do this also. They
must improve their management sooner than
we did or it will be useless. If something is
not accomplished in very short time the I'M
natural alliance will tumble to pieces. The
republics that now fight side by side with
Brazil will go over. And as there is but little
of such change in the conduct of
the war; all the chances now are that Paraguay
will come out the conqueror in this struggle.