The evening telegraph. [volume] (Philadelphia [Pa.]) 1864-1918, 1866-01-29
A Report of Some Interest About the Rio
GIande.


From the Times.
We observe with satisfaction that General"
R. Clay Crawford, the renowned commander Of
the american DivisioDn of the Liberal army of
Mexico, is cooling his martial ardor in the case
mates of Fort Jackson, below New Orleans.
1t appears that after the late disgraCeful raid
upon Bagdad, that officer had the audacity to go
to New Orleans-the headquarters itself of our
Military Divi5ion of the Gulf, and the residence
of Generals Sheridan and Canby-'tor reinforce.
ments and supplies" AS to the achievements,
the amount of recruits he procured is very un.
certain; but from the fact that he was making
tracks for New York In the Continental when
oyerhaued and transferred to q Government
steamtug, it may be inferred that ne considered
New York safer field for recruiting than New
Orleans As to supplies, il is known that he has
procured enough for his personal sustenance,
good Government rations, dealt out under guard.
Verify here is a vile falling off from the Gene
raj Crawford of week since. Then the news
was that this warrior aspired to the leadership
OF the Northern Division in the army of Juarez
or, as the telegraph phrased It, he was
"wrangling several days with General E5cobedo
regarding the command of the Liberal forces"
Now the headquarters of that gang of flibus.
ters whom he has the audacity to call " the
American Division," are violently transferred to
Fort Jackson, in which strong position, letus
hope, goodly percentage of the aforesaid Ameri-
can Division will soon rally round their leader.
We have never imagined Crawtord's "division"
TO be much more than q paper force, about
equivalent, say, to a veteran reserve regiment of
the old pattern, or Falstaffan company,
maze up chiefly for the benefit OF its commander.
But, large or small, we hope all these indepen-
dent EARNED advocates OF the Monroe Doctrine
Will take warning from the mlshap Of this
General.
OF course there is but one opinion (but one
opinion, at least, which ventures to find utter
ance), about these dlsgracetul proceedings on
the Rio Grande, which might have put so un-
pleasant looK upon our official professions Of
neutrality in the actual hostlities of the armies
in the field OF Mexico. To say that tllbusters
have crossed the Rio Grande and seized Bagdad
OF that they have joined forces besiegng Mata-
moras, is a very mild way OF putting a grave
offense. The damage these men do to the cause
or forces OF MaXmillan, or TO the shopkeepers
they plunder, is a small item. They aim at doing
n serious injury to the United States. They en-
deavor to jcopardize the relations of our country
with foreign nations. They do not hesitate to try
to comphcate our diplomatic relations and our
governmental policy OF course, as an ac-
tual fact, the character and scope OF these
unauthorized and plundering excursions are too
we'll known to give serious trouble, but the
intent of the perpetrators is no less CenSura0le.
1t may be added that very extraordinary state
OF discipline is disclosed as existing among a
part OF the troops on the Rio Grande, to make
these violations OF neutrality even possible. But
the performances of Crawford and his men,
though chiefly devised and encouraged on the
Rio Grande, have doubtless received some stimu-
lus from mlsapprehension OF the feeling at the
North. Some of those feverlsh speculauons in
the Mexican loan may have created wrong idea
of the disposition OF our people. Nor do we
believe that those political solrees on Satur-
day nights, where, under the general text OF
Monroe Doctrine, sentiments of premature
and unauthorized armed action on the Mexican
question are put forth, are calculated to have
good effect upon men of the Crawford stamp.
Many Of our people dislike routine. They fret
under the necessary delays attendant on investi
CATION. Accustomed, by four years of extra
ordinary activity in hostilties, to a teverish
impatience, they want everything settled al
telegraphic speed. And some orators, who
really know better, encourage this impatience
by representing that the whole question can be
settled any fine morning between breakfast and
lunch, and that Macmillan should be picked
up instanter on a swords point and flung out Of
Mexico.