The state rights democrat. [volume] (Albany, Linn County, Oregon) 1865-1900, 1866-05-12
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STANTON.

If as alleged, and generally credited,
the National lptelligencer enjoys the con
ddeuce Of President johnson, the follow
ing article in that paper has great sig
nihcance as foreshadowing the doom Of
Stanton The article is editorial
II is painful 10 look at the list of debts
of States that were incurred during the
War-painful because they arose from the
NEUTRALITY-SUSPICIOUS. of military affairs by
ths War Department and its instruments
in Congress. Ignorance, demagogueism
and fanalicism, in the form of deerying
that precise system Of military strategy
which finally enabled Gen. Grant with
more than q million Of men Of all arms to
crush ont the rebellion, mad such sway in
the second year Of the war that serious ap-
prehonsions began TO be entertained by
the ultras that the rebellion was near It's
close.
Under these circumstances, instead of
making Richmond the objective poiDt Of
military operations, as did General Grant
The moment he WIS invested with COM
nand, troops were withheld from that
point, and though General Mcdowell, At
fredericksburg. implored the military au-
thority here to althow him to join bis army
with our troops that had been 50 sigaally
victorious at Hanover Court House, and
fall upon the left of Johnston's army and
thus secure Richmond Ia accordance with
what was At one time the strategy of the
War Department itself, he was ordered
ioF to thp Valley of Virginia against
Stonewall Jackson, by rapid march. to
carry out precisely the same destructive
strategy upon the army of General Me
Clellan. all these views were patsnt to
military men, but what did they avail
against that closet intrigue which sent a
Cabinet officer and his assailant, {not mil
itary functionaries, in the dead of :
stormy night, to prevent, against all Per-
adventure, General Mcdowell continu-
ing that advance of his army, which had
already begun its movement to assail
Richmond on the onemy's left.
just previous to these circumstances,
so dsmoralizing and depressing to soldiers,
members Of Congress revealed our mill
tary policy tc the enemy by enscting >
law that the army should be limited TO
SOC, 900 men, Qfcourse, not much above
half or two-thirds of thia force could be
put into the field, and therefore the enc
my, acting upon the defensive, found little
difficulty at that time for all purposes Of
defense. Not contenting themselves long
in this attitude of affairs. they took the
aggressive as soon as pur armies were re-
duced and separated, ard as long as ex-
perienced military counsel sas despised
and derided, aud inferior soldiers raised,
to chief command iu the Army of the
Potomac
Said Senator Wilson, in effect, when
the volunteering was swelling to proper
tions that, like the tides Of the ocean.
threatened the immediate submerging OF
rebellion g Our army is too large it
must be Kept down to SOC, ,oo0 If more
men are needed, they can be had upon
call 10 any number" What was the re-
suit Not eight weeks afterwards, when
the troops were disheartened and demon
allied by the second disaster at Manassas,
calls were made for volunteers, but 50 de-
pressed were the hearts of tie people that
States, counties, cities and towns were OBJ
liged to resort to costly system of boun-
ties and drafts, which has since prevailed,
and which has plunged States in that sea
Of debt, the interest upon which alone, in
conjunction with our taxes, State, county,
town and national, is truly exacting, but
not SO much 80, we are persuaded, as that
the people in the end can master all their
burdens
We refer to this form Of public debt as
matter Of present interest, but mainly
for the purpose of adverting to the causes
in bad military administration and Con-
gressional Legislation which precipitated
them upon the country They caused a
protraetion of the war for two years st
least, taking the very life-blood Of the
republic, and costing treasures upon treas
ures of gold.
We refer to it to mention the other
fearful fact that the same counsels now
prevail and are now plunging the country
into yet deeper liabilities by q policy
which is at war with industry every
where and in all its aspects. By that
productive industry alone are our public
obligations to be discharged and the Re-
public to move on in great conquests of
peace"