The daily dispatch. [volume] (Richmond [Va.]) 1850-1884, 1877-05-09
,T.s,.;iou tiuco;u. and Sfnnt0n.

Mcclellan, T.incoin. and Stanton.
THE INNER HISTORY OF THE PENINSULA CAM
rAIGN-THE COUNCIL OF wAH-How cl.EI.-
LAN'S CAMPAIGN WAS MADE A DISASTER
TGcneral William Il. Irankiin' III The fhiI'"eip''a
Times.
On the Sth OF March | was ordered to re-
pair to headquarters. Assembled there were
the Gcneral-in-Chici the chief engineer OF
the Army of the Potomac. and all OF the dl-
vision commanders except General HOOKER,
who was represented by General Nagee.
General Ncllcllan submitted to us his plan
for the movement OF the army, ana tnen
left us to ourselves. Upon the question
OF approval OF his plan the vote was, l
think, nine for approval to three against II.
although it has been reported as elsht
TO four. The numbers are not material, as
the main object of the meeting was TO OBJ
tain condemnation OF the plan by the
subordinate generals. Immediately after
this meeting we were informed that the
President wished TO see Us. We went TO
the White House, and found there the Pre-
sident and Secretary OF War. They knew
the result of our meeting. Each one OF us
was asked in turn by the Secretary OF War
our opinion OF the time required to trans
fer the army to its new base. The general
opinion was that Il month would be re-
Uuircd, and each was aSkedby the Secretary
whether he was willing to have this
suffering country wait month longer
before blow was inflicted upon the
enemy. We were then asked, in turn,
whether We thought the army ought to be
ORGANIZED into army corps or not. We
unanimously answered that we thought 1t
ought to be so organized. The President
then informed US that lie deferred Ills opin-
ion as to the proper method OF moving the
army to ours. He asked Us to use all our
energies 10 help the country out OF its great
dangers, and ended by saying to lis, " II
Won are faithful to me- |, on my part, will
he faithful to YOU" He then said he should
form the Army Of the Potomac into four
army corps, and, knowing but little OF the
capacities OF the generals suitable for the
command OF these corps. should assign the
commands according to rank. The meeting
was then dismissed.
General Johnston having evacuated his
position al Centrcyillc on the Sth OF March,
the army was immediately moved to Fair.
fax Courthouse. Here the assignment to
CORPS was made, and my divlSon was as
signed to General McDowclfs corps. Short
" aiterward-asout the middle OF Marcli-
We returned to position in front OF Alex.
t,rmincd that the bulk OF the army should
he landed at Fortress Monroe, and move UP
tbe Peninsula between the York and james
rivers. and that General McDowell's corps
should land on the north side OF the York
river. This arrangement required that
General sIcDowells corps should move last.
and General Mcclellan, with his hcadquar-
ters, left Alexandria on April 1st, he sup
po>ing that nothing could occur to change
that arrangement.
On the Sd of April / was ordered to EN-.
bark NV division. About II O'Clock in the
evening | received orders to move part OF
the division on the next day, and to call at
HEADQUARTERS for further instructions.
Going at once to the War Department., !
found General Mcdowell and General
Wadsworth there. General Mcdowell in
formed me that the Secretary OF War had
told him about An hour before that General
Mcclellan intended to work by strategy and
not By lighting, and that he should not have
another man from his department; that all
the enemies OF the Administration centred
around him, and the Secretary accused him
O, having political aspirations. Also, that
he had not left the number OF troops to
defend Washington that the President
reouired-in other words, that be had
disohcved the Presidents orders. Gen
eral Mcdowell demonstrated against the
step which was about to he taken,
arguing that if General Mcclellan had
political aspirations they would be for"
warded by the very course which the Ad-
ministration was taking in this case. lie
used all Of the arguments which he could
bring to bear to convince the Secretary that
he was making Il mistake in ordering the
detachment of his corps. The result was
General McDowclfs corps was detached
from the Army OF the Potomac, and was
marched to Catlett'S station, on the Orange
and Alexandria railroad, where it could &c
no possible good. General McClellan's plan
OF turning Yorktown, by the movement OIL
McDowell's corps on the north bank OF the
York river, was utterly destroyed. Ihe
Army OF the Potomac was forced to stay
whole month on the Peninsula uselessly,
and the capture OF Richmond, which in all
human probability would have been made
in the month OF May had General McClel.
lan's plan been carried out, was deferred
for three years.
Thus was consumtnated the first great
crime Of the war. A genera. had been sent
from Washington in command OF four army
corps on the naost important command pos
eight hours his largest corps, commanded
by his second in command, containing more
than one fourth of his army, detailed Tor
duty which was rital to the success OF his
campaign, was detached from bis command
without consultation with him and without
his knowledge. ] do not kssw whether
the perpetrators Of this crime were pun
ished for it in this life, but the Ghastly ac-
.o,,t os h)ondshol in Vir1inia for fbp ne yt
three years shows that the innocenS country
was punished in way that will be remein-
bered by widows and orphans for q gene
ration.
Mr. Randolph Rogers has just completed
the model OF the colossal figure OF the genius
OF Connections, which he is making for the
Aew Capitol mt Hartford. 1t is a winged
woman just aIighting on the dome, holding
in her right hand wreath OF immortelles
md iu her left wreath of laurei, The