, 1878-06-08
A Word About Military Affairs.

A Word About Military Affairs.
In our youth among the first books placed
in our hands were the hveso Napoleon and
Alexander the Great The wonderful and
successful campaigns Of these famous gener-
ais made lasting impression upon our youth
full mind and as we advanced in years and
could more readily understand the scope OF
their enterprises and the far-Ieachin2 results
Of their conquests, we became strongly lH-
pressed with the idea that beyond valor and
bravery there was something else, superior
even to these highly necessary qualities for
. successful soldier. Tracing out the ruling
passion that governed them III their man@u-
vers We accidentally stumbled upon the fact
tha. they were each possessed, IN addition
to their military knowledge of superior
quality OF brains The problem was solved,
the cloud Of mystery no longer darkened our
mind, and We We're at length brought tace
to face with the proposition that to be SOL
der man must have brains. In our youth
full fancy We had thought that gold-lace and
cilt buttons were the only requisites neces-
sary to make military chieftan-the more
lace, the brighter the buttons, the greater
the general 1t thus appears that it actually
takes brains to successfully kill men by the
wholesale There are some military men,
however, who still continue to lntrench
themselves behind lace and gilt buttons, and
what little brains they have are used III pro
noting Their personal welfare, dabblIng III
stocks, sprculating IN real-estate, and IN
Uatrl,ipr, the turn 0f the market. When an
emergency arises for the movement of troops
against a subtle and wary foe, they are or
tlered from such points as are nearest to
headquarters. and easily reached by the tel
egraph AID tbs, too, without consulting the
map or ascertaiGing the precise locality Of
the threatened Disturbance The occasion
for Their employment has arrived and troops
must BE- sent into the field, and what mat
ters il where they are moved from so they
are sent? That Is the vital point. 4 show
must be made .:ii iii all matters pertaining
to the military there Is nothing like Show.
There IS az the present time a disturbance IN
Idaho, somewhere between four and five
hundred miles from Walla Walll, and al
most within hailing distance OF the line Of
the Unicn Pacific rsiiroah. In the iInnedi
ate vicinity of that great line OF travel there
are number Of military posts. the troops
composing the garriSOrS of which cOnld be
TRANSPORTED to the Scene Of trouble within
Few hours, and at hut triiing expense.
Instead, however, of taking this course,
(Which to an ordinary person. not endowed
hy his creator with 4 genius for military op-
cratinrs Mould ba considered the most rea-
sonalle aud likely to prove the mos. effect
ivel troops are ordered from here, leaving
this whole section almost unprotected, save
perhaps. 4 hAndfnl of sollierS scattered here
and there. but totally inadequate, should our
red EeathJn conclude to take the war path
Fully twenty days viii lie consumed in max
ing the trip, and by the expiration of that
period, Buffalo Horn will have had sufficient
time to have conSumated all his plans for
murder and plUnder, and have taken him.
self to another and far more distant portion
of the country We understand, and il af-
fords the STATESMAN pleasure To chronicle
the fact, that the companies were taken
away from here against the earnest and re-
peated protests of General Howard The or
der came from his superior officer, General
Mcdowell whose only title to military dis
tincton rests upon the famous retreat from
the battle of Bull Run-We beg the gener-
ais pardon We should have said Manassas:
for on this point he is very particular At
any rate, thai hattie, followed up by his re-
cent order for the movement Of troops from
this post clearly proves what his enemies in
sist he is not, and that is, he is general,
cond only to corporal Fritz, the hero of
Al H.,
css. Fritz never lost i man III all his cam
Paigns, simply because he so handled his
force that the enemy was never able TO find
him. This, while 1t reduces the chances for
casualties, affords hardly any protection to
those who are sadly IN want of the strong
arm Of power to protect them against the
murler"us attacks of h"wling savages The
army OF the United States is composed Of as
brave men rs ever went to battle, and is Off
cered, in the main, by intelligent and COM
petent gentlemen; men who thoroughly IN
derstand and take pride in their profession
The trouble Is they are tied down and ham
pered by the presence III hig gh stations of old
t0gieS, whose days of usefulness have pass
ed away. Take any officer stationed at
Waila Walla. and among their number not
single man would have proposed the NOV
ing OF troops from this place against a score
or two OF SavagcS whose seat of depreda-
tons Is five hundred miles from here. and at
place almost within gun-shot of the rail-
road. And Umatilla is made the base of
supplies To man OF ordinary intellect,
kcltOn appears to be the proper place from
which TO draw supplies in an emergency of
this kind-the point also at which troops
ought IL have been massed We have per
haps used strong language, and some of our
friends may think too strong. but We are
friend OF the army, and We do not desire to
see 1t brought into ridicule through the i'm
becllIty OF one man, who ought to have been
retired years ago ; and would have been had
the law permitted president Grant to have
placed HIM there. Not knowing what to do
with him. he was sent To this coast, where.
1t was thought, but little opportunity offered
Tor mischief, such rs arises from lack of pow
er to see the night thing at the proper mo-
ment- and apply the proper remedy at the
night time. We wan ali the troops that
can be gathered together here, at this post,
Tor our own protection, and We trust the al,-
thortles ~ Washington VIII nnier the i'm
mediate return u those now ii the field
CREDIT WHERE CREDIT Is DUE-Good
thlngsln the STATESMAN are like angels visits.
lew and far between, When We 10 get off
sometLnshowever that is reallymeritorious.
.l,., l., II -