New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1882-10-06
NOTES FROM ABROAD.
SIR GARNET woLsELEY AND HIS VICTORY


[FRox THE REGULAR CORRESPONDENT OF THE rRrBuyE.l
DIEPPE, September ID.
This Is not precisely Convenient spot ior dis
coursing upon Egyptian strategy OF Sir Garnet
Wolseey's victory at Tel-el-Kebr and / shall ut
tempt no serious comments on them. We ara practi-
cally twcnty-four hours from London. The London
papers of yesterday reached here this morning.
though steamers are arriving from Newhaven at
least twice day, ana London passengers touched at
Dieppe yesterday afternoon at two. 1t has not yet
struck tie DIeppe news agents that papers might
come as quickly as passengers. The French papers
carefully abstain from publishing anything but the
baIest abstracts of any intelligence that does NOT
relate to the Boulevards. | may remark also IN
passing that the mail arran gements with England
are of the most anteduvian description. Letters
would reach London the same day If sent straight
across the Cbanpe. But In that case the french
Post Office would profit nothing by their transmits
SION. They are accordingly sent hence to Paris take
n fresh departure from Paris. and arrive i'll London
on the evening of the following day.
1t is pleasure to be able to say Of Sir Garnets
dispatch that unlike his earlier ones. II Is not dis
figured by bombast and brag There are still traces
of his taste for superatives and ntensives, but on
the whole substantial success has sobered his
STYLE Ii used to be q reproach to him among his
Jealous rivals in the army that he was writing
general. They forgave him for this offence, no Q,
when it was discovered how badly he wrote. This
time moreover, it does not much matter whether ne
writes veil or i'll. nor what he says The thing
done is what matters. and it has been thoroughly
well done,--dOne, too. scale which disposes OF
doubts far more damaging to Sir Garnet Wolseley
than any criticisms on his literary powers. There
have been always men ready TO point out that his
reputation had been made in command OF small
forces and against irregular military ORGANIZATIONS
Wait till he has to handle couple OF divisions in
the open field. and deal with regular troops-then
we shall whether he is general or not" Ot
this kind of carping there has been a great deal
and a great deal more IN private than in public.
Nobody can have talked much with British officers
OF any grade without hearing it, and nobody can
deny that Sir Garnet has gwen every pretext Tor
ieaouses by the rapidity of bis rise and his uni
form success.
The jealousy may not bs the less for the last vic
tory but il will have to be silent If Sir Garnet IS
henceforward to be abused by his fellow ohcers IL
mnst be on different grounds. He has proved his
capacity to do precisely those things in which 1t
was eagerly predicted he would tail. He has or
ganized an expedition by land and sea on a scale
which. far transport Is concerned' no other
general in Europe could have done, because no
other Power than England could have supplied the
means He has combined the movements of troops
from London ard troops from Bombay with the
most surprising accuracy and CELEBRITY. lie has been
much blamed it is true, for the supposed break
down of his transport beyond Ismaia. and for many
minor deficiencies of material and supplies For some
of them he may have been responsible and probably
was But his answer TO the general body oil such
criticism is of The most triumphant kind Iel-el-
Kebir Is an answer Of course. and most sufficient
one and 1t is Tel-el-Kebr which shuts the military
mouth ven should the captiousness of the civilian
prove harder to appease.
But il is The Times which dscoses the secret that
to military men will seem most conclusive OF Sir
Garnet Wolseleys strategic ability. Before he left
England we are told he had put his finger on Ielel
Kebir as the point where Arab would make his
stand and named the 9Th of September as the day
on which he should attack aud capture the position
He WAS better than his word by two days. This OF
course recalls tho story OF Napoleon and Ulm, and
T halieve a similar one is told Of Genelai Grant.
The gossip of the mess-room had it that Sir Garrett
had announced he should he in Cairo by the Ioth'
The rumor spread much wider than the mess-rooms'
and as time went and the delay at kassasin
grew more protracted and the talk about no trans
ports more positve,!Sir Garnets enemies at home
grew more and more delighted at what they
trorght the sure failure of his prediction should
greatly like to be in London and hear what they
have TO suggest to-day On the same authority 10
\
the credit of the whole scheme and plan Of the ex-
petition is due to Sir Garnet that he never had
the least notion of any base but the canal, or of
attacking the lines Of KafreD war from Alexandria
In shors he thought the whole thing out III
Tondon and ii was from a precOnceived determine
tion that be went ahead of his transport to has
sasin. and with an exact anticipation OF all the
inconvenience that would result. The necessity OF
securing his supply of fresh water was paramount.
It put strain on the army but he was confident
the men could stand 1t and they did. 1t put
strain also on English pateLce, and that for some
DAYS gave signs OF swapping. but did not nave
nothing but the papers to go by, for have not
been in London except for single day; but so Tar
as I can Judge Sir Garnet never really lost pubic
confidence except-of all places in the world-on
the Stock Exchange The bulls in Egyptians had
laid their plars for Il promenade, and a quick one
from, Isnailia to Cairo As it did not come of they
cnrsed The General who had spoiled their gamble.
But don't know that other people will think the
worse of Sir Garnet Wolseley because he did not
choose to be the tool Of Capel Court.
A usual The Standard is to the fore with its
connt Of the victory of rel-el-Kebir. The other
Ioudon papers have few brief notes from their
own men, and the official dispatches. Captain
Cameron supplies a coherent and perfectly intel
liohle narrative "a column and half long. The
wires take it, reach to Kassasin, so that the
physlcal difficulty of getting a dispatch through
ought not to have been very great. What delays
military censorship interposed 1t Is impossible to
saw Whatever they were. Captain Cameron over
came them Sir Garnet Wolseley, who has spent
portion of his leisure during the last few weeks In
harassing correspondents, forbade their taking
than one horse each from Alexandria, This. pre-
sume would be justified on the ground that it is
difficult to feed horses when your transport does not
come to time But such order. If strictly obeyed,
would uarayze journalist, and it is safe to say it
Co.. ;, ot ohnreh I VIII venture to guess that Can.