New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1883-07-29
DAILY TRIBUNE SUNDAY, Sa-TwELvE PAGES
his guilt has never been arrayed more convincingly

his guilt has never been arrayed more convincingy
than by his biographer.
Mr. Curtis wastes much space however. In enorts
to prove that Mr. Buchanan could not have doho
ANYTHING if he had tried. His book wouiu nave
been stronger If he had rested the deience so'eiy
upon the claim that measures of force would nave
been po,tlcaIIy inexpedlent Mr.. Buchanan bad
but five companies of soldiers, we are told. why
had he not brought thousands moro from Iexas
where they were awaiting to be surrendered py
Twiggsi Before the electi ion the President had
foreshadowed rebellion in case Of Mr.. Lincoins
election: why did he do nothing to pre-
pare for it, Even his five companies II
sent to five of the great forts, with orders to IRE
upon any body beginning TO throw up batteries
against Them would have done some good. Had
| orders been given while Mr.. Buchanan was wrlung
his fatal message in November, the armed vessels,
of which there were twelve steamers available
before March 4, could have been placed in I'M
| porant harbors with orders to suppress renelllon
lust as Farragut did when he anchored off New-Or-
leans. Why was the navy yard at Norfolk leit
undefended and the arsenal at Harper's Ferry
| had Mr.. Buchanan used what force he had, or any
part of it, the crime of which he was guilty might
not have been laid at his door. His crime was
that for four months he allowed rebels to prepare
for war against the United States to seize public
property and buildings, forts and arms and lifted
not finger to prevent it.
Nor does Mr.. Curtis help his client by the plea
| that Congress was in session, and was therefore
responsible to provide for the emergency. but. as
| Mr.. Buchanan has said, abdicated It's functions"
The truth is that he never complained of any nom
| action by Congress except that it would not pass
| his or some other measure of surrender. de hoped
| for no other actions wanted no other. He knew,
though Mr.. Curtis inclined to ignore the fact
that there was q Democratic majority in the Senate
to block any preparations for the suppression OF re-
bellion until it was too late for effective measures.
This Democratic majority continued until February
| 4. and even then, with Mr.. Crittenden thinking
| only Of compromise" and opposing all "coer-
cionn the casting vote of Vice-President Breckin-
ridge gave the control those who insisted upon
| the course urged by Mr.. Buchanan He and his
supporters held the country by the throat; 10 the
end they offered no other alternative except sur
render or dsunion. Any effort to check rebellion or
suppress resistance to the authority Of the United
| States would have been politically ine1ped1ent"
because it would have lessened the fear OF disunon
and tho chance of Constellation, therefore Mr..
Buchanan made no such effort All this is made so
clear in the letters and documents which Mr. Curtis
presents that his ingenious aud elaborate COM
| ments do not obscure the truth.
Mr. Curtis has not avoided some sad
plumbers. Mere carelessness appears In
some palpabe errors Of dates, as on page
| 2S4, VOL 2. the convention that nominated Mr..
| Lincoln is said to have met In 1856 The names OF
Senators composing the committee on Mr. Critten-
dens compromise not correctly stated and 1t Is
bunder to say that. all the five Republican members
voted against it." long defence fSccretary Floyd
on pages 307 and 30S, Vol. 2. is not so interesting
or important that ii should have been repeated YER
batim on pages All and 412 Of the same volume.
Nor is the biographer always candid IN his state
ments. For example. it is plainly insncere in dis
cussing tho possibility of putting down armed re-
| sistance (vol. 2. q. 500. TO ask " How could
regiment, or an army of regiments have been
marched by the President into Georgia or Missls-
sippi TO prerent the adoption of secession ordnancef y
1t is not candid to represent that Major Anderson's
! condition was unknown to the President until tho
very close of his term when Secretary Holt testfes
| Vol. q p. 499l Major Anderson has regularly
and frequently reported the progress of the bat
teries being constructed around him." Nor is it
quite fair substantially TO suppress in the account
of the Kansas troubles, the resistance
made by Governors Walker and Geary
10 the coarse of the President, the testi-
mony showing fraud in the elections controlled by
Missouri raiders OF the convincing arraignment OK
the President in the Yale College Memorial In
view oil passages In private IcIteT5 On page loo,
| VOL 2, and elsewhere. one Is moved to doubt
! whether Mr. Buchanan refrained so scrupulously
his biographer represents from efforts to secure
his own nomination. But these are trfes COM
pared with the persistent representation thai Con-
| gress and Major Anderson responsible for Mr..
Buchanan's failure to check the Rebellion In Its
| early stages. The claim that forcible measures
| would at any time have infamed the South and
| rendered Cancellation" impossible has far more
force and yet even this is met by the curious ad-
mission that Mr.. Davis and other Southern Senators
labored to prevent any bloodshed, " which would
cause the other Cotton States to recol from the
support of South Carolina in her assertion of
the right of secession" Vol. 2, p. 424. J
| 1t can hardly be doubted that little
resolute resistance by the Government TO the seIz-
ure of property and public buildings would have
caused such recoil. But Mr. Davis and Mr. Blu
ohanan were of mind in desiring the Rebellion to
appear as formidable possible until all hope of
Northern surrender had vanished Nor eau any
laborcd defence, however ingenousy constructed,
hide the vital fact that the President OF the United
States for tue purpose of ntimidatng his political
| ents into a surrender of their convictions and
| the fruits of their victory, allowed rebellion TO
gain the mastery throughout large part of the
country Upon him must ever rest the response
bility for much of tho suffering and sacrifice and
| bloodshed which the suppression of that rebellion
| finally involved.