Seattle daily post-intelligencer. [volume] (Seattle, W.T. [Wash.]) 1881-1888, 1885-10-31
DAILY POST.INTELLIGtNCER
aE als PULLED rHRerGH.

lion almost in aa inst zut from eoopar-
alive obse1rity 70 world vide fame. 30
far as history viu reeoguiZs him, % iat
a. posierity viii kns- him. be died
twenty years ago. He disappeared trom
the stage Of action as Suddenly and Al
most a. completely ~ II be, like Ne
Pherson, had been stricken down in the
heat Of battle. From the day thai De
retired from the army, be ~as not a
national figure, and bis occasional ap-
psarances ia politics, iiter tiars ana sal
enee called tbs attention Of tue paolis
10 him only a. TO man Tho bad long
been dead IN much the same manner.
indeed, a. the publication OF Depe~s
letter has turnsd the publis rnind once
more 10 johnson and his t'nie-. 1en
sral Mcclellan a. Govarnor u New der
sey vas only a "Reminiscences OF tsnerAi
Mcclellan, the conmandsr-in chief oil
the armies of the United states. he
was no longer an active, moving force
no longer an actor in the worlds great
drama, no longer leader among men
Was Mcclellan a great soiiierF DID
he posses, great abilities a. a com
maader? Those questions will probably
be in Dispute a. long a. men have time
10 think Of theD, or until the very
name Of Mcclellan Ii forgotten. Never
probably, did soldier rise more rap
idly into prominence, never Vas tue
confidence OF the peopls so layishly be
slowed upon al nntried commander
He was the young Napoleon, the Idol OF
his soldiers. before bis sword had left
its scabbard. lie spranR full armed
and elittering with oil the trappings OF
war before the eyes OF the people.
They we're logging and hoping for
man, they thought they bad found one
In him, and they at once began to write
his name among those OF the great
warriors of all times. That the popular
estimate Of MoClsllan's abilities at taat
tims was far two high, no ons will DO"
dispute. The reputation which he had
done nothing TO earn was greater than
he deserved. He could not falfll the
great expectations Of the people. Prob
ably no man cold have done so. Moant-
cd upon the unstable pedestal OF
unsarned glory, hs was worshipped by
the people. who cast him aside with
contempt a. sosn as the pedestal began
20 crumble and they saw that after all
he was only an Idol made with hands.
As the people gave him their confidence
all at once, so they withdrew 1t all at
once. Rapidly as be assembled in popu-
lar favor, that rapidly did he descend.
He was sacrifice to the popular igno
rance OF war. ~ the breaking out of
the Rebellion, the people Of the North
knew nothing of military affairs. They
clothed man in a blue uniform, and
they called him soldier. They pot
him on horseback aud called him
general. They pat the epauettes Of
major general upon him With the in
sigma Of rank and power, and expected
wave of his sword in the sunlight TO
call forth armies of veterans almost
from the earth, expected him to 20
forward to instant victory like a new
Alexander. when the armies came not
forth at the fash Of his sword, WHEN
the people saw that he did no. ride into
the very midst of his oDuntry's enemies
and subdue them As by magic. they
tore him from his horse, wrested his
sword from his grasp. susiohed from
him his spauleties and his gilded bau-
bles, aud left him what they found
hlm--s man.
Had MoClellan been placed In COM
manl of the armies at later period In
the var, when the people had learned
to be patient, when they had learned
TO wait, when they had learned to bear
reverses aud disappoiutm ehss, bis fate
might have been different oRe. As a
Theoretical soldier he had few superiors.
IL he had gone iHto the war AS the com
mander of regiment III a brigade. and
risen to high command through success
sivs promotions. rs did Gran, aud Sher-
man, and Sheridan and Thomas; had
be added 30 his theoretical knowledge
of the art OF war, a practical kuowl-
edge acquired In the school Of expe-
Renee, he might have been the hero OF
the drama, and as the curtain fell. IL
might have been upon him that the PEG
pie showered their roses aud their i'm
mortellss aud their wrsaths Of laurel:
the genius Of the Nation might have
hung aeonised. trembling with nneoa.
trollable grief. over the dsathbed on
Orange Mountain, instead OF over tha,
on Mount McGreeor. 30, 1, was not TO
be. Whether the fault vas with him,
or whether grinding circumstances tore
his glory from him. he fought aud
failed. II 10 enough that the people
once believed him great: that a large
portion Of his co1n,rymen still regard
him a. one Of the best soldiers OF the
rebellios.
That he made mistakes. his most ar
dent admirers would not deny. The
greatest Of his life was probably the &C.
eeptsncc Of the Democratic presidential
nomination in is6.. he slultified him
self by standing upon platform which
declared the war failure. His own
fame rested entirely upon the de. de Of
that var. which he VAS willing TO de
clare fsilarei which he Was ~iiling 10
declare a fsilare when his military
Judgment told him that 70 VAS on the
eve Of success, when the life Of bis coun.
try depended upon its success. when
thousands of hts fellow ci,izsns had
yielded up their lives that II might be a
success, when the evil spirit OF re.
beilson. It's throat Armly srasped by the
conquerer. struggled a1d writhed upeu
Abe eroard In the agony Of death, daily
growing weaker. hoarly growing more