The Ouachita telegraph. [volume] (Monroe, La.) 1865-1889, 1888-09-22
MILITARY GENIUS.
And What Lord ,yo,scly Says About II.
[Fortnightly Review.1

CieaAcu Ny IuuiVlNutiS. HOW, then,
can ii be said that all the grea, politi-
cal and national revolutions Of the
world are the direct outcome cf natura.
laws: Into every phrase 0: history
the sheer ability, will, force of charac-
ter, the very idiosyncrasies Of individu-
ais, and above ali other things, the
military genius Of grea, commanders
or rulers, enter very largely as power
ful factors for good or evil.
Should we ever have had he CRU
sades had Peter and Hermit never
been born? Aud in that case how dill
ferent would have been the history of
European civilization ": ,ta.s"n.-
ence Holland has eS.,c.-t.1 ,!:-,:. she
world, and yet, if the sicisiy, v,v,,,a-
ture!y born William of Orange had
died OF the viru'ent smallpox, with
which he was attacked in early life, or
had John Churchill died Of fever in
Tangier, there can be little doubt that
Holland would have followed the fate
which then overlook Alsace and Lorrine
and, like them, it must have BECOME
in time essentially French in feeling
and an integral part of France. II
Wellington in early life had accepted
the small post in the Irish Excise which
his family pressed him to take, or after
Talavara, had he resigned his COM
mand In disgust with the ipterferences
Of ministers, as ignorant Of war as he
was of theology, Napoleon would, in
all probability, have died in peace and
triumph at the Tuleries. After SIR
John Moore's death, there YVES no En-
g'ish General save Wellington. In the
e,asr
Marlborough was our only commander
who was tit to cope with Villars and
the other marsha!ls of France Of that
time. In Aune's reign, the grand alli-
ance, which may be said to have saved
European liberty, could have only beep
kept together by the tact and military
genius Of Marlborough. 1t was his
great ability in the field that secured
the independence of Holland, that saved
Europe from the. grasp of the g1ea,
French King, as she was saved a cen i.
tu.y later from the tyranny of the great
Corsican by another illustrious British
soldier.
Won MOLTKE.
Field Marshall Won MoItke's charac-
ter is so simple and winning, and his
military genius of such hi gh order,
that it is most probable he would have
become a great leader of men in the
field had any such command ever de-
Volved upon him. AT tho same time
it is quite possible that even Moitke
does not possess the qualities which
made the 'Centh Legion" love Caesar,
and which made the Roman one ofthe
few great leaders of armies whom the
| world has ever known. Great GOODNESS
OF head and stpruness Of nerves arc re
quired by the General whose exclusive
| role in the field is to keep several large
armies in motion, each on its own line,
but each and all moving, as the pieces
on chessboard, toward one common
| object. The sternness-I may say the re.
lentlessness ofdisposiiion which enables
such man to do his daily work unaf-
fected either by the aii-nbsorbing 10y
of success or by the depressing iutluen-
ces OF passing failures, is a rare Gift.
But it is quite possible that such a
strategis,, il carried from tho safe posi-
ton OF army headquarters, and pushed
| into the midst of excitement and of
peril, and Of all the emotions and start
| ling sensations which such position
| occasions, might then be unable TO eXer-
| else the quickness of apprehension ann
the soundness of Judgment that ca::
alone enable mar in that position t.
duly weigh the circumstances, aualyze
tho situation and come to the right
| conclusion.
| WELLINGTON.
| I would instance Cesar, Hannibal,
Marlborough, Napoleon and Gen. Lee
as men who possessed what I regard as
the highest development of military
genius-men who combine with the
strategic grasp of Won Moltkc and
the calm wisdom and just reasoning
power Of Wellington, all the power of
Marshal Bugeaud and of Souwarotf to
intlame the imagination Of their sol.
diers and impart to them some Of the
fiery spirit of reckless daring which
burned within their own breasts. The
personal magnetism which such great
men possess so largely, and can with
out effort impart to others, was, l think
wanting in our "Iron Duke" The
marvellous magnetic power of the great
generous leader (Napoleon) over his
men was certainly undervalued by
| Wilmington. He seems in his mind to
have divided his army into gentlemen
and common men, placing u great un-
| bridged gulf between the two classes.
With ono or two exceptions, he APP
parentty had the very poorest opinion
of the military capacity OF his Gene
rails of division, while he believed with
t.,f hi nj. boa IT Z u