The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1897-08-29
THE RECORDS OF THE WAR.
UoMPL ELTON OF THE LAST VOLUME
OF THE FIRST SERIES.
n work That Hns been In Progress for Twsn.
ty-ihres Venrs-Ono Hundred and Eleven
Volumes Vow Finished. Covering All the
Operations OF tho Two Armies In the Pteid.

49, N"N
Operations OF the 1--WE Armies In the FIeid,
WARRINGTON, Aug. 2s.-The most volumin.
Gus MILITARY publication yet unde rtal:cn by any
Government has just been completed by our
own. Tho body of tho last volume Of war rec.
ords relA ting To operations In the field has been
printed, a,1d only awaits thu index and binding
20 make IL ready for distribution The work
has been In progress FOR twenty. three years.
This FIRST series NJ Ill volumes embraces
the formal reports. both Union and Confederate,
Of the first mo vements for the seizure OF United
States property in the Southern States ond OF
all military operations in the field, including
those OF the st Nff corps, with tho orde rs and re-
turns relating specially thereto. These volurnes
arc accompanied by an atlas Of l7s plates.
There are besides two volumes of a general in.
Nox TO the index 70 OF each volume. Tho Ill
books OF tho series contain 1928 pages. Tho
atlas consists OF y coll cction OF several hun
dred maps Of tho ba ttlef elds OF the war. being q
reproduction OF the originals submitted with the
official reports. routes OF march Of armies, plans
Of forts, uniforms, Tn ioi, and Confederate; APP
pliances for the care OF sick and wounded,
Union and Confederate Gags, and Union corps
Gags and badges. No paper OF any kind has
been withheld from the eo volumes because at
the time 1t was Of a strictly confidential nature,
Congress was led to un dertake tho puhllca,
dion Of the records OF tho war by the discovery
that all the papers Of the b iell Court of Inquiry
had disappeared from the War Department.
An Investigation Of the ma ter was attempted
BY the Military Committee Of the House. 1t
was developed that the recoo | In this case filled
an ordinary sized trunk, and that they were de-
lvered by the Judge AdvooaA o OF the court at
the War Department. The most careful search
under the call Of Congress tai led to develop q
trace Of tho papers. In the course Of the In
arfrv thu A6iutan MT, a epnrn1 tfSIned that Gen
Badeau. then C~onsul-General ut London. had
been allowed to take several bo:tos Of records to
assist him in tho preparation ,f his Life Of
Gen. Grant"
Ono witness testified that he had seen official
lotter books Of Gen. Halleck's in G en-. Badeau's
possession at tho White House, from which
leaves had been cut previous to thu, books COM
ting into Gen. Badeau's possession
Tho results OF the investigation were such as
to excite wide attention and create general ap-
prehension as to the safety Of the war records.
This was increased by the knowledge that few
Of these papers were in ~flreproof buildings.
Nhile some OF the most valuable portions Of
them, including all Of tho Confederate records,
were In buildings which. both from their own
character and their surroundings, were In
great danger from fire.
Toward the close Of tho investigation Mr..
Gunckle OF Ohio. q member Of the committee.
asked o gentleman who had given considerable
attention to the study OF the war records what
his plan for preserving them would be. He re-
piled that the Government should prepare the
whole for publication, and print and distribute
them. To tho inquiry as to the form Of resolu-
ton which would cover the case. this gentle
man took out his note book and wrote the fol-
lowing as q proposed clause In the Sundry
Civil Appropriation bill:
'"To enable the Secretary of War to begin the
publication Of the official records Of the var of
the rebellion. both of the Union and the Confed-
crate armies, the sum Of $4,000. And the
Secretary Of War Ia hereby directed to have
copied for the Public Printer all reports, let
tors. kilograms, and general orders. not hero
tofore copied or printed, and properly ar
ranged in chronological order"
The same day Adjutant-G General Townsend
was q witness before the com mittee, and was
asked his opinion OF the above proposition. lie
vnphattcally approved 1t, except that he
thought $4,000 would be ample for the work.
Tho committee thereupon adopted the plan,
put 1t in the form of a resolution, and took 1t to
Gen. Garfield. who was in charge OF the Sun
dry Civil Appropriation bill then pending be-
fore tho House. He was found to DO much
interested In the subject, having that day re-
oeived q letter from Gen. Rosecrans, then In
California, urging him to devise measures for
preserving the records Of the war. Gen. Gar
field took the resolution OF the Military COM
mittee, and with the change OF SIS 900 instead
amendment 70 oi ths sundry Givl hi 6ili l,o and Il was ss
Rdopted BY the House the same day that the
The bill With ISi aF Gauss 20 retained ct became
law June 23., 1874. Secretary Belknap took
deep interest In the matter organized = force
pushed the work vigorously throughout his
term; The interest OF Congress in the subject
which tho project elected. The annual appro-
Rriation was raised. first to $4,000. then 70
Ct the work was organized under To-, robert
P 3; sSEis Of a tnS F siSidieno army u h The ao oPtt'ie CANNOT 1%t
Endicott appointed Col. Laselle to succeed him.
His FIRST compilation was of a character TO lead
possible for any Of rs Imperfect work to reach
Sorfeot' w work 'i OF Major jps4 George aSaSSe B. 'q DAVE ras'u who sna
encceeded Laselle, and was made the head OF .
CONGRESS, Upon tho promotion Of Major Davis
e the chair Of military law at West Point,
Chairman Of the board. and he has since carried
the work forward with equal ability and energy.
The demand 70, the publication has. from
tng 1t. This demand still steadily increases. and
long since many times exceeded calls for any
publication has been one whose magnitude It
emined were not counted by tons, or roomsfui
but by the contents OF buildings. The yolun.
f9er records Of discontinued commands, being
ne report books and papers turned in BY volun-
Seor Officers when mustered out, flied o .args
2rds crowded an entire tnree-story building.
The papers OF the .Adjutant-Ge noral's office 10
Se XSmi1e occupied a third OF the rooms OF
= the Secretary's office and Of tho several
bureaus Of the War Department he'd all TO be
carefully, read paper by paper. These mum.
bored millions. The military kilograms we're
patches contained over 10000 600. Without
further details to illustrate the case, it is easily
boen that the task was herculean.
When. the collection OF everything bearing
upon field operations had proceeded far enough
70 justify arranging the matter for publication,
the personal attention OF one competent com,
piler became absolutely necessary. In no other
tSsy could the historical value of papers SO.
paigns DO determined. To this work MI. J. ".
kirkley OF the AdJutant-Generai's office. then
and now the most competent expert in war
records in the department, or the country, wa.
assigned, and each OF the Ill volumes has
passed through his hands at every stage Of lis
compilation and in the final prOofreading. he
was also prominent from the first IN directing
The search of records, and, since It's organiza-