The National tribune., 1904-02-04


close in presence of his subordinates and an
uninilitary council. was the project of at
t:cking Richmond by the lower Chesapeake.
\ few days afterward he fully developed
this plan in a letter TO the President. and
the result was that the President disap-
proved it and by an order issued on the
31st of January. substituted one of hS
own (1i) This order was as follows:
SPECIAL WAR ORDER, No. /.
EXECUTIVE MANSION,
WASHINGTON, Jan. 81 1862.
Ordered, That all the disposable force OF
the Army of the Potomac, after providing
safely for the defense of Washington, be
formed into an expedition for the immediate
object of seizing and occupying point upon
the railroad southwestward of what is
known as Manassas Junction, all details
10 be in the discretion of the Commander
in-Chief. and the expedition to move before
or on tle 22d day of February next.
ABRAHAM LINCOLN.
TIME, TIE INFLUENCING CONSIDERATION.
The operation here indicated is that of
a thanking movement on the enemy's posi-
tion at Manassas. Now, it is due to add
that in thus disappearing the plan OF oper-
etions of Gen. Mcclellan and substituting
one of his own, there is conclusive evil
llence to show that the President was
moved less by any consideration of the
relative strategic merits of the two plans
of campaign, than by the question of time
in regard to the commencement OF active
operations. With him this was the con-
trolling circumstance; for the anxiety on
the part of the Administration for an i'm
mediate movement of the Army OF the
Potomac had become what Gen. Mcclellan
calls excessive :" (15l and four days be-
fore the order of the 31st January, dictat-
ing a movement of the Army of the POtO-
mac against Manassas, the President had
decreed that "a general increment OF the
land and naval forces of the United States
against the insurgent forces should be
made ON the I'D day of February."tl6)
1t is obvious, therefore, that the Pres
ident, having categorically ordered gem
eral movement of all the armies to be made
on the I'D of February, was forced to the
next step of prescribing for the operations
of the Army of the Potomac plan of cam
paign which could be undertaken at the
time fixed 1t was impossible that McClel-
lan's project could be initiated at the APP
pointed period; for not only was it neces-
sary to put in execution the difficult task of
moving the army and all IFS material to the
designated point on the Lower Chesapeake.
but it was necessary first of all to pro-
vide the vast amount of water transporta-
tion needful for so colossal an enterprise.
Hence the order for a direct movement on
Manassas.
PRESIDENT YIELDS TO MCCLELLAN.
Upon the receipt of this order, Gen.
Mcclellan lost no time in seeing the Pres
ident and requesting to know whether this
order was to be regarded as final, and
whether he could be permitted to submit
In writing his objection TO the plan of the
Executive and his reason for preferring
his own. Permission was accorded, and on
the Sd Of February the General-in-C Chief
submitted, in q paper to the Secretary of
War, an elaborate discussion of the two
plans of campaign.QD Whether from
the force of reasoning Of the paper, or from
other and extrinsic considerations, ,QS)
the result was that the President rescinded
his order for the movement on Manassas
and on the 9th of February the War
Department instructed its agents to pro-
cure at once the necessary steamers and
sailing-craft TO transport the Army of the
Potomac to its new field of operations.
LINCOLN DIsAPPRoyED PENINSULA PLAN.
Even after this step had been taken, how
ever, the President, convinced against his
VIII, retained his aversion to the proposed
movement. lie repeatedly expressed his
dissatisfaction at the project of removing
the army from Washington, and preferred
that an operation should be made for open
Ing the Baltimore Il Ohio Railroad by a
movement across the Potomac at Harper's
Ferry, and another for the destruction of
the enemys batteries on the Potomac.
Zen. Mcclellan seems to have been able to
overcome these objections by a recital of
the same considerations he had previously
presented; but, on the 9Th of March, the
his old position, and urged him to submit
bis project OF campaign TO a council of his
division commanders. The meeting was
IA. Mcclellan: Report. D. 40.
10. About the middle Of January. 1862
upon recovering from a severe illness,
found that excessive anxiety for an i'm
mediate movement of the Army of the Po-
tomac had taken possession of the minds of
the Administration" McClellan's Report,
16. This order styled presidents Gen
eral War Order, No. y was issued on the
9th of January, without consultation with
Cen Mcclellan (Report, p. 42). 1t is as
follows:
EXECUTIVE MANSION,
WASHINGTON, January q, 1862
Ordered, That the I'D day of February
1862, be the day for a general movement
OF the land and naval forces of the United
States against the insurgent forces The
especially the army at and about Fortress
Monroe. the Army of the Potomac, the
Army of Western Virginia, the army near
Mumfordsyille, KY, the army and hotilla
at Cairo, and naval force in the Gulf
of Mexico. be ready to move on that day.
That all other forces, both land and
naval, with their respective commanders
obey. existing orders for the time, and be
ready to obey additional orders when duly
given.
That the heads of departments. and espe.
clally the Secretaries of War and of the
Navy, with all their subOrdinates, and the
General-in-Chief, with all other command
ers and subordinates of land and naval
forces, will seyerally be held to their strict
and full responsibilities for prompt execu-
tion of this order.
ABRAHAM LINCOLN.
IL. Report, PIP. 43-48.
1S. Mr.. Raymond, editor of the New
York Times, who had the best means of
knowing the secrets of the Presidential
mind, remarks: "The President was by
no means convinced by Gen. Mcclellan )
reasoning but in consequence of his STEADY
resistance and unwillingness to enter upon
the execution OF any other plan. he assent
ed" etc. History of the Administration
pf President Lincoln. p. 225.