Free trader-journal and Ottawa fair dealer., 1922-06-09

New York. IN, surrender OF the lIud
son forts, the retreat across New
Jersey, the refuge in Ponnsylyania
II was all leading toward the seem
ingly inevitable end, The army was
CrumblinE, only Civil authority pr"
tended To maintain any central or
sanitation. The enemy delayed toI
finish his task, only because he was
80 certain of his quarry that haste
would be- unsecmingly II would have
given a demonstration Of the over
whclmng propOndcrancc of the Brit
i8h power, which even the most stout
hearted patriot would have found diff.
IlCult to deny. ON the other hand,
WASHINGTON perceived both the mill.
tary and the political opportunity pre-.
sented him IN the disposition Of the
onemY'R forces There was a doSpcr
ate chance To win telling victory
for the enemy: and there was also
the possibility of winning a political
victory by demonstrating the Capa.
city of American leadership and
American soldiers to Outwit and out
\ fight veterans Of European battle
fields.
Washington, who was AT once sol.
der politician aud statesman recog.
ni2cd all these possibilities. He sciZ.
ed the opportunity, he turned It com
pletcly to his own advantage and
thereby inspired his army aud the
country behind him with a new con.
iidcncc in themselves Years after.
ward Lord CornwalS, and the mem.
bcrs of his staff. were given dinner
by General Washington, following the
surrender ut Yorktown. The compli.
mCntS of the occasion We're cXchang.
ed in manner SO gracious and ami
able that, as We read Of ii now. IL Is
difficult to realize all their signin.
Ccncc, Among the rest. Lord Corn
wallis made speech in which he
paid his compliments to the military
genius of Washington COMPARING
the Yorktown campaign with the
Trcnton-Princcton operation he de-
clarcd. turning to General Washing.
ton and bowling profoundly, that,
when history shall have made mp its
verdict the fairest laurcls will be
gathered for yOnr cXCClcncy, not
from the shares Of the Chesapeake.
hut from the banks Of the Delaware
CORVALLIS regarded the Trenton
Princeton campaign as the CrOwning
glory Of the Washington military
career, and we do not need TO be re-
minded Of the verdict of Frederick
the Great who ranked the Trenton
Princeton campaign as the most brill
liant of which he had knowledge
when we view the course of hu-
man affairs from tho detached stand
point of histOry's student, we arc
amazed to discover how seldom a par
ticuar military operation has deter.
mined the results of campaign or
the outcome of a great war Wars
are writ very big in history; very
much bigger sometimes than they de.
serve to be. Battles have seldom de-
cided the fates of peoples. The real
story Of human progress is written
elsewhere than on the worlds battle
fields, and war and conflict privileges
provided rather its punctuation than
its theme. But among the exceptions,
among the cases in which a particu-
lar conflict has had consequences
and reverberatiOns far greater in
their potency than could possibly be
imagined from a consideration of the
numbers engaged or the immediate
results, none stands out ore distinct
" than does the Trenton Princeton
campaign. We cannot say that the
| cause of independence and union
would have been lost without it: but
we must find ourselves at a loss if
we attempt to picture the successful
conclusion of the revolution, had
there been another and different is
sue from the struggle of thos hard,
| midwinter days,
"Tho climax of that desperate ad-
venture came OF the field of Prince