File:Ohio archæological and historical quarterly (1887) (14578261437).jpg

Identifier: ohioarchological00ohio (find matches)
Title: Ohio archæological and historical quarterly
Year: 1887 (1880s)
Authors: Ohio State Archaeological and Historical Society
Subjects: History Archaeology
Publisher: Columbus : Published for the Society by A.H. Smythe
Contributing Library: Internet Archive
Digitizing Sponsor: Internet Archive

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handful ofmen. Stores and munitions were lacking. Yet the nation at largewelcomed the declaration of war and entered upon it with all thegayety of sublime rashness and buoyant inexperience. For the most part the history of the war is now melancholyand humiliating reading. Indecision, vacillation and incompe-tency at Washington; inexperience, ignorance, stupidity and evencowardice among the men placed in command in the field; sur-render, defeat, massacres, disgrace — that pretty nearly sums upthe record of the first few months of the war on land. Bombas-tic proclamations of what was going to be done. Little attempted,.less accomplished. The men in the ranks and the line officers,,mostly volunteers or militia, were full of zeal, were eager to fight,.were willing to endure endless hardship; but they were withoutdiscipline, were ill-equipped, were badly fed or half-starved, andthe politicians that led them were neither soldiers nor had the 378 Ohio Arch, and Hist. Society Publications.
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George Croghan. 379 making of soldiers in them. Things improved somewhat withthe progress of the war. The incompetents in high commandon the fighting line were weeded out and real soldiers took theirplaces. But apart from the brilliant work of the little navy, ofPerry on Lake Erie, of McDonough on Lake Champlain, of manyable captains with cruisers on the ocean, there were not manyachievements- of the war the story of which sends the blood leap-ing in pride along your veins. The instances of bravery or for-titude of individuals or of organizations are numerous and thrill-ing enough, as of course we should expect of American soldiers—hardy frontiersmen in large part—and these give joy and inspira-tion even while the general narrative of events on land may befilling us, after near a hundred years, with impotent rage at theblundering stupidity or worse of those who tried to direct andto lead. And yet, badly advised and rash as the war was, disappoint-ing and humiliating as was the con

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