It must be a subject of profound regret to the
North, that
James Watson Webb,
Brigadier General, &c., has deprived the
United States of his services at this critical juncture, by accepting a foreign mission.
We can imagine that he was sadly missed at the
battle of Manassas,--in that crushing slaughter and that headlong retreat.
"Ah, where was
Roderick then?
One blast upon his angle horn
Ware worth a thousand men."
When we recall to mind how
Webb used to flourish his avenging sword in mid-heaven, and how he swore that the "New York Seventh Regiment alone could conquer the
South," we cannot be thankful enough that the Seventh declined the job, and that
Webb was not in this country to lead their invincible march.
But let us not exult too soon.
Perhaps when
Webb, at a foreign court, hears the result of the
battle of Manassas, he will fling aside his diplomatic commission, and persuading the
European Governments to delay their recognition of the Southern Confederacy till he can have an opportunity to settle their hash, will hurry across the
Atlantic as fast as the combined power of wind, steam and gas can propel his powerful presence.
When
Webb appears, bludgeon in hand, on the
Long Bridge at
Washington, let the
South stand from under.