text:  I admit that a blind confidence in persons around the late envoy--a total want of forethought and foresight on his part--unaccountable indecision at first followed by cessions which day by day rendered our force more helpless--inactivity perhaps on some occasions--have led to these reverses; but we must not overlook the effects of climate the difficulty of communication the distance from our frontier and the fanatical zeal of our opponents