The Sun.
London, England, 1863-01-17 00:00:00

GENERAL BUTLER.

We have been favoured with the following letter,
dated New Orleans, Dec, 12, and addressed to a
gentleman in England :
Dear Sir,—The unexpected though long-desired
visit here of my brother Charles, after so long a
separation, has revived many slumbering memories
of the past. As you will remember, I preferred fol-
lowing my parents to America rather than go with
with my aunt to India. I reached Pittsburg, in
Pennsylvania, in the fall of 1833, where my parents
then reslded, I continued up to the fall oflB4l in the
employ of merchants in that city and St. Louis, Mis-
souri, traversing in the meanwhile for business pur-
poses, by every possible means of conveyance, but
chiefly on horseback, the States of Pennsylvania,
Ohio, Indiana, Illinois, Wisconsin, lowa, Missouri,
Kentucky, and Tennessee. Since then my travels have
extended into Arkansas, Texas, Mississippi,Aiabama,
Georgia, and Louisiana—always for business pur-
poses; I never had leisure for anything else. As
you may naturally suppose, I am tolerably conver-
sant with American affairs. For 16 years past I
have been in the commission business. Cotton has
been my speciality, and I have cultivated an in-
timate acquaintance with it, from the sowing of
the seed up to the time of its passage into the
hands of the spinner.
I came to this city in 1837 ; again in 1839; and
since 1841 have resided here permanently ; and if
it does not come permanently under the Govern-
ment at Washington, I expect to end my days here.
I could never sympathise with the mushroom aris-
tocracy of wealth, the canting phariseeism, and
hypocritical fanaticism I found at the North. Hero
climate, society, &c., are more congenial. lam
aware that New Orleans has a bad reputation
abroad, but all here is above ground ; things are
no worse than they seem, which cannot be said of
any Northern city.
Having been partially brought up among English
Quakers, I came here of course an Abolitionist. I
understand and appeciate the sincerity, honesty,
and unselfishness characterising the mass of Eng-
lish Abolitionists, and believe they have no sym-
pathy with their nominal brethren of New Eng-
land. Athiesm, selfishness, and hypocrisy have
combined with a blind fanaticism, under the guise
of philanthropy, to despoil the South of its wealth,
and to exterminate, if nothing else will accomplish
their purpose, a people who have no sympathy with
them. The people of the North, more especially
the New England and middle States, are
endeavouring to force the South to deal
only in their markets and at their prices; to
support their marine, to obey their laws, and
adapt their principles. To accomplish this, they
say slavery must be abolished ; if that be not suffi-
cient, they openly advocate, with the aid of foreign
soldiers, the extermination of the white race, that
their own people may occupy our productive lands.
" Rebels," they say, "have no rights,"and upon this
principle they act. Without shadow of law. and with
the connivance of those in authority, houses are
stripped, and theinmates robbed of their clothes and
little moveables. Some of these are sold here openly
at auction, while much, including fem ale clothing,
table and bed linen, &c., are sent north to garnish the
persons and dwellings of Yankee officers or their
friends; men and women imprisoned merely for an
expression of opinion, and their property seized. It
is believed that little of this property goes to the
Government ; it is supposed to be largely shared
among the officers, &c. There would have been no
war if there had been nothing to steal. When
the Federal army came here most of the figkting
native population were with our army. The large
number of families receiving rations are mostly
foreigners by birth, and of the labouring classes,
who generally recognise the hand that feeds them.
General Butler levies contributions on the citizens
out of which to feed the poor; then, again, he takes
the city taxes, with which he employs some thou-
sands of men on public work.
He tells the poor and labouring people that they
are indebted to the generosity and clemency of the
United States Government for all this; and no man
or woman can receive a ration of food or be paid a
dollar for labaur until he or she has taken the
oath of allegiance; and these are the Union
citizens of which he boasts. The Mayor,
City Treasurer, Street Commissioner, and
other city officers, have been sent here from the
North. The former officers of the city weresentto
the forts without chargf or trial. Most of our large
merchants and moneyed corporations keep their
valuables in boxes in bank. One day an order was
issued that no bank should pay a cheque, or deliver
a bank box, or transfer stock, for or to any party
that had not taken the oath of allegiance. To save
this vast amount of property from General Butler's
clutches, of course multitudes took the oath. It
was a solemn farce; General Butler saw it, and,
being baulked of his pay, the next day his organ
charged these people with having perjured them-
selves. Every officer, director, and clerk, in any
public institution, bank, &c., was compelled to take
the cath or resign. All such institutions, not obey-
ing, would be closed, or officered by appointees of
General Butler.
Government officers, backed by bayonets, com-
pelled sugar planters to sell them their crops, or have
them confiscated. After having purchased, pay-
ment was refused unless the oath was taken first.
Thousands of men really favourable to the South
were employed in public work who had not taken
the oath. When pay day came they were told,
"No money for rebels ; you must take the oath."
Thus, step by step, the people were brought under
control, not frcm choice, but necessity. Now, what
of the slaves ? Having been for 20 years amongst
them, seeing them at all times, and under all cir •
cumstances, in town or country, I have never seen
one whipped, or heard a cry of pain from punish-
ment of any sort, beyond what my own children
might utter under parental chastisement. I never
saw one hungry or naked from neglect, or dying
for want of care, excepting among those who have
been enticed for the basest purpose, and by whole-
sale price and official deceit and malignity, from
their legitimate owners and natural protectors, that
they might enjoy freedom to do nothing, to starve,
to shiver in the cold, and to die.
I have not the slightest doubt that more misery,
want, sickness, cruelty, and death have occurred
among those slaves within reach of, and under con-
trol of, the Federal Government, since the war
began, than could have been found among the whole
negro population of the South during the past ten
years. Negroes have been enticed from plantations,
and given back again in exchange for cotton and

sugar. They are taught that it is their duty to
steal from—nay, to kill—rebels. Negroes openly
call the first men and women in the community
rebels, and say that after Jan. 1 they will give the

rebels h—l. The testimony of a slave in a military
court is superior to that of his master, unless the
latter has taken the oath. Negro slaves, armed
and equipped as soldiers, are put to stand guard
over and insult—nay, to arrest—their unarmed for-
mer masters, The /nodus operandi of emancipation
is this :—The law of the last Congress declared every
slave free who should seek the protection of the
United States lines, and forbid any officer or soldier
to return Lny such to slavery. Well, under all sorts
of inducements the negro comes by stealth or openly
into the lines. He says he is free, and henceforth
gets a certificate to that effect from an officer. If he
is likely in appearance, he is asked to enlist as a
soldier, and called a citizen and United States sol-
dier. I have seen public official posters on the walls
designating them as "coloured citizens." I have
seen coloured armed soldiers drag white men by the
throat through those streets for no other offence
than standing in their way. A coloured man may in-
sult a white gentleman with impunity,
and military
rule prevents the white man from retaliation. But

a New England colonel (white) of a coloured regi-

tnent of former slaves threatened a white gentle-

man for calling one of his men a "niggerc" and

openly told his men to "mark him when he re-

urned to the city."

Thousands of negroes who have left sugar plan-
tations have lately been sent back under such

circumstances as the following :—The owner of
the place gives the United States quartermaster,
or some other influential party a lien on the crop
of sugar, in consideration of which supplies of pro-
visions are furnished at the yendor's prices; and