New Orleans daily crescent. [volume] ([New Orleans, La.]) 1851-1866, 1861-12-04
Letter from Virginia.

Special 10 the New Orleans Crsscent.l
RICHMOND. Nov. IS 1851.
Mr. EdH0r-Do you know that it is very kind in
the proprietor of the Crescent to employ cores
pondent in these days when the public taste is so
depraved that nothing is relshed unless it comes
right hot from the telegraph? For my part,
think it is useless expense; but don't cut me of
on that account. There are heaps of good sober
sided folks in the country who take real delight
in what you may call dried news, e.: stale state
ments or mouldy information. Even I, who feed
on intelligence literally dripping with novelty, and
SO to speak, clothed with the gore Of sensation,
find pleasure in perusing the Memorabilia of Aeno-
phon. But, when fellow knows he can tell no
news and yet wishes to make his letters interest
ing it is terrible on the hair I've scratched my
head for ideas till I'm nearly bald; but Pm going
to buy me wig to- morrow, and then go it, "re-
gardless of expense"
l am to write two letters week and mail one
of them SO that it will reach you on Sunday"
That's capital joke; | think I'll tell it to Mr..
Reagan. Instead of scratching his head he would
tear his hair, and his shirt also. ou Just build
"themn bridges in Tennessee and hang few mail
agents, and then I'll assent to your amable propo-
sition Hang me, if we've received Western
mail for the last four days, and the Southern like
| the wind in Scripture, cometh and goeth where it
steth, and it 'listeth" very much after the fash
| ion of an awkward attack OF ague and fever, the
paroxysms of which occur on the second, third or
fourth or fifth, or some other exceedingly ncalcu-
liable day. 'This is one of the inevitable evils Of
war; we are told True, but an able head Of De-
partment shows his ability by overcoming diticul-
lies and mitigating evils. l am tired Of hearing
this pitiful apology, made not only for MIR. Reagan
but for Mr.. Everybody else, who fails to admins;
| ter his department or his command with skill and
| energy. Thus you hear people continually saying
our armies can't advance because the roads are SC
bad. Bad Napoleon crossed the Alps in mid
winter and here people are talking about the plar
main road in November! Shoe
We were all down in the mouth last Saturday
things looked black and blue because the public
eye had been bunged by portentous rumors from
Memphis, Pound Gap and elsewhere. To-day ou1
vision is clearer, and the dropping corners of oul
mouth are tucked up considerably. The big re
view at New Orleans proves that we are not al
dead yet, if Port Royal is taken. Pillows bolt
assertion that he is not afraid is encouraging, al
though We have no great faith IN the gospel ac
| cording to Pillow. And, thirdly and lastly, WI
are hugely uplifted by the tidings that Lyons ha
demanded the surrender of Mason and Slidell ane
| that Seward & Co. have refused to give them up
This heard at dinner, an hour or 30 ago. All tn
| young men near me swOre they would get drunk
| the news proved true; but the correspondent o
the Crescent, chastened with age and many disap
| pointments contented himself with q few NOR
slices of cheese and the faint hope that EngIan
might after ALL resist the insult, and that we tw
John Bull and jeff. Davis-might give the 4al
KEGS the very devil, well rubbed in at that.
need not tell you that we are gratited at tn
result Of the Pensacola fight, so far as heard from
Still, rs DR.. Johnson said about the evidences
the authenticity of the Bible, and as Oliver Twi!
said about the soup, we could wish for NOR!
We want to send at least one of Lincoln's bi
ships to Davy Jones' locker before the war
over. Think how very little we have done to tn
Yankee navy, in spite of their rash attacks on or
| land batteries. That navy was formidable Ion
before we set up shop for ourselves, and now
seems invnlnerable as Achilles or any other Mi
gers heel Hollins is the only man who has dot
any serious damage to the Yankee fleet since II
war broke out. No wonder Mr.. Mallory has even
ually bethought him of building six more rams
There was an old lady in Vermont, who suppose
very naturally, that cotton, like wool, was an al
mai product, and begged her husband to buy
cotton RAM 80 that the breed of his sheep mig
be mixed, and she might shear her own cotton
home. Our " cotton rams" must be floating ha
teries and boats like the Manassas, for they alol
can protect our cotton fields against the pirates
Old Abe. But isn't it rather strange that bo
= should be a turtle, and that turtle ram?
nd The spirit of the Virginia Convention is wim
but the flesh is too weak to accomplish the reforI
needed in the Constitution, and to restore the