New Orleans daily crescent. [volume] ([New Orleans, La.]) 1851-1866, 1861-08-21
THE RULING PASSION.


The last number of Harper's Weekly has series
of cuts illustrative of the swndling practioed by
Government agents and army contractors in the
matter Of furnishing clothing and supplies to the
Northern soldiers. One picture represents an
officer and acontractor closing bargain about
some clothing, the two going snacks p" in the
profits. Another discloses soldier dressed out in
the materials which have been furnished him. He
is out at the elbows and at the knees, his clothes
are ragged, and his toes peep out from the worth
less shoes which he can scarcely hold on his feet.
4 The Yankee, no longer able to cheat the South,
and being compelled by the instincts of his nature
to cheat somebody, has turned upon his own neigh
Dor and his own Government. From the beginning
of the war we have heard from the North a con.
tinual series of growls and cries of distress over
the populations and rascalities of Government con
tractors. High and low are alike charged with
these things, the Secretary of War himself, the
Immaculate Cameron, being openly accused OF
having had his own finger deeply in the pie. When
he could not himself Operate" he has thrown
jobs and fat contracts in the way of his relations
and reainers, until his offence is so rank that it
smells to Heaven, and the Northern press gives
vent to its indignation in a prolonged Aowi OF
agony and disgust Taking these people at their
own estimate of themselves there never was before
such collection of sharpers, swindlers, thlmble-
rggers, chevaliers d'industrie and soldiers of
fortune.
This sort of thing, in fact, seems to be insepara
| Bile from all despotic Governments. 1t was re-
ported some time ago that the Emperor Of Russia,
finding it impossible to prevent pfering and plumb
ering among his officials had it contemplation to
abolish all salaries, leaving his public functonares
to steal what they could, feeling well assured they
would take care to help themselves literally to
whatever fell in their way. The hint ought not to
be lost upon the despotic and impecunious Lincoln.
The wreckers upon the coasts of Massachusetts
and Maine, who are in the habit of breaking up
their church services on Sunday and rushing head
longto the beach, whenever ship is stranded and
dashed to pieces, do not exhibit keener relish
for plumber than do the jobbers and contractors of
the tsGrand Army" Even the Governor of Penn
sylvania is charged with neat operation of half
million dollars at one DASH
The early Puritans of New England, who held
meetings and resolved that the earth belonged to
the Lords people, and then voted themselves to be
the elecf, have brought the same morality down to
the present day, and carried it into full practice
Through the machinery of the old Union they CON
lies, and other agencies, to plumber the people of
the South and build up imperial cities from the
profits of Southern industry. In all the wars we
have had, these same New England Purtans have
exhibited a remarkable antpathy 10 fighting, but
a wonderful alacrty in filing the offices of com
missaries suffers, puryeyors, camp followers, and
everything else that promised pillage and profit.
1t is only when they are called on to cut the
threats Of the people of the South that they exhibit
any MAJ tial spirit, and even this is provoked by
the fear that the game they have plucked so long
is about to escape eirclutches.
1t is satisfactory to know that, since they have
turned upon each other in default of having other
people to plunder they have made such clean
job Of it in so short a time. They have gotten
nearly the last dollar that glittered in the vaults of
the Treasury, and the Secretary is reduced to the
necessity of begging personally for little loan
here and there among the banks of the Northern
cities. The Northern people will recover from
their delusion, as if waking from dream, to find
not only that the South is unsubdued, but that
their Government is oppressed with a fearful
national debt, its credit destroyed, and the wealth
Of the country transferred to the harpes and plum
derers who have taken advantage of the present
confusion to line their own pockets, even when
they knew it would result in the bankruptcy of the
Government and the people,