The Weekly Perrysburg journal. [volume] (Perrysburg, O. [Ohio]) 1861-1???, 1862-10-29
WHAT THERE is YET TO DO.

What remains to be done to insure the
final conques! of the whole Southwest? A
correspondent of the New York Times
thus makes reply to the foregoing, in which
he foreshadows the probable effect of the
Presidents Emancipation Eict:
But little, | think, compared with the
strength Of our immense array. But as
have always said, the first military necessi-
ty of the day is to capture Knoxville.
Chattanooga is important, but not so COM
mandng. Knoxville is necessary in order
to command the Virginia and Tennessee
Railroad. rle salt-warks of Virginia, support
the loyal people and cut of guerrilla parties
in their stronghold. Without the noun
tans the rebels can make no stand, and
Knoxville is a poim dapp"i for an advance
through all the watcr-courses of the noun
tains. After Braggs army is driven out of
Kentucky, II can tie taken at GnGe.
The next point 10 he taken is Nicksburg
which will open through the navigation of
the Missssippi; and this should have been
dome four months Az" Th""" :" ,'~'l',,, ,,,,
prevent it but the want of Il small land force
which might easily have been sent The
defeat of Price and Bragg, and our greatly
superior forces, renders it easy to be done
now.
The third and last thing to he done, is the
capture of Mobile. This will take. think.
more force than many suppose, anl doubt
whether the iron-clads will do it without
the aid OF considerable land force: but
this can be had, and the work should be
done, and must be done. When it is done
the Southwest is conquered. 1t is great
mistake to suppose that our armies must
run over the whole surface and take all fhe
towns. There are few points of any mill.
tary and commercial importance. New Or
leans and Memphis are two of them: but
these two we have. When we have got all
these points, the existence of armies, of
commerce and of profitable production, be-
comes impossible. Nicksburg is only of i'm
portance as obstructing the Mississippi
Mobile is of great Importance, because it
is the only considerable shipping port, ex-
cept New Orleans, in the Southwest. Mo.
bile and Charleston src the great places into
which Englis goods and articles have been
introduced into the South, and we can now
take them any time and they are worth ten
victories.
Battles and bloodshed are in vain, except
they give results. Now, suppose Knoxville,
Vicksburg and Mobile taken; what military
power remains 10 the rebels in the South
west? Absolutely nQthing. There is no
poimd0ppui for either armies or guerrillas;
no possibility of support no foreign assist
ance; there is an exhausted country, with
ont fortress and without an available army.
! Cut off from Texas and Arkansas. cut of
| from all ports and markets, cut off from the
mountain retreats, cut off from every sub
sistence-except from one means OF
| strength. What is that? The ncgroes-and
! here we come to the terrible effect, if it is
! enforced, of the Emancipation Proclamation.
| | will only say one word of this, to show
what powerful war measure it is
Niyksburg and Mobile being tak9n, the
whole of the Mississippi River, the Ten.
nessee, Yazoo, Big Black, Pearl, Mobile and
numerous bays and estuares and bayous
are entirely commanded by our gunboats
and almost within cannon shot of these there
arc more than million and half of slaves
/ In fact, all the great cotton and sugar plant.
ations are on navigable waters. On the Isl
| of January the Proclamation takes effect
and these negroes are free. Will they be
removed? Not at all. What happens then!
! The masters must support them, without
being able to command their services. To
support them without their labor is impos
sible. What, then. is to be done? One or
two alternatives must take place: Either
the masters must pay the negroes for their
labor, as in the Free States, and thus retain
them; or, the masters must leave the cocn
try to the negroes. Which will they do
| know not but you see at once that either
of them involves al entire reorganization
of Southern society. And to this color, i
seems to me, the whole war must at las
come. Its legitimate and phylosphycal re
suit is the destruction of the Southern aris
tocracy and the reorganization of society
on a new and better basis. Can you Sc,
any other reason?