Newbern weekly progress., 1862-01-14
TUESDAY MORNING, JAN. IA, 1861.

Those who have closely observed the devel-
opments of the war cannot fail to have noticed,
with great satisfaction, that the South is fully
able to cope with and whip the North where
ever they can meet upon anything like an
even footing. This has become so painfully
demonstrable that even the few honest ones
among the Northern publishers and statesmen
have frankly acknowledged the corn.
1t is true, they have twice our numbers
from which to draw their soldiers and yet they
acknowledge that we have whipped them on
every occasion in land engagement. 1t is also
true that they have twice or thrice the wealth
that we have and yet, while they are alarmed
about their financial condition, with not cent
in the treasury and no means of placing it there
except by direct taxation, We are comparative
ly easy on the money question. In addition
to all this, while we are unit on resistance to
death in the struggle for independence, all
having the utmost confidence in our rulers and
they in the bravery and patriotism of their
armies. the North presents constant scene Of
internal strife and discord in which they show
to the reading world that the people distrust
their leaders and the leaders in turn distrust
the soldiery; so that nothing is more fully es
tablshed than that whenever we can meet
them face to face and hand to hand We are an
over match for them.
are however deficient in one very i'm
portant particular and that is in having no
Navy. In this particular the North is
our superior and We may not expect to free
ourselves from them until We place our govern
ment in condition to meet them upon water
Nothing is truer than the adage that we live
to learn,' and it seems to US that if the war de-
partment at Richmond has not yet learned that
sand batteries along our coast are of no use and
that navy is indispensable to the final secu-
ring of our independence, that committee
aught speedily to be appointed to wait on the
department and give it the necessary instruc-
ton.
We are apprsed that the war department
might confront the committee with the insin-
uation that it is deficient in funds; but then,
We ar unwilling to believe that the Southern
Confederaoy is unable to raise from one to two
hundred millions of dollars to invest in navy.
Indeed, should the war continue another
twelve months it will be found that the plan
ters and others living Immediately on the sea
coast would have saved money by making a
present to the government of Is or hundred
gun-boats carrying from one to ten guns each.
The Yankees have not nor will they attack
our Southern frontier except by water, but
whenever and wherever they can reach an
important town or neighborhood by water
they may be expected to be found sooner or
later, plllaging and burning everything that
comes in their way.
. Newbern never will be attacked except bv
water and the sooner our military authorities
realize the fact the better AS soon as our
river is made impregnable for 20 miles down
it. if it is not already SO made, we shall be
secure for should they attempt to come
here, twenty thousand strong it would
be just as easy to turn the waters Of the Neuse
back to their source as to get them to venture
upon land beyond the reach of their boats
If we had a dozen gun-boats here, carrying
guns each, no Yankee would show his nose
In these waters for twenty years to come. -
THROUGH the Norfolk Day Book we are in