The weekly Ottumwa courier. [volume] (Ottumwa, Iowa) 1857-1872, 1862-01-29
From the State Register.
II .attap. frOnyp CAl Grnpk n

Letter from Col. Croker.
The subjoined letter was directed to the
Secretary Of State. BY permission of Mr..
Sells, weare able to lay it before our rea.
ders.. II is too good to be lost. &
HEAD QuARrEns, JEFFERSON CRY, Mo,
k January 9th, 1861.
MY DEAR FRIEND.S The weather for the
last few days has been bad; so that we have
been confined to our. tents, ard time has
dragged heavily. We have very little ac-
-quaintance with the citizens of the town.
The more intelligent and cultivated Of them
are slave owners and they are strong secesh
constituting the upper ten. There are some
mechanics from the north, and considerable
Dutch who are Union people, but they are
not in what is called society. They are gen
orally poor, and as far as have seen, not
over INTELLIGENT The Secesh not only turn
up their noses at them, but they stick them
up at all the soldiers from the North. The
men Of course have to be very circumspect,
but the women take no pains to conceal their
sentiments.
These people, however, seem well enough
satisfied to have a regiment or two of well
disposed, orderly trooys here to keep the
peace for them, protect the r. r. and see
that their negroes do not run away. do
not see that we are here for much else.
have travelled over. Missouri somewhat
extensively, and it Is my candid conviction
that there are not twenty slave holders in
the State that are loyal. They are all Sc,
cesh, either openly or covertly. believe
this to be the case everywhere in the South,
and all this talk about the President and
Congress so shaping their policy that they
may not ALLEVIATE loyal slave owners, is in
my opinion simply ''b,sh." There are no
loyal slave owners. And if troops are to be
sent into these States, simply to keep the
peace and protect their property, this war
will last forever. / an enc that is not in
fatuated with war. don't want to be a
soldier any longer than the dictates .ofan or
binary patriotism will compel me. What
I want is peace, so that can come home to
my wife and children. And because want
peace, want the Government to fix upon
some settled policy in regard to the prosecu-
ton of this war against tie rebels. There
is too much Proclamation--too much paper
work. The war spirit wants to he intensi-
fed, concentrated, directed South through
and through the very heart of Secession,
making use as ne 60 along ofall the advan-
tages that circumstances and the peculiar
situation of the rebels throw in our way
Organize the grand army now IN the field
into one, two or three, separate divisions
Let these divisions start sfrom the border
States directly to the centre Of the hornefs
nest. Let them carry with them emancipa
ton OF the slaves, and authority to make the
war support itself by forced contributions
from the rebel districts, AMI if the devil is
not raised, and thai shortly, l am much
mistaken
! am aware that this is easier said than
done, but know it can be done, and know
it ought to.be done. Get the troops togeth
err; tit them out properly and let.the petty
districts like this take care of themselves
Go at the enemy with fierce and unrelenting
purpose of conqnering him! What if misery
confagration and seryile instruction are the
consequences? Let them follow and let
those who brought on the war reap its bitter
fruits, if reap them they will! What we
! have got to do is to thrash them into terms,
and during the war treat them, as, indeed
they are, our bitterest enemies.