Evansville daily journal. (Evansville, Ind.) 1863-1866, 1863-12-21
Letters from Washington

WASHINGTON CRY, Dec. 13, 1863
Editors Journal:
The most casual observer cannot fo;I
to notice how solicitous the entire Con
Perhead press is, in regard to the suffer.
lngs and woes of the freedmen The
sutferlngs and privations of our gallant
soldiers, dying of starvation in loafbsoma
rebel Prisonsi the trials and sorrows Of
thousands of widows and orphans in our
land, fail to excite a. single emotion Of
sympathy in the breasts of our Conner.
head journalists, or occasion a solitary
comment; while whole columns of eIah
orateiy penned articles are devoted to
the woes of our freedmen" The In
'e'T'gencer, of this city, has been filled
lately with articles of this character. So
with the entire Copperhead press through.
out the country. jeff Davis, as will he
seen from the following extract from his
late message, is equally exercised on the
same subject He says: "Nor has less
unrelenting warfare been waged by these
pretended friends of human rights and
liberties against the unfortunate negroes
wherever the enemy have been able to
gain access, they have forced into the
ranks OF their army every able-bodied
man that they could seize. and have ei.
ther left the aged, the women and the
children, to perish by starvation. or have
gatnered them into camps, where thew
nave been wasted by frightful morIoi
ity., Without clothing or shelter. often
without food; incapable, without supervi.
sion, OF taking the most ordinary nre.
cautions against disease, these helpIess
oepenoents, accustomed to have their
wants supplied by the foresight of their
masters, are being rapidly exterminated /
wnerever brought in contact with the in.
yaders- By the Northern man, ON whose
aeep-rooted prejudices no kindly-restraip-
ing influence Is exercised, they are treat. +
ea with aversion and neglect There is
htt:e hazard in predicting that in all 10 :
caiities where the enemy have gained a
temporary foothold, the negroes. who
uhder our care, increased skiold in num-
Der since their importation into the colo.
MES OF Great Britain, will have been re. -
iueed by mortality, during the war tn I
not more than one-half their previons =
number. Information on tb;o I
'u6ect is derived, not only from our "
'Wn observation and the reports of the 10
le0rnns anAa oAIa~.41z~-I - -
he enemy, but also from statements q,
allies IN the NorTn 'uI CuPrvuI vf.vy "vte II
to make out OF the false
statement that millions of dollars were
being spent for the niger" :" The en- o
tire message of Jeff's is of such n
gloomy, mournful character, as to GER = =
tainly cause our Copperhead friends to
put on sack-cloth and ashes
There is a rumor current in this city
to-day, and is so we'll authenticated as
to appear in the Chronicle this morning,
that Vice President Stephens and other
Peace Commissioners, are on their way
North with propositions of peace; and
that if refused to come in their oticiat
capacity, they will come North in their
private capacity. 1 give the rumor for
what it is worth. +
Contrary to my expectations, the 70
tomac army seems to be preparing tor
winter quarters The shadow of the
C.pital. like that of the fatal upas tree,
seems to enervate and destroy all who
come under its influence. The Potomac
army is too near Washington, and too
much governed by red-tape to ever ac-
complish much. -
The Secretary Of War has at last con- |
sented, at the urgent request of Gen.
Mcclellan, that "Yorktown may be !
inscribed upon the banner ofthe Potomac
/ Army. It will be remembered in this
connection, that Little Mac, with $4,000
men, ,besieged Y orktown. for sir weeks, and
then allowed the garrison holding it, only
J16, 900 men, to escape unharmed! But
then the Copperheads are urging Mac
for the Presidency, and, of course, every
achievement or victory through his stra-
tegy and skill, must be heralded through
the land.
Yesterday, the members of the Senate
and House of Representatives, visited the
Russian feet, now lying off this city.
.. The leaving of the Baltic to prevent be-
inp frozen in this winter, and the marked
attention paid by our Government to the
s Russian Admiral, and the presence In
= the open seas of such formidable feet
70 as the Gear has sent out, occasions many
70 surmises and much uneasiness In Eu
rope. =. -.EJ ..
os President Lincolns proposition to the
y rebels, and his plan for re-construc
IN ton, are hailed with delight here. I'm
IN IN der the proposed plan, if adopted by th'
ID ID insurgents, the Union sentiment OF tn
1t, South may have full development, an'
an we might almost hazard the opinlo
d, that not many months will elapse before
at in Tennessee, Arkansas, Louisiana an
IN Texas, there will be working State gov
my ernments, and a representation IN Cor
gress. :.
/. So far, beyond the perfection Of i
. organization and the arrangement OF tt
Committees, bat little has been done
- Congress. There is remarkable un
We. nimity of sentiment and coucert OF actlt
among the Union members, and Il
By country may confidently look for son
ssIi .gi healthy legislation. Speaker Colfax pr
,u.e sides with dignity, and gives promise
look @ great usefulness in his responsible po
the tion OCcIDENT.
re-
tlhns thsr 1L[ Tribute of Respect.