The Portland daily press. [volume] (Portland, Me.) 1862-1921, 1863-05-20
"wednesday, the LIST day of Jul next,


The Rebels Becoming Dispirited.
While many of our loyal people seem at sea-
sons to lose faith in the final triumph OF the
Right over Wrong in our present national
struggle and are almost disposed to think all
is sunshine, progress and encouragement with
the rebels, we are oc occasionally permitted to
look behind the scenes and thus to free our
selves from the decisions that gather about the
mind. In our haste and Impotence we lose
our tempers and betray scepticism rather than
trust, and in doubling the success of the
Right we afford grounds for suspicion that
our fears are stronger than our hopes. The
following, from an editorial in the Richmond
Enquirer OF the 18th inst, may serve to disa-
buse some minds aboring under depression,
and 10 quicken their faith in better results. 1t
shows that the intelligent rebels look with
serious apprehension upon the results of the
contest upon which they have staked so much,
and that they feel the tightening coils of that
anaconda which is yet destined to crush out
the rebellion and to reduce the entire South
to loyal obedience under the Stars and Stripes
There is evidently to be an active summer
campaign. The plan of the enemy seems to
be to keep our attention constantly excited
ut every point at once, so that no part of our
whole width of frontier may be freed from the
urgent immediate apprehension of an attack.
Then they can strike where they think our
line is the weakest, or where our defenders
are least prepared, and If repused, they can
retire and direct a blow at some other quarter.
In the meantime they can bag much plumber
and cause much sorrow and heart break to our
people by expeditions through thinly peoped
regions, destitute Of troops. They can also
force more and more on our people within
their lines the hated oath Tor quiet life and
to save their property from confscation. Thus
they can both demoralize and rob us within
our own borders, preparing all the while for
serious assaults and delivering them just when
they are ready and where they choose. II is
hard to say at what point they are most active
Just now. Ii one looks south-westward it
would seem that the State of Mississippi is the
region of most extensive operations. Immense
armies are gathering around Vicksburg, and
while preparations are in progress for new as
sauIt upon that place, the back country is dew
astated and the people plundered by cavalry
.~;fis :. bat OF. tba same plnu,ent rharesfno-is
for another attack, by sea or by land, or both
at once. The object may be to prevent Gem
eral Beauregard from sending away any of his
troops which now defend Charleston.
At the same instant Gen. Burnside threat
ems East Tennessee, and Gen. Hooker, largely
reinforced, is expected to cross the Rappahan-
mock somewhere or anywhere from Culpepper
to Port Royal to keep some of our forces EN-
ployed in the defense of Richmond Rein
forcements are sent to Fortress Monroe. The
gunboats are harrassing North Carolina. In
the Raleigh Progress of the 18th, we read !:
The gunboats continue to prowl up and down
the Chowan and Perquimans rivers. They
steal negroes silver ware, jewelry and every
thing they can lay their hands on, and have
broken up a number of fisheries. They stole
some $4,000 worth of jewelry from man
named Cook, breaking up his furniture and
committing other depredations. In one in
stance they entered soldiers house and broke
up his furniture and crockery, &c.
Five or six thousand Yankees are reported
to be in Plymouth, and several gunboats are
in the sound. Some persons entertain the idea
that the force at Plymouth mediate an expe-
diton up the Roanoke river. The great num-
bers of the enemy's forces and the multitude
of their shipping make it easy for them to ca
ry on, simultaneously, all these operations, .and
they do not care for delay, for it is our people
who are suffering, not theirs. The longer this
style of warfare lasts, the greater will be the
mass of plumber carried North, the more of
the mills, machine shops and railroads they
Will nave utstroytu, tue ulOTc vi OUT
resources they will have ruined and wasted,
and the better chance they will have for an
irresistible advance at last.
They are in no hurry. Last year indeed
there was urgent haste TO get the rebellion
crushed in 30 days, or in 90. Now we hear
much less of that vehement urgency, and the
whole Yankee nation seems to have laid out
its accounts for war as the settled business of
life, rather than consent to peace and separa-
ton. They are perfectly willing TO fight upon
the present system for 20 or 40 years. They are
willing during all that time to go on submit
ting to such defeats as they have sustained at
Fredericksburg and on the Rappahannock, be-
cause by these defeats they lose not foot Of
ground. They lose nothing but men, and men
are of less value to them than to us. One
thousand gallant Southern lives lost to us are
i'll balanced by the killing of 5000 of their
base hirelings. jackson alone is a dearer loss
to us than Gen. Hooker and his whole 10000
would be TO them, and then speculate that 1t
may be Lees turn next, or Longstreet's, and
that, at any rate they are killing US slowly off,
and they are in the meantime, stealing much
and running more, and their women and chill
dren are safe at home-many Of them dressed
better than ever before, in the spoils of our
homes Jwhle Confederate women and children
are routed out Of house and home and dress
ed like wild beasts. In short, If we can en-
dure this war for the next halt century, they
can and they will wish us joy of our victories
and our glory. We urge nothing, want moth
Ing, only state the facts. Such is the policy
of the enemy. Such is his calculation, such
is his interest and intent.