The Nashville daily union. [volume] (Nashville, Tenn.) 1862-1866, 1863-06-25

nav NH~ettei 10 itVh tne pen Of~Ls ~
Mansfield, one of the ablest political
writers and scholars in the West:
Turning the HeBeIs against thesn-
seIves-ATmIng the Negroes.
In the Gastite, of The 18th, appeared the
following paragraph;
The negroes were driven back until
almost forced into the river when they
rallied and charged bayoRfs upon the
rebels, often pinning them TO the earth,
and when their bay were broken,
clubbing their guns and beating out the
brains Of the enemy. The latter came
on with yell of "no quarter"
My informant states that though hav-
ing traversed number of fields, they
have never befofe seen such CHASTITY look
ing cOrpses. This indicates the terrible
desperation with which the oombatants
struggled.
The officers of the two negro regiments
were fearfully cimated, but the negroes
took terrible revenge in the blood of
rebel officers.
This is sad but verified account, and
shows that we have at last reached the
turning point of the war-.what the law
yers call the gist of the action. We
were among the earliest to call for the
arming of the negroes. IL was called
cruel and inhuman. But il was tue
legitimate and shortest way to end the
war. TWAS at first necessary because
assuming man to be n reasonable being,
and the rebels a part of mankind, we
oh ta hat h.,
ton had failed to control events, when
foreign Intervention became out of the
question, and when Memphis, Nashville
and New Orleans--the keys of the
Southwest-had fallen; when all this
had occurred, we were obliged to assume
that reasonable beings would submit TO
the destiny they could not avoid without
compelling that destiny by continuous
and destructive war. The rebels thought
otherwise. They talked ofindependence;
of hatred TO the nation; of eternal
separation; and 1T ia not to be denied
that any people occupying a large space
of country, with large numbers, can
cause a great deal of blood, suffering and
destruction by an obstinate resistance
Ef the entire population of the South
were a free and homogeneous race, one
in feeling and interest, we could not
say there was not much of force aud
reason in their boasted power of de-
fense.
But, unfortunately for that theory,
they are not homogeneous race, one in
feeling and interest. They are exactly
the reverse. They have an antagonism
in themselves, aud it depends upon US to
say whether that antagOnism shall not be
destructive II depends upon Us to say
whether we will not kindle the dsme,
which is as sure to be destructive as fire
in the dry grass Of the praries 70 fire
the M 'gaEines is just as proper and legiti-
mate weapon against the social n 1 tia
~ organization of the South, as il is for
General Grant to mine the Notifications
of Vicksburg. We are beginning TO see
that now, and the real point of the war
has come. What did the rebels count
on in regard.to slaves? And how stands
the matter to-day? They said, "Slave-
ry is our defence. The negroes on the
plantations will cultivate the crops,
while all the able bodied whites go to
the war. Butyou must keep white men
at ihOme 10 cultivate the farms. We
laugh at insurreetion, for the negroes are
totally ignorant, and have no arms"
This was good sense as far az a t0eHt
But most sadly did they count without
their host" They assumed that we
would not get possession OF the country
where the negroes are; would not arm
them and uniform them; and finally,
they would alarm us with threats Of re-
taliation.
All this calculation has signally failed.
We are in possession OF the country
whese the densest negro population is
and they will be rapidly armed, and most
fearful will be that day OF retributlon
when negro slaves come to settle their
long account Of bitter wrong, Talk of
retaliation The negco, once in war,
will make every field gOlgotha-where
there are no prisoners and no after day OF
settlement Is this inhuman Ga whose
heads dees it rest but on the wretched
criminals who have invited it, who have
spurned every offer of mercy--reslsted
every law of their country, and have
openly appealed to heaven and earth Tor
the righteousness of Slavery? The APP
peal will not be in vain. Heaven and
earth will answer, and history will write
the verdict-as il has done upon all the
expressions OF the earth.
The destruction Of the South by her
own people is coming, If the war is ter
minated in no other way. And that is the
exact cause of the phenomens, which now
make the startling news Of the day-the
blue light organizations Of the NOrthlto
aid the enemy, and the rebel raid to-
ward Pennsyl lvania. The rebel leaders
and their sympathizers both see that the
South is rapidly exhausting, aud that II
the negroes are once armed, II is self
destroyed This is quite apparent to in
telligent minds. Hence the case IS des'
peraie, and requires desperate remedies
If negro armies once begin ravaging the
South, il will not be submission but des'
truction. Hence the rebel sympathizerl
want TO arrest the course Of Goyernmen
before il is tao late, and the rebel ARM
of Virgins want to rAvsge Pennsy ylvanii
in order TO alarm and divert the pe0p
Of the North. Both are in vain. Polii
ical exhibitions and rebel raids are boil
unimportant in regard 10 the real plan o
the war. This is TO gain the entire Mis-
sissippi and put a negro army in tn
field.
Let us now look at the actual situation
Of the negro race, and their future IN tn
war. We have now 10000 negro troops
and how they may be depended upon VI
see by Montgomery's regiment 10 sou'
Carolina, by the Louisia, regiment
and by the bat le Of Milliken's B-nd
Hereafter ID will be war % the kniie wit