Spirit of the age. [volume] (Raleigh, N.C.) 1849-1865, 1864-02-15
The Beast.

OF Maj. Genl. BENJAMIN. F.. Batter, of
the U. S. Arny-everyghere known as
The Beast" the Richnond Examiner
says:
"Ia command Of all the Confederate
prisoners, he will be in Yankee opinion,
emineatly the right man in the right
place Brutality and cruelty have been
displayed in ample measure by others
among their generals yet by a happy
admixture Of pettifogglng chieanery with
blood thirsty barbaritgs by ingenious
inveRtion of oppressive subterfuges and
ansinuatlng devices for ~t9rturing the feel
ings of the helpless victims who fall be-
meath his clutches-Batler has won a
deserved pre~eminence Of infany, and
stands. ".fde55s Grjnce2s'on the roll Of
t%yrannieal instruments, which comprises
such distinguished names as Mcneil,
Turchin, and MilroT. Bethel showed
coRelusively that the4s1 Of battle was
not the appropriate thestre upon which
to display his rare ana suroassing tai
en<e. After the shoctZ Of baltic has
passed, and the work Of danger been
performed by Others xpore adapted to
that common place duty, his sphere of
glocy expands before him. Then, like
the jackall, he comes il to gorge himself
with the spoil. Then he addresses him
self to the co~ngenial work of accumula-
trng plumber, while he enfoEces "ldyal
oaths,' and Of insulting rome in honor
sf the flag.
We may, it is true, attempt ~retalia-
vtion yet how pale I'D feeble will be
our attempt IN comparison with the orig
lnal and fertile cruelty of Butler We
! may ransack our penitentiaries and dis
cover some organism in which the eccen-
ricity of nature has left a complete
-"vacuity Of the moral sense, and in which
she has implanted til prolific seeds Of
9 evil passions and base inclinations. YeI
where, even among tenn, SHALL we fine
that combination Of Malignant and re
pulsive qualities coa2inea with sncf
bsaRa re .ensitiv'
lousy illustrates the Hlaracter of Butler
Even among the woRt of them woul
be found to linger sume traces of i'm
pressible humanity, some regard for tn
.decencies of life, and some reverence TO
age, for sex and misfortune. None cer
tainly couldsbe produced capable of co.
: ping with the nero Vi New Orleans i
a vocation for which nature has espe-
ciaFy fitted him, and in which practic
has given him aptitude.
The. Wilmington journal thus sketch
<es we animal
B. T. Butler, formerly a lawyer
Lowell, Massachusetts, and now a Maio
General in the volunteer army Of til
UNITED States, once enjoyed a fair cha
acter among men. Hs was looked upo
as a keen and rising lawyer, and deserv
-edly so, for Butler is a man of more tina
average ability. He stood high with h
party, and " Ben Butler was the repre-
Sc tatiye man Of the young Democrat
of Massachusetts, for the time when, j
point of years, he, could have occupil
That position, is not isng past. Butte
although so frequently referred to
>. 'Old Butler. is bat nttle-very lit
over forty years of age. As for his pc
scnal appearance, thai men could east
! overlook, whiNt was supposed to be sim
ly an eceentricity of nature, meaning I
harm; IfButler had turned out diferer
: ", the obliquity Of his vision, the c
ing proturbance of his eyebrows, al
!, the squelchy relation generally existir
between his neck and Shoulders won
have soon been forgotten ;-nay, peol
might even nave come to entertain g Sc
4 of respect for these peculiarities. B
Butler has taken his own course, and
4 pursuing that course has earned for hil
self a notoriety under which he writht
f He knows that not only throughout t
I broad limits CT the Confederacy, but al
s in far. off foreign lands, his name is ney
r mentioned without the addition of Il
Beast" lie may effectto sneer at t
t refusal Of the Confederate government
hold intercourse with him, orto cond,
: exchanges through him. but it gals b
n to the qnick. From the nature of thin
it must 10 SO. 1t IS a terrible thing /
= a man, by his W vile apd brutal acts
i cut himself of from hisspecies ; a m
d 100, capable OF. other thingB-a man
strong intellect, who he cannot feel
J. promptings of humanity, has at lie
IS sense enough to perceive the terri
It sabasement Of his situation, AID to KIN
er that now, henceforth, until the 81,
d, closeS7oyer him, the name he has carr
- will cling to him ike the shirt of y.
I'D sus; and that his sins viii be yisi