Raftsman's journal. [volume] (Clearfield, Pa.) 1854-1948, 1864-08-31

fianking-until Grant got whore he is now.
And what is the next result? Grant has
lost seyenty-iYe or eighty thousand men
more than Lee had at the outset t,-and is no
nearer taking Richmond than at the first
and Lee, whose front had never been broken,
holds him completely IN check, and has men
to spare TO invade Maryland and threaten
" ashlngton Sherman, to be sure, is be-
fore Atlanta but suppose he is, and suppose
he takes it? ou know that the farther he
goes from the base of his supplies, the weak
er he grows, and the more disastrous de-
feat will be to him. And defeat may come.
SO, in military point Of view, should GER
talnly say ouI position was better than
yours. As to money: we are richer than you
are \ on smile: but admit that our paper
Is worth nothIng-it answers as q circul;-
ting medium, and We hold it all ourselves
Ii every dollar Of it We're lost we should, as
We have no foreign debt to pay, be none the
poorer. But, it IS worth something; 1t has
the solid basis Of 4 large cotton crop, while
yours rests on nothing, and you owe all the
world. As to resources: we dopot lack for
arms and ammunition, and we havgstill ! wide
territory from which to gather supplies
Sc.you see we are not in extremitieS But,
II We were-;I we were without money, with
ont food, without weapons-if our whole
country was desolated, and onr raImies crush
ed and disbanded could we, without Civ
ing up our manhood, give up our right to
govern ourselves? Would you not rather
die, aud feel yourself man, than live, and
be subject 10 foreign power!
''From your standpoint there is a force
in what YOU say, replied the Colonel But
we did not come here TO argue with YOU. Mr.
Davis. We came, hoping to find some non
orable way TO peace, and L am grleved to
hear you say what you do. " hen / have
seen your young men dying on the battle
field, and your old men, women and ehil-
dren starving in their homes, have felt !
could risk my life to save them. For that
reason | am here; and | am grieved-
grjeved-that there is no hope.
II know your motives, Col. Jaques, and
| honor you for them; but what can | do
more than | am doing? | would give my
poor life gladly, If it would bring peace and
good will TO the two countries; but 1t would
not. 1t Is with your own people you should
labor 1t is they who desOlate our homes.
burn our wheat fields, break the wheels Of
wagons carrying away our women and chil-
dren, and destroy supplies meant for our
sick and wounded. At your door lies all
the misery and the crime Of this war, and it
is a fearful-feariul account.
Not all OF it, Mr.. Davis. ] admit fear
iNi account Dut II - iDi tttt dC pui upci'
The passions of both sides are aroused.
Unarmed men are hanged, prisoners are
shot down i'll cold blood 10y yourselves.
Elements of barbariSm are entering the war
from both Sides that should make us-you
and me, as Christian men-Shudder to
think OF. In Gods name, then, let Us stop
it. Let us do something, concede some
thing, to bring about peace. You cannot
expect with only four and half millions,
as Mr. Benjamin says you have, to hold out
forever against twenty millions.
Again Mr. Davis smiled.
DO YOU suppose there are twenty mil
lions at the North determined To crush Us 7
Il do.-to crush your Government. \
small number OF our people, a very small
number, are your friends, Secession
The rest differ about measures and candi-
dates bus are united in the determination
to sustain the Union. Whoever is elected
in November, he must be committed to
vigorous prosecu; ion of the war.
Mr.. Davis still looking incredulOus, | re
marked
1T Is So sir. Whoever tells you other
wise, deceives YOU think know North
ern sentiment, and | assure you it is 50.
You know we have q system OF lyceum lee
turing in our towns. At the close OF these
lectures, it is the custom Of the people to
come upon the platform and talk with the
lecturer. This gives him an excellent OPP
portunity of learning public sentiment.
Last winter | lectured before nearly a hun
dred of such associations all over the NORTH
from Dubuque to Bangor, and took pains to
ascertain the feeling OF the people. | found
a unanimous determination to crush the re-
bellion and save the Union at every sacrl-
fee The majority are III favor OF Mr. Lin
coin and nearly all Of those opposed to him
are opposed TO him because they think he
does not fight you with enough vlgor The
radical Republicans, who go for slave sui
frage and thorough confiscatlon, are those
who will defeat him if he is defeated But
if he is defeated before the people, the
House will elect worse nan-worse mean
for YOU. 1t is more radical than he ls-yOu
can see that from Mr.. Ashley reconstruc-
ton bill-and the people are more radical
than the House Mr. Lincoln, / know, Is
about to call ont five hundred thousand
more men, and | don tsee how you ucan hold
out much longer but if you do, you will
only deepen the radical feeling of the North
ern people. They would now give you fair,
honorable geiterous, terms but let them
suffer much more, let there be dead man
In every house as there is now in every VII
lage, and they will give you no terms
they will insist on hanging every rebel south
ot-Pardon my terms. L mean no Of
fence
You give no offence he replied, smi
ling very pleasantly. i wouldn t have
you pick your words. This is frank, free
talk and | like you the BETTER for saying
what you think TO on.
L was merely going to add, that let the
Northern people once really feel the war
they do not feel it yet--and they. will insist
on hanging every one of your leaders.
..Well admitting all YOU say, | can't see