The weekly pioneer and Democrat. [volume] (Saint Paul, Minn. Territory) 1855-1865, 1864-06-03
a Speech at Charlottesville, Virginia
..He does mot Encourage the Rebels
to Believe In lhe speedy Termina-
ton Of the War.

tion Of the War.
From the Richmond Examiuef of the 18th.
No more preposterous exhibition has been
Charlottesville beheld the other day on the ar
rival ofthose two Yankee Brigadier Generals
who had been captured in the night attack by
Gordon's brigade in the Wilderness The two
worthless are named Shaler and Seymour, the
former has visited Richmond before, in his ca
pacity of Captain of o company of the New
York 9TH, when that dandy regiment of Co
than cockneys was entertained here on the
occasion of the Monroe funeral obsequies. Sey-
mOur is the same commander who, at Ocean
Pond. in Florida, hnrled his negro troops up
against the muzzles of Confederate guns. If
he had been csnght, on that occasion, in the
very act of leading Runaway slaves to attack
their masters, it is presumed that he would
have been hanged or shot, as he well deserved
to be.
1t was the fortune of those two Brigadiers
to be first marched into Orange Court House
with about twelve hundred other prisoners.
They were halted opposite the railing which
inclosed the Courthouse, but while Shaler
stood in sufficiently natural manner. and
with apparent unconcern, the other furnished
amusement to the few spectators by his stud
led attitudes and highly elaborate glances
Standing extremely erect, with one thumb
stuck in his belt, and evidently regarding him
self as an object Of intense interest to the vii
lage, he first looked up around the windows to
see whether the women were peeping, and
asking their own hearts who the proper young
man in the shoulder-straps could be. Then
looking down upon the sidewalk, where some
little boys, both white and black, were 1--WE
must confess) grinning, he tempered his IA
miliar smile with an austere regard Of fcontrOl,
and shot indignant flashes from his dark eyes,
This was apparently all the notice he vouch-
eafpd tn smal1 q nloco n Oranuo Rut now
comes the absurd part of the affair.
On arriving at Charlottesville. larger town,
able to turn out a greater crowd of spectators,
this whipped brigadier bethought him of hon.
Oring the place SO far as to address his " fell
low-citizens" at the railroad depot. The thing
would seem incredible, yet trustworthy gen.
tlemen avouch the fact that by some unac-
countable, but most culpable connivance of the
officer of the guard, this creature was actually
permitted to make speech to the citizens Of
Charlottesville. They even report the substance
OF the speech, which was to the following ef-
feet: "Gen. Lee may possibly defeat General
Grant and the Federal army; but what of that {?
l trust if he defeat him he may follow up bis
success by takiug Washington and burning it
to the ground. And let him not stop there;
let him capture and burn Baltimore then ad.
vance on Philadelphia and burn that. The at
last we shall have united North, and shall be-
gin to show You what war is."
never done anything in the world but run
away from Finnegan in Florida, and yield him
self up, rescue or no rescue, at the first yell of
Georgians in the Wilderness! We find it hard
to understand, first, why the man was not
bucked and gagged" by the guard, and Sc
condly, why he was not hooted and pelted by
the populace. The trash that he uttered was
merely safe piece of the most vulgar bragga-
docia, virulent with all the spite which usually
rankles in mean nature. Yet we have heard
Confederate citizens, apparently zane, abso-
lutely compliment the "pluck" and dash" of
this miscreant's harangue.
Our people, unhappily, have such diseased
appetite for OratOry, are so resolute to have
every man "define his position" are SO easily
duped by the show of everything spirited and
plucky Cn language,) that they will even listen
to the impudent rant of a despicable being
like this. If he cannot fight, he can at least
talk; his tongne is sharper than his sword !; if
he cannot advance to the burning and plunder
of Charlottesville, at the head OF his brigade,
he can at least electrify the citizens thereof by
o small TRADE of defiant phraseology.
On the whole, this whole scene is the acme
of absurd impropriety. The guard who per-
mitted it deserves punishment; and if such
" speeches are to become o permanent in
stitution. we do not see the use of buck and
gag. ~ 1870
!. The President received, shortly after the
battles of the Wilderness, . dispatch from San