Brownlow's Knoxville Whig, and rebel ventilator. [volume] (Knoxville, Tenn.) 1863-1866, 1864-10-26
The Letter Of Etheridge.

The following letter to Gov. johnson, couched in
Enthusiastically violent and vulgar language is
from the notoriou. Emerson Etheridge one of the
Mcclellan electors for this State who now takes
oncnse at Mr.. Lincoln for setting the negroes free,
and seeking to make them the equals Of their own
ers It Is an extraordinary document and we pub
fish it for the qdiGcoton of Mcclellan men in East
Tennessee, who ike Mr.. Etheridge, are troubled
about the Niger
In December, 1861 Etherdge was delighted al
seeing slaves run from their masters, and he viewed
Kentucky city rs "a hell hole of treason" His
opinion then was that negro sny es were In ALL
RESPECTS BETTER AND MORE RESPECT
ABLE THAN THEIR REBELLIOUS MAS
TIERS" and he believed that every rebel should
be put TO WORK UNDER A NEGRO
OVERSEER" This is awful language to come
from conservative Mr. Lincoln is to blame for
it; for if he had made Etherdge Military Governor
Of Tennessee or even Judge in lieu Of Joe Holt he
would hold these opinions yet
PADucAB, December 10, 1861.
Dear Sir have been here since Sunday. !
found the place full of struggling Tennesseeans,
who have fed from the despotism at home--the
drafting process-whch, because of the intense ex.
element and resistance it produced, has been tenn
pofNrlly SuspendCu Inc greatest TeslsJdHcc was IN
Weakly Carroll, Henderson, McNsry and Hardin.
Some Of the scoundres who voted for secession--for
the war-have fed, and if the Federal troops we're
in my old district for week, it would put full
brigade in the field But the difficulty in getting
to this place. Two days since two men from Har-
din and McNairy arrived here, leaving their armed
squad of thrty-two the woods of Carroll. They
came TO ask at what point on the State line their
comrades might hope to meet Federal aid. They
had to return heart-b broken without it.
The people there are daily praying for an advance
Of the Union army, and it seems hard that they
should so long endure the suspense and disappoint-
ment Through these fugitives i have been able to
communicate with my friends in Tennessee. The
Union sentiment is stronger than | supposed it to
be- and Increasing One Federal victory in Ken.
lucky will be the dcath-line of rebellion in Ten
nesee. Great complaint exists here because Of the
lenent, do-nothing policy of Gen. Smith, the COM
mandant at this post. vigorous policy is abso-
luley necessary. This is hell-hole OF trenson and
every suspected villain ought to be put to work
der a negro overseer. Until the rebels are made to
suffer in the CUTS, they will be insoent and act the
part Of spies. ] shall remain here some days longer,
and until j can hear directly from those with whom
/ ain anxious to communicate 1t is but forty miles
TO the Tennessee line near which il rebel camp
in this state It is this camp which makes the fight
Of tho Tcnnesseeans hazardous.
Whenever the Federal army advances, those who
have been drafted ION paper will DO ordered under
arms and then the exodus will begin in earnest
One entire district in my county refused to permit
draft and were QUOTED only by assurance that it
would be suspended. "Contrabands are arriving
daily from Bnrnots lin Kentucky constituents
who have lost their rights under the Federal Gov
crnment. Their apology for their pedestrian per-
formance i. that their rebel masters are preparing
to run them of to Dixie. OF course all Union men
are glad TO see them come and not one of the trail
tors will ever be- permitted to reclaim them Why
should they be? The negroes are in all respects
better and moro respectable than such masters.
Now is the time for action a counter current
has set in, and little energy will produce the best
results. II any one wishes to know when / will re-
turn, tell him not while | can do the thieves and
trnitors in rebedom any harm.
Yours. truly,
Signed EN-. ErHERIDeE.
Hon. A. johnson, y. g S. Washington, ID. O,