The New York herald., 1864-10-12
Tho Slavery Questton-The Rebellion
Turning Against Itseif


which the leading conspirators Of the South
plunged the Southern States into this suicidal
rebellion were, first, that cotton was king;
and, secondly, that King Cotton, as the cham
pion Of Southern slavery, brought to the Test
Of war, would command an alliance, offensive
and defensive from England and France, and
an active political balance OF power from the
Northern pro-slavery wing of the old national
democratic party.
But, in casting down the gauntlet of war at
Fort Sumter, the leaders of the rebellion
speedily discovered that upon this question of
peace at the price of national dissolution, or
war for the integrity of tie Union, the people
of the North were unit for war. JEFF. Davis
and his confederate rulers have since been
taught that cotton is not king, and that their
dreams of foreign Intervention, through the
agency of cotton, were lamentable deiusion.
Then, in their foolish self-concet, they hattered
themselves and their deluded followers with
the fallacy that "the Yankees would not fght;"
that they would soon be reduced to exhaustion
and compelled to recognize Southern confed-
eracy. The people Of the rebellious States In
1861 ran wild with this idea after the first Bull
run, and were not cured of 1t until the terrible
disasters to their Southern confederacy at Vicks-
burg, Port Hudson and Gettysburg, in 1862. 3
Then their lofty pretensions and vain boast
ing were cut down to the declaration that,
though their inland rivers and seaports might
be occupied, and their towns and cities cap
tured by the enemy, the people of the South,
fighting on their own soil, would still be able
to wear out the ruthless invader and win their
independence. But in this estimate they still
kept shut their eyes to the inevitable conse-
quences of the war upon their slave popula-
tion; and this, too, while the great object of
the war on their part was still the security, the
perpetuation and expansion of their system Of
slavery. They had established the organic law
Of their new confederation on the corner stone
Of slavery; they had, after thirty years Of
wrangling with the antislavery faction of the
North, gone into this war to save aud maintain
this system of slavery, and to give it up was
to give up their whole case.
But the terrible pressure of General Grants
combinations of 1864, is at last, bringing the
rebel chiefs to broach the desperate alternative
OF abolisbing slavery to save their confedera-
cy-a proposition which, if adopted, abolshes
the confederacy at once. Yet this proposition,
as the last resort for Southern independence,
has been madly put forward by the Richmond
Enquirer. Its argument is substantially this:-
Our reserves of able bodied white men are ex-
hausted, and two-thirds of those enlisted in
the army are now declared by President Davis
as "absent without leave'-now, when they
are more seriously needed in the field than
ever before. What else, then can We do than
fall back upon our slave population? and wha.
else can we do, in making them soldiers, but
to make them free? This is the alternative to
which the chief organ Of Davis at Richmond
has been reduced. To escape the abolitionsts
jeff Davis is called upon to do their work OF
abolition; and to save the South from subiuga-
ton the confederacy is urged to cut its own
throat.
When such propositions come from Rich
mond, the negro soldier policy pursued by
President Lincoln ceases TO be debatable
question. He is vindicated by the rebels them.
selves, and there is an end OF the slavery dis
cussion in all its bearings. But, while the
policy Of arming the slaves of the South to
fight as free men for pro-slavcry confedcracy
is at last urged upon the rebel Congress, there
is no probability that it will be adopted. The
scheme involves too much of dead loss, and too
much danger to the STAKEHOLDER to be tried;
and the rebel Congress is made up of slave.
holders.
The scheme is preposterous upon its face.
The empire Of JEFF Davis is now practically
raced to about four millions of suffering and
demoralized population, one-half African
slaves. The government, backed by the active
support of twenty-five millions Of people, is
resolved that JEFF. shall be put down. He will
be, and his days are numbered. His negro
population is wanted in the cornfelds. and
cannot be spared from them. His white de-
serters can never be gathered into his service
again His cause is utterly hopeless. The
Southern shareholders, after sacrificing three
or four cotton crops, equal In value to thou
sand millions Of dollars, and slaves and slave.
labor in other capacities equal to another
thousand millions, and after having sacrificed
quarter Of a million Of the white bone and
sinew Of the South to the ruling deapots of this
rebellion, are now very near O wholesome
change Of mind. This proposition from Rich
mond TO arm their slaves will be very apt to
prove the turning point among Southern rebel
from Virginia to Texas. Surely,
in their present situation, when they are asked
TO join "the tyrsnt Lincoln in the military
work Of using their own slaves to aid In abol-
ishing slavery, they will give up the contest in
disgust.
A CANDIDATE FOR CONGRESS. Democratic
Convention to nominate candidate for Con-
grcss, which has on two occasions given Fer
nando Wood one vote, meets again TO- night