The Nashville daily union. [volume] (Nashville, Tenn.) 1862-1866, 1864-05-11
Defence Of Fart Teuncsscans.
Correspondents Of the Nashville Unionl
FoRT GRANGER, FRAsKLIS, Tenn.

May Q, 1864.
The communication, which appeared in
your issue Of yesterday, 18th inst) dated
near Cleveland, Tenn, and headed =" Letter
from the 'front.' over the signature Of
4" Young Soldier" contains some very glar-
ing misrepresentation in regard to East
Tennessee and East Tennesseans generally,
and the citizens of Knoxville in special.
In the first place, allow me TO congratu-
late you, on behalf Of my slandered coun-
trymen, for the courteous protest you enter
70 these imputatiOns in a modest and expli-
cit editorial found in the same issue. Srs,
we can only say, in appreciation Of it, what
you so cautiously state, we " viii not be
found wanting in the day OF trial." We
reiterate this, not egotistically, but for very
lore Of country.
Now, gentlemen, in justice 10 the tt0enty-
fUs thousand brave and fearless patriots, who
have struggled, as it were, through the very
flames Of hell, to assert their loyalty and
undying devotion to the Government we are
serving, let US net allow such a miserable
stigma to be cast upon Us without proper
refutation.
There is a class Of people upon whose
minds these misrepresentation are liable to
take effect, leaving an impression Of rePug-
nance for people who do not deserve It.
But am, nevertheless, fully aware that
here IS still another class, upon whose minds
such sweeping insinuations can no more
take effect than the "rat gnawing the file"
The eyes of this class have been open to the
truth in the premises. They have ever
looked upon the loyalty of East Tennessee
as approaching almost sublime devotion !;
and upon this class the foul breath of SLAM
der and the stigma of disloyalty can have
no effect whatever. This class is composed
Of those who hold the true interests OF our
great and glorious country at heart, and
who are capable of distinguishing between
right and wrong, and to render justice to
whom it properly belongs.
Letus quote from your correspondent, he
says II speaking of the society of Knoxville
and that portion Of country, y" The people
are degraded in the main" Well, this may
be true, or it may not be true. It depends
entirely upon what kind of society this
" Young Soldier" Of the boosted Cth Indiana
Regiment, has been admitted into. II IL be
the society of mulattoes or quadfoons,
which he speaks OF in another portion Of
his communication, we must admit that
that portion of our East Tennessee popuIa-
ton has certainly become demoralized Of
late. But, let your correspondent relate his
own story. He says:
"Well, we have blushed whilst in Knox
Vile 10 think, we were Lincoln soldier.
To see ofiicers-1ctite Oflicers-of the North
ern Army, going linked with loose Inulat-
toes, or quadrOOns, in the streets Of Knox
vile, made the crimson shame rise To our
very forehead
Alas Young Soldier, what an honest
confession you have innocently made! Per
haps in this paragraph you might have
added something a little personal, and not
deviated from truth in the least. We take
this much in good faith, but as totbe asser-
ton that the citizens of Knoxville and sur
rounding country are degraded in the main,
it is as ingenious and falacious as calumny
can make it and all honest eyes will view
it in that light; notwithstanding you fire.
quontly call into requsition the evidence of
" Jeemes." His testimony can't save you.
Now comes the tug of war" Hear
him -
"Talk about your boosted East Tennessee
patriotism and fidelity to the Union We
tell you, Messrs. Editors, that it is all hum
bug !"
We have but little to say in reply to this
sur, as it is too abOlninable to be guIphed
dozen by $4,000, 600 of honest lockers on
on both sides of the beleaguered lines. The
yeriest rebel in all JEFF. Davis's domain
would blush to prevaricate in such horrid
and unjust manner-and had your cores
pendent have used the personal pronoun I,
instead of zoe, and not have implicated any
but himself, should not have troubled you
with the publication Of this exposition 1t
is too lame to attract attention, much less
comment.
So much for this portion Of your unscru-
pulous correspondents meditations on East
Tennessee and her patriotic sons, whose
families, this day and this moment, alas
arc suffering for bread-because they loved
thoir country more than they loved life and
dear ones.
Lee, lift thine eyes of astonishmentl
Besuregard, look out for Petersburg! Jo.
Johnston, you viii just as certainly be
aanked as the crazy Abolitionists Of the
North and the Internal, hot-besded seces-
sionists Of the South were the cause Of this !
cruel and inhuman wari Listen, oh, We
Rebel "ginerdls," says this " Young Sol |
der, after the fashion of Mars -
"This summer will most assuredlv wind !
up the Rebellion and tho old Sizth Indiana. |
will most assuredly have hand in the final |
work"
It is to be presumed that General Grant |
knows what he is about, and that he has so |
stationed the 9th Indiana Regiment, which
contains this live Hoosier, as to secure. in
the best possible manner, his services This
matter being considered rectuns IN GURUS.
we can now feel perfectly satisfied that the
so-called Southern Confederacy will ago
up :" Onward Onward "Young Sol
der" until you have buried yourself in
7lory SO deep, that you viii never heard of
lgain-at least by Tennesseans. And if
here are any more like you, I am confident
t is the prayer of all country-loving, loyal
people, to have them buried in the same
glorious grave of oblivion.
viii take the liberty to add, that Ten
lesseans are fighting for liberty-not for
that do not believe there is
man who bears the proud name Of Ten
lesean, that viii not refute 2 slanderous
let it come from whence it may.
let the history of this war blow the trumpet
f the Tennesseansi There is a little pride
eft in them yet!
Very respectfully, &c,
GEo. EDGAR GRESHAM,
Capt. Co. al" sth +. T. Vol. Cav.
The Press of Monday says ]