The Nashville daily union. [volume] (Nashville, Tenn.) 1862-1866, 1864-04-09

Correspondence of the Nashville Ualou.I
wAsnivorox, April ., 1864


haired sage to the little urchin in his
" First Reader But the only practical
;oak thus far reported was perpetrated
by the President 1t was the day fixed
by sentence for the execution in this
CITY of two criminals, jeremiah Hend-
ricks convicted of the murder Of Dem
mis- Shanahan, and Emanuel Pollard,
(colored) convicted of the murder of
George Butler, (colored). The collins
were brought in, religious rites were adj
ministered, and everything in readiness
for the solemn tragedy, when Marshal
Lamar entered with the death War
rants of the prisoners and read from
the endorsement on the back thereof,
q Sentenced committed to imprisonment
for life at hard labor in the peniten-
tiary. April l, 1868. A LNcoLE'
imprisonment for life at hard labor
in a penitentiary seems a hard enough
fate, and men are apt to declare with
out reflection, that they would prefer
death; but life IS boon that almost
every man holds paramount to all
earthly considerations, whatever prOies-
sions men may make to the contrary
notwithstanding. Men impeyH their
lives for the combination of gain, glory,
and patriotism, but they never volun-
tarily and deliberately sacrifice their
lives for either. BY way Of comparison
we may say that one or two millions OF
men have imperiled their lives for their
country since the present war began,
and many thousands have lost their
lives in the fortunes of war, but II 1t
were announced upon assurance that
could not be doubted that the sacrifice
| Of q single life would end the rebellion,
how many candidates would compete
for the honor Of deliberately ascending
the scaffold and leaping into eternity
Would there be one, or more? l nope
I do not underrate the patriotism OF the
human family. There is something in
the thought of shutting off this mortal
coil. and dashing "uninitiated, into
the mysteries of that bourne from
whence no traveller returns" that
makes as rather bear the ills we have
than flee to others that we know not
of So it was with Hendricks and Pol
lard and the offer of life, even in pen
itentiarv, at time when they fancied
themselves beholding the last Of earth,
was received with a gratitude that
shook their frames, and caused the
sympathetic to bless that preponder-
ance of mercy that tempers the justice
of Abraham Lincoln.
General Grant, after spending few
DAYS with the army of the Potomac,
left for Fortress Monroe on Thursday
evening, with the view, no doubt, of
coming to a full understanding with
General Butler as to the condition of
his Department, and the part that his
(Butler's) command is to play in the
great military drama now being inaugu-
rated in Virginia. BY this means the
time spent in preparation is not lost to
General Grant
From persons recently returned from
the front, / learn that General Grant
has already won golden opinions among
the troops by the simplicity and I'M
ostentiousness of manner which char
acterize him everywhere and on all oc-
casions. They say that he is not cir
cumstance to a second Lieutenant Of
the ordinary cut and finish. This child
ike simplicity of General Grant is a
strong ground of hope, for only two
characteristics beget modesty-those
characteristics are goodness and greatness.
The General, therefore, is good, or he is
great, and very likely he is both.
1t is rumored, but upon what author
ity know not, that General Mcclellan
is to be ordered to the command of the
defences of Washington. If it should
ever be necessary to again defend
Washington, no more safer hands than
McClellan's could be found to conduct
such defence, for whatever may be said
of his ability to command great armies,
none will question his ability as an
Engineer and Artillerist His appoint
ment to command just now would
doubtless be hailed with modification
by those Copperheads who have expect
ed so much from the plea of martyrdom
It is not altogether unlikely and it
would result in overtures to Gen Grant
to become their Presidential hero.
But "war-talk " is call talk and no
cider" at this time The weather abso-
lutely forbids all hope of very early
action It rains and SHOWS alternately, |
and then all together as has been the
case to-day. There is no snow upon the |
ground but it has been falling in tor
rents, with mixture of fine rain, all |
the forenoon. Moreover the day is a /
pattern of several of its most modern
predecessors, and we have now a sur
face so completely saturated with water
that but little stirring is necessary to
render the whole yielding and PHI
ant mass" Culpepper mud will soon
supercede Fredericksburg mud" in
the moving of the army of the Potomac,
and we may expect to hear of little else
until early May
In the meantime concentration and
preparation can and viii 60 on I do
not speak from the card, but if l
have read the signs of the times cor
rectly General Grant IS among those
who recognize the paramount import
ance of freeing Washington and her
surroundings from the threatening of
contingencies" by freeing Virginia of
rebel occupation by large armies. If he
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