The Wheeling daily register. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1864-1878, 1865-03-29
The Resources Of s,atesman.hip.

I
l.eace may be secured and further strife
prevented by the exercise Of statesman
ship alone A number of circumstances
combine To create and strengthen thls
belief. If we take only the representa-
tons made by the Southern leaders them
selves, the conclusion cannot be avoided
that their military power is we'll nigh
broken, and that many, perhaps major
ity, of the Southern people are DESTROYS
of peace even at the expense of the III
dependence for which they have hereto
fore so bravely fought. The expedient
of arming negroes and placing them ih
the ranks as soldiers is confession OF
weakness and an acknowledgment of the
inability of their army of whites to cope
unaided with the numerical superiority
of the Northern armies. That measure
was forced upon them by the exhaustion
of the white population able TO beaa
arms, and was adopted with eXtremc rd-
luctance and at the last moment Bud
even this expedient, according to Mr.,
DAVIS message comes too late to be Of
much avail. Even upon the supposition
that the negro slaves will fight as brave
ly and intelligently for the South as her
white soldiers have done, much prcciolts
time must be lost before they can he OF
gained and equipped and drilled; ami
this delay may prove fatal to the cause.
In the next place, the reply of the Con
iederate Congress to their Presidents
message evinces a degree Of acrimcny
and hostility of sentiment between the
legislative and executive branches Of tide
government inconsistent with that hat
mony which their condition demands :
1t is further evident, from the inpas
stoned appeals which have recently been
issued, that a feeling OF the hopelessuess
Of their cause is rapidly springimg up a.
the minds of the Southern people. Ii
it were not SO, these eXhortations womb
be unnecessary; but, 50 fan a. can be
seen here, they fall without effect upon
the people. In fact, they have already
done all that is possible for them to do
Their able-bodied men are in the army
or under the sod; they have given their
property freely and, having sacrificed all.
appeals for further contributions are al
most like mockery. 1t only remains fpr
them to make the best terms of snrreh-
der they can, or prolong the war with
the means at their disposal, hopeless.. Il
success but sternly resolved to sell the,,
lives dearly and win soldiers deg th!
In view of these facts which mn one
can deny, present truthful pictur. of
the present condition of e Confederate nf
fairs, what is the dutr,; Of the rrd.tal
governments "ha' policy does hum;p,i.
y anu sllicere .esire for national uni
" suggests mere are but two ways hit
open 10 th' Confederates; either peace
anu 'hi' n upon terms not absolutely re
PuSna ut to their honor and sense at
ipp .ly pride, peace and Union WITHOUT
passing under the yoke and having ere-
ly the poor boon of life of beggary and
humiliation given to them by a conquer
or whom they hate; or else a cOntinuahce
of their hopeless struggle, mown do WI
by the merciless scythe of war and lill
ing many brave men i'll return, until he
South is rendered desolate and her pEin-
tatiOns become barren waste. Which
of these alternatives the rebels shall
adopt is to be decided 10y the Federal
government; upon it alone must rest tie
responsibility for the est ,hlishmcnt of
peace or the continuance of war The
Confederacy is held together now hyIar
garments furnished by the conduct of lie
Federal administration. For mo,il hs
past, the rebel leaders have appealed hot
so much to the desire of the people for
Southern independence as to their iaars
OF degradation and oppression. They
have kept constantly before their minds
the idea that it was impossible to make
peace with the United States government
except upon such terms as would make
their lives burden too grievous tn he
borne. if indeed the conqueror would
grant them the misery of life itself
The failure, hitherto, of all nego-
tiations for peace has only
added confirmation to this belief, so that
low it constitutes almost the only bond
which keeps the rebellion together; the
Confederacy would soon crumhle to
pieces if a return to their allegiance TO
the Federal Government promised the
rebels liberty and self-reSpect. Let the
President of the United States isspc a
rturlama ION OF address Ia the Southern
people offering them liberal terms uf Inn
II stV, terms which we can we'll atfrltl 10
giNcmd which they eau aud ought to ac-
cept, aud there is every reason to bclirvt
that II speedy and honorable peace n,ay
lie secured Noe is the time; there i. no
necessity fol another battle or the s,illl
ing of another dropof blood The sword
and the cannon have done their work
and the moment has arrived when states
manship must begin If we are lighting