Cleveland morning leader. [volume] (Cleveland [Ohio]) 1854-1865, 1865-01-30
The stuR ON which Rebel Hopes are

Perhaps the world has never afforded
such fine examples of the possibility of
substituting empty wind for good sense
snd reason, to sustain cause mAnifestly
going TO the dogs, as is now offered to the
rebels by their garrulous press at Rich
moAd. The recent sgitations of the sub
ject of peace have put into the fscile pens
of the Richmond editors unusual sauciness
and extravaganza. They have had a fine
field for Hturning up thenose" and 'Gkeep-
ing stiff upper lip" and going through
other movements equally significant of
their determination to die in the last ditch.
In this time of great adversely and sffiic-
tion, the more extravagant language and
equally extravagant ideas are regularly
dealt out to their readers in order to put
new life into their hopes. The Richmond
Examiner of the oath affords a fine in
stance of what can be said to keep up reb-
Ell hopes. In reviewing the reasons why
they should feel encouraged, notwithstand-
ing the fall of Savannah and Fort Fisher,
it declares that Grants army is only trash,
is merely 'skeleton and name" That
magnificent army Of st least 10000 men
is spoken of as scarcely able to hold its
present position against Lees army of
10000. It then reviews the probable
combinations of Grant in the ensuing
spring campaign, and indulges in the fol-
lowing absurd gsbble about the draft and
the currency; n
Pity that operations on so ,superhuman
q scale should need increased and still in
crossing hosts of men-thRt programmes
which have such majesty of conception,
and fill up the grandiose imsginstions of
editors and spondents-should so
fail for want Of that human trash which
can no longer be bought by the pound and
supplied by contract in sufficient masses to
realize the Yankee ideal of q siege. In
truth, neither the men are forthcoming nor
to be bought, nor is there any money to
pay for them. Lincoln may call for 300,-
600 more men, but it is generally under
stood st the North that this threat of draft
is only TO stimulate volunteering in order
to get bounties, and thst the government
dares not put draft in actual operation.
As for the Yankee finances, they have
evidently been kept afost for some months,
not only by skillfdlly throwing gold upon
the market from time to time, but still |
more by keeping up the continual expect
alton that the South is on the very point |
of breaking down. Last spring, when the |
years campaign began, and it was found !
that there actually were Confederate armies |
in the field able to hold their ground, the |
price of gold in Wall street sprs7g sud |
denly up to 200 from 100. It now stands |
st ZIG but next spring, if the enemy
finds that the unofficial tourists who are |
sent here to whisper mysterious hopes of
peace have failed in dividing our counsels
and demorslizing our army then will
Wall street witness another and a wilder
fight of the preci- metal, and amongst
the holders of Federal securities there will
be sGuve gsi Pe1a. That this catastrophe
must come sooner or later is certain; that
the enemy believes it to be coming soon is
evident to US from the very presence of
unofficial negotiations.
How far efforts of this kind to keep up
the courage of the rebels may go, will be
decided very soon. If the rebels, by such
sheer nonsense, can be induced to venture |
everything in one moro, last, desperate
effort, that battle will be the Waterloo to
all their hopes If Lee proposes to wait
until Sherman and Grant shall unite their
forces making in the aggregate an army of
100000 trained veterans, besides such
additions as will soon be received, then
may we conclude that the fusiisn of rebel-
lious editors can do much to sustain their
vain hopes But when that last desperate
fight shall take place, then will there be an |
end to all such messy rhetoric and srro-
gance as the rebels are now fed upon.