American citizen. [volume] (Butler, Butler County, Pa.) 1863-1872, 1865-01-25

but satisfactory to any man who IS aware
of facts, and has capacity to understano
their bearing. We presume there Is Nc
one in this department to whom the con
ditiou of our present military organiza-
tion is less satisfactory than to the Gen
eral commanding. Probably there is no
one so thoroughly aware of the lamenta-
BILE disorganization that prevails in GER
tain corps and sections of his command.
Yet it would scarcely be fair to hold him
responsible for his condition of things
His department has been newly turned
into his hands, and many of the troops
are new to him and to this department.
They came 10 him under the command of
imbecilcs; he has received them, herd
of stragglers and outlaws. What has
been doue TO eradicate this fatal evil we
shall not stop to inquire. The time has
been short to do much, and the forces
have been much scattered. Butthe very
last moments are arriving, when all must
be done that is to be done. when all must
be done that can be done. The enemy
does not intend to wait upon our leisure.
And there is much to do.
Before bringing ourselves to face the
enemy, it is absolutely essential that those
in command, bring themselves to face
the vital evils existing within our own
lines The path we are now travelling is
straight to destruction. The crisis of the
Confederaey has arrived in fatal earnest
The result Of ,he next six months will
bring the Confederacy to the ground, or
will reinstate power. Without reform
We are doomed There is more than one
department Of government in which re-
form is important But reform in our
armies is essentials vital Without it
the death knell Of the Confedcracy is al
ready tolled With the proper reforms
made, he is coward who carries his
heart in his boots. There are men in
the land-therc is fight in the land. 1t
is the imbecile that is sick at heart--it is
the coward whese stomach is weak. There
is nothing before US that cannot be owe j..
come; but to do it, there must be new
state Of things instituted We say
again, there must be nerve. Men in COM
mand must not be afraid to die-they
must not be afraid to kill Officers must
be killed--not mere privates. Reform
must begin at the top, not the bottom Of
the service. To reach the private, cap
tains must be shot We want no chiid's
play--we want an army.
What is a mans life to the institutions
and the liberty of the country? Moth
ing. Let old things pass away-let Us
have a new condition of things. We
want no more Jeff. Davis foolery: we
want one atom of brains, one spark OF
nerve--we want no more Of Buhamism-
we want no mermaids with heads of mon
keys and tshy attachments at the Meth
or extremlties-we want men, real men,
earnest men-North Carolina, Georgia
and South Carolina are in no mood for
trifiing. They have had enough of this
sort of thing. They don't intend to have
much more South Carolina don tintcnd
to be conquered She intends to fight.
She don't intend to be hampcred or turn
ed over to the enemy. When she is
thus dealt with, there win be reckoning
"A reckoning where there will be no res
pect of person. We want implicit order
and calm forecast. South Carolina is a
commonwealth Of order; we expect or
der, and we demand order. We are not
used to lawless ruffanism; we don't in
tend to suffer it.
The General in command of this de-
partment is thorough soldier, trained
and tried. We believe that he will per-
form this duty. We look to him to do SO,
unfinchingly, without fear, favor, or aflec-
tion-reSardless of pettifoggers and pet
'lcoats in boots. This is community
Of law just one hundred and ninety
two years ago we began our political ex-
istcnce under the authority of the Lords
Proprietors of England aud the rule of
the Cavaliers, with the good old English
oode Of laws, unemasculated by modern
philanthropy, and pseudo humanitarian
ISM to glide us With the blessing of
God we have still preserved that code
but little adulterated by demagogism.
We can still hang villain, or shoot a
ruffan, without lacerating the bowels of
humanity. We have not yet come TO
have nursery to scoundrels called u
Penitentiary-nor public preachers in
the pulpit, who called Christ good Gal
iilean youth" Simple folks, we have lit
lie improved upon our ancestors. We
are still only as our fathers left US in their
i-norance-simply civilized and simply
Christians The law of order and obedi-
ence is the law of habit here All good
citizens here look for the endorsements of
it here, in the military as in civil life
The Executive of this State will support
it, and will cheerfully, gladly de SO. .
We stand to-day as gladiators stripped
to the fight; we are ready and trained to
enter the struggle for life or for death.
South Carolina is ready to become the
arena of the republic, Her sous are
ready for the contest. Make Of her
whole soil Ia military camp-strip her to
the waist; she will not shrink. But
give her her gauntlets and her sword,
and she is ready to stand or fall where
she is.
A most enormous but imperative duty
devoives upon the commander of this
department, whoever he is That duty
tins first and most essential duty-is to
cashier and to shoot. Without it moth
l. IL