The Opelousas courier., 1865-05-13

clouds will disperse and the clear sunshine Of
peace of hope will be visible to all.
I. Let there be no croaking-ths is ia great evil
| --close akinin its effects to rank open treason.
Let us have hope and confidence and all wila :
| we'll The weak and finthearted never yet, in
this world accomplished anything great or good;
il is only the brave, The sanguine, the enthusias
tic that ever accomplish anything great in this
world.-Shreueport Nsscs.
.E s-a~, >~s~->-~->~~~~~
The future Of the Army of the Potomac.
The Army of the Potomac mas now no enemy
to fight. 1t will never again have an enemy to
fight in Virginia. It has fought its last great
battle. AS one of the great organized armies of
the nation, it must soon, we suppose, cease to
exist as a military force. The future must de-
velop its u es and its history. A part of it will
undoubtedly be retained for some time in Vir-
ginia; but, with all the strategic positions, the
military lines and cities of the State in our hands,
fifty thousand men could maintain peace in any
contingency and repel any foe.
We suppose that in Virginia. including all our
forces in the western and southwestern sections
of the State, in the Shenandoah Valley, in the
eastern and southern sections, we have over two
hundred thousand troops Of all arms We have
thus the immense aggregate Of one hundred and
tifty Thousand soldiers who can now be spared
from the State Of Virginia None of sthem are
needed to operate against Johnston-for Sher-
man is abnndantly able to make any disposition
of him and his piebald army that may have been
| toreordaned. If any part Of them should be
| employed against Johnstop-whch we do not
consider at all ikeiy-it will merely be for the
purpose of inducing the rebel leader to surrender
at once, without waste of blood
We suppose that the Army of the Potomac
will be divided up by the Lieutenant General
i1,fo hn.1 of f,,1n
py and garrison, for time, the various inpor-
tant positions in Virginia the Carolinas and
Georgia; and the army of Sherman will, for a
period, find like employment
Shermans great marches from November to
April proved to us that the rebels have no army.
and TO material for an army, in the State of
Georgia; that they have no army and no material
tor an army in the State of South Carolina: that,
excluding Johnston, they have no army and no
material for an army in North Carolina; and we
know that they have no army, and, since Lees
men are all under parole, no material for an army
in Virginia. We know that, besides the garrison
at Mobile, the rebels have No troops or material
in Alabama; they have none in Mississippi they
have none anywhere in Tennessee. Kirby
Smith has good many men west of the Missis-
siDpi, but We should like to know if, under
present circumstances, they propose to fight for
The detunct Southern Contederacy.
Thus it is almost impossible that we should
have any more fighting of any consequence on
this side of the Mississippi river. Lees men will
all 60 home, in accordance with the terms of
General Grant; but, even if they were cot under
parole, we may be very sure that they will fight
no more. sg- Soy
Thus, in the future, the Army of the Potomac
and the army Of Sherman, will be employed
mainly as conservstors of peace in the South.
The term of service of q good number will ex-
pire-before The close of this year; and of very
large number before the close of next year IF
the Government fuds it has absolutely no use
for the men, it can disband at its pleasure,
@'F5t Ne7o York Times