The Wheeling daily register. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1864-1878, 1865-01-07

mattOX IS 6enef4l Oreggs OlVlSlOn--
There is, however, a very large infantry
force, all in winter quarters. These quar-
ters are neatly built, and resemble largo
villages, looking very beautiful in their
regularity at distance,
DEATH OF GENERAL PEiCE.
From the Richmond ExamineI, Jan. 81
Parties who have arrived here in the
last day OF two from Shreveport state
that it was currently reported before
they crossed the Mississippi that General
Sterling Price had died, in Arkansas, of
apoplexy; but no particulars Of the event
were mentioned.
THE FORT FISHER FIGHT
Colonel Lamb, commanding at Fort
Fisher, III an official dispatch, says of the
enemy's assault on the fort:
The enemy's feet, consisting of over
fifty vessels, including two Monitors,
several armored vessels and large pro-
portion Of heavily armed frigates and
sloops of war, commenced furious bonn
bardment of Fort Fisher at twenty min
utes to one o'clock, which they kept up
until half past five in the evening, when
they withdrew. No part of the work
was greatly injured. Casualties
Twenty-three wounded one mortally,
three severely, nineteen slightly Off
GERS, soldiers and seamen all did their
whole duty. ..-r
AS the enemy attempted no passage of
the bar, and staid out at long range, with
the exception of the iron-clads, i fred
very slowly and deliberately. I am un-
able to know what damage was done to
them, but am certain the injury infiict-
ed upon them far exceeds the injury
their bombardment did us Our Heaven
ly Father has protected my garrison this
day, and I feel that He will sustain us in
defending our homes from the invaders
[Signedl WIN. LAMB,
Colonel Commanding.
FOREIGN INTERVENTION.
From the Richmond Examiner EditoriaD,
Monday
Let us not be misunderstood The in
terests at stake for US and for the country
are too vital and momentoua to be prop
erly dealt with after the manner of
young mems debating societies: Wheth-
er Caesar or Hannibal was the greatest
man; whether colonial vassalage be bet
ter than subiugation by the Yankees;
whether it would be good bargain to
secure the material aid of England and
France by formal sacrifice of our insti-
tuition of slavery; whether the human
species is progressive, retrograde, or sta
tionary; all these questions are quite in
teresting, in speculative point of view,
and afford many opportunities Of excel
lent defamation on one side or the other
of each proposition, only that they are
not practical nor applicable to the pres
ent state of our country, and of the four
questions above propoundcd any one Is
as practical and applicable as any other.
PROBLEM To BE SOLVED.
Recollect that the matter before !s now
is not to prove theOrem but - &sa.
problem: not to establish -thr ~ g. =
al conclusion upon some question OF
lives, our own houses, and to transmit to
our children the heritage of freedom and
QUESTION UNANSWERED.
five are asked whether or not colonial
vassalage be preferable to subjugation by
the Yankees, we say yes. Intimately pre-
ferable Better for us and ours not enly
that we should sink back into colOnists,
but that we should all die where we
stand, than be reduced to the ignomin-
ious condition of vassals to the Yankee
nation.
But it happens that neither the ques-
ton, nor the answer is anything to our
present purposes, and if we are asked
whether we would or would not purchase
the material aid of England and France
in our present struggle by abandoning
slavery instantly and on the spot, we
say again YES, without one moments
hesitation or consideration" That is to
say, in other words, we would sacrifice
the negro race to insure our own inde-
pcndence. But it happens here again
that the alternative is not presented to
us. We are not asked to choose between
the two except by some essayists.
A few days ago we called attention to
the fact that our proposal to go back into
colonial relation with England or
France would be extremely unacceptable
to those nations, because if they acceed-
ed to our wishes it would involve them
in wars, and the proposal itself would be
a full admission that we are OH the point
of subjugation; so that it would be in
viting them to take up quarrel which
we feel ourselves no longer capable Of
maintaining, OH the doubtful speculation
of making us profitable dependents in
the end
No man who has the most elementary
knowledge of the policy and exigencies
of those two European nations would
ever form or give utterance TO such a
project Il was shown at the same time
that an offer on the part of these States
to buy support in Europe by consenting
to abolition, although it would be ex-
ceedingly grateful to English and French
tribes, though it would be trumpeted
over Europe as mighty triumph of the
rights of man, and eloquently celebrated
in all the philanthropic funny magazines,
would be not only no reason to aid US,
but would be an additional reason for
abandoning us to our fate and encour-
ging our enemies TO complete their con-
quest.
1t is said that we are averse to diplo-
macy. By no means. Diplomacy is a
highly respectable kind of agency for
the transaction of international affairs,
but we have observed that there is Rot a
satisfactory diplomacy between two ma
tions, one OF which is begged for favors
and the other sues IN formd paaperis, one
of which has entirely the front door TO
all the Courts of the world, and the
other has to creep I'D the back stairs at