Weekly standard. [volume] (Raleigh, N.C.) 1858-1865, 1865-02-22

arrogant prOpOsitl0ns IS Were O'vu6"S
from. Fortress Monroe. Thank God,-we
know it now. The people know, as one
man, the path which they must tread or
perish.
! Onr commissioners, sent to confer with
the enemy, went with a piece OF plank
paper, filled with one word written by our
President" Independence" What were
they told?. Independence Yoa are our
subjects Independence Strip the qua
dy epaulertes from the shoulders OF yonr
officers; strip the uniform from these who
man the trenches; bring your leaders
here, and you know me; | am the inercl'
ful Lincoln. The issue is thus before us;
it is to live free or perish
It is due to you to know how this peace
commission came to be sent, and the facts
which preceded their going. The Emperor
Lincoln sent MS this message at tho close
of last year, two months before the COM
missioners were sent. Mr.. benjamin
here read from Lincoln's message, relative
to the fatility of any attempt at negotla-
ton with the 6 insurgent leaders" that he
had left no room for doubt Or hope. Six
weeks afterwards Continued Mr.. Benja,
min,) there came a man from Washington
who was known to be the intimate friend
of Lincoln and an adviser in his councils.
He had confidential interview with our
President, the nature Of which am aware
of, but am not at liberty to disclose.-''
When he left, he took with him letter
from the President, in these words:
."Sir:-I am ready to confer for peace
at any time; and Notwithstanding the re-
fusal Of previous offers ii I had any assn.
rance. that they would be received, lwould
send commissioners to confer upon some
measure. that would restore peace to the
t.00 c0uaatraes." 49,.
believed (said Mr., Benjamin) that
Blair was Lncoln's messenger. Had he
casually denied it once, should have be-
lieved him; but when he repeated it five
or six times, [ did not believe him. What
Was the answer from Lincoln to Blair 3
."As you have shown me the note of Mr.. Da-
Wis, you may say to him that / will see any
messenger informally sent to confer upon
measures to restore peace to our one cossse-
try."
Under these circumstances, our friends
went forward for conference. Each was
furpished with a. copy of the letter written
by- Mr.. Lincoln, and at the bottom was
written, by orr President, You will go
forward and confer with the enemy upon
means to restore peace to the tauo COM.
tries"
That was all, except the confidential in
terview OF Blair with the President, which
/ cannot relate in the presence of so many.
people. believe, contrary to the honor.
ablergentleman who has preceded me, that
when Blair came to. Richmond there was
an opportunity for suspending fighting and
bloodsled, in which time measures might
be taken for the restoration of peace but
none OF us, for moment, dreamed of re-
construction. Is it wonderful that our
President, whose only defect is that he is
too tender-hearted, should have yielded to
| the temptation OF trying to stop the. blood
shed of his countrymen, Of which every
drop seemed to come from his own heart2
[Applause.] The Vice. President was con-
tident OF the feasibility of his own theory
which we were not-and what better
could we do than send him to attempt to
make favorable impression upon the
! enemys We knew iss. failure would be
the signal for a grandGprising Of the peo-
pie, which was the only element necessary
to success. We hear it now in the i,n-
| proved tone OF public sentiment.
What is our present duty? We want
means. Are they in the country Z If so,
they belong to the country, and not to the
man who chances to hold them now
They belong either to the Yankees or to
| the Confederate States. I would take
every bale of cotton in the land. have
few bales left in my distant Southern
home, which is free gift to my country.
But why speak OF myselfa speak of my
noble State Of Louisiana. Let me point
you back to 1862, when the city OF New
Orleans fell under domination Of the enc
my. AS Farragut's feet assembled the
river, and rounded the crescent approach.
ing the city, what greeted his eyes on that
bright and bafmy spring day? The air
was murky with smoke-everything was
lined with cotton burning upon the levee.
The citizens did not ask to whom it be.
longed the Yankees wanted it, a,,d they
should not have it. But few weeks
ago, with full time for the citizens to pre-.
pare in advance, Sherman penetrated Sa-
yannah, and what was presented there 2
With a thousand plausible excuses of in
terested selishness, the cotton was left, in
the belief that the Yankees would give
them something for it. This all now goes
20 the Yankees, who g|oatingly said-not
that,we have got Savannah, but that eve
have got eighteen million dollars worth of
/ cotton" And this, while on the banks of
the Mississippi,and the waters bordering on
my State, three hundred thousand bales of
I cotton were sacrificed to the cause.
now ask, has any man the right to hold a
bale OF cotton from his country? [No
!. say the same thing,in regard to tobacco:
Take allthe cotton and tobacco, and make
it the basis OF means, without which we