Baltimore daily commercial. [volume] (Baltimore, Md.) 1865-1867, 1865-11-14

| Il. {. Truman, correspondent OF the New
| York Times, travelling in the South, gives an
intelligent and candid account of what he finds
in Alabama. His opinion that the late Con
federate officers and soldiers are now the class
best disposed and most to be relied upon for
loyalty confirms tho impression given by most
accounts from the South, The men who had
nothing to do with the war are quite as likely
to be nobodys OF towards and shirks as true
Union men. A Confederate who has been
soundly whipped and knows it, and is willing
to accept the consequences, is about as reli
able material for reconstruction as can be
had. We quote some of Mr.. Truman $ state
ments:
In the fullest extent of the term there is
little or no patriotism in central or southern
Alabama, and but very little love for the
United States Government. In northern
Alabama the people are warm and sincere in
their devotion to the Union This feeling is
rife in that portion of the State lying north of
the Tennessee river, and running from Tus-
cumbla In the west to Stevenson in the east
The people in this section are true to the Gov
ernment and its interests, and can be relied
upon under any and all circumstances. In
the southern and central portions of the State,
with great many the spirit of the rebellion
has not ceased to exist. To strain point in
favor of the majority of these people, will
call them loyal, if loyalty means perfect will
hngness to submit to the decree of the sword
a manifest disposition to obey all laws, and
unanimous desire to promote that harmony
between the North and South which once
existed, and for the speedy restoration of
Alabama, with all her modern improve
ments, to the position which she once occu-
pied. If this is loyalty, why, / reiterate, then
the people are loyal. But patriotic they are
not.
! will commence by telling you who are the
most inclined to do right-they are the officers
and soldiers who have fought in the armies of
the late Confederate States. Two-thirds of
them not only confess themselves whipped, but
gracefully acknowledge that they have been
fairly dealt with, and are prepared to do any
thing honorable in return for the magnanimity
displayed by the President of the United
States and the majority Of the Northern peo
pie, citizens and soldiers. They all talk alike
major generals, colonies, captains, and pri
vates-all acknowledge that they have been
whipped, and whipped fairly. and are to man
in favor of peace and an obhteraton of the
past
The most savagely disloyal men in the States
at present, and those who wish the Internal
niggers were all dead, and the id Yankees
all in h-ll, are those composing the stay-at-
home platoons. These are the men who are
opposed to reconstruction. But they can do
no harm-they lived on milk too long.
The next class of disloyalsts are the minis.
terS of the Gospel. The Baptists, Methodists,
Presbyterians, and other Protestant dcnomi-
nations, as well as the Roman Catholics, are
quiet, and have been so since the war But
tha Fpiccppn1 his hons, nd ,,,in;star- J,,l;,,,l
to read the liturgy, which was fragrant exhi-
bition of disloyalty, an insult to the Govern
ment, and to the military on duty in this State
AT least so Sen. Wood thought and therefore
all the Episcopal churches in the State are
closed Another dsloyal gang are the editors
of newspapers. Excepting Mr.. Figures pa
per, III Huntsville, there is not fair journal
in the State Really, they arc disloyal There
are loyal papers all over Georgia, Tennessee,
Louisiana, and there are several in Mississippi.
North and South Carolina; but, with the ex-
ception of the struggling weekly above men
toned, there is not loyal paper in this State
The war has played sad havoc with the
poor of Alabama: for, on consulting the
comptroller, | find that every poor house in
the State is crammed full while tens of thou
sands are fed in their own huts. There is no
money in the treasury, and | believe it is the
intention Of the Governor to make known
these facts to the people of the North and
Northwest, hoping that they may lend help
ing hand, and help these unfortunate beings
to live through the winter. At present there
are IS, 172 INDECENT families in the State, or
nearly 100000 paupers. This is a terrible
fact.
Half million Of freedmen are within the
borders Of Alabama: Forty thousand of them
are aged and infrm, and of course without
the means and strength TO assist themselves.
There are, in addition, one hundred thousand
children, necessarily helpless. Those who
are able and unwilling to perform laborj prowl
around upon the farms and plantations and
exc out miserable life by stealing and ma
rauding.
Take it throughout the State, it is believed
that ten thousand hogs and one thousand head
of cattle have been stolen and killed by these
indolent men and women, all of whom are
able to perform any kind of work Reports
are circulated in the Northern newspapers that
great many freedmen are being shot down in
cold blood by their former masters and Others
1t is true that reports arrive at different head
quarters of this state of things, and in most
cases they prove true. But in most cases it is
made evident that those who were shot down
were thieves and marauders. Those people
who shot down such characters with white
faces with impunity before the war must be
excused until Yankee law and Yankee notions
get stronger hold upon them for shooting
black thieves and black marauders.