The New York herald. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1840-1920, 1865-02-05

TEW YORK HERALD, SUI
The Late Pcace ConfsRsncs and the
Peace Question.
The President and Secretary Of State, from
their late excursion to Hampton Roads in
quest Of peace, have returned to Washington.
The result Of their conference with the three
distinguished rebel peace commissioners sent
out from Richmond II simply this-that . little
moro fighting win DO necessary to bring The
rebel chiefs to . proper frame Of mind for
peace. Between Mr.. Lincoln's ultimatum-the
restoration Of the Union-and the rebel sins
qua non-a Southern oonfedeacy-thers Is .
chasm which can DO bridged over only by the
peace commissioners OF Grant and Sherman.
With this "6xed fact" before VI, the peace
propositions suggested by tho rebel COM
missionsrs, Whatever they may have been,
amount 70 nothing; and their mission 10
valuelsss, except a. stepping stone
to the invitable alternative Of their
submission to the Union. In this view
Of the subject, however, something has been
gained In behalf Of peace. From all quarters
Of the rebellious States-ftom their armies In
the neld and their people at home-there Is .
universal desire and prevailing cry for peace.
Their hopes have been excited by this peace
mission Of their popular leaders, Messrs.
Stephens, Hunter and Campbell Nor will those
hopes and desires be abated by the test which
will now be presented them of fighting to "the
last ditch" for Southern independence JEFF
Davis, no doubt, entered upon this peace ex-
pertinent for the express purpose Of firing the
Southern heart" again, and silencing the mu-
tinous peace combinations around him, upon .
clearly defined issue Of independence, submis-
sion or subjugation. Now he has 1t; and the
question submitted to the Southern people stil
subject to his authority i, whether they will
continue to fight for him and his hopeless cause,
or save themselves from wreck and ruin by
abandoning him.
We think that he has been deluded by the
professions of the peace advocates of his
rebel Congress. They have professed to
believe in the chances Of treaty Of peace on
the basis Of Southern independence, and to be
opposed to the sacrifice Of their confederacy
upon any terms. Now, although these peace
men may not yet be prepared to take higher
ground, they will work only the more indus
triously to supersede Davis by more practical
instrument Of peace. They have already secured
an important step in this direction in their Con-
gressional resolutions appointing General Lee
General-in-Chief of all the rebel armies. This
proceeding was adopted as a war measure; but
in reality it is peace movement The object
was to take the control Of the rebel armies out
of the hands Of an impracticable war fanatic,
and to place them in the hands of cool and
rejecting soldier, who would cease to fight
where fighting would only be to sacrifice his
soldiers to no purpose.
So confident are we in this opinion that we
venture the prediction that peace will come
from General Lee, while JEFF. Davis, driven out
of Richmond, is flying for some other Temporal
ry place of refuge. This is the shortest road to
peace. In obedience, we will suppose, to the
Davis programme, General Lee gathers up at
Richmond all his accessible reserves, deserters
and fresh conscripts, and awaits the develop
l40ub VI UI04bS COMUuuSlOubs lucy bIO ~
length developed in the complete isolation of
Lee from every channel of supplies and every
line of retreat In this extremity his wisest
course as a soldier VIII be to propose surrcn-
der Of the city and his army with the honors Of
war, and this will be the end Of tho war and
the beginning Of peace.
But is General Lee such tyro in the art Of
war as to stand still till completely invested by
an army which he dares not assail, and from
which, If encircled, he cannot escaped This is
o question which could be readily answered
were any other Southern city at stake than
Richmond. But that city is now hardly less es-
sential to the maintenance of the dilapidated
Southern confederacy than Lees army itself
The loss Of the military foundries, factories,
-four, woollen and cotton mills, workshops,
and siege artillery of Richmond, at this juno
ture, would be equal to the loss of q great
are too vast and extensive to be removed or to
be replaced. A partial removal of commissary,
quartermaster and ordinance stores, and the
light machinery of the army workshops, is the
most that could be effected by months of active
labor with Lees limited facilities for Transport
tation. Yet it is reported, from intelligent
army sources, that the work Of removal,
preparatory to his evacuation of Rich
mond, il and has been for some time actually
in progress. If these reports be true,
we can only conclude that General Lee
is preparing to fall back to Danville, where,
with his rebel government all adrift, he will be
able, while still holding the field, to dictate to
Davis, his Cabinet and Congress the necessity
of submission 10 the Union.
In any event, from the present combinations
and movements Of the armies of General Grant,
there can hardly be the shadow of doubt that
the alternative of an evacuation, capitalization,
or suhiuOation will vayv AEON bsvs a ho