Wilmington journal. [volume] (Wilmington, N.C.) 1844-1895, 1866-09-27
From the Petersburg Index.
INTERVIEW WITH MIR. DAVIS.
Interesting Conversations with Mrs. Davis
and The Distins ufsheti Prisoner


4 our readers this morning an authentic &C
count of the interview between Mr.. Davis
and Mr.. John d. Kelly, about which the
papers have, for the past few DAYS, had SO
much to say, which was mere speculation.
Our correspondent promises, as will be seen,
to follow this with another letter on the
same theme
Please let me say through your paper,
that [ have just returned from Washing
ton, without any Bishop, Priest or Dea-
con, accompanying me that I wrote a
a letter to our martyr, Jeff Davis, some
weeks since, to which I got no response
until the return of Mrs. Davis, he not
being allowed to write that in ccmpli-
ance with the spirit of that responce, I
fastened to Fortress Monroe, on the 18th
inst, just as [ have done many time for
our poor soldiers, or poor negroes under
sentence that / proceeded to Washing
ton after seeing the terrible condition of
Mr.. Davis, and have come back this NOR
ming, foot-sOre and weary, not without
hopes torthetinai safety of him, whom [ con-
lscIentlousiy believe to be about the ablest
and best man in America. Prudence. whom
seldom listen to, and whom 1 naturally
hate as the devil does holy water, makes
me silent for the present about my Wash
ington visit. will tell all about it hereaf-
ter. Mr.. Davis is greatly debiltated, and
declining very fast. During breakfast he
gave us some rich, sparkling gems of polit-
ical wisdom from Burke, with his own COM
ments on their folly, as rich as Burke's
original thoughts. / only remember one
other such day spent in my Life. It was at
Lagrange III 1928, when Lafayette and Car
dlnal MezHofOnte were debating on high
matters OF literature and art. and T was a
mere silent absorbent Of the golden treas
urc Of liquid thought.
arrived at the Fortress about an hour
before Mr.. Davis left his prison This time
l spent III reading some of the numerous
papers that were brought in that morning.
Presently Mrs. Davis Joined me, and we had
a very agreeable discussion, in which she
maintained that the American people
North and South, were Us noble people rs
any on the earth and l maintained, chief
~ for arguments sake, that the aristocracv
of all lands, the real aristocracY, were
markedly superior to the mass Of the Deo-
pie. [ maintained that the catacombs of
Rome and Paris showed q gradual approx
nation to certain type OF character which
was not even yet attained, except in the
|aristocracy Of worth. She insisted that the
heads of Phidias and Fraxitales were not
equalled i'll modern times with Christianity
and all the appliances of culture She CT
CCNt IiO LS1tbI1Ao W lOE-
elgners who called her attention to the fact
that the American people could more easily
adapt themselves TO, and more thoroughly
embody the true principles of politeneSs, |
than any other democratic people in the
world. DUST then l made u wicked query |
that killed {. good deal of this theory
" Hrs. Davis, how do the many strangers
that come here behave towards Mr. Davis ?"
All" said she, almost all the North
ern women that come here peer through
the blinds in the most indicate manner,
SO that we are often obliged to retire to the
inner casemate toavoid their rude chances"
Mrs Davis, no refined, instinctively po-
lite people could, by possibility, be guilty
OF such glossncss. SO you have demolish-
ef your own theory"
We then talked fora while about education
where and by whom best ministered and /
acquired, Ill which [ felt proud that my
own matllrely formed opinions were adopt
ed by this highly gifted and imperial mind
cd woman.
At this time we saw d slender, shadowy
lettering form approach the door. Some
thing i'll nay heart told me it was Mr. Davis.
Strange, mystic human heart, with its tli-
and prophecies Bible of the
true intatG6lo God-word to every human
soul that has ever been magnetized with L
LoNI 't'i+ JAAlOHIl JllS man al Il time
when his word swaycd an Empire COM
posed Of as noble men and rs glorious God
gifted women as has ever appeared in the {
lde OF time. | have obtained at his hands !
5he spaIing Of the lives OF forty Con- I
.cdcrate soldiers during the WIZ ] got off {
fourteen Fedora! soldiers condemned to t
Heath. / got bis written permit-lo order {
to allow Ino to visit all the Federal pris- i
ms anl alleviate, III all lawful ways, their f
'utferlngs. | have prayed at this good \
mans bedside for II blessing OF GOD upon v
am commensurate to the mercy he might h
,1tend to others, and that he might hope &c
or himself, should the changes OF time ever K
make him q suppIiant for this beneii-
,ence. ,
And now he is before HE prisoner
good God How changed! The last time
saw INN his brow seemed decked, not t
'nly with crown of Intelligent glory, but :
With sort OF ''pTiD1US inter- payes"-halO C
# all the kingly chivalries of the past ages. a
Now, he was bent, broken, reeling. But V
Oh that voice, its timbre, cadence tone s
Il am glad to see you, Mr. Kelley your 7
hair is winter than it was that beautiful |
Autumn morning that you prayed by my 5
bedside in Richmond Your heart, too, a
las been scared. Well, thank God, amidst a
t all, and by 1t all, we are ripening for the /
'4NI~o ILL., LAWS, 1ISsS IL never occur =
ed to you that not victorious, but defeated II
causes, when founded on truth and honor, I
Ire finally victorious in the flow of the
lges Who wls the greatest man. Tiberias c
vt Caprea, sunk III the infamies OF sensual S
SIN, or the Nazarinc, crowned with Thorns C
nd uttering those words of power amid u
he agonies OF the cross Father, forgive r.
hem, they know not what they do?" a
True, said Mr.. Davis, no good cause ever P
lies. Whatever was true in our theory of Il
State rights will live and be yet adopted C
" our Northern brethren. The American 6
,eople are eminently thoughtful andsprac- Il
lc2i, assimilating to themselves truth from L
very point; witness their wonderful i'm n
'rovements in the practical arts You Il
now how the Normans conquered the Sax W
ms at Hastings-how they oppressed and N
'ron8ed them; yet in the course Of three o.
entur1es the ideas Of the conquered subdu- OF
d their conCGerors and led the United IL
lngGom TO the conquest Of that very Il
rance whence the conquerots came. Cen a
ur1es III the past were no more than de-
AIDES In the present. have no fear as +, r
ne ultimate triumph of our principles pu-
lncd from whatever was yvrOncr or coIGoI,