New Orleans daily crescent. [volume] ([New Orleans, La.]) 1851-1866, 1866-05-21
TRUMAN S REPORT.

ginning about the LIST of September, aud condnu-
ing until the LIST of April, He visited Alabama,
Georgia, Mississippi Louisiana, Texas, Tennessee,
and Florida, remaining several weeks in each
State, with the purpose of obtaining correct in
| formation Of the state of things. He conyersed
With Federal officers Confederate generals, edit,
| ors. politicians, clergymen, and men of intelli,
genoe of all professions. He was asked by the
President to report his impressions and obserya-
tons, and he complied with the request by pre-.
pairing an elaborate and exhaustive document,
which the President submitted to Congress, Mr..
Trumans report is too long for insertion, but as he
shows great sagacity and candor in his notes OF
| what he has seen and learned in the South, We
shall give some extracts from the more remarke
BILE passages, and summary from the remainder.
Mr.. Truman refers to the submission by the
people of the North to the administration of James
Buchanan, and remarks:
| assert, without hesitation, that now the war
has swept over the South, there is no more dspo- /
ston in that section of the country to rebel |
against the National government than there was in
| the North at the time above referred to.
If any general assertion can be made that will |
apply to the of the people of the South IL
is that they at the present time Indifferent to.
ward the general government. For four years of
eventful life as a nation they were accustomed to
speak of andr 'our government" as the one
which had its seat in Richmond and thousands
who at first looked upon that government with
great suspicion and distrust gradually from the
mere lapse Of time and the force of example, came
to admit it to their ideas their government The
4 great body of the people, in any country ALWAYS
moves slowly-the transfer of allegiance from one
de T0cto government to another is not effected in
day. whatever oaths of loyalty may be taken
and have witnessed many amusing instances of
mistakes on the part of those of whose attachment
to the government there could be no question. Ig-
norance and prejudice always lag farthest behind
any radical change, and no person can forget that
the violent changes of the past few years have left
the ideas of the populace greatly unsettled, aud
increased their Indifference Fully one-half of the
| Southern people never cherished an educated and
native attachment to any government that was
over them; and the war has left them very much
as it found them.
The rank and file of the dsbanded Southern
$ army-those who remained in it to the end-are
the backbone and sneW of the South. Long be
fore the surrender, corps, divisions, brigades and
regiments had been thoroughly purged of the
worthless class--the skulkers-those OF whom the
South, as well as any other country, would be
best rid ; and these it is that are now pro-
longing past bitternesses. These are they, IN
great part, as I abundantly learned by personal
: observation, that are now editing reckless news
lpapeFs, and that put forth those pernicious ut
: teranoes that so little represent the thinking
! substantial people, and are so eagerly seized on
and paTaded by certain Northern journalists, who
themselves as little represent the great North To
} the dIsbanded regiments of the rebel army both
/. officers and men, [ look with great confidence,
as the best and altogether most hopeful element
of the South-the real basis of reconstruction and
the material of worthy citizenship. On thousand
battle fields they have tested the invncible power
II. of that government they yainly sought to over
! throw; and along thousand picket lines, and
under the friendly flag of truce, they have learned
b that the soldiers of the Union bore them hatred
st and shared with them the common attributes OF
IN humanity. Around the returned soldier of the
+ South gathers the same circle of admiring friends
that ne see around the millions of hearth-stones in
S, our Own section, and from him they are slowly
Of learning the lesson of charity and brotherhood
\ know of very few more potent influences at work
in promoting real and lasting reconciliation and
4, construction than the influence Of the returned
n Mr. Truman next discusses the probable action
Of the people Of the South in the event of war
N between the United States and foreign power.
N /" Whatever might be their sympathies," he re-
y marks, in case of war with England, not a
lst regiment Of men could be recruited in the South
~ in her support even if it were freely permitted
al He is Of opinion that the loose floating population
ms of the South would enlist in any army for Oh
Nv against the United States in case Of war. This
class he describes limited in numbers consisting
n Of " men whose regulations in the rebel army were
greatly overdone, or men who never did any ser
vice at the front, but who were valorous wit
Or words alone rowing, discontinued men, who ar
Irly not engaged IN any profitable employment H
the thinks there may be 5000 such in Texas, desert
es' ers principally, and rebel refugees from Arkan
the sas and Missouri that are to-day depending en-
r tirely upon robbery and murder f6r a preearou
fell subsistence
the These would, of course rejoice at such an on
lem pormnity- In other States the proportion woul
re. be very much less, But if invasion were &C
4 i compished, the substantial assistance that
= foreign enemy would receive at the hands Of til
lcn late insurgents would be quite Insignificant an
lch the fears that many otherwise welsinformed BET
air. sons entertain in this regard are highly absurd
TIA Naturally the American people, as q nation ar
i, devoted to the arts OF peace The soldiers Of til
ms late rebel army are, il possible, infinitely NOR
nu wearied and disguised with war and all its work
de than those of our army, and long for nothing s
~ much as quiet The best proof of this is the fac
| that our noble volunteers though crowned with til
Oily honOrs of almost imegs success and victory ar
, to clamorons and even mutinous to be discharge
,t;; from military duty Therefore | am eonstrai1e
LII to believe that with few exceptions, the grea
oAs masses of those who have been in the rebel arm
lied will never again seek to enter the lists If Their
4 is anything that certainly learned in the South
was that its people are tired of war; and ar,
DOL anxious 70 establish and perpetuate peace.
lon
av The South to-day hates England more viaor
ously than the North does; and the country ma,
rest assured of this much at least that the South
. Is as people, are no more anxious for war viii
ng, any foreign power than we ourselves are. Be
nts SIDES, there IS deep and steadilygroWing con
a. YIeu0n IN the minds of many of the most ptelli
Va gent and thoughtful of the South-a conviction
req that stranger would seldom discover in the Jour
i've only in the still undercurens of private CONVEX
sation-tbat in the late war the hand of proyi
denee, the DEGREES of destiny, were against them
icy were steadastly to any separation of thu
yer Union confess this discovery gave me an un
feigned satisfaction, such as no other have made
III in the South. prominent member of the Ala
y bama convention, railroad president in Florida
~ three different Texas editors, and scores of name
sis less private individuals all over the South have
az spoken to me in tone of deep earnestness on this
" subject citing the numerous instances that had
W. come under their observation, showing an almost
ma; ProVidentiat interference balancing of the
sis scales OF fate against them Nor were they per
of sons who had been lukewarm in the cause u
u, aud who had been the lookout for such nclina-
W. tons. am not mistaken. know that there ia a
la profound and abiding conviction gradually gain
Ia ing ground IN the Southern mind that their late
struggle was hopeless from the start-that it was
contrary to the will Of the Infinite.
M. More than that, know, from actual obserya.
ton that thousands of the rank and file, and hun
dreds OF their officers would gladly enlist in the
u United states army against any and all foreigners
particularly IT they could be allowed to serve
under their old otgcers. / have conversed ner.
he sonally with hundreds Of ex-oficers and soldiers
nj of the late Confederate army, and only repeai
- what have from their own lips when say that q
majority of them assured me they would enter onI
as army in such an event, in great part to give the
at government convincing proof that they meant
to he pnnd and toVa1 citizanA heraaffar + .aa,Il