The Wheeling daily intelligencer. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1865-1903, 1866-01-08
Our Washing ngt0n Letter
wAsHlNoroN. D. O., Jan. 4th, 1865.

OF course You don't want to- hear
about our rounds--say to the New
Years receptions-even that Of the
President-whioh lasted from IL A. NJ.
to P! NJ, during which time he (the
Presidentj shook hands with an aver
4 age of thirty per minute-when tttne
Gen. Grant and staff, including his 6ig
Indian All, fgured largely, when all
the Diplomatic Corps appeared in their
I gayest trim and where 6edutIfuLky draef
gledIskirts (oh itwaslanr awful sloppy
day. were q most curious sight 70 look
upon. Those things are among the rub
bfsh of the past, and though Patrick
Henry said that he could Judge of the
future only BY the past, yet / don't see
how the rea6 lection OF these things can
I.help us to fight understandingly the
I.battle,of. life and liberty-e1 except it may
he, that by holding on TO some Of the
more y pleasant me ories, when we
l.are Mountaineering upon the duties
l.ofi the next Holiday we will also
l.remember (fguratively) the rock
upon which our pleasures split (liter-
Tally l-where and how we got the head
Iiache.albH 1ol sjlF'Ef ~. y
II Well, after q season of relaxation, the
Itworld IS again girding up its loins and
1.-THE march for the new year is begun.
'IEwho can,foretelli it's ending? Taken in
lIconnection with the grand fndLe-the
linysterious, providentia1 and sublime
ter of universal history-no Tother, city
j on the American continent 5lpresents
such an Illustration of the vanity of hui
Imam hopes and aspirations as does
washington, Here is the concentrated
talent and ambition of the greatest ma
Ition on. the face of the earth. il Here are
men who are called giants, graphing in
the intellectual arena for supremacy,
lfor place and ,power--presSing5 With all
the energies of a long life for this or
lthat reform, for revolution, or for
lsome untried ideal good-vainly, alas,
lhow yainlyI in the strength of their self
conceit, believing that they control
events, which arelbut part of the great
lplan of the great first cause JIM the gov
ernment of the universe-aI they, in
stead of directing, are only drifting upon
1.-The clirreet with them-deceiyed as 10
; 'IWhether acting sor acted upon-as to
whether themselves creating the cur
Trent or only particle of unheeded DRIFT
l,foatinE upon 1t. When the Governor
of theiUnfverse' determines upon a re-
Itform, he is wise indeed who is weak
eiiouGh to ''aeceptl the situation" We
Ehaye seen some and read Of others who
Ihad too much iHdtiUe ability too
stronE-mihded or too arrogant and self
conceited to adapt themselves to the
ebb and, flow of the tide. Canute Of
lioLd, ,.-was of this school; and Old Ed
ward Ruff1nW late was another exam
run against the Mbosses of Jehovah, .
Irather than "accept the situation and
Drift with the current, Jubal EARLY
has also given some .late symptoms OF
this kind of talent and on the other
side, we have many illustrions exam
4 sI-of the irresistibility of the current
lwhen God moves the waters, and ofthe
i. Iicertafnty of those who, trusting in their
own ability and strength, attempt TO
, l,stand against it, being overwhelmed,
The Democratic pnrty-trainedb bylong
|. a heller Is. Iliois ss1E s,snSISuyy \ -sse-
ling the tide OF freedom swell, but With
, too much selF-conceit. to detect the ,di'
;; l.vinity which moved within it, threw
!. .lthemselves into. the channel with the
!. IIyain belief that they could roll back
, the waves, which paid them, however,
, las little respect as did they the COM
I,mnnds of Canute. The party Is over
liwhelmed by the ocean of Gods Provt-
, dence. They have sunk
sInto its depth with hG6bllIlng gTS9i
I q tla and unknown
Wise indeedis he who can divine the
. mysteries of the present situation. VIZ
i iiare in the midst of the most gigantic
! and sublime reform the world ever saw
e A nation has been born in day anc
) 1.-THE ethics of the Declaration OF Inda
hitherto purely theoretical
Tor living only in the ferverit' imagina
! Ition of the 4th of July crater, or in the
( Hand ofspirits, have been reduced to proc
4 ticei antoRg men! But the end is not yet
: land, let me repeat, wise indeed is h'
3 llwho,, can divine the mysteries of thu
+ llpresent situation, and who, divininI
/ IIthem is freak enough to paddle VIII
l Messrs. Editors, with all that is Sc
/ Iirious and solemn, the world is full 9
!. IIclowns. ArtemuS Ward, the grea
i Iishowman, is dead-(maY his bones res
q l.showmen behind him--men, short
' l,sighted-tDise men, like Pope's Politician
/ llwho :latuf ti gl-
Q I"Neyer looks backward, onward still he goes
r But never looks forward further than hi
s elI-men who have nothing to show bu
/. themselves; and. thinking themselve
n of so muchtimportance in the economy
8 of nature, that without them, ther
a Iiwould be a link broken, discord il
r "the eternal fitness of thipgS,Y the.
o lieut. such clownish freaks as set tn
d I.sober world agape-(I don't" know
8 whether the angels weep ornot.l Their
,.llare living examples of this style o
3 showmen-e, g.s Sandy, Stegqrt. Well
Sandy will get Sot back, and there ar
some others in the same category. But
y TlIshowman. His clownish features ar
o oIIprominent, butff you viii thew. clos
q the line, y You will find all clownish, il
;, lldegree. as they dre ambitious and fai
to Comprehend the situation and to nc
L cent It. This, fear, is getting ittl
9 metaphysical /; and lam consequent.
8 lglad that my letter has grown SO long
!. MS to warn me that j ought to brinl
/. lit to close, for ] fear to trust mysel
!, Ito elaborate it, as Byron fears to trus
9 himself to speak in the house of Lord
y elwithout his manuscript But jus
e desire to give you this hint. The sttua
= ton is not easily comprehended-an
e look out for the Clowns as events de
i velop hemselves-which reminds m
e of little anecdote-the worst of whicl
II is, it is istrue-and the best of which IS
! il will Help to extricate one from m!
8 taphysicalid ilemma. During Genern
L Pope's operations on the eRappahannocl
L in August, 1852, General Sigel sent
e staff officer to Pope with a report of hi
n operations and asking for further IN
Z. structions. Pope replied: Be still ur
til the enemy develops himself Yer.
y soon the enemy did S.deyelop himself
at MANASSAS junctfon-twe enty miles Il
1 Pope's rear. .Eope didn't diUtIle the stu
alton, and Shot6ed himself well at Bul
RUM Yours respectfully, &C.,
It vf5,0i. RE, PoRrEfs,
h The story OF the War i'm West virgins
= FAIRMoNT, Jan. s, 1866.
i. Editors Intelligence. IS. i,
e / see by your paper OF TINS DAY lna ~
& YOU attribute the authorship of tn
to-