The daily clarion. [volume] (Meridian, Miss.) 1863-1866, 1866-02-01

tba iaaaa in this and the report that they
will make when they come back, we pnoil'h
it now ,- = ,aee
..7ro the Honorable Senate and House of Rep
resentatives:
Your Committee, appointed TO visit the
States lately in rebellion, and investigate the
report upon the condition as to loyalty and
fitness for readmission into the Union, nave
performed the duty assigned them. and beg
leave to make the following report
Naturally, the first place visited by your
Committee was Richmond, Virginia, the cap
ital of the late COME leTacy. Our coming
had been heralded in the newspapers there,
and the demonstration at the railroad depot
on our arrival may be taken as, in some de-
gree, indicative OF the popular sentiment IN
that city. We found large cOncourse OF
citizens of African decent awaiting US, and as
we disembarked from the cars they hailed MS
with shouts of welcome, mingled with his
way TO the Spottswood House,; here's your
buss for the Continental;' here's yer cab for
| any part of the city, baggage to the hotel,
/ gents, etc. 1t was grateful TO the hearts OF
| ioyaI men to be thus welcomed IN city so
! lately the headquarters of rebellion, while,
| at the same time, we began to feel convinced
/ already that the only truly loyal people of
/ the South were of the colored race.
! we could not decline the hOspitalities 50
| generally rendered US, and accordingly we
| selected two carriages from the large num-
] Der placed at our disposal We were driven
/ to the Spottswood by our hospitable friends,
| who charged us two dollars piece and
half dollar for extra baggage. After 50 much
kindness from the colored race, we were IN
prepared for the harsh treatment we sub
! seuuently received from the white Ollgarchs
of Richmond. The proprietOrs OF the SPOTS
wood gave us rooms III the fifth story, back,
saving to his clerk, as we have been informed
. | I,ry, faitbfUl A fFipan X hn hi4g SpH boots
for a quarter pair, that they were good
| enough for Yankee Radicals. The same
spirit OF disloyaI hate was manifested 10 US
in the dining room, where III response 70
our repeated call for Goldfish and pumpkin
pie we W ere served with nothing but bacon
and hot cakes. We asked why this was
done, and were told by loyal waiter, to
| whom we had just given postal half dol
lar, that Mr.. SpottswOod said he didn't
keep a hotel for the accommodation of
Yankees, and therefore persistently eXcln-
ded Goldfish and pumpkin pies from the bill
of fare
Your Committee do net deem it neces-
sary to dwell upon this evidence of snoul-
dering dislOyalty, nor to compare II with the
hostily formed OpluOm OF Cen Grant re-
speeding Southern sentiment. Our object
was to get beneath the surface OF things III
the South to find the true character OF the
| social subtratum We remained in Rich
- Il
the people On all hands we found eViden-
ces of distinction on account of color. ex-
cept III freedman's colony, where the blacks
received the whites on equal footing
with themselves. We also noticed disloyal
! disposition to speak of StOnewall Jackson
and Gen. Lee III terms of praise and com
mendation, while Gen Buffers fame was
only mentioned in contemptuous connection
with silver spoons, and occasionally little
plated ware, and he himself seemed to be
better known as the Bottle Imp of Bermudi
Hundred than i'll any other way
"Our next visit was to Atlanta, Georgia
Here we had long conversation with
Treasury Agent, who had had ample mean
of information on the subject Of Georgia 10y
atty. He gave it as his opinion that to ad
NIT the Southern States to representation a
this time, would be highly injndicious. IL
did not believe that there was white natIV
| of the State loyal enough to take his place
and asserted that to remove him and other
similarly situated would be not only danger
Gus to the welfare of the country, but woul'
| be also the height of ingratitude to men VIII
had Tisked character and reputation Tor III
patriotic cause of cotton and ten or lively
thousand dollars a year. Your commute
! concurred entirely i'll his opinion.
while in Atlanta your Committee hear
many expressions of sentiment which go T.
show how far Gen Grant is mistaken IN VIVA
he says in his late report. On one Occaslo
especially we heard what convinced us tina
the lava of secession still burned III IN
Southern bosom. The case was that oil
young gentleman from Massachusetts, OF poo
but honest parents, who had come to til
South III the capacity of treedmans scho(
teacher He had the acquaintance OF
Southern lady of two score and ten, Whos
husband had fallen under the rebel flag, lea
= ing her a widow of handsome estate. III
vo1no gentleman, desirous of matrimon
,,rauSal hia Suit and
- progressing, as he thought, most taVorabi
when one evening the widow told INN at
tea party, in the presence of a large nump'
of people, that she would rather be Durlt
alive than marry a Yankee The patriot
school teacher no longers plies the rod
chastisement over refractory freedmen. II
star of his hope has gone down and he hi
gone back to Boston, a wreck of his form
self
"Your Committee next went to Montgor
erv, Alabama, where at Richmond, II
- eolOred citizens tlocked to meet us, and We
with each other for the carrying OF our oa
gage We paid them fifty cents carpe
sack from the depot, and they were e
thusiastic in their demonstration of loyalt
in receiving the currency from us. In I'll
city evidences of disloyalty met us on eve
hand A Vermont missionary had been
suited few days before our arrival, for {
TEMPTING to introduce John Browns bod
L
tree as Sabbath School hymns. hop h
lust taken place at the leading hotel,
Il which the whites only were invited, and
which the freedmen were excluded on
count of color. The consequence was an
dignation meeting of the freedmen, at Win
equal rights We're demanded A repetltl
of balls and hops exclusively white IN tn
character will lead to Jamaica insrrectIc
and Haytian rebellions magnifed tho
and times in their dreadful results.
AT Montgomery, rs at Atlanta, we me
Treasury Agent who was opposed to imme
ate reunion, and warmly in favor of a tel
torial condition for the Southern States
mentioned Incidentally that he had a son
law in New Hampshire who would make
excellent Provisional Governor, and cou
who would do for a territorial delegate
Congress. Above all things, he hoped I
gress would not listen to the hypoerlti
cries of Alabama loyalty. He assured
that there was no loyalty in the State,
cept in his office, and said it would be b
Injustice to supersede him till he had fin
ed the making of hundred thousand
lars
I've next preceded to Charleston, So
Carolina Here We had a LONG talk Wit
Northern gentleman whom we knew to b.
every way reliable. He had responded to
countrv's call in the early days OF the
with a sutler wagon full of Yankee nctl
and had been unvarying III his devotion
the cause ever since, except ut intervals w
Gen Grant had ordered suffers to the rea
Since the cessation of armed hostility
had been down South to see what could
done in the way of buying Southern la
He had found the people of South Caro-
so rebellious at heart as to refuse TO
their plantations for twenty cents an acl
Federal currency. He convinced US tina
armed force ought to be kept in Charles
for many years to come, and that he OF
to be appointed sutler as he had had II
experience in the business. He fount
this hot-bed of secession and cradle of II
lion o decided preference for grey over
which extended itself even to the ladies
ticoats, many of which your committee
fniIv examined 1t is proper to state
the articles thus scrutinized were han
on line to dry and had no ladies in the
Your committee next visited Savau
where they found disloyalty manlfestI