Daily Richmond Whig. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1865-1869, 1866-04-21

SALvATOREs PATRIE.-While the war was in
progress it was customary on the other side OF
the line to apply such words as "holy," " sa-
cred,' " divine" &C., not only to the cause it.
self, but to its enterprises, ends, means and
champions. If our memory is not at fault, the
famous Doctor Tying, in an address to body OF
recruits, Familiarity and pleasantly known as
" Wilson's cut-throats," gave them " the most
comfortable assurance" that if their valuable
| lives should be lost in the pious service they
were entering upon, they would go straight to
glory. The Rev. Beecher brought the bible
and the bayonet, psalm-singing and shooting,
into happy association by inventng the term
&c -hallelujahr 20 1t is to be regretted that
anything should occur to disturb the con-
solatory thought that the Union armies were
composed altogether of saints, for we can well
understand how, even to the vanquished, there
would be relief in such q thought. But there
is, it must be admitted, something little unset
Ting in the fact that the law is kept pretty
busy hanging men who went through the war.
That affair near Philadelphia, the other day,
the killing of the Deering family, is great
stumbling block. And when we read such re-
marks as the following, which form part of an
editorial article in the New York World of
Thursday last, we do not know what to think ::
GA note from a friend in New Orleans asks
us to call attention to several peculiar adver-
tisementS now appearing in the Southern pa
pers. These advertisements offer rewards for
the return ofvaluable private libraries stolen
by officers of the Union armies, and appro-
priated to their own use during the late war.
One gentleman says there were taken from
his house some three hundred volumes, most
lv rare French and Spanish books, relating to
the early history of Louisiana, which cannot
be replaced by purchased, and for which he
now offers five dollars per volume. Large re-
wards are also offered and no questions asked
for the return of other souvenirs stripped from
Southern houses, and which are now known to
be in the possession of certain captains,
colonies, brigadier and major generals, who
have great deal to say about their public SER
vices and very little about their private
stealings. Our New Orleans correspondent
himself saw six or eight boxes of household
knick-knackS and wOmen's and children's
clothing which were stolen in Pensacola by
NEAL Dow, and were stopped at the Custom
House in New Orleans.
This same Dow was convicted of stealing a
silver pitcher from BRADIsH JOHNSON. Libra
ries, wardrobes, plate closets, and picture gal
leries in New Orleans, and in other cities, were
stripped during the war; and the peculiar per-
formances of BUTLER and his followers in this
line are more notorious in history than are any
of their exploits in the field. Peace ought to
bring repentance, and, if conscience does not
urge the return ofthese family relics and private
property, the large rewards now offered, and
which will be offered, ought to induce the par
ticularly "patriotic to disgorge at least por-
ton of their plumber. We do not appeal to their
sense ofpropriety, or honesty, or justice. We
NEARLY take leave to inform them that they can
make good thing fit pecuniarily by disgor-
ging their plumber.