The Wheeling daily intelligencer. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1865-1903, 1866-09-10
Letter to Rev. Henry Ward IIccchcl
---ThC Real Condition of tho south.
CHICAGO, ILL.,, Sept. 9, 1866.

10 hG heV. Henry Wufd beGChe1:
DEAR SIR-AlthouEh stranger to
you, and unknown to fnmc, feel Nn ir-
rcslstible desire to address you in roply
to your letter to the managers of the
Cleveland Convention, whose course
You no strongly approve, and whose
theories you no heartily endorse. l
have boon an ardent Hdmiror of yours,
and must confess that upon my first
| pCruSal OF your letter my faith wns
shaken for tho moment, though the
contents sorely pained and Grioved mo.
1t had tho etfect, however, of causing n
moro careful survey OF tho ground upon
which stand, and tho result has beon
10 confirm mo IN my former belief, and
TO increase my confidence in tho ulti-
mate success of republican principles.
cannot clothe my humble letter in
the polluted lOnguNgaRnd beautiful inn
HSery which OhNrHCtori2eSy your address:
nor Is II to DO expected. l am AN un.
known soldier-you tho acknowledged
head OF pulpit elOquoucO III AmoricA;
but my practical experience on the soil
to be reclaimed and among tho people
to be reconstructed, from the outbreak
to the close of tho rebellion, permits mo
TO speak with IL degree OF confidence
which you can hardly feel without hay-
Ing visited the field of controversy.
You set out by saying that If TenneS-
see had been at once admitted on tho as
sembltng of Congress land in moderate
succession Alabama, Georgia, &C., tho In
huencO would have boon moro salutnry
than II dozen armies hnd marched
over them." or course this view is
wholly speculative on your part, and the
experience of officers and men in the
Federal army will not warrant the con-
cluSlOn that II IS the correct one, There
Is no point moro fully established in
the minds of old soldiers than that, ns
class, tho Southern people arc aston
&c VhNpF a = 80
lar does this extend that it wnS uniVer.
sally remarked by our soldiers as a
distinguishing trHit-a surprising, but
marked characteristic. ] could multi.
ply cases without number where this
hns been demonstrated. Tho history
OF the war is full OF incidents, where the
bascst return has been made for the
most delicate treatment and kindost
consideration on our part.
have been II resident of tho South
/ since the termination of the war, and
there never has been an instance, to INV
! knowledge, where the people did not
/ abuse the clemency of any commander
/ who granted them privileges. They
were allowed to wear their uniforms in
( New Orleans after the surrender, rs
there was more of sorrow than anger
mingled i'll our feelings for them, and
we did not wish to gall their sensitive
spirits unnecessarily. True, gallant
undetermined men would have nppre.
ciated this mark of respect and fOrbear-
ance for conquerorS, but not they. 1t
soon became question whether they
or we had surrendered. There seemed
TO be no shame that they were prison-
I erS, and no sorrow nt the failure of the
lost cause" Their pompous brayado
became at last disgusting and uubeara-
] bic, and the Commander of tho DepArt-
ment was forced in very self.defence to
strip OH their uniforms, when quiet was
Immediately restored. Like tho elder
I Booth, they must needs divcst them
selves of their trappings before they
could escape the Illusion tina: they were
still the Richards in full command ut
I BOswoEth Field. Kindly permitted by
t General Sheridan to celebrate their no.
culinr holidays in their own way, thev
I publicly insulted the army bV the dis
/ play OF rebel Cmblcms and songs and
airs which they knew were distastoful
to every loyal heart. Allowed by the
I President to hold an election for CitV
officers, they selected the most ObnOx-
ious man i'll the country for Mayor, one
by no means popular even with them
selves, and publicly bonstcd to tho
writer that they would show the Yam
KEGS that the city should be controlled
| by the same parties who defended IL in
| 1869.
Did this exhibit conciliatory spirit
on their part? Was this not n singular
highest Rrbiter, had beeR convicted of
crime, and who only remained outside
"A PRISONS wall by the SutTerance of the
people they were deliberately insulting?
You say "the Government is unfit to
exercise minor police aud local royern-
meut, and will 6lunder in the attempt"
We admit 1t, and simply say in reply
that the Government does not desire to
continue this state of things longer
than Is strictly necessary. AT the same
time, we contend that il is much better
that blunders, insignificant almost. be
committed, than that these great ensigns
OF power be placed in the hands of those
men who are still stepped in treason,
and who. as yet, give no proper eVi
dence of their return to reason and
! loyalty.
| General Sheridan has lust been COM
PEELED to issue an order fOrbiddinE a
display of secession emblems and rebel
paraphernalia, and takes occasion to
remark that he has borne with it until
| fidelity TO the country and respect for
our arms will allow him to hesitate no
| longer. Are these men loyal, and Is the
gulf, to which you so eloQuently al
lude, to be filled by our concessions.
traditions and glorious memories alone.
or are they to ask us to roll our flag
with theirs, and throw the successful
and unsuccessful banners in together
That '0oWtd be concession, indeed.
You remark again: 1t is said that II
admitted to Congress the Southern Sem
ators and Representatives will coalcsce
with Northern Democrats and ruin the
! country" and you take occasion to
ridtcule what you say, or imply, are
the craven fears of the people. Now,
sir, believe that nine-tcnthS of tho latc
| Union soldiers will vote this fall to sus-
tain Congress, and, therefore, n chargo
of cowardiCe against those who oppoSe
the President will only create smile,
and need not he cOntradiCted. The
scorn which you manifest mt tho bare
thought of Southern rebels and North
ern COpperheads 1MtiMg the country, is,
believe, recent display of reckless
courage upon your part which you
have not always felt. YOur words in
times past led me to believe TINT this
| was the very thing which you dill most
! fear. And / we'll remember when the
parties just mentioned did rule tho
Government, and slavery WIS being
crammed down the throats of the peO-
| pie of Kansas, how plymouth pulpit
gushed forth IL fire of clOquence, and
your church became an arsenal. II il
| true, Kansas was not nude q slave
State, and for the time the North tri-
umphed, but 1t was only lull before
tho furious storm which inauEuratcd
the war of '6l and brought desolation
to almost every hearthstone in the land.
! You may scOrn the impending danger,
but experience teaches us thnt VIC can
not lose point in this game of recon-
struction without ondangering tho
ground already won.
You may say, of tho majority nre
against you. you ought to submit" If
| loyal men nlOno were to vote, we ought
and would, and We might accept the
result in my event, were 1t not that re-