The New York herald. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1840-1920, 1866-03-28

the fate of the Freedmen's Bureau; but, in any
radicals and their impracticable schemes, and
Andrew johnson, as in the rebellion, is the
man to fight it through on his platform Of the
Union and the constitution.
General Lee's Testimony Before tho Re.
constr uctiOn Committee.
We publish to-day in full the testimony of
the late rebel General Lee before the Recon-
struction Committee ofCongrcss. We have also
been supplied with the evidence, complete from
present, of John B. Baldwin and John F. Lewis,
members of the Virginia Secession Convention,
and of the famous John Minor Bolts testimony.
which in the main is only interesting to the
historian.
1t is principally devoted to q question
side. and Lewis and Bolts on the other, as
to whether President Lincoln did or did not
submit to Mr.. Baldwin, as a messenger from
the said Secession Convention, sent for
by the President, proposition that IL
said Convention, without dipping iRto seces-
sion, would adjourn sine die, he would
take the responsibility Of evacuating Fort
Sumter. Baldwin says he received no such
proposition. Lewis and Bolts say that from
his own statements at the time Baldwin did re-
ceive it, and that Bolts took him to task for not
submitting il to the Convention, as . matter Of
the utmost importance. But whether Baldwin
or Bets is right Is matter now Of no sort Of
Importance in reference to the business before
Congress. All such stuff from the Reconstruc-
ton Committee involves waste Of time,
money, paper and printers ink. The rebellion
is done for, and tho business before the COM
mitee is the restoration Of the late rebel States
Upon this question Messrs. Bolts and Lewis
prosecuted Virginia Unionists during the war
are naturally bitter against the secessionists,
and do not like President Johnson's generous
Southern policy. But they see things through
distorted medium, and their evidence, accord
ingly, is warped and unreliable.
We give In full the testimony Of General Lee,
because, as the evidence Of the great military
leader of the rebellion, everybody will be
Interested In reading it, especially in regard to
the present state Of public opinion in Virginia
on the practical, living issues of the day. We
presume, too, that General Lee is as well quail
fed, from his personal observations and knowl-
edge of public sentiment in Virginia, as any
other man in the State, to represent that people
fairly before the Reconstruction Committee.
Tn this view his statements as to what the Vir-
ginians are prepared and what they are not
prepared to do in the way of reconstruction
are upon the whole az much as could be cx-
pcctcd. If they are not in raptures over their
suhjugation as rebels, they are at least dis
posed to submit TO the new order of things and
the Presidents policy in good faith; and in the
midst OF the ruins Of the rebellion they are too
much absorbed in the struggle for existence TO
be concerned in the plots Of political dema-
gogucs. This is an important fact, and, rs
with their best efforts to recover from their
broken fortunes, il will require from the
Southern people years Of steady labor TO
repair the damages Of the war, there need be
no fears Of mischief from them with their
restoration to Congress.
The NECESSITY or CRY REroRx-THH DUrY
or THE LEGIsIAruRE.-Thc necessity for q
thorough reform in the management of the mu.
nicipal affairs of this city becomes more and
more manifest every dry. BY the vigorous
operations Of the Health Board . portion Of
the vilcncss of the sub-stratum of the city has
been upturned, and the foulness and corruption
that exist in some OF the slums exhibited. We
want some such sweeping commission to ope-
rate in higher circles, TO ferret out and expose
the abuses and corruptions that prevail in off,
cial quarters, and to apply corrective that will
be decisive and permanent We want the con-
tract jobbers ovcrhaulcd. We want no white
washing Investigations like that about the cheat
ing In regard TO the new Court House. Good
,, men should, OF course, be retained in Office.
when found; but the bad men, the jobbing politi-
clans and their greedy followers and familiars,
who have been devouring the substance of the
city treasury for so long period. should be
summarily dismissed and their disgrsceful pro-
| ccedings exposed. There Is now really no re-
sponsiblc head Of the municipal government,
| and the members Of the Legislature must