The daily dispatch. [volume] (Richmond [Va.]) 1850-1884, 1867-01-15
.,a.urerard and Breckenridge.

I Beauregard and Breckenridge.
!. II has. become wholly impossible to
credit any Of the news coming to us by
way Of kilograms or correspondence to
northern newspapers, especially when that
news relates to the South, or to any South
ern man. Part Of the regular machinery
for producing political effect at present
seems to be systematic lying, well follow
ed up, often reiterated and reproduced in
thousands Of newspapers all over the coun-
try. A telegraphic report of speech said
to have been spoken by General BEAuRE-
GARD at dinner to the congressional eN'
cursionists, lately occasioned some -: 80.
prise throughout the Southern conn., c.,
which Justly holds dear the s'o'.o '1
Of that creat soldier ard patriot. Our
readers have seen by the letter of Gene
raj RrrprcAxp, printed yesterday, that
be never uttered such speech at all ;
and that what he did say in conversation
with those gentlemen was precisely what
every thorough Southerner must heartily
endorse. The General might have known
that, in talking to those people at all, he
was exposing himself to almost certain
Misrepresentation.
The system appears to have for its prin-
cipal object the creation of distrust amongst
Southerners, by inventing and putting into
the mouths Of eminent and trusted men
language which indicates some base and
traitorous intention on their part-as
commenting the constitutional amend
mont" avowing that the South has "no
rights" and the like. If the person thus
misreprescnted happens to be far oil, so
that some time must clapse before any pos
sible contradiction, the falsehood has all
that time to run, and TO do its work of I'M
dermining the trust and faith which we
ought to repose in one another. General
BREcKINRlDGE, for example, is now in Eu-
rope-accordipgly correspondent OF a
Boston paper sends over for publication
the substance Of what purports to have
been said by that gallant general: that
the South was utterly conquered, and had
lost all rights of every kind, and was
bound to accept thankfully whatever the
victors proposed to her; and in particu-
lar, that he was amazed at the blindness OF
the southern States in refusing the consti-
tutional amendment-in other words, that
he General BRECKINRIDGE), whatever
others might be, is himself perjured trail
tor, and would wish us to vote him o per-
jured traitor, and have done with it. OF
course it vas hoped that this infamous
would be believed by some, and would
dispose some weak people at the South to
look more favorably upon a measure ap-
proved by SO trusted leader.
Pursuant to the same system, we are
now informed by the most audacious of the
New York papers that the Virginia Legis-
lature is about to reconsider their action
upon that tresome amendment. 1t mat
tiers not to the purpose that there is no
shadow of foundation for this piece of news.
1t was to be sent over the country, at any
rate, to be reprinted by southern papers,
and produce in some Of the States an I'M
easy feeling that perhaps, after all, Vir-
ginia was going to abandon the cause of the
South. Thus it would help to educate the
Southern mind up TO-, or debauch it down
to, the desired point of pronouncing its
own political degradation and moral in
fanny.
The continual stream Of falsehoods, how
ever, tending in that one direction will
shortly be exhausted. We may be said to
be nearly done with that precious "amend-
ment." Then the manufacturers of news
will shape their kilograms and correspond
ence with view to some other political
effect, to promote some other of the "great
moral ideas" The essential point is to
know that they will not tell any truth when
it is possible to avoid it.