The daily phoenix. [volume] (Columbia, S.C.) 1865-1878, 1867-04-23
moned' around them Immediately after

sells of men who never expected or
intended to take up erms, especially
in the>shape Of shouldering q mus
ket, in defence of those rights they
so glibly and patriotically declaimed
about. But the war inaugurated under
the inspiration and influence of this
old-feld stump eloquence did fully
arouse the manhood-aye, "the Chi
valry," if you please-of the South,
and evoked from the private walks of
life host of real heroes, of whom
any nation or country might Justly be
proud. But we are now, after more
than six years have passed away since
the initiation of that terrible conflict,
into which we were precipitated by
our political leaders, eating the bitter
fruits of our temerity and over-ex-
cited patriotism. We imagined we
were listening to the voice and coun-
sci of sages and statesmen, whereas
we were simply bewildered by the
uptamed eloquence of newly -fedged
politicians. True, there were many
engaged in this work who were ear
nest and sincere in their convictions
of duty, and who gave the highest
evidence Of honesty that men can
give, in laying down their lives for
the cause they had espoused; but that
the large majority Of those who were
loudest in their denunciations Of their
political opponents at the North. and
of those who responded most voci-
ferously to their appeals, shrunk from
the conflict, is too well known to the
people of South Carolina to. require
additional confirmation; and we ap-
peal to the good sense of that people,
to-day, and ask if the record of the
post six years does not justify every
sentence we have written, Like them,
our political opinions and convictions
may remain unchanged, but like
them, as we are bound to believe, we
realize the terrible mistake that was
made in the mode adopted for sus-
tanning them.
But, Notwithstanding NIL we have
written, our object and purpose must
not be misunderstood by our readers.
1t is not to cavil at or censure the
errors of the past, but to endeavor to
aid them in profting by the lesson
these errors surely teach; and the
lesson is this, that our future destinies
as a people should mece'' again be LEFT to
tie direction or control Of mere poliH-
clans. They may make light of, and
even sneer. at, the opinions of "mere
soldiers Oh the present situation of
our political affairs; but if ever there
were men competent to give counsel
to the people, after such AN expe-
rience rs that of the last six years,
they are those to whom these politi-
cal issues were entrusted, to defend
and maintain, at the point of the
bayonet and mouth of the cannon,
through four years of bloody strife,
and the success of whose operations
on the field of battle were too often
thwarted or defeated by the poIti-
clans at home. 1t is the advice of such
men as Lee, Beauregard, Hampton
and Longstreet that the Southern peo-
pie should listen to and act upon, and
not that Of broken-down politicians
who have been shelyed, and who feel
that their influence is passing away.
1t is to the opinions and counsols
of one Of our tried and trusted lead
crs in the field-one whom thousands
of Carolinians delight to bonor-
General James Longstreet-.that we
now desire particularly to call atten-
tion. In n second letter, which he
has! recently written on the prospects
of our political future and our duties
at this crisis, he uses the blunt Ian
guage of q soldier. He says:
"Thc surrender of the Confederate
armies in 1865 involved:
81. The surrender Of tie claim to the
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