The Bolivar bulletin. [volume] (Bolivar, Hardeman County, Tenn.) 1865-1888, 1867-01-12

I
plain of its dullness and stupidity.
--s.------
The Surrender of the Trans Missis-
sippi-Gen. S. B. Buckner in Reply to
Gen Sherridan-His Defense of Gen.
Kirby Smith.
We copy the following from the New Or
leans Crescent:
To THE PUBLIC
In report of Maj. Gen. p. H. Sheridan
to army headquarters, dated New Orleans,
November A. 1866, occurs the following
statement, in reference to the surrender of
Gen. E. Kirby Smith through commission
ers sent from him to Mai Gen Candy"
This surrender was made, but bore upon
its face double dealing on the part of the
rebel commander or his agents, as the Texas
troops had declined to surrender and had
disbanded to their homes, destroying maga-
zines and carrying with them arms and am
munitiOn from the different arsenals. Gen
Smith proceeded to Galveston, and from
there escaped to Mexico, in violation of the
agreement he had bound himself to observe.
q This conduct on his part may have arisen
from the fact that it could not be concealed
that his real object in Offering to surrender
was to get security for the Arkansas, Lou
isiana and Missouri troops to return to their
homes, knowing full well that the Texas
troops did not intend to surrender, and that
the most Of them had already gone to their
homes; that while they were DESTROYING
their arsenals, and carrying with them their
arms, 1t was their constant boast that they
would renew the fight at some future day.
These statements require some comment
AS the chief of staff of Gen. Smith and the
senior Confederate States officer through
whom the treaty of surrender was negotia-
ted, 1t Is incumbent upon me to correct some
Of the errors into which General Sheridan
has fallen IN reference to the transactions to
which he alludes.
Ia the first place the commissioners who
negotiated the treaty were not sent by Gen.
Smith at all, nor did they purpoTt to come
from him. For reasons justified by the SIT
uation of affairs, the commissioners took
the responsibility of negotiating for terms
subject to the ratification Of Gen. Smith
The statement, therefore, that the commits
sioners were sent by Gen. Smith, Is inaccu
rate
At the time the commissioners negotiated
for terms it was not known to themselves
that the Texas troops had disbanded i heir
dispersion, however, as was afterwards
learned, was already an accomplished fact
Had it been known to the commissioners, it
would have been an additional reason to
complete negotiations for the purpose Of
been very absurd in them to have made
known. pending the negotiations. the weak
ness of the trans-Mississippi Department
Such conduct could not have been justified
any more than that Of a commander who
would notify his enemy in advance Of the
strength Of his army and the plan Of his
operations Gen. Sheridan would certainly
not have committed so Quixotic a fault He
has no right, therefore, to charge General
Smith or any one else, with double deal
ing" for adopting a course which General
Sheridan's action show that he himself be-
heves to be right
But ;he Confederate commissioners, as far
as was consistent with their duty as negotia-
tors, made no cunccaimeBt Of E.cts within
their own knowledge as far as was ueees-
sary in honorable negotiations, and am
justified in asserting that their efforts and
the efforts Of other officers were directed not
only towards carrying out the stipulatl0ns
Of the surrender as far as it was m their
power to do, but in some instances IN urging
what influence they possessed to 90 even be
yond the actual requirements Of the treaty
TO bring about a paclfcatiOn Of the country
But while charging that the surrender
% bore upon its face dOub!c-dealIng, zen
Sheridan himself makes statements which
refute the justice Of the charge " hen ne
savs that a fact which could not be con-
cgaIed " demonstrated that the real Object
in Offering to surrender was something dill
fsrent from the ostensible object it neces-
sorilv follows from his assertion that the
Federal authorities negotiated with knowl-
edge of a the facts that Gen. Sheridan has
narrated and which were utPartialiy known
70 the Confederate commissioners.
fC then. these facts were 50 plain that they
could not be concealed" and therefore
were in the possession Of the United States
authorities, It was the duty Of those author
tiles, according to the reasoning Of Gen.
sheridan, to have made them known 10 the
Confederate commissioners pending the me-
gotiations It follows that If q eoncealIaent
0r these facts constituted " dOubie-dcaling