Nashville union and dispatch. [volume] (Nashville, Tenn.) 1866-1868, 1868-01-09
GEORGIA.

Correspondence of the Union and Dispatch
ATLANTA, Jan. 9Th, 1861 The ieIe,
graph has already conveyed to you intel
ligenee OF the removal of my friend, Gen
erai Pope, from his high position of "com.
mander OF the third military district
had been fearful for some time past thai
the General was coming il rather strong,
and that the man at the other end of the
avenue y Would not stand everything; but
having seen intimations of late that the
President was 10th to do any thing iusl
now which might have the effect to restore
harmony in the Radical camp, had hoped
that my old friend Pope might be permits
ted to reign in peace until he shonld have
completed the great work of reconstruction
80 happily begun. And yet, the proceed
ings of the estate Convention" recently
adjourned until the Sth of January, Were
not calculated to inspire any very great
confidence in the statesmanship of its
members, or any high hopes of a successful
termination of their arduous labors. The
| great difficulty in their way, however. was
a deficiency Of funds. AS war cannot be
waged without "the sinues." neither can
the arts of peace be very happily cuitiva-
ted without greenbacks,' and the "fnan-
cial agent dispatched to Milledgeville to
obtain the wherewith," found Governor
jenkins and Treasurer Jones not at all dis
posed to be reasonable or accommodating.
The convention having voted themselves
nine dollars a day" and mileage, and
passed an ordinance levying tax upon
the people Of the Commonwealth, out of
which to "realize" the amount expected
to be required for this purpose-it was
though that the provisional officers at
Milledgeyille would not fail to advance" !"
But they couldn't see it"-in point of
fact, it is said they had already remitted
to New York all the available funds in
their hands with which to pay what they
call Legitimate claims upon the State"
Perhaps these sagacious officials anticipa-
ted some such call as was made upon them
by the State Convention" Who knows {?
The convention having adjourned over to
the Sth inst, the question arises, will they
re-assemhle at the appointed time? The
tax they have levied will not be available
before the first of November next-even
if the provisional officers whose duty
it is made to assess and collect it, should
promptly and faithfully perform their duty
and how is the convention to be suhsisted
meanwhile? Certain hotel and boarding
house keepers hereabout will be slow to
admit them a second time, without " in
demnity for the past and security for the
future" and should the members meet
again and propose to effect a temporary
loan, will capitalists come forward and
take the bonds? There are Radical
moneyed men in Atlanta who could do So
L could name trio who could themselves
run the machine for months, but
will they do it? Alas l trow not
What then, is to be done2 You
see this makes the removal of Gen
Pope so much the more to be regretted just
at this time; for he might have found a
way out of the difficulty, and no doubt
would have done 50, as he always went in
not more for the interests of the State of
Georgia than for the success of the political
party upon whose continuance in power, for
several years to come, depend the success
of reconstruction, etc, (ride his letter to
SWayne in the case of Alahama). But
what do we know Of General Meade? We
hear rnmors, indeed, that he ia "COnserya~
tive" even that he is Democratic" and
may he not prove Halleck? Ifso, what
bllCn i 1ut lIulll lSs bndi III tllIs CpLkDllGd-
tion Bunsby could hardly give "an opin
ion as is an opinion" Nevertheless have
cautioned my Conservative" friends against
the too common error of "hallooing before
they are out of she woods" We have lately
had spread before us a letter from this same
Gen. Meade beginning "My dear Forney."
Now it appears to me that Radicals might
take some comfort in this. True, the letter
amounts to nothing, the body of it mean,
but "My dear Forneyp is by no means dis
couraging to RAIDS. Why, if Thad. Ste
vens had been writing TO the astnte editor
of "two papers, both daily" he could not
have set out more afTectionately still in
the language of the lamented Thomas
Ritchie, in his day the Nestor of the Ameri-
can political press-aOHs UeTr0ns! So let us
await General Meade's advent with what
patience we may.
The accounts which reach us from all
portions of this unfortunate South, are far
from encouraging. Indeed, the confusion,
distress and destitutiOn, instead of being in
any degree alleViated by the progress of
reconstruction, are rather increased and
aggravated by everything done under and
by virtue of the acts of Congress. Planters
dAC OlSbbuIukCA ny bitO low BilIC Vi COliOu
and the uncertainty and unreliabiity of
"free eolored labor" and many Of them are
making no arrangements whatever for
another crop. General Gillem's late report
to General Ord no doubt, gives a true
picture of affairs in his district, and in
lower Georgia and the Carolinas things are
no better. If Congress had permitted the
Reconstruction to proceed according 10
the plan laid down by Lincoln, and fol-
lowed up by johnson, the sO-called 'Rebel
States" would long since have resumed
their places in the Union, and much more
would have been accomplished toward the
restoration Of the material prosperity of
those States so completely prostrated by a
desolating civil war
If the State of Georgia is reconstructed
and restored TO the Union according to the
plan of Congress, no matter who may sue.
ceed Gov. Jenkins, the people of Georgia
will, on the day he vacates the official
chair, lose one of the best Governors, if not
the best they have ever had. In this view
of the case, our people dread the con-
summation of the "Sherman-Shellabarge
acts"-fOr they cannot hope to see the
position filled by any one whom the pres
ent voters may select, with the ability, im-
Partially and honesty that have character
lied the administration of Charles J. Jen-
kins. He is, beyond doubt, one of the
purest men, az well as one of the most ins
genuous Statesmen this country has pre-
duced-reminding US of the better days
of the republic" when Webster, Clay,
a Calhoun, a Cass, adorned the floor of the
American Senate. When Jenkins retires,
we will, most probably, also lose the servi-
ces of Campbell Wallace, the present able
Superintentendent of the Western and At
lsntic railroad. Ii is universally eonce-
ded that he is the best Superintendent who
has yet managed the affairs of this road.
Indeed, it requires only moderate knowls
edge Of the history Of this great thoroug-
fare to prove this; and while Major Wal
lace, when he took charge of it, was CONS
paratively a stranger in Georgia, his name
is nov in the mouths of all intelligent
Georgians-' as familiar as household
words" If the new administration shall
desire to protect and promote the true ins
terests of the State, they will do well tore
tain his services, if they can. But, wher-
ever Major Wallace may go, and to what>
ever position he may be called, he will
carry with him the high respect of this
people and their best wishes for his future
eupppcs "a we'll a. the einoara varo~d &c