The Emporia news. [volume] (Emporia, Kan.) 1859-1881, 1871-05-26
VIRGINIA.
Some of lis former Great Mem,

George Alfred Townsend has been
collecting some facts about the disfran-
chised rebels of the South, and of Vir-
ginia in particular. which he prints in
the Chicago Tribune. He estimates
the whole number of the disfranchised
now at 10000. some $4,000 having
been exempted by act of Congress, and
10000 by act of God-that is by death.
Virginia and North Carolina are each
reckoned as having 10000, Georgia 49,
600, Alabama $4,000, Tennessee 1900
South Carolina, Mississippi and Texas
each 1900, Louisiana 10000, Arkansas
and Missouri each 5000, and so on. He
has much to say of the poverty of the
once wealthy class of Shareholders, and
believes that, as things now are, Geor-
gia is the richest of the reconstructed
states. He thinks that but for the acct
dent of a few pushing men being In
Georgia with capital, Virginia would
still be the controlling state of the
South. The only towns in the South
which have developed since the wal
have been Atlanta and Richmond, the
latter contriving to rebuild all its burnt
district better than before while Allan
ia, chiefly through railroad projects,
has risen from a third-Fate southern
town to one of the better second-rate
cities. In Richmond live three of the
four richest men of Virginia nnder the
new order of things; for it seems there
are but four men in the whole state
who have the reputation of owning
more than S150,000 in money, lands, OIL
other property These men are Will
liam L. Southerlin of Danville, James
Thomas of Richmond, Joseph Ander.
son of Richmond and Franklin Stearns
-
Der of first class tobacco plantations
and is tobacco manufacturer. He
lives in one of the best residences of the
South, completed during the war, and
is supplied with gas made on his own
premises. Thomas is worth about
S150,000, rather less than the Danville
man. Anderson is worth half a mil
lion of dollars, and he made most of il
during the war casting cannon. Frank
Stearn is a native of New England, and
went to Richmond early in life as a Ca
nal digger, was loyal through the war,
and would never keep ia his possession
any rebel money, but took all the scrip
he could get and purchased southern
lands, so that when the war closed, and
the scrip was little worse than brown
paper, he possessed ali the land of the
rebels within fifteen or twenty miles OF
Richmond.
In contrast with these men, we are
told of the old Senators, r. NJ. L. Hun
ter and James NJ. Mason, who are in
poverty. Hunter, who is now sixty
two, is living where he was born, ON his
estate in Essex County, on the west
side of the Rappahannock river, fifty
miles from any town worthy the name,
possessed of from two thousand to
three thousand acres of land, and yet
overwhelmed with debt. Mason, who
is dozen years older, lives now three
miles west of Alexandria, upon little
farm of 200 acres, demented in mind
aud perishing in body. He spends his
time sitting in a large armchair, watch
ing his chickens and pigs, and debating
letters TO his eldest daughter who acts
as his aman1ensis. Mason has just
enough to relieve his closing years
from want. He is too old and too, in
firm to have anything further to say
about public affairs, in which, of course,
he still takes an interests James A.
Sedden, rebel secretary of war, lives in
GoOchland county, midway between
Charlottesville and Richmond. He
has been quiet since the war, and prac-
tiees law in Richmond and the sur
rounding region. Thomas S. Bocock,,
now 50 years of age, lives in Lynch
burg, and suffers somewhat from his ex-
travagant habits of life, in which he is
said TO be exceptional, as the mass of
leading Virginia politicians were temp
crate men in eating aud drinking, in
Guiding even Henry a. Wise, who
abides now in a semi-lunatic state at
Richmond, but is still a frugal liver.
A more important person than any of
these is that brave fighter and capable
officer, Gen. Malone, who is at the head
OF the Virginia and Southern railroad
system, a small, attenuated man, with
the heart of lion, who is looked upon
as one of the most powerful men of the
South He figured In one of the most
terrible panics of the war, as for exam
pie 1.-THE blowing up of the fort below
Petersburg, where he led the way into
the hollow crater to redeem the rebel
line, but never carried a sword or pistol
during the whole war, and went at the
head of his troops with nothing in his
pockets and nothing in his hands. His
only weapon was his iDdomitable nature
and determination to be leader. He
was too weak to WELD a sword had he
possessed one, and he always forgot the
pistol. Malone is said to have been,
until very recently, more of a republic
can than a democrat, but the continual
ton of partisan government and feder-
al interference oyer the South has made
him more bitter than he was five years
ago. In this respect he is like great
many of his brethren among the South
ern rebels, we suspect.
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