The Daily state register. [volume] (Carson City, Nev.) 1870-1872, 1871-06-17
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DAVIS,

mot now, my c~Ountrymen; l am an
extinct Volcano" There was much
practical wisdom in that remark-a
wisdom which it would have been
better forth reputation of Jefferson
Davis had he possessed. There is a
time for speech and a time for ST.
lence. Mr.. Davis seems to be so
constituted that he cannot perceive
when these occasions come or go.
Whatever may have been his inten-
tiopS-which We doubt not We're
pure and patriotic-h his late speeches
while travelling through Georgia
were a blunder which a man of his
capacity and experience should
never have been guilty of. The
bluEder consisted not so much in the
matter said, as in the i~mpropriety of
saying anything at all. The Ameri-
can people generally have very little
interest in Mr.. Davis opinions, at
this particular iuncture of af-
fairs. There was a time when
the case was different. That time is
passed, and he ought to appreciate
it. Mr.. Davis name and reputation
will we be associated with the
great rebellion. With the close of
his administration as the head Of the
C~onfederacy his political career
closed forever. The people have
turned their backs upon that revolu-
ton and now front the future. With
that future Mr.. Davis has no part.
interest. or connection, except as a
private individual. He can expect
no political preferment. 4 Younger
generation VIII play their part on
that field, and struggle. suffer. or
triumph a the generation that went
before it. During the few years
which in the course of nature are
permitted to Davis he can be but a
spectator. and a due respect to the
opinions of mankind requires that
he should remain a silent me. His
record is made. His fame, whether
it be for good or for evil. must rest
with the acts which are sealed to the
future. Politically he is dead.
While thousands of his c~ountrymen
will always atfectionatelv associate
his name with the memory Of a
cause which in its day Wac dear to
them. they viii instinctiv"1 n TO
Other men, and to other counsels,
for their guidance amidst the intri-
eacies Of the future. He has no
party in the South. As an individ-
ual he never was popular with his
own peop!e-even in his best days.
He represents no one now but him
self. The public expression of his
views can only be regarded with Gu
riosity byhls friends, and afford new
subjects OF misrepresentation for his
enemies. In yielding to the calls of
a thoughtless rabble for a speech he
shows a weakness which is not cred
liable to him asa statesman, and only
~ro..l1or+ ,Io-r1. ,f;.,
preferred against his administration.
by his own political friends. during
the war. Mr.. Davis ought to realize
that old things are passing away, and
that new elements are springing into
life which are not included within
his philosophy. In the language of
the Louisville COurier-Journal: IF
Mr.. Davis would be a hero with the
children-a hero with posterity-the
hero of a household fairy tale, be-
dewed with tears, sanctifiedby blood,
animated by a glory in which each
little one has an inherited portion
he had better have done with balco-
MES and drains and flies and drunken
Brawlers that do 10 credit to the
cause he led and lost. He should
seek to stand behind the mist which
is slowly gathering between the past
and the future. 1t is, as it were. a
decent drapery, which conceals his
faults and only shows his virtues"