The New York herald. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1840-1920, 1872-07-22
Tho Archives OF tho Lato Rebel Con-
federscy-Interesting Documents.

Colonel John T. Pickett, formerly the So
called Confederate States diplomatic agent for
the government of Mexico, has, it appears,
published a statement showing his agency in
the sale of the Confederate archives to the
government of the United States for the sum
of seventy-fve thousand dollars "a snug little
pile of greenbacks. These precious Con-
federate archives filed four trunks and they
were delivered OF the White House on the
Sd of this month. The documents en-
brace the entire archives Of the State Depart
ment Of the late government of JEFF Davis,
without the abstraction of single paper ex-
cepting the secret service vouchers Of that
government which were honorably destroyed
by Judah P. Benjamin, Secretary Of State, ON
the day of the rebel evacuation and burning Of
Richmond
The archives sold to the United States and
delivered at the White House had, it appears,
been spirited off to Canada for safe keeping,
and government officer went over there with
Colonel Pickett to procure them. The Colonel
says:-''There Is but one paper the perusal Of
which gave me any pain-the report
of Hon. Jacob Thompson on the opera
tons on the (Canadian) frontier, the
existence Of which was unknown to me-
until the government officer found it. And
what was this document Colonel Pickett
says that the publication of his (Thompson's)
report will probably cause him and Jefferson
Davis and J. P. Benjamin to feel uncomforta-
BILE for little while; ''but as expect to go to-
neither of them when die, my sympathy
shall not be of heartrending character"
And he begs further to say, ''as one still faith
full to the lost cause, that wholly repudiats
the policy of attempting to burn Northern
cities during the war, especially democratic
cities, and that always Indignantly denied
the allegation until saw Thompson's report.
So let these three worthless vince, not the
noble people whose cause they butchered
The precious document in question: then, ia
s'Jacob Thompson's official report on the at
tempts and designs of those mysterious incen-
diaries, with their black carpet bags and phos-
phoric combustibles. to burn New York and
other Northern cities during the war;" These
interesting archives, Colonel Pickett thinks.
are historically and financially valuable, mas
much as they may save money to the govern
mont by defeating the claims of parties for dam
ages claiming to have been ''trooly loil" in the
war, but 'who threw up their caps for Jefferson
Davis, and shouted Death to the Yankees"
The Colonel himself does not pretend to have
been ''trooly loil," and has no favors to ask
Of the party in power, but desires its over
throw, and yet he neglects to state the dis
tribution Of that snug little sum of seventy-ive
thousand dollars obtained for those aforesaid
archives. We suppose it is all right; we dare
say it is nobody's business; and yet people
will be inquisitive in these little transactions
where good money is given for the old papers
of an exploded institution.
We presume, however, that upon those sug-
gested consequential damages these archives
will prove good bargain to the government,
and that to the future historian of our great re-
bellion they will be valuable as disclosing the
intrigues and schemes of the government Of
Davis with foreign Powers, and over the Cana
dian border to weaken the cause of the Union
in the war and to strengthen the Southern con-
federacy.