The Somerset press. [volume] (Somerset, Ohio) 1873-1977, 1874-04-03
The Night Have Beens.

Southern writer's on the late unpleas-
antness are naturally prone to wander off
into disquisitions on certain possibilities,
which, if they had onsy come around at
the right time and the right place, would
have changed the result of the contest,
and made the Southern States an indie
pendent Confederacy. After misfor-
/ tune or reverse it is human nature 10
show how it might have been avoided,
( and this constitutes the book of expert
ence. General Joe. Johnston, the ablest
/ of Southern leaders after Lee, and posi-
bly, Jackson, has just printed his Mar
ratiYe of Military Operations" and in
| it devotes chapter TO the true causes
Of the collapse Of the South, and how it
might have been avoided. The book
promises to be one of the most valuable
contributions to the history OF the war
from the Southern standpoint; or rather
it provides the future Historian with i'm
portant material; for as yet no political
or military historian of the war has ap-
peared, and win not for many a year
But the work of gathering up material
for his use when he-does come along, Is,
going on with vigor in both sections, and
he viii find ready TO hand, mass of
printed information such as exists in re-
gard to no other great conflict in the
worlds history. Let US all hope he will
be of the theme.
Coming back to General Johnston's
sxiew of the collapse Of the rebellion, he
says it was ''neither the want of wealth
and population, nor of devotion to their
own cause on the part of the people of
those States" He then points out how
success might have been achieved, and
here we quote his curious and plausible
theory:
" y full treasury was necessary to de-
fray the expense of great war. The
South had the means of making one in
its cotton alone. But its Government re-
jeeted those means, and limited its fnan-
cial efforts to printing bank notes, with
which the country was soon flooded.
The necessity of actual money in the
treasury, and the mode of raising it, we're
generally understood in the country. 1t
was that the Government should take
the cotton from the owners and send 1t
to Europe as fast as possible, to be sold
there. This was easily practicable, for
the owners were ready to accept any
terms the Government might fix, and
sending to Europe was easy in all the
first year Of the Confederacy's existence.
Its Government went into operation ear
ly in February. The blockade of the
Southern ports was proclaimed in May,
but not at sall effective until the end of
the following winter, so that there was a
period of about twelve months for the
operation of coverting 100000 or 81,
000,0 900 bales of cotton into money. The
sum procured in that way would have
enabled the War Department to procure
at once arms enough for 100000 men,
and after that expenditure the Confed
crate Treasury would have been much
richer than that of the United States
By applying the first money obtained in
this way to the purchase of arms and
military accoutrements, or using it for
the purpose the credit which such an
amount of property would have given,
the War Department would have been
able to equip troops as fast as they could
be assembled and organized. And, as
the Southern people were full of enthu-
siasm, 100000 men could have been
ready in the field had such a course been
pursued at the time when the first bat
tie was actually fought-the 21st of Ju-
ly, 1861. Such force placed on the
northern borders of the Confederacy be-
fore the United States had brought
fourth of the number into the field,
would probably have prevented the very
idea of coercion" Such disposition
of such an army, and the possession of
financial means of carrying on the war
for years, would have secured the success
of the Confederacy."
1t is the opinion of General Johnston
outset of the war were due to the fact
that it undertook an offensive warfare;
and that the South would have been just
as badly beaten, therefore, had the often
sive been originally taken on that side.
"Either country" he says, and we must
say that we think he says truly, "eould
have raised armies stronger both in num-
bers and in spirit for defensive than for
offensive war;"
"At the outset" says General John
ston, "the Southern troops were superior
to their adversaries, from greater zeal
and more familiarity with the use of
firearms. The thorough system of in
.struction introduced into the United
States army gradually established equali-
ty in the use of firearms, and our great
er zeal finally encountered better disci-
pline.n