The weekly echo. [volume] (Lake Charles, Parish of Calcasieu, La.) 1868-1876, 1875-05-13
Esom lhs Nsw OrIsans salls.la.


NEW ORLnANs. La, April d, 1875
DEAR Sm Your favor of the
18th instant has been received. en-.
closing The form III an invitation
adopted BY a general meeting 81
the soldiers, sailors and citizens
Of Chicago, to be sent to al who
recognize ths American fag as an
emblem Of Dationality. undivided
and aadiUisiHe, to attend a grand
reunion of all tie soldiers ana
sailors of the United States to BE-
held at Chicago BIay ~, la and
IL, 1876, and inquiring how much
truth there is in the remarks of q
certain Gen. Frank Sherman, who
objected to the invitation being
sent to me, as . be was not ID fa
Nor of extending an invitation to d
man who bad said he was Id favor
Of shooting all prisoners taken
under the American flag" / had
hoped that the passions and en-
mites occasioncd BY the late war
we're replaced by kindlisr feelings.
but II seems that there are hearts
still rancor0us enough to be ever
anxious to stir again into flame
the dying embers Of the war.
In this section Of our country
such exhibitions Of animosfty are
confined To those who, during TIE
war, were farthest from the enemy.
gathering up the spoils il TIE
wake of the contending armies. Is
not this Gen. Frank Sherman one
Of those despicable characters
Not from any regard for such
windy defamation, nor for the
man mean enough to sink to such
base pandering to popular opinion,
but ont of respect to myself. and so
that cause whose high and holy
purpose history win one day vim
dicate, 1 viii very briefly and
frankly state the position I took i'll
regard to the conduct of the late
civil war, as concerned Federal
prisoners.
After the battle of the first Ma
nassas, when it was reported that
the Federal Government refused
toTecognize Il Confederate prisoners
as prisoners Of war. that Chris
tian hero and able soldier. Gen.
Thomas j. (St0newalll jackson.
and myself advocated that the
Confederate Government should
then proclaim a war 70 the
knife, neither asking nor grant
ing quarter. NE moreover thought
that tic war Rould thereby come /
sooner To an end, with less de-
struction, finally, of life and pro-
perty. We thonght. also, that such |
q mode Of warfare would Inspire
greater terror ia the armed in-
vaders oE our soil and redncs |
greatly the number of army follow /
eTss bummers, etc, who are ever
the curse 0g an armed invasiona
Subsequently, when the Fed /
erals had penetrated certain p0r- I
tions of the South, and developed +
. system Of warfare ia their opera
lions i'll Louisiana, Mississippi and
Virginia, 50 Numerically opposed /
to The one practiced by the Con-
iederates, when they invaded Ma
ryland and Pannsylvania under
their great commandar, Gen. II.
z. Lee. and / saw tho amacsas
forms and vratched condition o
our returned Southern prisoners
again advocated tie hosting 0s
The block flag. willing at any time
10 forfeit ms life ia she deadly
struggle This policy was derea /
still more lustihabie bg lhe inex
,uaahle burning 81 Atlantis and
Columbia. and che destructive p
sage of General Sherman through
Georgia and South Garogina, hos
rack Was marked hg 8nokin
.nina and hlacksna3 ehhmnaYs bq
.he snp tion 81 Gen. alleek so
destroy Charleston, and sphinx
ialt on SIS site thet nat even grass
should grow thereon o hieh