The Highland weekly news. [volume] (Hillsborough [Hillsboro], Highland County, Ohio) 1853-1886, 1876-02-03

political capital as a candidate fol
the Presidency, and calling him ''tht
honorable hyena from Maine" But
the speech of Mr.. Cox only proved
his readiness to apologize for the
South, and court the favor of the
Southern members Of his party, aftel
the old doughface fashion which
prevailed before the war; and ht
gained little credit by his subserv
iency.
Mr.. Hill, of Georgia, a rebel off
Ger during the war, and leading
member of the Confederate Congress
next got the floor, and made The
great speech of the debate, on the
Southern side. He boldly denied
the truth of the charges as to reb
el cruelty at Andersonville, and as
serted that the horrors of that pris
on were surpassed by those of the
Union prison at Elmira, n York, and
that while the mortality among the
rebels in Northern prisons was near
ly II per cent, that of Union priso-
ners in Southern prisons was only
about 8 per cent. He declared that
the sr1fferings endured by the Union
prisoners were such as could not be
avoided, and that our Government
was responsible for them in great
degree, by refusing to exchange pris-
oners on the terms offered by tie
rebels.
When Mr.. Hill made his assertion
as to the cruel treatment of rebel
prisoners at Elmira, Mr.. Platt, the
member of the House from that dis
trict. rose and pronounced the state
ment unqualifedly false. Mr.. Hill
replied that it was the statement of
Federal surgeon, published in the
New York World, and that he pre-
ferred to believe it rather than that
of Mr.. Platt.
Mr.. Hills hour having expired he
was allowed to proceed by general
consent, when Mr. Blaine asked him
if he did not introduce a resolution
into the Confederate Congress in DC
tober, 1862, purposing to punish
with death every Union officer or
soldier captured within the Confed-
crate lines after Jan. 1st, 1868, when
the Emancipation proclamation took
effect Mr.. Hill replied that he did
not remember whether he was the
author of the resolution or not, but
did not deny that such a resolution
was reported by the committee OF
which he was chairman.
Mr.. Blaine repeated that the off
cial record showed that Mr.. Hill
himself offered the resolution.
Mr.. Hill proceeded to defend Mr..
Davis from the charge of Mr.. Blaine,
and closed his speech by declaring
that the South was the true friend of
the Constitution and the Union,
which had been violated and tram
pied upon by the North. He said:
"We wronged the Union grievously
when we left it, to be seized and
rent and torn by the men who had
denounced it as "a covenant with
hell and a league with the devil. :"
$50 far from having lost our fidelity
to the Constitution which our faith
ers made, when we sought to go, we
hugged that Constitution to our bos-
oms and carried it with US. All of
which sounds very prettily, from a
man who fought for four years to de-
stroy the Union and the Constitu-
ton which he now processes to love
so well.
On the day following Mr.. Hills
speech, (Jan. 12tb) Gen. Garfield, of
Ohio, Republican, replied to him in
a very able effort, which. while less
severe than the speech of Mr.. Blaine,
was not less effective. He quoted
from official documents of the rebel
government, now in possession of
our government, to prove Mr. Davis S
knowledge of the Andersonville hor-
rors, and showed his responsibility
for them so clearly that none can
hereafter successfully deny the fact
He quoted the testimony of Col. D.
7. Chandler and Col. R. H. Chiffon,
Assistant Adjutant AMI Inspector
Generals of the rebel army, both of
whom reported to President Davis
the disgraceful state of things at
Andersonville, and recommended the
removal of Gen. Winder. Instead of
removing him in disgrace, Mr.. Davis
promoted him to be Commissary
General of all the Confederate pris-
onsl
During Mr.. Garfeld's speech, Mr.
Platt of N. Y, asked him to yield the
floor, to allow him to read a dis
patch he had just received from Gen.
B. f. Tracy, commander of the pris-
ON at Elmira, \. Y, during the war
Gen. Tracy states that the rebel pris-
oners were well cared for, and pro-
vided with good provisions and COM
Portable shelter, and that the NOR
tality among them (from smallpox
was not owing to neglect, or want