The New Orleans daily Democrat., 1878-11-22

Va, with Gen. Lee, / took occasion to submit
my views to him, and We then agreed that
they should be called out and regimented at
once, to guard our less exposed forts, arsen-
ais, etc, so as to allow our well disciplined
white garrisOns to be sent to the field.
This was o very natural thought to occur
to Loulsanian,, for | had been aGGus-
Orleans the colored ,"Veterans Of
1814-15" parade on the eighth Of
January and the fourth of July every year,
along with their white fellow soldiers, and |
had frequently been told by Col. La Coste
and their other white officers that their color
ed troops had displayed great galIantry near
the swamps on the left Of Old Hickory's line
OF battle. | could therefore see no reason why
they should not fight as well for their homes
and their firesldes il offered freedom to them
selves and Families with proper bounties in
money or lands Our servants during the war
very rarely deserted their masters, and they
were generally as elated over q Confederate
victory as any OF our soldiers. During theslOw
but progressive destruction OF Fort Sumter
in 1864, ] had some $50 coored lhbOrcrs in
the fort to assist the garrison of the same
number of soldiers in building up the para
pets, etc, with the debris of the walls and
casemates. These laborers generally re-
posed, like the white troops, to one of
the scverest, longest lbombardments re-
corded in history; yet never heard of these
colored people being very badly frightened.
There were some exceptional cases. but so
there was likewise among the white troops
At @ certain period Of the siege, wishing to
rebuild some Of the battered down easements
and embrasures, ] endeavOred to procure
bricklayers, but they were then very scarce
and SO was all skilled labor My brother, on
my staff, had o young cOlOred servant named
MunrOe, who was an excellent brick mason
Munroe, hearing OF my difficulty in procur-
ing masons, volunteered his services, and re-
mained in the fort three months without leav
days. He is now earning good livelihood at
his trade in New Orleans. The last year of
the war tho Confederate Congress finally
passed law arming the colored people (of
proper age Of the South, granting them their
freedom etc; but before it could be carried
into effect the Confederacy came to an end,
which might have been prolonged several
years If that measure had been adopted
sooner.
Reporter ] understand, then, that you
think that the final result OF the war was
from the first inevitable, and only Il question
Of time?
Gen. Beauregard-I am not one Of those
who believe that number and resources in
war always prevail. | believe that O small
force, properly disciplined and handled, will
larger force improperly organized and
handled The wars of Alexander, Caesar,
Charles XII Of Sweden, Frederick the Great
and Napoleon, and the campaigns of Stone
Will JdCkSDu ttIu 1Itb Ill DuI IiLS SLL uREID
clearly prove this proposition.
Reporter But do you not think that the po
litical conditions, peculiar institutions, eie-
ments of population, undeveioped resources,
lack ef general diffusion of knowledge, @ want
of progression in modern civilization. but,
above all, the enslaved condition Of the coIored
people of the South made it an impossibiity
to achieve ultimate success in establishing q
Southern Confederacy?
Gen. Beauregard with emphasis(-If you
To hn rtjt fn
lem of the war, No! The people Of the South
were politically united for the purpose of in
Their liberation of the abuses OF
the administration, through all of which they
continued making individual sacrifices to the
last, shows that under wise director the
power of the country would have been as
wieldy as that of a dictator. AS to the "pe-
culiar Institutions" and Elements Of popuIa-
ton" they were relatively an element of
strength. Our country produced in abund-
are in demand throughout the world, and
the negroes were needed for their pro-
duction. Tho wants of other nations
the great manufacturing cOun-
mercial relations with us. They would have
been eager to exchange in our ports their
including munitions and arti-
cles of war, for our raw material. Through
common sagacity in providing an Immediate
navy, nearly as good as that Of the Federals,
have been kept open for such exchange with
the world, and this fact would have made our
easy, with all its advantages. in
cuding an unobstructed facility for receiving
war supplies. Even after neglecting to or
iginate and maintain a navy, the administra-
tion might in part have redeemed its error by
the means suggested for destroying
the blockading fleet. In 1868 | sent Capt.
Frank Lee on q special message to Richmond
TO request aid for the construction Of efficient
staam tnrnpI0 hOatG far thiG A ftpr
long delays the request was refused, and the
material dispOsable for this important
object was wasted on the slow construction
)f clumsy vessels that never did any
service. Tho effects Of the offensive torpedo
warfare wrought from the meagre resources
could command proved clearly what might
have been done. The lesson taught by those
was effectively applied in the late
war in Europe, where the, torpedo boats on
Turkish ironcIad fleet that the Russian
bridges and lines Of communication were
maintained throughout the war. Whatever
may have been our condition as to "undevel-
oped resources, lack Of diffusion of knowl-
rial) civilization" it afforded no adverse
influence in the trial; though education was
not equally widespread in the South. the
greater part Of it's educated population was
IS highly cultured to say the least, as the
population in the North. Thus
we had an abundance of good officers from
civil life, superior, [ think, to those of
the North while our soldiers In the
ranks had great personal Intelligence; Our
resources, as / have just explained,
might have been ample if rightly admins
tered, and all war appliances of the least kind,
not producible at home, might have been i'm
ported from abroad. AS to the African peo-
ple their employment in the war in such
numbers as we might have required, with the
reward of emancipation and bounty, would
have furnished us. good military ele,
ment. The prosperity OF the South would
have invited immigration, both for military
service and for sett Element; while the slaves,
f gradually emancipated, would have accom-
modated themselves more worthily to their
filtered relations with society: We must view
Ill Incidents Of our condition in their relation
ship and as whole And it may, therefore,
De said that, if favored with an enterprising
no condition ever existed in
which people struck for independence with
higher advantages than the South.
HOTEL ARRIVALS.
CASSIDY,s-A r Ashurst Ky; Alex Newman.
TA,r.x IT