The Ouachita telegraph. [volume] (Monroe, La.) 1865-1889, 1881-01-07

he ruins of the Confederacy and regain h
;he seat in Washington from which he s
,eeeded with Davis to aid in guiding I
rebellion. Two of his unnoted warriors
have sat in Republican Cabinets Lees
abiest lieutenant is the Republican
Minister TO Turkey; the man who
the first regiment of volun-
teerS to Charleston and who served as
Senator until Appomatiox
became historic died as the Republican
Minister to Russia, and Senate, House
and the Washington departments
swarm with men who were abreast with
Jefferson Davis in every effort to dis
member the Republic, but Davis is the
of humiliation while his
fellows go in and out without dis
pleasure. i heard no allusion to sor
complaint of this injustice, but it is
plainly evident that Davis entirely APP
preciates it, and that he believes he
would not be consistent with himself
and the grave responsibilities he as
sumed, however mistaken he may
have been in assuming them, if he did
not deliberately remain an alien to the
Government that he more conspicuous
~ than all others struggled to over
throw. He could not help the South |
or himself by seeking or accepting
restoration to citizenship, and he is
wisely content with stubborn faith in
the rectitude of his lost cause.
SOME "REMINISCENCES OF THE WAR.
I have long desired to know the
exact truth from the fountain of South
ern knowledge on the subject, in re-
gard TO several important events of the
| war, and / was agreeably surprised at
the freedom with which Mr.. Davis
met my enquiries. Why Beauregard
was ordered to fire upon Anderson in
Fort Sumter after his surrender was
Inevitable at specified time without
assaulting the flag, has never been,en-
tirely understood. 1t was the act of
madness, as it made division in the
North impossible, and have always
believed that the real cause of the
order to open, fire was to unity the
South and end the threatening move
ments for reunion on terms. Mr..
Davis answered promptly and EN-.
phatically that the order was given
solely because faith had been broken
by the Lincoln administration in
attempting to reinforce Anderson, and
4 that the South needed no war to solid
ify its people. i think he errs in un-
4 derestimating the probable power of
i the movement in the South for recon-
Istruction before the war, but it is evil
dent that in deciding to issue the fatal
order for the assault upon Sumter, he
believed the Confederacy invincible
and defantly resented,what he regard
ed as violation of the pledge of the
Federal Government. That act pract:
; cally consolidated the north, ant
, thenceforth the Con federacy Svas fear
fully hopeless venture. On anothe
important point he answered with TIN
A same freedom. When asked whethe
g the aggressive movement of Lee tina
t eliminated at Gettysburg was adopte,
e as purely military strategy or the of
$ sqring of political necessity inside III
/. Confederacy, he answered that it wa
It the wisest of both military and politi
), cal strategy, but that it was not dictate
n at all by political considerations. III
t, said that the wisdom of the militar
i, movement was proven in the recall c
d Meade from Virginia and the transfe
il Of both armies to Northern soil but
t. he soberly added, the battle was a mis-
J fortune. The chances were equal, as b
y regarded it, for military success, an,
] that would have deranged the Who'll
e plan of the Government and impaire
: it's resources for the campaign of tina
@ year. AS a military movement, MI
8 Davis says, the Gettysburg campaig
c had the entire approval of Lee, an
1t there We're no political divisions in tn
d South to dictate any departure froi
e the wisest military laws. L dosiret
J. also, to know whether, at the time
N the Hampton Roads conference betwee
g Lincoln, Seward, Stephens, aud other
D. Mr.. Davis had received any intimate
/ from any credible source, that NJ
r Lincoln would assent to the payne,
IN of four hundred millions as compens,
n ton for slaves, if the South won
ID accept emancipation and return to I'll
O. Union. He answered that he had l
re such intimation from any source, b
s. that ifsuch proposition had been mad
Sc he could not have entertained it as Il
,e executive of the Confederacy. He sa
l. that he was the sworn executive of
he Government founded on the rights
is the States that slavery was distinct
r. declared to be exclusively Sta
Institution, and that such an ISIS,
could have been decided only by I'll