Daily globe. [volume] (St. Paul, Minn.) 1878-1884, 1881-01-09
Light on Mooted Questions of the War.

I had long desired to know the exact
truth from the fountain Of Southern
knowledge on the subject, in regard to
several important events of the war, and
was agreeably surprised at the freedom
with which Mr.. Davis met my inquiries.
Why Beauregard was ordered to fire
upon Anderson in Fort Sumter after
his surrender was inevitable at a specl-
fed time without assaulting the flag, has
never been entirely understood. 1t was
the act of madness, as it made division
in the North impossible, and I have al
ways believed that the real cause of the
order to open fire was to unity the South
and end the threatening movements for
reunion on terms. Mr.. Davis answered
promptly and emphatically that the Or
der was given solely because faith had
been broken by the Lincoln administra-
ton in attempting to reinforce Ander-
son, and that the South needed no war
to solidify it's people. think he errs
in Understanding the probable power
of the movement in the South for recon-
struction 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 regarded as
violation of the pledge Of the Federal
Government. That act practically con-
solidated the North, and thenceforth the
Confederacy was fearfully hopeless
venture. On another important point
he answered with the same freedom.
When asked whether the aggressive
movement of Lee that eliminated at
Gettysburg was adopted as purely mill
tary strategy or the offspring Of political
necessity inside the Confederacy, he an
swered that it was the wisest of both
military and political strategy, but that
it was not dictated at all by political
considerations. He said that the wis
dom of the military movement was
proven in the recall of Meade from Vir-
ginia and the transfer of both armies to
Northern soil j; but, he soberly added,
the battle was misfortune. The chances
were equal, as he regarded it, for mill
tary success, and that would have de-
ranged the whole plan Of the Govern
ment and impaired its resources for the
campaign of that year. AS a military
movement, Mr.. Davis says, the Gettys-
burg campaign had the entire approval
of Gen. Lee, and there were no political
divisions in the South to dictate any de-
parture from the wisest military laws.
T desired, also, to know whether, at the
time of the Hampton Roads conference
between Lincoln, Seward, Stephens and
others, Mr.. Davis had received any in
timation from any credible source that
Mr.. Lincoln would consent to the pay
ment of $4OO,0OO,OO0 as compensation
for slaves if the South would accept
emancipation and return to the Union.
He answered that he had no such in
timation from any source, but that if
such proposition had been made he
could not have entertained it as the Ex-
ecutive of the Confederacy. He said
that he was the sworn Executive of
government founded on the rights Of the
States; that slavery was distinctly de-
clared to be State institution, and that
such an issue could have been decided
only by the independent assent of each
State. Some of them, he added, would
have accepted such terms at that time,
but others would have declined it, and
peace was, therefore, impossible on that
basis.-Col. Aler. K. Mcclure.