The Anderson intelligencer. [volume] (Anderson Court House, S.C.) 1860-1914, 1881-06-23

The cowardly dishonesty Of its execc.
TONERS was in perfect harmony with the
temper and aririt Of the order"
THE, BURNING OF CoLuMBIA.
Still further of this General he says,
touching tle burning of Columbia, s. O.:
Hypocrisy is the tribute which vice
pays &c virtue therefore, Gen. Sherman
has endeavored to escape the reproacher
for the burning of Columbia by attriba-
ting j. to Gen. Ham2ton's order to burn
the cotton in :ha city, .kss 1t might not
fall into the bands of the enemy. Gen.
that Gen. Sherman's statement Is untrue,
and, though in any controversy to which
Gen. Hampton may be party, no cor.
roborative evidence is necessary to sub.
etantiate his assertion Of @ fact coming
within his personal observation. hun
dreds of unimpeachable witnesses have
testified that the burning of Columbia
was the deliberate act Of the Federal
soldiery, and that it was certainly per-
mitted If not ordered by the command.
ing general"
And again:
"Were this the only Instance of such
barbarity perpetrated by Gen. Sherman's
army, his effort to escape the responsi.
bility might be more successful, because
more plausible; but when tho eulogists
of his exploits note exultingly% that
'wide.spreadiug columns of smoke rose
wherever the army went when il is in
controvertibly true that the line of bis
march could be traced by the burning
dwelling.house. and by the vail of wo.
men and children pitilessIy left to die
from starvation and. exposure in the
depth OF winter, his plea Of mot guilty
in the case of the city of Columbia can
not free him from the reprobation which
outraged humanity must attach to an act
of cruelty which only finds parallel in
the bnrbarous exceases of Wallenetein's
army in the Thirty Years War, and
which, even at thar period of the worlds
civilization, sulliedS the fame of that
otherwise greatsoldier."
THE sURREl7bER OF LEE.
One of the most Interesting features
OF the book Is what MIR. Davis says of
The various peace movements. It has
been charged that Gen. Lee told MIR.
Davis early in 1864 that it was impos-
sible for the Coniederacy to maintain
itself, and the President has been
blamed for continuing the war after
this time. On this point Mr.. Davis
says:
Lee had never contemplated surren.
der. He had long before, in language
similar to that employed by Washing
ton during the Revolution, expressed 10
me the belief that in the mountains Of
Virginia he could carry on the war for
twenty years, aud in directing his march
toward Lynchburg it may we'll be that
as an alternative he hoped to reach
those mountains, and with the atv;.n-
tage which the topography would give
yet to battle the Eosts which were fol.
lowing him."
And further:
I'm the early part of March, 1866, as
wen as my memory can fix the date, Gen.
Lee held with me long and free con.
terence. He stated that the circum.
stances had forced on him the conclu-
sion that the evacuation of Petersburg
was but question of time. He had
early and fully appreciated the embar.
rilssment which would result from
losing the workshops and foundfYs at
RichmoEd5 which he'd been our main
reliancesus the manufacture and repair
OF arms asa we'll as the preparation Of
ammunitipn. The Importance of Rich.
moud in this regard was, however,, ..en
less than isihad heen by the facilities
which had been created for these pur-
poses at Augusta, Selma, Fayetteville
and some smaller establishments, also
by the progress which was being ftnado
for 8 large ermory ut Macon, Ga. To
my inquiry, whether it would not be
better 10 anticipate the necessity by
withdrawing lat once, he aaid that his
artillery and draught horses were too
weak for the roads in their then condi.
tion, and that he would have 60 wait
until they became, firmer. Then natu.
rally followed the consideration of the
line ofIesreat. The paper was forwarded
to Gen. Lee and returned by him with
an unfavorable criticism, and the con-.
clusion that, if we had to retreat, it
shonld be- IN o southwaTdly direction
toward the country from which we were
drawing supplies. and from which q
large portion Of our forces had been de.
rived. In this conversation the same
general view was more specifically stated
and n ade to apply to the then condition
OF affairc. The programme was to retire
to sDanyille, at which place supplies
should be collected and q junction made
with the troops under Gen. J. E. John
upon Sherman in North Carolina, with
the hope of crushing his army hefose,
Grant could reach him.
+ As to the manner In which the deter
mination 20 surrender was reached MIR.
Davis writes
"0n the evening Of che sth Glen. Lee
decided, after conference with his corps
commanders, that he wonld advance the
next morning beyond Appomattox
Courthouse, and If the forco reported to
be there should prove to bo only Sheri.
dams cavalry, to disperse it and continue
the march toward Lynchbnrg but if
infantry shonld be fonnd in large force,
the attempt 10 break through iI was not
to be made, and the correspondence
which Gen. Grant hsd initiated on the
previous day should be reopened by
tlag, with propositions for an interview
To arrange the terms Of capitulation. Cor
don, whoae corps formed the rear guard
from Petersburg, and who Lad fought
daily for the protection Of the trains, had
now been transferred TO the front. On
the next morning, before daylight, Lee,
sent Col. Venable, one of his etaff, to
Gordon, commanding the advance, to
learn his opinion as 70 the chances; of q,
successful attack, to which Gordon re-
piled: Ny old corps is reduced TO u.
irazzle, and, unless I am supported by
Lcngatreet heavily, 1 do not think we
can do anything more When Col.
Venable returned with his answer to
Gen. Lee, he said: Then there is moth
ing left me but to 70 and sec Gen..