The Valley Virginian. [volume] (Staunton, Va.) 1865-1895, 1881-10-27

for the statements made in the SKETCH and espec
tally the one above quoted. Gen. Early's friends
claim that Malone paid no attention whatever x
this note and that Early, after waiting some months
addressed second one which he sent by Col Wal
ter Fl. Taylor, who had been prominent Officer
upon Gen. Longstreet's STAFF. M ahone, 1t appears
returned his reply by col ored boy, which Genera
Early also took an afro Mt Gen. Malone in his
reply to Gen. Early says ssThat he recognizes the
article substantially that of an interview between
himself and Gen. De Peyster and insists that he car
see no discourtesy in the language used towards
other Confederate officers AS to Gen. Early him
self he says; 'That did say to the author of the
sketch that did like fight under Earyis true
such the feelings entertained by myself but
not for the reason which you would seem to infer;
from no want of confidence in your personal cour-
age. The In part If given at the time, did
not appeal wherefore you were Objectionable to me
a commander. In my opinion Of you as OH
Ger, stated, perhaps, at the time and in this con
nectioE I remember to have said to Gen. Peyster
in substance: "Early is brave enough and untiring
as an officer, but he has disputacious order Of
opinions, and that these in General were faulty
since delay was the consequence at times when the
battle might be fought and WOE"
EARLY's ICY REPLY.
Gen. Early naturally took great exception to this
reply Of Gen. Mahones, and on May 80, 1871, wrote
him very violent letter, evidently intended to
provoke duel. He sent the same to Gen. Malone
by Maj Jno. W. Daniel, the present Bourbon candt
date for Governor. In this letter Gen. Early com
plains of Gen. Mahone's lack OF courtesy in not
plying to his first note OF inquiry Referring to Gen
.Your whole answer is disingenuous and evasiye,
but sufficient appears to fully convict you of com
plicity in the procurement and publication of the
memoir in question. II you did not use the Ian
guage attributed to you, why this beating about the
oT da use IT, u see1 ny not so
might seem to imply This shutting Is utterly I'M
worthy Of man who has made the manly Talbot
and Stonewail jackson his models" Referring to
Gen. Mahones opinion OF himself commander
Gen. Early says: SNOW, sir, to deal plainly with this
special pleading of yours, will say that If yeu
mean to state. that while under my command or at
any other time, you ever saw me delay or hesitate
to fight when occasion offered, you assert down.
right fsehood, you also did If you stated that
would ride up and down my lines from fifteen to
twenty minutes debating whether to begin If you
mean that you received such Information from
any respectable officer or soldier believe you are
guilty OF fasehood in that for the statement was
untrue at all times and under all circumstances. II
you merely mean to assert an opinion deduced from
the fact that / had d1SputattOus order Of mind,
then you were guilty Of the disreputable effort to
injure my reputation as officer ridiculous
pretenses and without facts to sustain you
Gen Earlys letter then goes on to take up and dis
in detail his connection with certain engage
ments referred to by Gen. Malone in his interview
with De Peyster. The letter Is too long to reprint
any considerable portion of and too disconnected
as to narrative to make it interesting 1t is, how
ever exceedingly caust1c and concludes fol-
lows:
81 have now examined all the statements made In
the memoir on your alleged authority and in your
letter which affect me- and the utter groundessness
of your tmpu tatiOnS, fnsnuatiOnS, and criticisms
has been shown. think no candid man can read
that memoir and your letter without coming to the
conclusion that Gen. De Peyster is what he processes
to be-but the interpreter Of your views and sent-
unsoldierly and unworthy attempt to establish for
yourself fictitious reputation upon the minds of
tnose OF your protner omcers. nave before heard
suspicious expressed that while operating about
Petersburg you were the trumpeter OF your fame
through the journals Of that city, directly or 1nd
rectly. No man can now doubt your propensity for
blowing your own horn, with the accompaniment of
some very small whistles. 1t is very apparent, and
you have not had the efrontery to deny it, that In
interview with an officer Of the opposing army
and bitter enemy Of the cause and country to
which you professed devotion, you have in a carp
Ing beral spirit discussed the characters Of those
who were engaged with you in the defense OF just
and holy cause. The result of that interview is
biography of yourself so nauseously fulsome far
you concerned, and so utterly unjust and IL
liberal as regards your former comrades, that the
Northern publisher of 1t cannot withhold the ex-
preston Of his disgust while he is made to swallow
the pill forced on him in the fulhllment OF bar
gain. In all my reading Of biography, from Plu-
tarch down, have never read the memoir of any
man in any age in which he has been made to utter
the 1.-THE of many illberal things about his cotem
porar1es In the whole mem1or have failed dtscov
solitary expression of kind or liberal word or
sentiment in regard to any OF your old comrades
from the commanding general down, save and ex-
cept Gen, Jackson, under whom you never served;
and along with the praise of him is the impudent
pretense that his mantle had fallen on you. Great
rton to Satyr cannot pursue the subject further
and leave you alone in your glory.
Your obed1ent servant, j. A. EARLY.
MALONE CHALLENGES EARLY.
Immediately upon the receipt OF this note, Gen
Malone placed challenge in the hands Of Capt. j.
II. Chamberlain, who is now one Of the proprietors
OF The state, the Bourbon afternoon paper Of Rich
mond. Capt Chamberlain, instead of delivering
the challenge, sought Gen. Bradley T. Johnson, an
intimate friend OF Gen. Early, and asked him to
1nterpose to prevent hostile meeting. Gen
eral Johnson agreed to act for Gen. EARLY, and
called Colonel Robert E. W1thers, whom Malone az
forwards defeated for the United States Senate 10
act with him. These two, representatives of Gen
Early agreed to withdraw the offensive letter, and
Capt. Chamberlain, the representative OF General
tary SKETCH with the Objectionable portions Early
stricken out. 1t was also agreed that General Ma
hone should write courteous letter to General
Early, in addition to ordering republication Of the
memoir, which was done as follows:
GENERAL Your communication Of the 30th ult.
was duly received by me on the slst; Had it been
written with full knowledge of all the facts in the
case, there could of course be but one answer
Waving all mere techn1cal1ties as cannot allow
myself to be forced into quarrel, the result poss
bly, Of omission on my part, think 1t due to my
self to inform you that on the 18th April last d.
rected the republication Of the memoir, with such
as supposed would remove any just
ground Of complaint on the part Of yourself 9TH
ers This statement should have been made in my
letter to you on the oath ult., but omitted I'M
der the pressure of the many engagements demand
Ing my attention. I shall forward you copy Of
this republication soon received by me, and
withhold any reply to your last. am,
etc., MALONE.
WILL THERE RE DUEL?
The corrected memoir was published and the
courteous letter written in 1871. General Malone
was then living in Lynchburg, as General EARLY
and all the parties to the transaction promi-
nent In the Democratic party, and the settlement
ny as anything else. But the settlement was made,
two disinterested parties acting for Gen. Early and
and when closed, was regarded as a binding and
sacred settlement. All the parties now engaged in
it are hostile to General Mahone but Of course Capt
who acted for Malone, cannot but re-
sent the reopening of this question unless he reln
pushes his belief in the Code they understand it
In Virginia.
Almost ever since the matter was closed up Ma
hone has been In open war against the element of
the party represented by Gen Early and all the 9TH
ers directly or indirectly interested In his contrO
versy with EARLY in 1871 yet until now, it has
been found necessary to violate the sacred settle
ment thus made for political considerations. In
1874 Gen. Bradley T. johnson and Gen. Malone chal-
lenged each other to fight duel over politics, and
General Early was Gen. Johnson's second, and yet
1t was never for moment thought necessary to re-
fer to the quarrel between Malone and Early in
1871.
Through all the bitterness of politics, this ques-
ton has been held as settled beyond resurrection
until now. II there was evidence wanting that 1t
has been revived to provoke General Malone into
personal quarrel in which his life may be taken
his political influence destroyed 1t be found in
the manner in which Fairly has been brought into
ago Tuesday, he went from this place to Richmond
being advertised by the papers there, to make a
PERSONAL dSSdulb upon General MdnOn6. he Qll0Q |
the advertisement to the letter. and went out of his
way to designate Malone Toward and liar" |
General Malone refused to be drawn into person
Il quarrel with General Early account of this |
language, acting upon the advice Of his closest |
friends. The publication Of this correspondence Of
en years ago. which was settled Democratic |
party necessity to prevent split In the organiza
ion, is now revived, doubtless with the hope Of fore
ng Malone into duel What Mahone's represen-
at1ves in this settlement of 1871 will do men of
lonor and integrity, cannot be learned, but Captain
chamberlain is credited with having said that any
nan that revived that correspondence he would |
hold personally RESPONSIBLE. This, Of course, means
light; but whether Capt. Chamberlain, being q |
Bourbon editor, can stand the demands of party or
lot, remains to be seen. There seems no reason to
loubt but that the Democrats intend, If within |
ange of possibility, to put General Mahone's life
u jeopardy between now and election day.
F.A. B.
Hon. John F Lewis and the Force Bill
The following documents explain themselves We
y clearly They also spike completely a Funder I
un which has made much noise, II it did little
cution. Read :-WAig
RICHMOND, VA. Oct. "a, 1881.
Editors Wing: send herewith letter from Col.
/ G. SIMPSON, Assistant Secretary of the United
tates Senate showing that the charge made that