Savannah morning news. [volume] (Savannah) 1868-1887, 1883-07-13

" etCS oOhT9tdt Cp6Ctdt.
A distinguished soldier of the war be-
tween the States who fought on the Union
side told me the other day of talk he had
with LOngstreet shortly after the war.
| We had been discussing the emancipa-
ton proclamation and its effect upon the
war. | SAID | believed that this bold eX-
ercise of the war power was the blow that
| proved fatal to the COnfederacy. ''Pos-
! sibly.D replied my friend sshut since my
interview with LOngstreet l have always
been inclined to think that its effect has
! been greatly OVerestimated. Long
street told me that it did not
make the least difference either
| in the conduct of the war or its final
result. The slaves were convinced from
the firing of the first gun that they would
be set free if the North whipped us. The
Confederate armies, up to the issuing of
the proclamation had the best of the fight,
and whatever may have been the real
opinion of the leaders of the Confederate
armies as to the outcome of the struggle,
the slaves never doubted that the South
would succeed until Sherman made his
march to the sea. While they longed for
| the triumph of the North and secretly re,
| iOiced at every Union victory, they never
! dared hope for such result. 1t was,
| therefore, policy for them to remain
upon their plantations and be true
| to their masters. knowing well that
with the entire white male popu-
lation armed and in the field, any attempt
at instruction would not only be
| abortive. but would be terribly avenged.
| We did not fear them," continued Long
| street, "half as much as we had feared
| them before the war, while the slavery
| question was being discussed session after
! session in Congress. LincOln's proclama-
ton of warning, his first proclamation
declaring that he would emancipate
slaves in all States found in rebellion at
certain future date, struck 10 terror into
our hearts. On the contrary, there were
many who saw in it the opportunity for
completely reversing tho oituotions of the
TWO sections IN their relations to FOREIGN
governments. 1t is very certain that
both England and France would have
recognized the Confederacy after the.
first battle of Bull Run but for
the institution of slavery. Gen. Lee
whose acquaintance with the Northern
people and his knowledge of their almost
illimitable resources convinced him at
the very threshold of the war that the South
could not succeed without foreign aid.
was eager to turn LincOln's first procla-
nation to advantage. He stated his views
to number ofSOuthern Generals, | being
one of them. His proposition was that
Lincoln's proclamation should be imme-
dlately met by counter proclamation
from President Davis, emancipating the
slaves without condition. He said such
proclamation would add quarter of a
million men to our fighting forces. and
would stimulate those slaves who re-
manned at home to renewed industry.
thus replenishing our rapidly thin
ming ranks and increase our army
supplies. But the greatest adj
vantage we would derive from it
would be the sympathy and recognition
we would receive from foreign govern
ments that were beginning to grow FESTIVE
and impatient under the long-continued
interruption of their cotton supply, The
council of Generals, if | remember right.
unanimously adopted those views, and
waited on President Davis in a body. !
These and many more reasons were urged !
upon him, but he declined to act upon |
them, declaring that the war had been
commenced to protect slave property. and |
to voluntarily relinquish it would not re- |
suit in independence, but in a restoration |
of the Union with slavery abolished. The /
North would undoubtedly enter into negO-
tlatlons for peace at any time upon such a |
basis, and would no doubt gladly pay a rea-
sOnable compensation for the manumitted
slaves for the sake of a restoration OF the
Union without slavery. This wise sug-
gestiOn of General Lees fell through, and
with Its failure our last chance of victory
and independence was lost" General
Longstreet also said that early in the war
a syndicate of English bankers offered to
furnish the gold necessary for the prose-
cution of the war, if the Confederate Gov
would give them five successive
crops of cotton in pledge, but Davis re-
fused the offer on the ground that cotton
would be the factor that would compel all |
the manufacturing nations of Europe to
recognize the Confederacy, and after in
dependence should be achieved would en-
able the South tn dipfQfp hnr own tQrOc in \
the commercial treaties to be made.