Wheeling register. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1878-1935, 1884-01-12
IHE FALL OF E,CnMOND.
A Confederate Eyewitness Describes
Ihe ENMCmMII ION OF Ihe ltIY.

I'm lecture delivered al Atlanta,
Georgia, recently DR.. j. l.. Burrows, OF
\irgiuiu, told Of tie downfall OF Rich
mond. D'. Burrows began his lecture
10y s.uting that Richmond was
never captured, lut WAS ab1n-
d0n,d. Never Il dwelling or Il sta
bic III liChmOnd WIS struck uy the
enemy's shot or shc!l; and nOt federa.
soldier enter, il, save ~ a prisoner of
war, until the remnant Of those who
has defended it for lUWr long years were
miirs away. lie gave Il cOmpr, h,a5ivc
description Of the defense Of RIrhmOui |,
natural and Artificial. The natural de
GcDsts were so great, and tney were -
well tackled up that TIE people of the
city felt tOierahly secure, and reg?rde
it a. The safest place in the cor federacy.
Since the war he had seen people who
toIsaw years before bow it was going t
result, but it was little strange TN a
the end caught thete very people with
their pockets full o. confederate bon l.
and notes. They must have beet
very patriotic people. He was free t.
say that lie never expected the cause To
fail. These flr.sighted people remind
h,m Of the old woman who screamed
out when her little grandson told her
that the turkey had eaten up the gIay
colt, "I told you So" In the lat day =
March, lNGi, people We're living on rye
or potato cnilt", on meal 1T :75
hushel, an occasional biscuit f)r
flour was 500 a barrel, on potl-
toes 1T so peck and other arti-
rles equally high, but money, fiat
money, Was plentiful, although p.o-
visions were scarce. The reou'c Sub
mnt"d chcerfulIy t~ fall because they
believed that eventually the cause
would succeed. E.veryhOhy had become
50 used 10 the noise Of the big guns that
they didn't mind it. The lst day o.
APRIL, lSij, was Saturday and on the
Suld Y which followed the few church
bells that were ie!t-the others had
been cast Into CaunOn--callud the peO-
pie 20 prayer. President DAVIS was in
lis w W 1T II. lau's church when a
soldier walked down the aisle and hand
ed him note. That note was from
Gcuual Lee, stating that the line had
Uetn broken through and the city must
be evacuated. He then "ent on to de-
scribe the evacuation OF the city that
sunday nigh and Monday morning by
the confederate government and trO BPS,
the burning of the tobacco ware-hOI-e,
the pouring OF the whisky into cutters
so as to keep il ont Of the way of the
federal soldiers, the blowing up Of the
powder magazines and gun-hOatS, the
spread of the flames, the plunderng Of
stores by penitentiary convic's, and the
other scenes that attended the giving
up Of the cOUfrderat" capital by the Onc
side and the taking POSSESSION Of 1t by
the O.hcr. The iir-t troops To march
into the city after the slaI5 and stripes
had b-en huI>t-i Ovrr the capital D. IA
small squad II "aVa'ry, were Gen IA
WcitXcl's division OF negro troops Tl"y
marched in p.r.."' "ratr, aitlpugh the
officer. were "v'i"''lyr"rvous. II -
tie subllmn pu"r,irn of discipline. .Nf
'cr G,.i'r.'i troop took possession or Ter
w. restored ah9 maintained. Clio, NJ
n. T. rtuIr, %. B.!low- saId he bcli"v-
,G =. wavi, ut Z neatly admitted thai
Nos m,,," ,.lt slavery should hr
ate. -l,l aui THAT the union Of all
,hc State sl.uu'i i" preserved. VIII
lhc war rymmrnrrd he either had 10
he = rpuri t. rj- own state or to the
fttc.al guyrHm'H', 80 he went w,ih
his cwm rrop'c, referring to be hanged
with them ii H., bad to he hanged.