The Abbeville messenger. (Abbeville, S.C.) 1884-1887, 1884-12-03
FIGHTING THEIR BATTLES OVER.

| ocu Dav1S ana General sherman at
| Iioggcrhcads-IsIood In the Eye of
| Tccumsch--Thc Ex-Prcsidcn
Charges Fnlschood and Slandcr.
ST.. LOUIS, Mo-, November "a, 1884,
At the opening Of tire new hall of the
Frank 7. Blair Post, G.. A. r., a few
weeks ago, General Sherman addressed
gathering Of old soldiers, and in the
| course Of his remarks took occasion to
pay his respects to Jefferson Davis,
which he did in such vigorous way
that Mr.. Davis has rcpcllcd the charges
made in language equally rorciblc.
| General Sherman referred to the late
war and said that secession was merely
| n conspiracy and that jeff Davis was
a conspirator whose aim was to use the
Confcdcracy as 4 fulcrum with which he
could operate against the other sections
OF the country looking to a practical
dictatorship.
81 have been behind the curtain.n
said General Sherman, land have seen
letters that few others have seen and
heard conversations that cannot be re-
peatcd. have seen letter from JEFF
terson Davis to man whose name
cannot mention, because he is q United
States Senator. know Davis writing,
and saw his signature, and in that letter
he said he would turn Lees army
against any State that might attempt to
scccdc from the Southern Confcderacy."
REPLY OF MIR. DAVIS.
This morning the Republican printed
the following letter from Mr.. Davis in
reply:
BkAuvolR, MISS, November 6, 1854.
Editor ST. L0uis Rcpudlican::
DEAR Silt have tonight received
the enclosed published account Of re-
marks made by General w. II. Sherman,
and ask the use Of your columns to no
ticc only 80 much as particularly refers
to myself and which is to he found in
the following extracts. The following
is taken from the st. Louis Republican:
Frank p. Blair Post, G. A. r., opened
their new hall, corner Of Seventeenth
and Olive streets, last evening. Gencr-
al Sherman addressed the assemblagc.
He had read letters which he believed
had never been published and which
very few people had Seen. These let
tcrs showed the rebellion to be more
than mere sccession-lt was conspir-
ncy most dire. Letters which had pass
cd between Jeff Davis and man whose
name it would not do to mention, as he
is now q member Of the United States
Senate, had been seen by the speaker
and showed Davis position. He was
not secessionist. His object in start
ing the rebellion was not merely for the
secession of the South, but to have This
section of the country 80 that ..he could
use it as a fulcrum from which to fire
out his shot at the other sections of the
country and compel the people to do as
he would have them. jeff Davis
would have turned his hand against any
State that would sccedc from the South
after the South had seeded from the
North. Had the Rebellion succeeded,
General Sherman said, the people of
the North would have all been slaves.
ANOTHER REPORT.
The following is from the Globe
Democrats report:
Referring to the late war, he said it
was not, as was generally understood a
war Of secession from the United States,
but conspiracy. 81 have been behind
the curtains" said he, land l have seen
letters that few others have seen, and
have heard conversations that cannot be
repeated, and / tell you that jeff Davis
never was sccessionist. He was con-
spirator. He did not care for division
from the United States. His object
was to get fulcrum from which to op-
crate against the Northern States, and If
he had succeeded he would to-day be
the mastcr-spirit of the continent and
you would be his slaves. have seen a
letter from JEFF Davis 70 man whose
name canlfet mention, because he is a
United States Senator. l know Davis
writing and saw his signature, and in
that letter he said he would turn Lees
army against any State that might at
tempt to secedo from the Southern Con-
fcdcracy.
UNQUALIFIEDLY FALSE.
This public assault under the covert
plea that it is based upon information
which regard for a United States Sena-
tor does not permit him to present will,
to honorable minds, suggest the idea of
irresponsible slanders. 1t is thus de-
volved upon me to say that the allega-
ton that my ever having written such a
letter as is described is unqualifiedly
false, and the assertion that l had any
purpose to wish to destroy the liberty