The pioneer express. [volume] (Pembina, Dakota [N.D.]) 1883-1928, 1889-12-13


Without showing any great genius, it must
be conceded that he displayed more than
average ability. The contest was kept ur
for four years, and the South had
its share of victory as we'll as
OF defeat. The North had every
advantage. 1t controlled the sea, it had
numbers, wealth and workshops. The
South was Mt n disadvantage, except in tho
extent of the country and the difficulty OF
penetrating it, owing to the absence of
roads. Had Jefferson Davis possessed any
exceptional military capacity he could have
entered Washington after the first battle
OF Bull Run. So long us the armies were
led and ofiiccrcd by lawyers and politicians,
the war miscarric,l OH both sides. In an-
cicnt times the orators and rulers were
trained to arms and gained distinction in
the field us well NJ III the forum. But it is u
notable circumstance that neither in the
Northern nor Southern armies did any law
yer or politician achieve success in active
field operations. When the contest closed
almost every distinguished general OH either
side was found TO have been graduate of
West point.
The life of Jefferson Davis since the war
is soon told. He was captured by Gen. ].
IL. Wilson and conveyed to Fortress Nom
roe. where lie was confined for two years.
In 1857 he was admitted to bail, Horace
Greeley, among Others. being one of his
bondsmcn. He visited Europe in 1865, and
i'll December of that year nollc proscqui
was entered in his case aud he was dis
charged. He was also included in the
general amnesty of Dec. %, 1868. The
conduct of the American people toward
Davis and the leading Contclcutcs is the
most crcditablc chapter in its history. The
triumph of the North was not followed by
any unnecessary cruelty, such as marked
the conduct of the French government
after the suppression of the commune. a
good deal was said during the war about
"hanglng Jcif DAVIS on sour apple tree"
but he was left alone and allowed to write
his life and history without molestation. lie
lived on an island i'll the Gulf of Mexico not
far from Mobile and occupied the mansion
bequcathcd him by II lady who thought the
ex-Coniclcratc chief should not spcn,l his
old age in poverty. Nothing can he said
against the moral character or personal
habits of Jefferson Davis. lie WAS not IL
man to inspire widespread affection lie
was cold in temperament and u,lstrre in his
manners, but, on the whole, bore himself
with dignity after his retirement from the
public scene
To show the spirit of the man at the cx-
cited and exciting period following his
withdrawal from the United States senate,
we can do no better than to reproduce
speech by Davis at Chattanooga, Tenn, on
his way from Washington to Mississippi
on the night of Jan. -, 1861. "The
South" he said, "las had great
wrong imposed upon it by the election of
Abraham Lincoln, an Illinois rail-splittcr
to the presidency of the United States Our
only resource is to sccctle from the Union
and establish II government for ourselves"
Calling on the people of Tennessee to go
with the South, he pledged them that lle
only wanted their strength and ill.,
fiucncc, that the cotton states would
ray the debt of the war. and that
Tennessee would not have dollar
to l'ay. Telling Us that Mr.. buchanan was
rowcrlcss, and could not protect It's, that
we must unite the South in solid body,
march on their cities and lay them in ashes,
for in that consisted their wealth and
strength, and that the way to to,,cl, Yam
KEGS soul was To strike his purse. The
South had the naturalization was
king. France and old England, he
said, could not do without it, and
would bc forced 10 side will, the Soutl
TO keep their factories in operation and
their people from starving. That the spin
dies "i New England would rust for wait of
Cottiin ;llat The SolLl, had the wealth,
strength, and tho l"Iwor-ili reality the life
of the government. Calling on tho Ten.
ncsScca'ls to go with the South in this
struggle, he culogizrl them for their
courage. hoastcl of their deeds of daring
on the fields nf Mcxico saying that he
knew full well the meaning of the click of
their trusty rifle. In ties, associations, in
trrcst and institutions Tennessee was
directly Interested and ou..ll: to go with the
SoHlh. llc felt satisfied In. said, that her
people, Would mo-. prove r,~'rs;,nt tn their
tr,is:. Wlic, the time came She wo,l!,i lock
shields with her sister states and
meet the vandal foe As for
himself in the language of the
great patriot, he would say, Give me lib
crty, or give me death" The election of
Abraham Lincoln and the party sustaining
him was equivalent to II direct war upon
the South. Her peculiar institutions were
no longer safe, and there was nothing left
but To Iial. .n for himself he preferred
death before ,liSholor.
Mr.. lMyis died as he had lived since the
war,.ln unrcptntant fibcl and his pDl,ticai
disabilities wcru meyer removed. III lss7
he published his hstnry Of tho rebellion.