The National tribune. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1877-1917, 1892-07-14
CONFEDERATE ARMIES.

A New Yorker Gives Them Two PROPOSE
lions to Work Upon to Increase Their Num-
bers.
EDITOR NATIONAL TRIBUNE: A statement
has gone abroad, apparently from a Southern
source, to the effect that the Confederate
armies during the late rebellion numbered
only about 1000 men, all told.
Evidently the statement is published for the
purpose of clarifying the Southern soldier at
the expense of the soldier from the North; but
that the report is far from being true is we'll
known to all persons having even limited
knowledge of the rebellion.
If the Confederacy brought only 100000 men
intoits military service, why was it? What
was the matter9 Why did it not have much
larger number?
Certainly it was not lack of men of suita-
BILE age in the slave holding States; for there
could hardly have been less than 1900 900 men
of military age in those States at the com.
mencement of the war. Then. those conscrip-
ton laws passed by the rulers at Richmond, by
which it was said at the time they Z" robbed the
cradle and the grave" ought to have added
many thousands more.
The slaves could do the mental services in
the army or remain upon the plantations to
produce supplies; SO that there was no good
reason for white men to be left out Of the
ranks.
And besides these obvious facts, the world,
and more particularly the Northern States, had
been told many times and in various ways by
Southern orators during the years preceding
the rebellion that the Southern portion of the
Republic was peopled by race of military
heroes, race whose natural instinct was war;
and whose delight it was to shoot some one or
have some one shoot them. The homicides
the Iynchngs, and the deadly brawls of almost
daily occurrence there were no doubt looked
upon as proofs of the propositions of the ora
tors.
And yet, when war came to their very doors
when there was an opportunity to shoot those
whom thoy, or at least many of them, had been
wanting to shoot. and chance to be shot at
about as often as would be pleasant-only q
small part of this warlike host, according to the
foregoing report, was on hand for service.
This is mysterious. The known facts in the
case, the description of the orators, and this
100000 report do not harmonic.
But assuming the report to be true one of
two things seems to be inevitable: A large
majority of the people of the South did not
approve of the rebellion and did not will
lingly help to make it success. Or, hav-
ing deied the Government and provoked war,
large majority of the people shirked the con-
sequences-that is, they proved themselves
towards as we'll az rebels.
Which conclusion do the makers and pub
fishers of this 100000" report accept? And
which do the people of the South prefer?
Most intelligent people at the North take the
first, because they believe it the correct one.
The Confederate Government collected large
armies but many of the men were forced into
the service against their will. These armies
fought well, and worthy of much better
cause
But the apology for their defeat, that they
were always met by overwhelmingly superior
numbers, is all bosh-only so much lying.
Their regulations will not be improved in any
way by that kind of rhetorical. Harbour,
Syracuse, N, Y.