The National tribune. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1877-1917, 1896-06-18
THE JEFF DAVIS DEMONSTRATION AT
RICHMOND.

will be laid for monument to the
arch-rebel.
The whole South is being stirred up
over the affair; all the ex-rebel soldiers
who can be gotten will be present, free
transportation being furnished for thou
sands who are unable to pay their own
way; there will be monster Reunion Of
those who once wore the gray; the city
will be profusely decorated, hosts of the
! leading men in the South will flock
thither, and nothing will be spared to
make the affair far surpass any previous
eof the kind in the South since the
close of the war.
There are two strong influences at
work in promoting this demonstration.
The first is commercial. the second
political.
As we have before stated, Richmond
is feyerish to secure and control the
trade OF the South; especially that of
the eastern seaboard. She has two
strong competitors for this, Baltimore
and Atlanta. New York, Philadelphia,
and Boston are also strong rivals.
Richmond hopes to help hold her own
against them by appealing to Southern
sentiment. This is an old idea among
Southern business men, and has done as
much as any one thing to throw them
to the rear in their competition with
Northern business men. They have
always wanted to build Southern
shoe factories, "Southern ".sugar refin-
cries, Southern " cotton mills, and sell
inferior goods for higher prices, just be-
cause they We're Southern" Rich
mond believes that she can eclipse Bal
timore and Atlanta in the trade of Vir-
ginia, the Carolinas, and Georgia by
making herself the Mecca-the sacred
citv-of rebeldom. She is working this
idea for every cent that it is worth, and
rarely lets year go by without new
scheme to advertise herself as the only
real, true, original Jacobs rebel city in
the South. She claims that the Yam
KEGS have gotten control of Baltimore
and Atlanta, and the only pure, unde
filed temple that the late lamented
Southern Confederacy has stands upon
the banks of the historic James.
This is the commercial side of the
demonstration. The political side is to
make mighty effort by getting the
quondam "Johnnies together, and re-
viving the old-time memories and asso-
Citations, to restore the Solid South, bv
winning them back to their political
allegiance. Hence this hurrah that ex-
tends from one end Of the late so-called
Southern Confederacy to the other
this labor to have grand rush into
Richmond of men from Texas, Florida,
Louisiana, Arkansas, and all the nearer
States, just as they did in May, 1861
when they dragooned Virginia into
seeding.
1t is found much harder work to get
up a fIrore over JEFF Davis than over
Lee. While Lee, we think without ex-
cuse, drew his sword against the Flag he
had solemnly sworn to defend, and was
the soul of the rebellion for years, it must
be admitted that outside of this he was
a fine, manly character. He was brave,
devoted, and General of high talents.
Admitting that he believed himself to be
right-which it is hard to do-he GER
tainly fought bravely and skillfully for
it.
Nothing of this kind can be said in
favor Of JEFF Davis. He was, beyond
all question, cold-blooded, exceedingly
selfish man, and designing, unscrupr-
lous politician. Not a single warm
hearted, generous act can be pointed to
in the course Of his whole career. He
had absolutely no thought or care for
ANYTHING that did not lead toward his
own personal interests. A more thor
oughly heartless man does not appear in
the pages Of history. With all their
gush the rebel eulogists have never been
able to claim for him any touch of mag
nanimity, moral exaltation, or sacrifice
for the good Of others. They cannot