Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1897-11-11
THE OTHER SIDE.
bringing Up Memories of the War by
Southern Papers.

To the Editor of The Evening Star:
l was surprised to find i'm The Star OF
Tuesday evening. under Annotated Edito-
rails of The Star" an article from the
Alexandria Daily Gazette. with appended
comment thereon by the Richmond Daily
Dispatch. both in the vein 81 rebel hate
for the victory achieved for national unity
and human liberty. accompanied by sneers
at our countrys flag. "old glory
The impression has been south AMI north
that the war of the rebellion was quite
over, but il seems from these two organs
of southern sentiment that with some In
the south hate survives and the sting of
defeat still causes groans to be emitted
by the wounded. The text of both the Ca
zette and the Dispatch was a simple re-
mark by The Star in depreciation of Wey-
ler's brutal war I'm Cuba against women
and children and old men-the ',pacifi-
cosby combining them inexorably within
starvation bounds-that he was. 1t said,
without a vestige of excuse among civil
lied people. On this slender preteNt the
ecitor of the Gazette went out OF his way
to set the old war sores to running again.
He first aludes to alleged order of
Gen. Ewing in Missouri by which the
people OF "a large rural section" that
was in the immediate pathway of active
war, were removed, a measure of safety
and humanity for them, into the cities and
towns; and the Gazette alleges also that
Gen. Hunter burned the houses of the
women and children of Virginia over their
heads, which is untruth of the first
venom; and the most fearful cries about
Gen. Sherman's driving the women and
children of Atlanta out of that city and
into the desolate Wilderness which is am
allegation not true. either. for only the
rebel arsenals. the rebel foundries and the
confederate arms supply shops of Atlanta
were destroyed: and to the ''desolate
wilderness IL was simply the richly sup
piled region but a few miles out of At
hnr fhs1l - af+ i1a-a f,.1l
upon the twenty-five miles swath of fire
and rapine which Sherman cut through
Georgia on his march to the sea, the only
'outrdges'' committed i'm the "swath,'' ex-
cept the obtaining of food for the army,
which is legitimate warfare. being the few
hundred mounted confederate guerrillas
who followed Shermans army-at a safe
distance, howeVer-and murdered the tired
stragglers and the sick who had fallen
out by the way: and members of that con-
federate squad, who since held office under
this government have in their cups boosted
OF their brave deeds. Next, the Richmond
Dispatch takes up its jeremiad. makes an
annex to the Gazette. and bowls its howl.
1t talks against Grant because he would
not exchange, man for man, his fat and
sleek rebel prisoners for the poor relics
of starvation and foul drainage water and
W irtZ cruelties which sent 10000 Union SOL
diers to untimely graves i'm the horrible
prison pen of Andersonville-the result of
the deliberate and heartless policy of the
Jen Davis government. many of which
government, for their wholesale cruelties
there perpetrated, should have shared the
fate of Wirtz. their tool.
When the war papers of the Jeff Davis
government fell into our hands a paper
vas found. from a prominent rebel, wheth-
er of Alexandria or of Richmond / will
not say. which paper urged the adoption
OF the savage policy of breaking the right
or left leg of every Yankee soldier taken
prisoner. so that when exchanged he would
be no longer capable of military marching
duties. and this MSS. may be examined in
the var records bureau. it's officials de-
Ginning 20 print ii with the other records
as being too great shame for civiliza-
lions eyes to gaze upon.
Likewise looms up bloodly in the west
ern distance the Fort Pillow massacre
where. while flag of truce was flying and
the fire of the fort had consequently
ceased. the rebel Forest with Punc faith
moved his forces up 10 an advantageous
position near its ramparts from which
after the surrender, the American soldiers
were ruthiessly and deliberately massa-
cred, white and black. tSee war records
MSS)
Talk of burning houses, Recall the burn
ing of Chambersburg by Early. because
the people there could not raise money
enough TO satisfy his mercenary appetite.
That burning was not necessary to carry
out any plan of legitimate warfare: it was
most wanton.
l regret to recall these few of the MANY
points that might be recalled to show rebel
want of civilization the legitimate outcome
OF their education under the slave institu-
ton: but / insist that when the pardon-
able virus of falsehood in slaves is tried
by their once masters to be injected into
history, loyalty and truth demand that il
should be replied to.
THOMAS FOSTER of Minnesota.
1t matters little what it is that you want
whether situation or a saryant-a
will ha