The commonwealth. (Greenwood, Miss.) 1896-1923, 1898-08-18

"a d
on bv ". z. sherman, commanding the
army Of the United States ID North
Carolina ana Joseph E Johnson com
manding the army Of the C~ohiederaeyf
are even more full and explicit Clause
six provides
The executive authority Of the
United States government not to dis
turb any Of the people by reason Of the
late war. 50 long as they live in peace
and quiet and abstain from acts Of &C.
tual hostility and obey the laws in ex.
istence at the place Of their residence
these were the terms Of capitalization
and surrender after a four years war II
which each army had tested the bravery
Of the other on many a holly contested
battlefield
These were not such terms as estab-
hshed governments mete out to traitors.
When our great civic leader, jefferson
Davis was made to suffer for all our
sins. seized aud shackled and confined
in Fortress Monroe. and indicted for
treason ia the Federal courts at Rich
mond, Va. we Of Mississippi felt it our
duty to provide counsel for him, and I'M
der the authority Of The state the Cover
nor Of the state appointed General T. /
Wharton, Fulton Anderson and your
humble speaker. then holding the Office
Of attorney general Of the state Of Mis-
sissippi. to proceed to Washington and
enter upon his defense The friends Of
Mr. Davis had selected that brilliant
Irish lawyer and great orator, Charles
OConner to be the leading counsel In
the case
He responded with generous enthu-
siasm to the request, and we joined him.
at Richmond
"Mr. OConner refused to receive any
fee except the reverence and love Of the
entire people Of the South
Mr., Davis was brought up under
guard from Fortress Monroe.
The whole population Of Richmond
turned out to pay to him their silent
homage. AS he bowed his proud head
as be passed into the portals Of the hotel
where his guard conducted him, one
brave and true yirginian, perched in
one Of the highest windows Of the hotel
in shrill and piercing notes gave the
command, Hats off, Virginians
Instantly every head was uncovered
and every heart bowed in love and adj
miration Of the lofty hero, who had
taken upon himself the sins Of a whole
people, and ylcariously suffered for all
with sublime abnegation Of self, and
with that indomitable power Of will,
which even in defeat and shaekles re-
fused to acknowledge but n MRster
Mr. Davis was never tried and he never
! asked for a pardon.
why was he not tried z Il we were
all traitors and guilty Of treason why
did not the government try the chic
traitor
"He was a prisoner, and like Paul, iii
s bonds, demanding a hearing He wa
ironed and watched night and day I'M
der the ~unceasing gaze Of his eterna.
s guard, with instructions never to takt
their eyes off Of him.
i Why was he not tried
No other reason can be given thar
that his prosecutors knew that his ale
e glance was due to his state, primarily
and that as 4 citizen Of that state b
was bound TO do her will and yield ODE
dieuce to her sovereign authority as ex
}, pressed in her convention.
, when MI. Davis came to be lndlct
ed there was an effort at first to includ
Gen. R, e. Lee in the same indictment
q When this came to the ears Of Gen .
n S Grant it is due to him to say that h
= said Mol this must not be. It woult
4 Be to violate the terms Of c~apitulatioI
which / made with Gen. Lee on tn
field Of Appomattox, when he surren
il dered with arms in his hands, and d
h would be to dishonor my parole
IL This action was fully in keeping wit
! the generous terms Of surrender accord
/ Cd to Gen Lee By the leader Of the vic
torious army, and win always be r,
+ membered by true soldiers everywhere
THE miserable crew who would will
ingly have heaped dishonor on thei
great and conquered leader to wrea.
le their spiteful vengeance on the grea
military leader Of Che Confedeaoy
ar were compelled to forego their nefarf
D. Gus and dishonorable plans
le Second, the men who fought it. III
d personnel Of the Confederate army wa
in a remarkable one.
at It was composed Of the descendants (
It. The liberty loving people who speak tn
n En- glish language History tells MS tina
when our Anglo Saxon ancestors at th
oy battle Of Hastings in 1856 fought an
IT, yielded to the prowess and numbers 4
be William The 0onqueror Of Normand,
ut be demanded hostages for the good fait
Z 81 the saxons and Cedric, the Saxon gay
UP hits young and tender nephew upO
TO whose face the beard Of manhood he
Bic not yet grown
he Tenderly warning his young kin
ID man against the Establishments Of tt
court Of Normandy then The gayest
Is Europe. the boy hostage replied to b
uncle If when l return from Il
Die court Of Normany BY the cut Of n