The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1899-10-08
CHARLOTTE, ABBEVILLEc, WASH
INGTON.
These Three Cities Claim the Last"
Confederate Cabinet Meeting.

Confederate Cabinet Meeting.
Pine Crest villa, Maitland. Fla, Oct. T.
Il is now claimed that neither Abbevile,
S c., nor Washington, Ca, was the place
where the last Confederate cabinet meet
ing was held. but that Charlotte, ". c.,
Is entitled to that homer. While it is true
that the last important cabinet meeting
occurred did occur in that city, and that
the final action TO be taken in regard TO
keeping up the war was submitted to the
cabinet, il was not the last meeting, nor
did the Confederacy go to pieces there 1t
was unquestiona the crisis point, in
many respects, of the retreating party,
and in that city some heads of civil as well
as military departments, their services not
being further needed, retired from active
duty. But the quartermaster general and
the commissary general and their assist
ants remained on duly with President
Davis, the members of the cabinet and the
military escort attending them.
Among the officers VINO were heads of
departments, and retired from further ac-
tive service at Charlotte, was Gen. Josiah
Gorgas, The chief of ordnance. The la
bors and responsibilities of my depart
ment." he says. CLOSED practically al
Charlotte, n. c.. on the 26th of April QS65),
when the President left that place with
an escort for the traus-Mississpp,. My
last official duty, that / can recall, was TO
examine cadet In the Confederate serv-
ice for promotion to commissioned officer.
On the afternoon of the 25th of April I
received due formal notice from the adj
iutant generals Office that Gen. GA. RI
Lawton. the quartermaster general, and
Gen. q. ~ Gilmer, the chief engineer,
and I were constituted a board of exam
iners on Cadet -. We met a little before
shutdown. in the ample upper story of a
49,. I 81
light of the last day of The Confederate
government we went through all the
stages of an examination of an expectant
lieutenant of the Confederate armies"
Ii may not be uninteresting TO the Morn
ing News readers to have the conclusion
of the matter "Lawton | think" says
Gen. Gorgas took him on geography and
history, Gilmer on the mathematics, viii c
[ probably tested his English grammar.
He passed the ordeal in triumph. and got
plIzes very highly. as he ought TO do, con-
sidering the august body hat signed the
certificate which pronounced him qualified
for it,"
Now, this seems. in the present war
times, a very simple act, and yet so emil
nent a soldier and distinguished educator
as Gen. Gorgas, adds these serious COM
ments on the event Altogether, there is
no little incident in my Confederate career
that l have unused over oftener than that
twilight examination of the last Confeder-
ate cadet" Now IL has been impossible to
Identify the first man." or the last man"
on either side in the civil war, but here
would have been a chance for Gen. Cor
gas 10 have immortalized the last man.
winning a commission i'm the Confederate
service Why the name of the cadet was
suppressed we cannot know.
The claim of Abbeville, s. c., has al
ready been discussed in previous articles.
Hon. Armisted Burt was in Congress many
years, and was an OLD personal friend of
President Davis. This led 10 The stop over
Of the party at Abbevilfe, en- route 10
Washington, and their entertainment by
Mr.. Burt. At Washington, Ca, all relia-
BILE testimony shows the official actions
President Davis his cabinet, and the
heads OF military departments, came 20
an end and the official records show thai
the last order issued by Confederate au-
thority. was drawn up and signed in the
Heard House in that city. If the end had
come at Charlotte or AbbevlEle as claimed.
neither President Davis nor any member
of his cabinet. nor Quartermaster General
Lawton, nor Commissary General ST. John
had any legal authority TO transact any