The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1899-12-17
TIMELY MILITARY TOPICS.
FIRST CONFEDERATE OFFICER
KILLED IN THE WAR.

Kick of Army Officers Against Gen.
Leonard Wood Not New Feature.
Rock Island, II.--9irs. Lees His
tOry-COmmander shaw's BIunder.
Pine Crest villa, Maitland, Fla, Dec
16.-In my First and Last" letter, pub
lished during the Confederate reunion.
| referred to Lieut. John T. Greble. U. s
A, as the first West Pointer killed in the
Civil War, his death occurring at Bis
Bethel, Va, on June TO- 1861. The first
Confederate officer killed, so far as I can
| ascertain, was Capt. John @. Mari, of the
Seventeenth Virginia Infantry, who fell at
or near Centervlille. Va, on June !. 1861
He was Of good old revolutionary stock
and had just b1en COMMISSIONED a lieuten.
ant colonel on account of his fine soldierIy
qualities.
The kick of army officers against the
promotion of Assistant Surgeon Leonard
Wood to be major general of volunteers,
is not new thing in army circles. As
sistant Surgeon S. w. Crawford expert
enced the same envious opposition in ris-
ing to be a major general although both
officers won their promotions by the best
true of Lieut. Ernest A. Darlington of the
famous Sixth United States Cavalry,
whose rapid promotion created a big rum
pus, and yet they were every one deserved
and won by special meritorious service. He
is now Georgias highest officer in rank in
the regular army.
Col. b. +. Abbott of Atlanta, a gallant
Confederate and a prominent attorney of
that city, has sent me a valuable historic
article from his ready pen, on Rock ISL
and H.. where over 300 Confederates
were prisoners of war during the civil
strife OF this number nearly 2 OO) die
and were buried on the island. Col Abb
bolt made list of the names of all the
Georgia soldiers buried there, and this
makes his article very valuable for future
reference The Confederate Cemetery
there covers some two acres, is enclosed
by a cable-chain fence, and presents
very attractive appearance being we'll
cared for by the commanding officer OF
the United States arsenal. The govern
ment has spent millions of dollars in
buildings and in identifying the island,
and many Northern and Southern generals
of distinction have been connected with
this famous garrison. 1t is pleasing TO
note the fact, stated by Col. Abbott, that
every Memorial Day the graves of the
Confederate dead are appropriately decor
ated by order of the post commander.
/ have just made a cursory examination
of Mrs. Gen. e. G. Lees United States
History, and have failed to discover any
sufficient cause for the action of the Chat
tanooga school officials in discarding this
publication. While II Is a Southern book,
written by the widow and daughter of a
Confederate general the tone of the mar
rative is not extremely partisan in any Of
ife HEARINGS 70 q Of
Intellectual culture, teacher of more
than twenty years experience, and has
had rare opportunities to prepare herself
for the preparation of her series of histo-
ries. The 3. f. johnson Company of
Richmond, Va, has recently issued a new
and revised edition, and despite the occa-
sional attacks upon these histories they
will doubtless hold their present popular
ity.
Commander-in-Chief Shaw of the Grand
Army of the Republic, proposes to visit
the South; but In his letter to a depart
ment commander, he makes a big blunder
when he says he wants to see the G.. A q.
r men, who fought to save the Union
and free the negroes. Now If Commander
in-Chief Shaw knows anything about the
Civil War, he ought to know that thous-
and~ of good Democrats, as well as Re
pubhcans, entered the army for the sole
purpose of saving the Union. They were
ton of slavery, and thousands of brave
soldiers did not approve even of Presi-
dent Lincoln's emancipation proclamation
Yet these same soldiers never hesitated
to strike hard blow at slavery whenever
it stood in the way of saving the Union
President Lincoln himself did not con-
slider it a war to free the negroes, for he
wrote as follows to Horace Greeley on the
subject: IF there be those who would
not save the Union, unless they could at
the same time save slavery, do not
agree with them. If there be those who
would not save the Union unless they
could at the same time destroy slavery, I
do not agree with them. My paramount
object in this struggle is to save the Union,
and is not either to save or to destroy
slavery. If 1 could save the Union with
out freeing any slave 1 would do It,"
While it is true that freedom finally came
10 the slaves through the long continu-
ance of the struggle, and it's desperate
character, the Union armies were not
fighting to free the negroes. and the Grand
Army veterans, as a whole, do not like
to be told so even by so high an official
as their respected commander-in-chief.
Sidney Herbert.
RAST<VCT fRATI, AT EMORY