The Colfax gazette. [volume] (Colfax, Wash.) 1893-1932, 1900-10-05

their best to prolong the resistance of
the southern cOnfederacy a year beyond
it's legitimate military life, and sue
ceeded.
After the repulse of Lee at Gettysburg
and the surrender of Vicksburg, Pres-
dent Lincoln offered the south peace and
payment for their slaves. Lee and
Longstreet and Vice-Preside Stephens
believed after the final loss of Chatta-
nOOga, in November, 1868, that the dis
asters OF the year had made iual success
for the South military impossiblity;
and all hope of recognition by the pow
ers Of Europe had been obliterated by
defeat. The frightful final year Of fight
ing which began the first week of May,
1864. and did not end until May, 1865,
would never have been undertaken had
it not been for the desperate efforts Of
the copperhead democracy Of the North
to prolOng the resistance of armed re-
belliOn until IL change of administration
! made it possible to make peace without
honor with the South; that is, either
peace with absolute Independence, or
peace on the basis of the union and the
| constitution, as it was wac before the
firing on Sumter. The copperhead party
of the North in 1868 "a was responsible
for the prolonged resistance of the
southern confederacy after resistance
| had become hopeless. By November
| 1864, the resources OF the confeGeracy
| for another campaign had become utter
| ly exhausted The finances, recruiting
OF soldiers, commissariat, transporter
| ton, ordnance, ammunition and medical
supplies had all failed. The conecriptiOn
act embraced every man between II and
| so. DesertiOns had become common.
| Confederate treasury notes were selling
at 60 to for specie at the treasury, and
q thousand barrels OF -four cost $780,
900. The confederacy had lost the Mis-
sssippi Tennessee and Cumberland
rivers, and the coasts of the Caroinas,
while Mobile Bay was in our hands and
| Savannah fell by Christmas, 1864.
This was the desperate situation to
which the southern confederacy had been
reduced by January, 1865, in conse-
quence of being persuaded by the cop
perhead democracy of the North to hold
out till November, so that it could upset
Lincoln and his war policy, when an
armistice would instantly follow, to be
succeeded by peace to the South on the
terms of independence or q union re-
stored with slavery. At this distance Of
time it may seem that the South was
reckless, in it's desperate condition Of
January, 1864, to risk another year of
awful battle on the chance OF Lincolu's
defeat in November, 1864; but there are
many chances in war, and if Grant and
Sherman had been beaten as badly in
battle in May, 1864, as Hooker was in
May, 1868, at Charlottesville, and as
| ROsecrans was in September, 1868, at
Chlckamauga, the campaign would have
been stalled for the summer and Lincoln
would have been defeated. Lincoln, as
astute politician as ever lived, felt this
to be true, for he predicted that notlag
would save him from defeat but victory
in the field, and he made a written MEM
orandum that, if be was defeated in No
vember, 1864, he would practically re-
sign from the office of president, so far
as only to seek to cooperate with the
purpose of his presumed successor, Gen
eral Mcclellan. Nevertheless, while he
felt despondent in private, in public he
never lost his nerve, for he wrote the
great Grant meeting in New York CITY.
in May, 1864, three days before he was
renominated for president: II trust YOU
will shape your good words OF sympathy
for Grant and his struggling soldiers so
they will mean men and guns moving to
his and their support" Victory in the
field came to Lincoln in the shape of At
lanta and Opequan and Cedar Creek.
and he won the election; but if the luck
OF war had turned against him in
great battle which decided great cam
palgn, east or west, he would as he pre-
dicted, have been defeated. The south
ern confederacy, by confession of jeff
Davis. gamhIed something on this
chance to give Grant or Sherman a
"black eye' in battle as they had Hook
er and Rosecrans. Davis and his con-
federacy gambled on this chance with
justifable audacity, for, if they won, the
confederacy was sure of peace on it's own
terms.