The sun., 1901-08-07
A Confc dcrate Plan for Aiming the
slaves.

A very striking documentary contri-
button to the history Of the Civil War is
made by Mr.. IRVING A. BUCK in a letter
to the Richmond Dispdtch Mr.. BUCK
was an Assistant Adjutant- General on
the staff Of Major-Gen. PATRICK
RoNAYNE CLEBURNE, who commanded
a division in HARDIE's Corps OF the
Confederate Army Of the Tennessee. As
his name indicates, Gen. CLEBURNE was
an Irishman, born in County Cork.
The document consists Of a paper
prepared by Gen. CLEBURNE in Decem-
Der, 1868, in which the employment Of
the slaves as soldiers for the South was
for the first time seriously and defnitive-
ly advocated by a military officer Of
prominence. The paper was submitted
TO the Brigader- Generals OF the division
and Mr. Bucks recollection is that
the project was approved by them unan-
imously; but when it was referred to
the general officers of the army it was
opposed by several Of them. though,
continues Mr.. BUCK, my impression
is that Gems. HARDIE and JOHNSTON
were favorably disposed" Gen. JOHN
sToN, however, declined to forward
the paper to the War Department. on
the ground that in tenor it was more
political than military. Subsequently
it was sent through another channel to
JEFFERSON DAVIS. who indorsed on it
these words, substantially:
While recognizing the patriotic motives
Of its distinguished author. | deem II mex
pedient. at this time 10 give publicity to
this paper. and request that it be suppressed
I'D"
Consequently, by Gen. CLEBURNEs a
order, all copies Of the paper were sup
posed TO be destroyed, except the one
returned from Richmond. which after
ward was captured, with Mr.. Bucks
office desk, and burned during the At
lanta campaign; but copy found few
years ago among the effects of a de-
ceased officer of Gen. CLEBURSE's stafY
was sent to the Confederate Record
Office Of the War Department at Wash
ington, by which il was referred TO Mr..
BUCK for authorization.
Now as TO the project Of Gen. Gle
BURNE. After describing the great
straits in which the Confederacy was at
the close Of 1863 because Of its inability
TO raise and maintain armies sufficient
to overcome the Union forces, he said:
In this state of things 1t Ia essv to under
he fhAFA t-t~aay lN-Igz
some black catastrophe is not far ahead Of
Us. and that unless some extraordinary
change is soon made in our condition We
must oyertake H.
The extraordinary change advised
by iim' Was dis ''-'''"'- - ''-'''''''
Tha, We retain in service for the war
all troops now IN service. and that We i'm
mediately commence training large re-
serve OF the most cour Iseous Of our slaves:
and further. that We guarantee freedom
within a reasonable time to every slave in
the South who shall remain true to the Con-
fedc:acy In this war"
BY so proceeding. he argued, the
South would " deprive the North Of the
moral and material aid " due 70 the
bitter prejudices OF foreign nations
against slavery, would strike dead
all John Brown fanaticism," cut away
from the North the philanthropic SYM
pathy Of its people, which kept up the
war, and take from it's negro army
the only motive il could have TO fight
against the South and enable us TO have
armies numerically superior to those
Of the North" Finally, "it would
instantly remove all the vulnerabilty.
embarrassment, and inherent weak
mesa which result from slavery
Satisfy the negro that II he faithfully
adheres to our standard during the war he