The Plymouth tribune. (Plymouth, Ind.) 1901-1911, 1906-10-18
Mrs. Jefferson Davis.

Mrs. Jefferson Davis.
Mrs. Jefferson Davis wife of the
President OF the Confederacy was at
the point of death as these. words
were written and she died before
they were printed. She was an in
tereSting character apart from her
position and her connection with a
momentous period in American his.
tory. A typical Southern woman of
the old regime, highly educated, Gull
tured and of gracious manners, she
adorned every position she was call
ed upon to fill and was conspicuous
alike in public and in private life.
Southern women have never been as
prone to join in social reform move
ments as the women of the North,
and Mrs. Davis never sought any
publicity beyond what was forced
upon her by her husbands career.
After his death she led a life of
dignihed retirement, except that she
wrote much for newspapers and mag
azines, sometimes to defend her hus-
and against what she thought unjust
charges, and sometimes in recital of
her own personal "reminiscences. She
was a correct and graceful writer and
appeared well on paper. In one of
these "reminiscences she told how her
husband received the dispatch from
Lee saying that all was lost The
dispatch was delivered to Mr.. Davis
on Sunday, while in church.. After
describing the general situation of af-
fairs in Richmond, Mrs Davis says:
Then arrived the fateful Sunday
morning, April 2, balmy spring day,
with every aspect cheering and invig-
Grating In Richmond all was peace
and quiet There could be heard no
sound of the battle, and only the
drowsy sounds that characterize a
Southern Sunday gave token of the
day. No vehicles were to be seen
upon the streets, the only movements
being those of the churchgoers who
seemed to march in time to the soft
ened pealing of the bells. Here and
there were gathered groups who list
lessly discussed the issues then at
stake, and at the postoffice were to
be seen others, who clustered around
newly-arrived courier from Lees
army, who was telling of the events
along the line of battle Even now
it was believed that the continual
encroachments of the Federals into
Southern territory, whites menacing
to some extent the independence
sought, would be checked and the
movments reversed. Richmond at
this time on that Sunday morning
had no more idea of the imminence
of the danger that threatened it than
it had of any other possible but re-
mote event Then came the thunder
bolt President Davis was seated in
his pew at St. Paul's attending divine
service, when man hastily, and
somewhat noisily, walked up the aisle
and handed him a telegram. To the
congregation there gathered, there
was an urgency displayed in every
action of the messenger, for quiet
and ease were foreign to his bearing
The President read the message and
arising hastily, walked calmly from
the ediice. The telegram was from
General Lee and advised the. imme
date evacuation of Richmond Il
told of the sudden swapping of tina
grim but attenuated line that ;hat
been holding Grant, and mentioned I;
bare possibility of keeping the enem,
back until rightFa1l = +f
''To return to that fateful Sunda,
morning. When Mr. Davis emetges
from St. Pauls he found he had bees
followed by some portion of the con
gregation, and the news quicki,
spread that i'll news had come from
Lee. On reading the message it
wording was found to be:
Grant has broken our line in thre
places. He has been heavily rein
forced by Sheridan and | can keel
him back from Richmond but shor
time. | would advise the immediate
evacuation of the capital, and thi
should be accomplished not late
than tonight"