The National tribune., 1909-11-04
-er river and mountain by our cav

Will ultlIdkGHltItt pI the
| ctpal campaign, and had supported him
constantly, as he had other Generals.
| lie had met the vociferous clamor OF
the Copperheads against Grants
"butchery" by calling for more men to
| fill up the wasted ranks of the Army of
the Potomac and take the places OF
hose who had fallen. 1t was one OF
the paradoxes in that wonderful brain
thar while his heart bled in agony for
every wicoI,, whose husband had fallen.
/ for every bereaVau srother. he could at
the same moment unhesIatingY call
Tor more husbands and more rSns 10
march the downward slope, where duty
led TO death.
Gen. Grant was remorselessly ham,
mering the rebellion to destruction, and
no matter what the Confederate Cop-
perhead papers said. the anvil was suf-
fering worse than the hammer. In the
| gloomy tangle of the Wilderness no
| Union life had gone out without taking
a Confederate life with it. 1t was a
man-to-man struggle.
| At Spotsylvania Lee had dashed his
men against the Union intrenchments
as uselessly and bloodily as Grant had
at Cold Harbor. The balance of losses
lhad been rather strongly against us in
the siege of Petersburg; still the Com
| federates were suffering terribly and
losing heart every day that the Army
of the Potomac held, unshakably, upon
their throats the iron grip which it had
fastened there when it crossed the Rap
idan. The COnfederacy was bleeding at
every pore, and the death-rattle arose
to its lips. e
Still, President Lincoln and Secre-
| tary Stanton took no chances. Recruit
| ing was pushed forward vigorously. and
the Winter of 1S64-65 saw the army in
creased to 100000 electives, the
strongest 1t had ever been.
Lincoln's Last Message.
The 3Sth Congress reassembIed Dec.
I6. 1864, fresh from the Presidential
election and the overwhelming decision
| of the people to continue the war TO
complete triumph. The Endorsement OF
President Lincoln's policy was so mark
ed and unmistakable as to silence at
last the jealousies and antagonisms by
which he had been surrounded since
he first assumed office. 1t was an hour
of triumph which would have unsettled
mind of any but the strongest, but in
his annual message to Congress-the
last he ever wrote-AIr. Lincoln showed
his usual modesty and simplicity. He
remarked upon the extraordinary calm
ness and good order with which the
millions had gathered at the polls to
express their wishes, and gave to a ma
jority of his opponents the credit OF
sincere devotion to the Union. He point
ed out that no candidate for office, high
or low, had ventured to seek votes by a
claim of being in favor of a dissolution
of the Union. The result of the elec-
ton could not help being of vast value
to the National cause in showing to one
another and to the world such firmnesS
and unanimity of purpose in the MAIN
tenance of the Nations existence. He
discouraged further negotiations with
ffns inc ynr1t nd 1v,
words stated most clearly and unmis-
takably his own position with regard to
peace and slavery:
I'm presenting the abandonment of
armed resistance to the National au-
thOrity on the part of the insurgents, as
the only Indispensable condition to end
ing the war on the part of the Govern
ment, retract nothing heretofore said
as to slavery. 1 repeat the declaration
made year ago that while remain in
my present position I shall not attempt
to retract or modify the Emancipation
Proclamation. nor shall return to slav-
cry any person who is free by the terms
of that proclamation, or by any of the
acts of Congress. If the people should,
by whatever mode or means. make it
an Executive duty to re-enslave such
persons, another, and not l. must be
their instrument to perform 1t.
I'm stating single condition OF peace
l mean simply to say that the war will
cease on the part of the Government
whenever it shall have ceased on the
part of those who began it"
The Hampton Roads Conference
Altho the President in his message
discouraged any further negotiations
with the Confederates Francis P. Blair.
of Maryland visited Richmond twice to
try to bring about conference that
might lead to peace. He made these
visits with the consent, but not at the
request. of the President. 1t seemed
that with Sherman's almost unarrested
progress thru the Confederacy further
continuance of the war would appear
hopeless to the Confederates, and that
they would be ready to propose terms
of capitulation.
Jefferson Davis appointed Alexander
Fl. Stephens, Vice President of the Con-
federacy; John A Campbell, of Ala
bama, and Robert NJ T. Hunter, of Vir-
gina, Commissioners to meet those des-
ignated by President Lincoln. Presi-
dent Lincoln directed Gen. Grant to
have no conference with them, but to
permit them to pass his lines, which
they did, and as all three of the GENTLE
men were so distinguished and seemed
authorized to offer terms of importance,
the President, accompanied by Secre-
tary Seward, went down to Fortress
anu liiC lhttINleW LOOK place,
Feb. 6. 1865, in Hampton Roads
Much discussion in the South has re-
suited from the statement of Henry
Watterson, of the Louisville Courier
Journal, as to what actually happened
at this interview. Col. Watterson said.
and supported it by more or less direct
testimony from all three of the Com
that Mr.. Lincoln went so
far as to say that he would present
them with sheet of white paper with
only the word Union written upon IT
and they could write anything else thew
pleased. This was understood to mean.
among other things, the payment of
S40O,900.O00 to the South for their
slaves; but Mr.. Stephens, with the rest
of them concurring, had to say that
their instructions from Mr.. Davis would
not permit the consideration of any
terms except those based upon the rec
ognition of the Independence of The
Southern Confederacy. The three Conn
nissioners seemed TO deprectte their
but they could not do 9TH
erwise, and the conference broke off
fruitless of any result whatever.
1t was simple madness in President
Davis and his coterie to refuse this on
portunity to make peace. Every tnink-
ing man saw at that time that nothing
but miracle could save the Confeder-
acy. In the long siege of Petersburg.
which had sappeG the yitaIs of Lees
army, his every railroad leaifng into
Richmond and Petersburg had been cut
save one, to which Gen. Grants left