Year: 1866

AS special pains are taken to create the impress
sion that the assent of the Southern delegates to


those parts of the Declaration of Principles touch
| ing Slavery the National Debt and the Federal
Soldiers forced and insincere, it may be well
enough to state two facts concerning their
action which will show how untrue and unjust such
| an impression would be-


| The Committee on Address and Resolutions was


very large-conssting of two from each State and
| Territory. On organizing, Subcommittee of
| thirteen appointed, to which the subject of re-
| solutions referred and upon this Committee
were placed some of the strongest men of the
| South-Hon. W. A. Graham, of North Carolina
| Gov Perry of South Carolina, Judge Yerger of
Mississippi, Gov. Parsons of ofAlabama, and others
The declaration on Slavery, as first drawn simply
stated that ''Slavery is abolished and forever
prohibited upon the soil and within the iurisdic-


ton OF the United States" The clause g and


there is neither purpose nor desire on the part of


the Southern States that it should ever be re-es-


tabished, - was inserted at the instance of Judge
| 1erger and acib tie prompt and unanimous assent
| Of all the Southern deeg0teS. This most important


declaration, therefore, was wholly voluntary on


the part OF the South, and indicates beyond all
| doubt their settled and sincere purpose


On the subject of the National Debt the assent
| of the Southern delegates was equally prompt and


cordial. They repealed in the strongest terms all
| thought, purpose or wish of repudiating the debt
| or avoiding their full share of whatever burdens
| 1t may involve. They unanimously insisted that
[ any insinuation of an unwillingness on the part
| of the South to meet this responsibility was an
imputation upon their honor and would be SO re-
garded, and they were perfectly willing that de-


claration to this effect should be inserted in the


resolution if it would prove of the slightest service
| They repudlated with equal emphasis all idea of
| the assumption of their own debt saving no


man at the South, except possibly some holder of
| Confederate bonds, ever dreamed of such a thing
| or desired it. Their declarations on this subject


were explicit, emphatic and unanimous.


In regard to the recognizing the services of the


Federal soldiers they said they expected the Gov
| ernment which had been maintained by them
| would do them justice. They believed this to be


simply it's duty, and they should cooperate and
| assist II performing it. They expressed the hope
that it would not be deemed necessary to compli-


ment the courage, devotion or other S0Ldie1Iy quail


tiles of Northern at the expense of the South


ern, because this point they felt bound to insist
upon the merits of their own troops. But this
was matter of feeling merely, and would not in


terfere with their voting to renderfu Justice to the
United States troops by paying their dues and
pensionlng their widows and orphans. They paid
the highest compliments to them, and said they
deserved the most generous treatment from the
Government they had served. And the resolution
| on this subject was adopted in Committee just as
unanimously as the Others


The action of the Southern Delegates in the
Committee well as in the Convention, was thor


oughly patriotic and public-spirited. They evnced
the most perfect devotion to the Union-deciaIing
that it was now their Government as much as ours,
| and the only National Government they knew, and


that the only rivalry between the North and South
hereafter should be to which should do most for
| its honor, its welfare and its perpetuity.
~ y Times
A letter from Matagorda, Texas, dated the 15th
says :-Caterpillars now fully at work on Con-
voy and Oyster creek, and Brazos river The


general opinion is that the leaf will be destroyed


in ten days. Not over one-quarter or a third of


the crop is expected to come from the aluvial
lands of Texas.


AMERICAN MILITARY INvENTIoNs.-Russia takes


very great interest in the improvements in mill


tary science lately made in this country and has
sent officer of the Royal Russian Mining En-
gineers-Capt. KhOlostof by name-on tour of


inspection throughout the United States, with in


structions to make monthly reports to the home
government He has visited the army at Rock
Island, Illinois, and lately witnessed the casting
of the twenty inch gun for the Puritan at Pitts
burg At present he is at st. Louis and it is said


has arranged with the inventor of the Rodman


gun to furnish some Of that kind of artillery to the
Russian government


A wandering paragraph says that lump of ice


say ten pounds, placed in a well will render its


water delightfully."- COOL and far more pleasant


than ice water from pitcher. The ice has to be
renewed once in about ten days.


CIRCULATING THE WRONG PAPER.-At recent


temperance meeting an amusing incident took


place. A strong exhOrtatiOn had been delivered


by speaker present, and the President requested


the Secretary to pass around the pledge for sigma


lures, and taking from his pocket what he sup


posed was the document, he, without looking at


it, gave it to the Secretary for that purpose


large number of names enrolled of both la
dies and gentlemen present. and the documenGSae
turned 1t observed by the Secretary, Hhle
passing around the paper, that considerable tit
tering prevailed among the ladies' who took the


precauton to read the contents of the paper while


those who did not read it, and desired to sign did
So After going through the congregation, the


Secretary, on his way back looked at the paper to
see what the cause of the amusement when
it was revealed to him that, instead of the tenn


perance pledge, he had passed around and re-
ceived signatures to document setting forth the
pedigree of a celebrated stallion


An old man In ChOcktaw county Miss, named
Eudy, had difficulty with his wife about bible,


and told his son, boy of sixteen, to burn it
Mrs Eudy endeavOred to prevent this, when the


old man told the boy to knock her in the head with


an axe handle standing near. The obeyed his


father, struck Mrs. Eudy on the head with the


axe handle, fracturing her skull, and from the ef-
fects of which she died After the boy had
knocked his mother down with the handle, he
threw rock at her which struck her in the head,


making fearful wound.


TOURNAMENT R1DERs.-An enterprising Yankee


visited the county of Fauquier recently, and sue
ceeded in engaging twelve or fourteen of sMosby's


men, to go North and ride tournaments He is


to foot all expenses, furnish them with fine horses


and pay them three dollars day. He boldly ap-


preached Mosby himself with proposition, Of
fering him first fifty dollars day, and gradually
increasing the offer to one hundred and twenty
five, which, OF course, was declined. By way of
friendly warning to this original caterer to the


public enjoyment the Alexandria Gazette advises


him to deal fairly with " the boys, for if he does
net they won't leave whole bone in his body.
Peters6sVy ErpreSS