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diff --git a/43979-8.txt b/43979-8.txt deleted file mode 100644 index 03f95ca..0000000 --- a/43979-8.txt +++ /dev/null @@ -1,3191 +0,0 @@ -The Project Gutenberg EBook of The Real Jefferson Davis, by Landon Knight - -This eBook is for the use of anyone anywhere at no cost and with -almost no restrictions whatsoever. You may copy it, give it away or -re-use it under the terms of the Project Gutenberg License included -with this eBook or online at www.gutenberg.org/license - - -Title: The Real Jefferson Davis - -Author: Landon Knight - -Release Date: October 19, 2013 [EBook #43979] - -Language: English - -Character set encoding: ISO-8859-1 - -*** START OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK THE REAL JEFFERSON DAVIS *** - - - - -Produced by The Online Distributed Proofreading Team at -http://www.pgdp.net (This file was produced from images -generously made available by The Internet Archive.) - - - - - - - - - -THE REAL JEFFERSON DAVIS - - - - -[Illustration: Jefferson Davis - -(From a photograph taken in 1865)] - - - - - The Real Jefferson Davis - - - _By_ LANDON KNIGHT - - - "Where once raged the storm of battle now - bloom the gentle flowers of peace, and - there where the mockingbird sings her night - song to the southern moon, sweetly sleeps - the illustrious chieftain whom a nation - mourns. Wise in council, valiant in war, he - was still greater in peace, and to his - noble, unselfish example more than to any - other one cause do we owe the indellible - inscription over the arch of our union, - '_Esto perpetua_.'" - - - PUBLISHED BY - THE PILGRIM MAGAZINE COMPANY - BATTLE CREEK, MICH. - 1904 - - - - - Copyright, 1904, - THE PILGRIM MAGAZINE CO. - Battle Creek, Mich. - - - - -DEDICATION - - -_To My Wife_ - -Is dedicated this little volume in appreciation of that innate sense of -justice which has ever loved and followed the right for its own sake. - - - - -CONTENTS - - - CHAPTER PAGE - - I Birth and Education 11 - - II Service in the Army 21 - - III His Life at Briarfield 29 - - IV First Appearance in Politics 35 - - V Enters Mexican War 41 - - VI The Hero of Buena Vista 45 - - VII Enters the Senate 49 - - VIII Becomes Secretary of War 53 - - IX He Re-enters the Senate 59 - - X Still Hoped to Save the Union 67 - - XI President of the Confederacy 75 - - XII His First Inaugural 79 - - XIII Delays and Blunders 85 - - XIV The Bombardment of Sumter 91 - - XV Conditions in the South 97 - - XVI The First Battle 101 - - XVII A Lost Opportunity 105 - - XVIII The Quarrel with Johnston 111 - - XIX The Battle of Shiloh 115 - - XX The Seven Days of Battle 121 - - XXI Butler's Infamous Order 28 125 - - XXII Mental Imperfections 131 - - XXIII Blunders of the Western Army 135 - - XXIV Davis and Gettysburg 139 - - XXV The Chief of a Heroic People 145 - - XXVI Sherman and Johnston 151 - - XXVII Mr. Davis' Humanity 155 - - XXVIII General Lee's Surrender 161 - - XXIX The Capture of Davis 167 - - XXX A Nation's Shame 173 - - XXXI Efforts to Execute Mr. Davis 177 - - XXXII Indictment of Mr. Davis 183 - - XXXIII Why Davis Was Not Tried for Treason 187 - - XXXIV Freedom--Reverses--Beauvoir 193 - - XXXV Death of Mr. Davis 199 - - - - -ILLUSTRATIONS - - - FACING PAGE - - Jefferson Davis Frontispiece - - Jefferson Davis' Birthplace, at Fairview, Ky. 15 - - Where Jefferson Davis Boarded While in Lexington 17 - - Transylvania College at Lexington 19 - - Jefferson Davis at Thirty-five 31 - - Briarfield, Jefferson Davis' Home 33 - - The Room in the Briars in Which Jefferson Davis Was Married 37 - - General Taylor and Colonel Davis at Monterey 43 - - The Charge of Colonel Davis' Regiment at Buena Vista 47 - - Jefferson Davis as United States Senator in 1847 51 - - Jefferson Davis as Secretary of War 57 - - The Capitol at Richmond 77 - - Interior of Fort Sumter after the Surrender 93 - - Henry Clay Addressing the Senate on the Missouri Compromise 99 - - Edward Ruffin 103 - - Robert Toombs 107 - - General Joseph E. Johnston 111 - - Generals Lee, Jackson and Johnston 113 - - C. G. Memminger 119 - - The Site of the Prison Camp on the James River Below Richmond 133 - - On the Field of Cold Harbor Today 137 - - The Battle of the Crater 143 - - Mr. and Mrs. Davis in 1863 147 - - The Davis Children in 1863 153 - - The Famous Libby Prison as It Appeared at the Close of the War 157 - - The Surrender of Lee 163 - - Richmond as Gen. Weitzel Entered It 169 - - The Davis Mansion 195 - - The Davis Monument at Richmond 201 - - - - -PREFACE - - -For four years Jefferson Davis was the central and most conspicuous figure -in the greatest revolution of history. Prior to that time no statesman of -his day left a deeper or more permanent impress upon legislation. His -achievements alone as Secretary of War entitle him to rank as a benefactor -of his country. But notwithstanding all of this he is less understood than -any other man in history. This fact induced me a year ago to compile a -series of magazine articles which had the single purpose in view of -painting the real Jefferson Davis as he was. Of course, the task was a -difficult one under any circumstances, and almost an impossible one in the -restricted scope of six papers, as it appeared in _The Pilgrim_. However, -the public according to these papers an interest far beyond my -expectation, I have decided to revise and publish them in book form. - -This work does not attempt an exhaustive treatment of the subject but, as -the author has tried faithfully and without prejudice or predilection to -paint the soldier, the statesman, the private citizen as he was, he trusts -that this little volume may not be unacceptable to those who love the -truth for its own sake. - -L. K. - -_Akron, Ohio, Aug. 16, 1904._ - - - - -The Real Jefferson Davis - - - - -I. Birth and Education - - -Almost four decades have passed since the surrender at Greensboro of -Johnston to Sherman finally terminated the most stupendous and sanguinary -civil war of history. Few of the great actors in that mighty drama still -linger on the world's stage. But of the living and of the dead, -irrespective of whether they wore the blue or the gray, history has, with -one exception, delivered her award, which, while it is not free from the -blemish of imperfection, is nevertheless, in the main, the verdict by -which posterity will abide. The one exception is Jefferson Davis. Why this -is so may be explained in a few words. - -Occupying, as he did, the most exalted station in the government of the -seceding states, he became from the day of his accession to the -presidency, the embodiment of two diametrically opposite ideas. The loyal -people of the North, disregarding the fact that the Confederacy was a -representative government of limited powers, that a regularly elected -congress made the laws, often against the judgment of the chief executive, -that many of the policies most bitterly condemned by them were inaugurated -against his advice, transformed the agent into the principal and visited -upon him all of the odium attaching to the government that he represented. -Nay, more than this. The bitter passions engendered in the popular mind by -the conflict clothed him with responsibility, not only for every obnoxious -act of his government, but, forgetful of the history of the fifty years -preceding the Civil War, saddled upon him the chief sins of the very -genesis of the doctrine of secession itself. Thus confounded with the -principles of his government and the policies by which it sought to -establish them, the acts for which he may be held justly responsible have -been magnified and distorted while the valuable services previously -rendered to his country, were forgotten or minimized, and Jefferson Davis -as he was disappeared, absorbed, amalgamated, into the selfish arch -traitor intent upon the destruction of the Union to gratify his -unrighteous ambition. - -The masses of the Southern people, on the other hand, holding in proud -remembrance the gallant soldier of the Mexican War and deeply appreciative -of his able advocacy of principles which they firmly believed to be -sacredly just, regarded their chief magistrate as the sublimation of all -the virtues inherent in the cause for which they fought. When the -Confederacy collapsed, the indignities heaped upon its chief, his long -imprisonment and the fact that he alone was selected for perpetual -disfranchisement added the martyr's crown to the halo of the hero, thus -creating in the South an almost universal mental attitude of affection and -sympathy, which was as fatal to the ascertainment of the exact and -unbiased truth of history as were the rancor and bitterness that prevailed -at the North. That this prejudice and predilection still exist cannot be -doubted. But time has plucked the sting of malice from the one and has -dulled the romantic glamor of the other sufficiently to enable us to -examine the events that gave birth to both with that calm and -dispassionate criticism which subrogates every other consideration to the -discovery of truth. I do not underestimate the difficulties that beset the -self-imposed task, but to the best of my humble ability and free from -every motive except that of portraying the impartial truth, I shall -endeavor to delineate the life of the real Jefferson Davis. - -[Illustration: Jefferson Davis' Birthplace, at Fairview, Ky.] - -Contrary to the belief still somewhat prevalent, Jefferson Davis was not -descended from a line of aristocratic progenitors, but sprang from the -ranks of that middle class which has produced most of the great men of the -world. About the year 1715 three brothers came to this country from Wales, -and located in Philadelphia. The younger, Evan Davis, eventually went to -the colony of Georgia and there married a widow by the name of Williams. -The only child of that union, Samuel Davis, enlisted at the age of -seventeen as a private soldier in the War of the Revolution. Later he -organized a company of mounted men and at its head participated in most of -the battles of the campaign that forced Lord Cornwallis out of the -Carolinas. At the close of the war he married Jane Cook, a girl of -Scotch-Irish descent, of humble station, but noted for strength of -character and great personal beauty, and they settled on a farm near -Augusta, Ga. In 1804 Samuel Davis removed with his family to southwestern -Kentucky to engage in stock raising and tobacco planting, and there, in a -modest farmhouse, which was then in Christian County and not many miles -from the cabin where a few months later Abraham Lincoln opened his eyes -upon the light of the world, Jefferson Davis was born, June 3, 1808. The -spot is now in Todd County, and upon it stands the Baptist church of -Fairview. While he was still an infant, the hope of there better providing -for a numerous family caused his father to seek a new home on Bayou Teche -in Louisiana. The country, however, proved unhealthful, and he remained -but a few months. He finally bought a farm near Woodville in Wilkinson -County, Miss., where he spent the remainder of his long life, poor, but -respected and esteemed as a man of fine sense and sterling character. - -[Illustration: Where Jefferson Davis Boarded While in Lexington] - -Jefferson Davis' first tuition was at a log schoolhouse, near his home, -but the educational advantages of that time and place were so meager that -when seven years old he was sent to a Catholic institution known as St. -Thomas' College, and there, under the guidance of that truly good man and -priest, Father Wallace, afterward Bishop of Nashville, his education -really began. After some years in this school, he entered Transylvania -University, at Lexington, Ky., then the principal collegiate institution -west of the Alleghanies and famous many years thereafter as the alma mater -of a distinguished array of soldiers and statesmen. In November, 1823, -when in his senior year at Transylvania, through the efforts of his -brother, Joseph Davis, he was appointed by President Monroe a cadet at -West Point. The following year he entered that institution and after -pursuing the customary course of four years, was graduated in July, 1828, -with a very low class standing. - -[Illustration: Transylvania College at Lexington] - -He was then in his twenty-first year. The period in which the principal -foundations of character are laid had passed. What this important period -of life had developed is, therefore, both interesting and instructive. -Fortunately, this information is obtainable through evidence which is -conclusive. More than a half score of his classmates at Transylvania and -at West Point, who subsequently played important parts in the history of -the country, have left us their impressions of Jefferson Davis during that -period of his life. This information is supplemented by his instructors at -both institutions. All of this testimony was recorded previous to the -occurrence of any of the later events in his life which might have biased -the judgment, and all of the witnesses corroborate each other. Without -entering into any extended discussion of this evidence, we may safely -conclude from it that in his youth he was one of those peculiarly normal -characters whose well-ordered existence leaves but little material for the -biographer. Few inequalities and no excesses are discoverable. He seems to -have possessed one of those refined natures that abhor vice and immorality -of every kind. While he made no pretensions to piety, and, apparently -selected no associations with this view of avoiding contamination, his -moral character was without a blemish. Nor was he, as has been -represented, haughty, impulsive and domineering, but, on the contrary, his -nature seems to have been remarkably gentle and his bearing free from -pretensions of every kind. He had opinions, and his convictions were -strong, but he neither reached them hastily nor maintained them with -arrogance. He was serious, somewhat reserved, always cheerful, sometimes -gay. In his manner he was thoroughly democratic, but free from any -suggestion of demagoguery. He was slow to anger, easily mollified, without -malice and possessed in a remarkable degree that ingenuous and credulous -nature which a long and eventful life never impaired and which was -responsible, in no small degree, for many of the fatal mistakes of later -years. If at this time he possessed any of those mental powers which later -in life won the admiration even of his enemies, he gave no indication of -the fact. He was an indifferent student, always somewhat deficient in -mathematics, and never particularly proficient in any other branch, -impressing those who knew him best as an ordinary youth of fair capacity -and of about the attainments requisite to pass the examinations. - - - - -II. Service in the Army - - -Thus equipped by nature and education, Jefferson Davis was commissioned, -upon leaving West Point, a second lieutenant, and was assigned to duty -with the First Regiment of Infantry at Fort Crawford. The life of a second -lieutenant on a frontier post in time of peace, unless under exceptional -circumstances, is not likely to provide many incidents of a nature to -illuminate his character, test his higher capacity or to greatly interest -posterity. The circumstances in this case were not exceptional, and during -the next seven years there was nothing in the career of Lieutenant Davis -worthy of preservation that cannot be recorded in few words. It was the -most barren period of his life. At Fort Crawford, at the Galena lead mines -and at Winnebago he was employed in the police duty that our army at that -time performed on the frontier which consisted chiefly of building forts -and trying to preserve the peace between the Indians and encroaching -settlers. In the performance of all of the duties to which he was -assigned, he acquitted himself creditably and earned the reputation of -being a conscientious, intelligent and efficient officer. At one time -during this service an opportunity to win distinction seemed imminent. -Black Hawk, driven to desperation by the continuous encroachment of the -pioneers upon the hunting grounds of his people, formed what was then -believed to be a powerful coalition of all of the Indian tribes of the -Northwest. But the coalition soon fell to pieces, and the war, with its -few slight skirmishes, turned out to be nothing more serious than an -Indian raid, which was speedily terminated. An incident happened at the -beginning of these troubles which, in the light of subsequent events, is -perhaps, worthy of preservation. The governor of Illinois called out the -state forces and mobilized them at Dixon. General Scott sent there from -Fort Snelling two lieutenants of the regular army to muster them into -service. One of them was Lieutenant Davis and the other was the future -major who so gallantly sustained the fire of Beauregard's heavy guns -against the old walls of Fort Sumter. Among the captains of the companies -to be mustered in was one who was hardly the ideal of a soldierly figure. -He was tall, awkward and homely, and was arrayed in a badly fitting suit -of blue jeans, garnished with large and resplendent brass buttons. He -presented himself and was sworn in and thus probably the first time in his -life that Abraham Lincoln ever took the oath of allegiance to the United -States it was administered to him by Jefferson Davis. - -Soon after the engagement at Stillman Run, Black Hawk and several of his -more troublesome warriors surrendered to the United States forces and were -sent as prisoners in charge of Lieutenant Davis to Jefferson Barracks. In -his autobiography the old chief describes this journey in a way that -leaves nothing to be guessed of the bitterness he felt, but he does not -fail to express his appreciation of "the young white chief who alone -treated me with the courtesy and consideration due to an honorable, -vanquished enemy." About a year after Lieutenant Davis' return from this -mission to Fort Crawford, an incident occurred, which, while unimportant -in itself, was destined to produce far-reaching consequences. Col. Zachary -Taylor was assigned to the command of the First Regiment, and with him -came his family to Fort Crawford. His daughter, Miss Sarah Taylor, and -Lieutenant Davis soon conceived an ardent affection for each other, and -their marriage would have followed within the year had it not been -prevented by Colonel Taylor. The cause of his opposition to the marriage -has been the source of much speculation and of many absurd stories. The -bare fact of the case is that Taylor's opposition to Davis as a son-in-law -was based solely upon the privations that confronted the wife of a -soldier,--a not altogether unreasonable objection when we consider army -life on the frontier at that time. Convinced of the fact, however, that -his own family considered the reasons of his opposition unsound, he -determined to find what, at least to him, would prove weightier ones, and -proceeded to seek a quarrel with his daughter's suitor. He found a pretext -in a court martial, where, upon some trivial point, Davis voted against -Taylor with a certain Major Smith. Taylor and Smith were not upon friendly -terms, and thereupon the former flew into a violent rage, and in language -which needed no additional strength to convince one that he fully deserved -his sobriquet of Old Rough and Ready, he swore that Davis should never -marry his daughter, and forbade him to enter his house as a visitor. In -striking contrast to his intended father-in-law, Davis comported himself -throughout this affair as a gentleman, and during the next two years -sought in a manly way to reverse the irate old warrior's decision. -However, all of his efforts were unavailing, and finally convinced that -the task was a hopeless one, but resolved to remove the only substantial -objection, he in the summer of 1835, resigned his commission in the army. -A few weeks later he and Miss Taylor were married at the home of one of -her aunts in Kentucky. But his new-found happiness was destined to a sad -and untimely end, for in September of the same year, while visiting his -sister near Bayou Sara, in Louisiana, both he and his bride were -simultaneously stricken down with malarial fever and in a few days she -succumbed to the disease. He was passionately devoted to his wife, and her -death inflicted a blow from which he did not finally recover for many -years. The winter following the death of his wife was spent in Havana and -at Washington, and in the spring of 1836 he returned to Mississippi to -take up with his brother, Joseph, the threads of a new life, the influence -of which upon his future destiny has never been properly estimated. - - - - -III. His Life at Briarfield - - -Joseph Davis was in many respects a remarkable man. Educated for the bar, -he abandoned the practice of law, after a successful career, when he was -still a young man, and embarked in the business of cotton planting. He -succeeded, acquired two large plantations known as "The Hurricane" and -"Briarfield," and soon became a wealthy man. But he was something more -than a rich cotton planter. He was a man of great strength and force of -character, a student possessed of a vast fund of information, and a clear -and logical reasoner. He read much and thought deeply, if not always -correctly, along the lines of political government and economic science. -Always refusing to take an active part in politics, it was, nevertheless, -a subject in which he was deeply interested. He was partially in sympathy -with the principles of the democratic party, but in that academic, strict -and literal construction of the Constitution and upon the question of -state rights he occupied a position far in advance of that political -organization--a position even beyond that assumed by Mr. Calhoun in his -advocacy of the doctrine of nullification. - -[Illustration: Jefferson Davis at Thirty-five] - -From this brother Jefferson Davis purchased "Briarfield," and arrangements -were made by which they lived together and jointly managed the -plantations. Owning a large number of slaves, they inaugurated a policy -for their management which is no less interesting in itself than for the -results attained. It was based upon the political maxim of the elder -brother that the less people are governed, the better and stronger and -more law-abiding they become. All rules that involved unnecessary -supervision and espionage of any kind were abolished. The slaves were -placed upon honor and were left free to go and come as they pleased. -Corporal punishment was only inflicted in cases involving moral turpitude, -and only then after the trial and conviction of the accused by a jury of -his peers, during the process of which all of the rules governing the -production and admission of evidence observed in a court of justice, were -scrupulously adhered to. The pardoning power alone was retained by the -masters, and that they frequently exercised. Whenever a slave felt his -services were more valuable to himself than they were to his master, he -was allowed by the payment of a very reasonable price for his time to -embark in any enterprise he wished, the brothers counseling and advising -him, frequently loaning him money and always patronizing him in preference -to other tradesmen. A copy of a page from one of the books of a slave, -bearing the date of Sept. 24, 1842, is before me, and upon it J. E. and J. -Davis are credited with $1,893.50. Another slave usually purchased the -entire fruit crop of the two plantations, and there were still others who -conducted independent and successful business operations. Some of those -slaves in after years became respected and substantial citizens, one of -them purchasing the plantations for something less than $300,000, which -had been offered by a white competitor. - -In their intercourse with their slaves, the brothers observed the utmost -courtesy. With the idea that it involved disrespect, they forbade the -abbreviation of Christian or the application of nicknames to any of their -servants. Jefferson Davis' manager, James Pemberton, was always received -on his business calls in the drawing-room, and the dignified master met -the equally dignified slave upon exactly the same plane that he would have -met his broker or his lawyer. From the practice of this system two -results followed: A large fortune was accumulated and the slaves became -thoroughly loyal and devoted to their masters. - -[Illustration: Briarfield, Jefferson Davis' Home] - -But, as great as must have been the influences of this life in forming the -character of Jefferson Davis, still greater and of more importance, -perhaps, must be regarded the rigorous mental training which he derived -from it. During the period of their residence together, the time not -required by business the brothers devoted to reading and discussions. -Political economy and law, the science of government in general and that -of the United States in particular, were the favorite themes. Locke and -Justinian, Mill, Adam Smith and Vattel divided honors with the Federalist, -the Resolutions of Ninety-Eight and the Debates of the Constitutional -Convention. It was said they knew every word of the three latter by -memory, and it is certain that year after year, almost without -interruption, they sat far into the night debating almost every -conceivable question that could arise under the Constitution of the United -States. - - - - -IV. First Appearance in Politics - - -The first appearance of Jefferson Davis in politics would be hardly worthy -of mention, if it were not for the fact that the event was used in after -years to lend color to a baseless calumny. The Democratic party of Warren -County nominated Mr. Davis for the Legislature in 1843, and although the -normal Whig majority was a large one, he was defeated only by a few votes. -Some years previous to that time the state had repudiated certain bank -bonds which it had guaranteed, and in that canvass this question was an -issue. Mr. Davis assumed the position that as the Constitution provided -that the state might be sued in such cases, the question as to whether the -bonds constituted a valid debt was one primarily for the courts rather -than for the Legislature to decide. Referring to this controversy, -General Scott in his autobiography says, "These bonds were repudiated -mainly by Mr. Jefferson Davis;" and during the Civil War the same -propaganda was urged in England by Robert J. Walker. The well-known -imperfection of General Scott's knowledge on most matters political -serves, in some measure, to palliate his error; but as General Walker was, -at that time, a senator in Congress from Mississippi, it is difficult to -believe that he erred through lack of information or that he was ignorant -of the fact that when the Legislature finally refused to heed the mandate -of the courts and provide for the payment of those obligations, Mr. Davis, -as a private citizen, advocated a subscription to satisfy the debt, and -that this very act was later used by the repudiators as their chief -argument against his election to Congress. - -Mr. Davis took a conspicuous part in the presidential campaign of 1844, -and was chosen one of the Polk electors. Before this campaign he was but -slightly known beyond his own county; but at its conclusion his popularity -had become so great that there was a general demand in the ranks of his -party that he should become a candidate for Congress in the following -year. - -[Illustration: The Room in the Briars in Which Jefferson Davis Was -Married] - -On February 26, 1845, he was united in marriage to Miss Anna Varina -Howell, of Natchez, and in the following month entered upon the canvass -which resulted in his election by a large majority. He took his seat in -the Twenty-Ninth Congress, December 8, 1845. - -In that body were many men whose lives were destined to exert an influence -upon his own fate in no small degree. Among them was that ungainly captain -of volunteers to whom we have seen him administering the oath of -allegiance at Fort Snelling, and a strong rugged, wilful man, who, in his -youth, had been the town tailor of the little village of Greenville, in -Tennessee. - -Practically the only question involved in the campaign of 1844 was the -admission of the Republic of Texas as a state of the Union. Mexico had -declared that she would regard that act as tantamount to a declaration of -war, and all parties in the Twenty-Ninth Congress now recognized the -conflict as inevitable. Nor was it long delayed. One of President Polk's -first official acts was to order General Taylor to proceed to the Rio -Grande and defend it as the western boundary of the United States. -Proceeding to a point opposite Matamoras, he was there attacked by the -Mexicans, whom he defeated, drove back across the river and shelled them -out of their works on the opposite side. - -In the war legislation that was now brought forward in Congress, Mr. -Davis' military education enabled him to take a conspicuous part. His -first speech seems to have left no doubt in the minds of the best judges -that henceforward he was a power to be reckoned with. John Quincy Adams, -it is said, paid the closest attention to this maiden effort, and at its -conclusion shouted into the ear trumpet of old Joshua Giddings: "Mark my -words, sir; we shall hear more of _that_ young man!" But this speech, -which was a reply to an attack made by Mr. Sawyer, of Ohio, on West Point, -did something more than win the admiration of Mr. Adams. Contending for -the necessity of a military education for those who conduct the operations -of war, and ignorant that any member of either avocation was present, he -asked Mr. Sawyer if he thought the results at Matamoras could have been -achieved by a tailor or a blacksmith. Mr. Sawyer good-naturedly replied -that, while he would not admit that some members of his craft might not -have rivaled the exploits of General Taylor, that when it came to -reducing things he himself preferred a horse shoe to a fort any day. -Andrew Johnson, however, took the matter as a personal insult, and as long -as he lived cherished the bitterest hatred for Mr. Davis. - - - - -V. Enters Mexican War - - -But as promising as Mr. Davis' congressional career began, it did not long -continue. Soon after war was declared, he received notice of his election -as colonel of the First Mississippi Regiment, and early in June resigned -his seat in Congress and accepted that office. President Polk, learning of -his resignation, sent for Mr. Davis and offered him an appointment as -brigadier-general. There is no doubt that he greatly coveted that office, -but such, even at that time, was his attachment to the doctrine of state -rights, that, frankly informing the President of his conviction that such -appointments were the prerogatives of the states, he declined the offer. -Hastening to New Orleans, Colonel Davis joined his regiment, and at once -inaugurated that course of training and discipline which, in a few -months, made of it a model of efficiency. - -In August he joined General Taylor's army just as it moved forward into -Mexico. On Sept. 19, 1846, General Taylor with six thousand men reached -the strongly-fortified city of Monterey, garrisoned by ten thousand -Mexican regulars under command of the able and experienced General -Ampudia. Two days later the attack began, and at the close of a sharp -artillery duel, General Taylor gave the order to carry the city by storm. -The Fourth Artillery, leading the advance, was caught in a terrific cross -fire, and was speedily repulsed with heavy losses, producing the utmost -confusion along the front of the assaulting brigade. The strong fort, -Taneira, which had contributed most to the repulse, now ran up a new flag, -and amidst the wild cheering of its defenders redoubled its fire of grape, -canister and musketry, under which the American lines wavered and were -about to break. - -[Illustration: General Taylor and Colonel Davis at Monterey] - -Colonel Davis, seeing the crisis, without waiting for orders, placed -himself at the head of his Mississippians, and gave the order to charge. -With prolonged cheers his regiment swept forward through a storm of -bullets and bursting shells. Colonel Davis, sword in hand, cleared the -ditch at one bound, and cheering his soldiers on, they mounted the works -with the impetuosity of a whirlwind, capturing artillery and driving the -Mexicans pell mell back into the stone fort in the rear. - -In vain the defeated Mexicans sought to barricade the gate; Davis and -McClung burst it open, and leading their men into the fort, compelled its -surrender at discretion. Taneira was the key of the situation, and its -capture insured victory. On the morning of the twenty-third, Henderson's -Texas Rangers, Campbell's Tennesseeans and Davis' Mississippians the -latter again leading the assault, stormed and captured El Diabolo, and the -next day General Ampudia surrendered the city. - - - - -VI. The Hero of Buena Vista - - -Two months later, General Taylor again moved forward toward the City of -Mexico, and on February 20 was before Saltilo. Santa Anna, the ablest of -the Mexican generals, with the best army in the republic, numbering twenty -thousand men, there appeared in front. Taylor could barely muster a fourth -of that number, and for strategic purposes fell back to the narrow defile -in front of the hacienda of Buena Vista, where, on the twenty-third, was -fought the greatest battle of the war. - -The conflict began early in the morning, and raged with varying fortunes -over a line two miles long, until the middle of the afternoon when the -furious roar of musketry from that quarter apprised General Wool that -Santa Anna was making a desperate effort to break the American center. -Colonel Davis was immediately ordered to support that point, and the -Mississippians went forward at a double quick. As they came upon the -field, the wildest disorder prevailed, and only Colonel Bowles' Indiana -regiment held its ground. After trying in vain to rally the fugitives of a -routed regiment, Colonel Davis speedily formed his own into line of battle -and rapidly pushed forward across a deep ravine to the right of the -Indianians just in time to meet the shock of a whole brigade, which the -two commanders succeeded in repulsing with great gallantry. - -But the battle was not over. Under cover of the smoke, Santa Anna's full -brigade of lancers flanked the Americans, and now at the sound of their -trumpets, the Mexican infantry advanced once more to the charge. Thus -assailed on two sides by overwhelming numbers, the situation was truly -critical, but Colonel Davis, forming the two regiments into the shape -of a re-entering angle, awaited the assault. - -[Illustration: The Charge of Colonel Davis' Regiment at Buena Vista] - -With flying banners and sounding trumpets the gailey caparisoned lancers -came down at a thundering gallop until a sheet of flame from the angle -wrapped their front ranks and bore it down to destruction. Quickly -recovering, the survivors, with the fury of madmen, threw themselves again -and again upon those stubborn ranks, which, now assailed on two sides, -refused to give an inch, and met every onslaught with a withering fire, -which soon so cumbered the ground with the dead that it was with -difficulty the living could move over it. - -At last utterly demoralized by the awful carnage, the Mexican lines broke -and fled from the field. The day was over. Buena Vista was won, and -Colonel Davis had accomplished a feat which, when Sir Colin Campbell -imitated it at Inkerman two years later, he was sent by England to -retrieve her fallen fortunes in India. - -Notwithstanding the fact that Colonel Davis' right foot had been shattered -early in the morning, he had refused to leave the field for aid, but now -at the close of the action he fell fainting from his horse. The wound was -a dangerous one, and as the surgeons were of the opinion that more than a -year must elapse before he could hope to walk, as soon as he was able to -travel, General Taylor insisted on his going home, and thus closed his -career in the Mexican War. - - - - -VII. Enters the Senate - - -This exploit at Buena Vista created the profoundest enthusiasm throughout -the country, and the Legislatures of several states passed resolutions -thanking him for his services. Governor Brown of his own state, in -obedience to an overwhelming popular sentiment, a few weeks after his -return, appointed Colonel Davis to fill a vacancy that had occurred in the -Senate--an appointment which was speedily ratified by the Legislature. - -When, in 1847, Mr. Davis took his seat in the Senate, that irrepressible -conflict, inevitable from the hour that the Constitutional Convention of -1787 sanctioned slavery as an institution within the United States, had -reached a crisis which was threatening the very existence of the Union. -The Missouri Compromise prohibiting slavery north of 36° 30' had failed -to sanction it in express terms south of that parallel, and while in 1820 -probably no one would have denied that this was the logical and obvious -meaning of that measure, such was not the case thirty years later. The -Abolitionists had opposed the annexation of Texas, believing, as Mr. Adams -declared, that such an event would justify the dissolution of the Union. - -In finally accepting Texas with bad grace, they served notice that it was -their last concession. Therefore when the application of the Missouri -Compromise to the vast territory acquired from Mexico would have given -over a large portion of it to slavery, they brought forward the Wilmot -Proviso, a measure, the effect of which was to abrogate the Missouri -Compromise in so far as it affected slavery south of that line, while -leaving its prohibition as to the north side in full force. - -[Illustration: Jefferson Davis as United States Senator in 1847] - -Mr. Davis participated in the discussion of these questions and at once -became the ablest and most consistent of those statesmen who, contending -for the strict construction of the Constitution and the broadest -principles of state sovereignty, sought to prevent Congress from violating -the one by infringing on the prerogatives of the other. Holding that the -Constitution sanctioned slavery, that Congress had specified its limits, -that the territories belonged in common to the states, he contended that -the South could not accept with honor anything less than that the Missouri -Compromise extended to the Pacific Ocean. - -Reasoning from these premises, his speeches were masterpieces of logic, -and whatever one may think of their philosophy, all must agree that they -were among the greatest ever delivered in any deliberative body. Had the -leaders of his party stood with him in that great battle, they would have -been able to force some definite legislation which would have postponed -the Civil War for many years--possibly beyond a period when the operation -of economic laws might have effected the abolition of slavery as the only -salvation of the South--but Henry Clay's dread of a situation that -endangered the Union prompted him to bring forward his last compromise -measures, which he himself declared to be only a temporary expedient. -Calhoun, equally strong in his love for the Union, anxious to preserve it -at all costs, abandoned his former position, and against the warnings of -Jefferson Davis, soon to become prophetic, his party accepted the measure -which, as he declared, guaranteed no right that did not already exist, -while abrogating to the South the benefits of the Compromise of 1820. - - - - -VIII. Becomes Secretary of War - - -With temporary tranquillity restored, Mr. Davis soon afterward resigned -his seat in the Senate to become a candidate for governor of his state--a -contest in which he was defeated by a small plurality. He retired once -more to Briarfield, and there is little doubt that he at that time -intended to abandon public life. However, in 1853, he yielded to the -insistence of President Pierce, and reluctantly accepted the portfolio of -war in his cabinet. - -Only a brief summary is possible, but if we may judge by the reforms -inaugurated, the work accomplished during the four following years, -Jefferson Davis must be considered one of our greatest secretaries of war. -The antiquated army regulations were revised and placed upon a modern -basis, the medical corps was reorganized and made more efficient, tactics -were modernized, the rifled musket and the minie ball were adopted, the -army was increased and at every session he persistently urged upon -Congress the wisdom of a pension system and a law for the retirement of -officers, substantially as they exist at present. - -But more enduring and farther reaching in beneficent results were those -great public works originated or completed under his administration, -prominently among which may be mentioned the magnificent aqueduct which -still supplies Washington with an abundance of pure water; the completion -of the work on the Capitol, which had dragged for years; and the founding -of the Smithsonian Institute, of which he was, perhaps, the most zealous -advocate and efficient regent. - -Transcontinental railways appealed to him as a public necessity. He -therefore had two surveys made and collected the facts concerning -climate, topography and the natural resources of the country, which -demonstrated the feasibility of the vast undertaking, which was -subsequently completed along the lines and according to the plans that he -recommended. - -From his induction into office he set at naught the spoils system of -Jackson, and may very justly be regarded as a pioneer of civil service -reform, for he altogether disregarded politics in his appointments, and -when remonstrated with by the leaders of his party, informed them that he -was not appointing Whigs or Democrats, but servants of the government who, -in his opinion, were best qualified for the duties to be performed. The -same principle he adhered to in matters of the greatest moment, as he -demonstrated in the Kansas troubles. A state of civil war prevailed -between the advocates and opponents of slavery, and it could not be -doubted where his own sympathies were in the controversy. From the nature -of the case, the commander of federal troops in Kansas must be armed with -practically dictatory powers. The selection remained altogether with -himself, and he sent thither Colonel Sumner, an avowed abolitionist, but -an officer whose honor, ability and judgment recommended him as the best -man for the difficult duty. - -How the absurd story ever originated that Mr. Davis used the power of his -great office to weaken the North and prepare the South for warlike -operations, is inconceivable to the honest investigator of even ordinary -diligence. No arms or munitions of war could have been removed from one -arsenal to another or from factory to fort without an order from the -Secretary of War. Those orders are still on record, and not one of them -lends color to a theory which seems to have been adopted as a fact by Dr. -Draper, upon no better proof than that afforded by heresay evidence of the -most biased kind. In fact, arsenals in the South were continuously -drawn upon to supply the Western forts during his term of office, and at -its close, while all defenses and stores were in better condition than -ever before, those south of the Potomac were relatively weaker than in -1853. - -[Illustration: Jefferson Davis as Secretary of War] - -Other less serious charges are equally baseless, and the historian who -would try Mr. Davis upon the common rules of evidence must conclude that -his administration was not only free from dishonor but was characterized -by high ability and unquestioned patriotism--a verdict strengthened by the -fact that contemporaneous partisan criticism furnished nothing to question -such a conclusion. - - - - -IX. He Re-enters the Senate - - -When, in 1857, Mr. Davis was again elected to the Senate, the Compromise -of 1850 had already become a dead letter, as he had predicted that it -would. The anti-slavery sentiment had, like Aaron's rod, swallowed all -rivals, and party leaders once noted for conservatism, had resolved to -suppress the curse, despite the decision of the Supreme Court statute, of -law, of even the Constitution itself. Those who have criticised Mr. Davis -most bitterly for his attitude at that time have failed to appreciate the -fact that he then occupied the exact ground where he had always stood. - -Others had changed. He had remained consistent. He had never countenanced -the doctrine of nullification; he had always affirmed the right of -secession. Profoundly versed, as he was, in the constitutional law of the -United States, familiar with every phase of the question debated by the -Convention of 1787, his logical mind was unable to reach a conclusion -adverse to the right of a sovereign state to withdraw from a voluntary -compact, the violation of which endangered its interests. He believed that -the compact was violated by the repeal of the Missouri Compromise; he felt -that it was being violated now, but as in 1850 he had declared that -nothing short of the necessity of self-protection would justify the -dissolution of the Union, he now pleaded with the majority not to force -that necessity upon the South. Secession he frankly declared to be a great -evil, so great that the South would only adopt it as the last resort; but -at the same time he warned the abolitionists that if the guarantees of the -Constitution were not respected, that if the Northern states were to defy -the decrees of the Supreme Court favorable to the South, as they had done -in the Dred Scott decision, that if his section was to be ruled by a -hostile majority without regard to the right, the protection thrown around -the minority by the fundamental law of the land, that the Southern states -could not in honor remain members of the Union, and would therefore -certainly withdraw from it. - -He undoubtedly saw the chasm daily growing wider, and had he possessed -that sagacious foresight, that profound knowledge of human nature, in -which alone he was lacking as a statesman of the first order, he would -have realized then, as Abraham Lincoln had before, that the die was cast -and that the Union could not longer endure upon the compromises of the -Constitution which had implanted slavery among a free, self-governing -people, a majority of whom were opposed to it. But there is no recorded -utterance of Jefferson Davis, no act of his, that would lead one to -believe that he had despaired of some adjustment of matters, or that -secession was wise or desirable, until after the nomination of Mr. -Lincoln. Then, for the first time, he declared before a state convention -at Jackson, Miss., that the Chicago platform would justify the South in -dissolving the Union if the Republican party should triumph at the coming -election. But he did not expect that triumph. Shortly previous to that -speech, he had introduced resolutions in the Senate embodying the -principles of the constitutional pro-slavery party. - -They affirmed the sovereignty of the separate states, asserted that -slavery formed an essential part of the political institutions of various -members of the Union, that the union of the states rested upon equality of -rights, that it was the duty of Congress to protect slave property in the -territories, and that a territory when forming a constitution, and not -before, must either sanction or abolish slavery. The resolution passed the -Senate, and Mr. Davis hoped to see it become the platform of a reunited -party, which would have meant the defeat of the Republican ticket and a -consequent postponement of the war. - -The foregoing facts alone make ridiculous the assertions of Mr. Pollard -that during this Congress Jefferson Davis, with thirteen other senators, -met one night in a room at the Capitol, and perfected a plan whereby the -Southern states were forced into secession against the will of the people -thereof. - -What the plan was, how it was put into operation so as to circumvent the -will of the people of eleven states who more than a year later decided the -question of secession by popular vote, why Mr. Davis later introduced the -above resolution and why he worked so zealously thereafter to prevent the -threatened disruption and why he sought to induce the Charleston -Convention to adopt his resolution as the principles of the party, Mr. -Pollard does not attempt to explain. In fact, any rational explanation -would be impossible, for at every point the evidence refutes the -allegation. - -Then, again, those who, like Mr. Pollard, have sought to saddle the chief -responsibility of secession upon Jefferson Davis have overlooked the fact -that while not an avowed candidate, he nevertheless hoped to be the -nominee of his party in 1860 for the presidency, and that much of his -strength lay in Northern states, as Massachusetts demonstrated by sending -him a solid delegation to the Charleston Convention. His conduct during -his last year in the Senate is consistent with this ambition, but the -ambition is wholly inconsistent with the theory that he had long planned -the destruction of the Union. The truth is that the impartial historian -must conclude from all of his utterances, from his acts, from the -circumstances of the case, that in so far from being the genius and -advocate of disunion, he deprecated it and sought to prevent it, until -political events rendered certain the election of Mr. Lincoln. Then, -sincerely believing the peculiar institutions of the South to be -imperiled, and never doubting the right of secession, he advocated it as -the only remedy left for a situation which had become intolerable to the -people of his section. - -His advocacy, however, was in striking contrast to that of many of his -colleagues. Always free from any suggestion of demagoguery, always -conservative, his utterances on this subject were marked with candor and -moderation. Nor did the ominous shadows that descended upon the next -Congress disturb his equanimity or unsettle his resolution to perform his -duty as he saw it. For days the impassioned storm of invective and -denunciation raged around him, but he remained silent. At last the news -came that his state had seceded. He announced the event to the Senate in a -speech, which in nobility of conception has probably never been surpassed. -He defined his own position and that of his state, and as he bade farewell -to his colleagues, even among his bitterest opponents there was scarcely -an eye undimmed with tears, and whatever others thought in after years, -there was no one in that august assemblage who did not accord to Jefferson -Davis the meed of perfect sincerity and unblemished faith in the cause -which he had espoused. - - - - -X. Still Hoped to Save the Union - - -On the evening of the day Mr. Davis retired from the Senate, he was -visited by Robert Toombs of Georgia, who informed him that it was reported -from a trustworthy source that certain representatives, including -themselves, were to be arrested. He had intended to leave the capital the -following day, but changed his plans to await any action the government -might take against him. - -To his friends he declared the hope that the rumor might be well founded, -for should arrests be made, he saw therein the opportunity to bring the -question of the right of a state to secede from the Union before the -Supreme Court for final adjudication. Nothing of the kind happened, and -after waiting for about ten days, Mr. Davis left Washington. - -During his stay he freely discussed the situation with the leading -Southern statesmen who called upon him. The general opinion was the first -result of secession, which most of them assumed to be final, must be the -formation of a new federal government, and the consensus of opinion -designated Mr. Davis as the fittest person for the presidency. On the -first proposition he did not agree with his colleagues. He expressed the -belief that the action of the states in exercising the right of secession -would serve to so sober Northern sentiment that an adjustment might be -reached, which, while guaranteeing to the South all of the rights -vouchsafed by the Constitution, would still preserve the Union. He -therefore sought to impress upon them--especially the South Carolina -delegation--the necessity of moderation, the unwisdom of any act at that -time which might render an adjustment impossible. - -The second proposition he refused to consider at all, and begged those who -might be instrumental in the formation of a new government, if one must be -created, not to use his name in connection with its presidency. That he at -this time entertained a sincere desire for the preservation of the Union -can be doubted by no one familiar with his private correspondence. In a -letter dated two days after his resignation from the Senate he defends the -action of his state, it is true, but at the same time deplores disunion as -one of the greatest calamities that could befall the South. - -In another letter written three days later, he uses this significant -language: "All is not lost. If only moderation prevails, if they will only -give me time, I am not without hope of a peaceable settlement that will -assure our rights within the Union." That he did not abandon that hope -until long afterward, that he clung to it long after it became a delusion, -is very probable, as we shall see. - -Nothing could be farther from the truth than the theory so often advanced -that presidential ambition was responsible for Mr. Davis' attitude on the -question of secession. This I have indicated in the last chapter. The -truth of this position is established if he were sincere in his -declarations that he did not covet the honor of the presidency of the new -government. Those declarations were made to the men who, of all others, -could further his ambition; they knew his stubbornness of opinion, -understood how likely it was that he would never abandon that or any other -position; there were other aspirants whom he knew to be personally more -acceptable to a majority of these statesmen, and his attitude, of course, -released them from any responsibility imposed by popular sentiment in his -favor in the South. If one is still inclined to accept all this, however, -as another instance of Cæsar putting the crown aside, the question -arises, Why did he assume the same attitude with those who possessed no -power to influence his fortunes? Why in his letters to his wife, to his -brother, to his friends, in private life, did he express the strongest -repugnance to accepting that office should it be created and offered? But -even stronger evidence that he did not seek or want it is afforded by -another circumstance. Mississippi, in seceding from the Union, had -provided for an army. The governor had appointed him to command it, with -the rank of major-general. In the event of war, that position opened up -unlimited possibilities in the field, which was exactly what he desired; -for, unfortunately, he then and always cherished the delusion that he was -greater as a soldier than he was as a statesman. All of this is consistent -with his sincerity--inconsistent with any other reasonable theory. - -Mr. Davis must also be acquitted of the charge made by no inconsiderable -number of the Southern people that he first failed to anticipate war and -later underestimated the extent and duration of the approaching conflict. -On his way from Washington to Mississippi, he made several speeches. All -of them were marked by moderation, but to the prominent citizens who on -that journey came to confer with him, he declared in emphatic terms that -the United States would never allow the seceded states to peacefully -withdraw from the Union, and warned them that unless some adjustment were -effected, they must expect a civil war, the extent, duration and -termination of which no one could foresee. - -At Jackson he reiterated those views, along with a hope for -reconciliation, in a speech delivered before the governor and Legislature -of his state. Peaceful adjustment he declared not beyond hope, yet if war -should come, he warned them that it must be a long one, and that instead -of buying 75,000 stands of small arms, as proposed, that the state should -only limit the quantity by its capacity to pay. Those views, it may be -here remarked, were not coincided with by his own state or the people of -the South generally. They were far in advance of their representatives on -the question of secession, but the belief was generally prevalent at even -a much later date that no attempt would be made to coerce a seceding -state. - - - - -XI. President of the Confederacy - - -The convention of the seceding states met at Montgomery, Feb. 4, 1861, and -proceeded to adopt a constitution as the basis for a provisional -government. The work was the most rapid in the history of legislative -proceedings, being completed in three days. With the exceptions of making -the preamble read that each state accepting it did so in "its sovereign -and independent capacity," fixing the president's and vice-president's -term of office at six years and making them ineligible for re-election, -prohibiting a protective tariff, inhibiting the general government from -making appropriations for internal improvements, requiring a two-thirds -vote to pass appropriation bills and giving cabinet officers a seat, but -no vote, in Congress, the Confederate constitution was, practically, a -reaffirmation of that of the United States. - -It was adopted on the eighth, and the provisional government to continue -in force one year, unless sooner superseded by a permanent organization, -was formally launched upon the troubled waters of its brief and stormy -existence. The following day, an election was held for president and -vice-president, the convention voting by states, which resulted on the -first ballot in the selection by a bare majority of Jefferson Davis and -Alexander H. Stephens of Georgia. Mr. Davis, as we have seen, was not a -candidate. He was not in, nor near, Montgomery at the time, and took no -part, by advice or otherwise, in the formation of the new constitution. - -His selection over Mr. Toombs was the result of a single set of -circumstances. Mr. Davis' military education, his experience in the field, -his services as secretary of war, a widespread popular belief in his -ability as a military organizer, and his known capacity as a statesman -in times of peace, all marked him as the fittest man for a place which -evidently required a combination of high qualities. Had Mr. Toombs -possessed either military education or experience, there is scarcely a -doubt that he would have been chosen. - -[Illustration: The Capitol at Richmond] - -The news of his election reached Mr. Davis while working in his garden, -and is said to have caused him genuine disappointment and grief. That the -convention was uncertain of his acceptance is indicated by the fact that -with the notification was sent an earnest appeal to consider the public -welfare, rather than his own preferences, in considering the offer of the -presidency. Upon this ground he based his action in accepting the office -and hastening to Jackson, he resigned his position in the state army, -expressing the hope and belief that the service would be but temporary. - -All along the route to Montgomery, bands and bonfires, booming cannon and -the peals of bells heralded his approach, and vast concourses greeted him -at every station. - -What purported to be an account of this journey was printed in the leading -papers of the North, which pictured Mr. Davis as invoking war, breathing -defiance and threatening extermination of the Union. Nothing of the kind, -however, occurred. The speeches actually delivered were moderate, -conservative and conciliatory. So much so, in fact, that they were -disappointing to his enthusiastic audiences, and there are yet living many -witnesses to the frequent and repeated declaration of the fear that "Jeff. -Davis has remained too long amongst the Yankees to make him exactly the -kind of president the South needs." - - - - -XII. His First Inaugural - - -Monday, Feb. 18, 1861, there assembled around the state capitol at -Montgomery such an audience as no state had ever witnessed--as perhaps -none ever will witness. Statesmen, actual and prospective; jurists and -senators; soldiers and sailors; officers and office-seekers, the latter, -no doubt, predominating; clerks, farmers and artisans; fashionably attired -women in fine equipages decorated with streamers and the tri-colored -cockades; foreign correspondents--in fact, representatives from every -sphere and condition of life, each eager to witness a ceremonial which -could never occur again. - -At exactly one o'clock Mr. Davis and Mr. Stephens appeared upon the -platform in front of the capitol, and when the mighty wave of applause -had subsided, Howell Cobb, President of the Constitutional Convention, -administered to them the oath of office. Then in that peculiarly musical -voice which had never failed to charm the Senate in other days, a voice -audible in its minutest inflections to every one of the vast throng, Mr. -Davis delivered his inaugural address. - -Strangely enough, both sections of the divided country then and thereafter -attached a widely varying value to the address. It was so simple, clear -and direct that it is amazing two interpretations should have been placed -upon it. As an exposition of the causes leading to secession, it was a -masterpiece. It is impossible to read it today without feeling that in -every sentence it breathed a prayer for peace. - -Viewed in connection with the events that produced it, as the first -official advice of the chief executive of a new nation beset with the most -stupendous problems, confronted by the gravest perils, it certainly added -nothing to Mr. Davis' reputation as a statesman. Beyond the declaration -that the Confederacy would be maintained, a desire for peace and freest of -trade relations with the United States, he outlined no policies and -offered neither suggestions nor advice. - -Mr. Davis, now more than perhaps any other Southern statesman, should have -realized that "the erring sisters" would not be permitted to depart in -peace, and yet beyond the barest general statement that an army and a navy -must be created, he dismissed the matter, to plunge into an academic -discussion of the prosperity of the South and the _moral sin_ that would -be committed by the United States should it perversely and wickedly -disturb this condition and curtail the world's supply of cotton! - -The question of revenue was, of course, of paramount importance, but no -idea, no plan, no suggestion was offered along that line. The more one -studies that remarkable production, the more puzzling it becomes, if we -assume that Mr. Davis was altogether sincere in his declaration that the -severance was final and irremediable. - -If he were not, if he still hoped for some adjustment that would reunite -the severed union, one may readily understand why he refrained from -assuming the vigorous attitude that the occasion demanded, but which might -have placed compromise beyond the pale of possibility. The significant -omissions were not compatible with Mr. Davis' well-known views of official -duty. Nor is the matter in any way explained by assuming that as Congress -was charged with the performance of all of these important matters, that -it was not Mr. Davis' duty to suggest plans and methods. His office -invested him with those powers and he was elected to it for the express -reason that he was supposed to be eminently qualified in all practical -administrative and legislative details, especially those of a military -nature. - -While Mr. Davis must be absolved from the charge that his cabinet -appointments were the result of favoritism, they were, nevertheless, for -the most part, unfortunate. The portfolio of the treasury, undoubtedly the -most important place in the cabinet, was intrusted to Mr. Memminger, of -South Carolina, an incorruptible gentleman of high principles and mediocre -ability, a theorist, devoid of either the talents or experience that would -have fitted him for the difficult place. Toombs, Benjamin and Reagan were -better selections. The others were men honest, sincere of purpose, but -little in their antecedents to recommend them for the particular positions -which they were called upon to fill. With at least two of them, Mr. Davis -was not previously personally acquainted, and political considerations -probably secured their appointment. - - - - -XIII. Delays and Blunders - - -One of the president's first official acts was to appoint Crawford, -Forsyth and Roman as commissioners "to negotiate friendly relations" with -the United States. They were men of different political affiliations, one -being a Douglas Democrat, one a Whig and the other a lukewarm -secessionist. All were conservative and shared fully in the president's -desire for peace on any honorable terms. - -But while trying to secure peace, Mr. Davis was not insensible to the -necessity of an army, and on this point the first difference arose between -him and Congress. Beyond the small and inefficient militia maintained by -the different states, there was neither army nor guns, and ammunition with -which to equip one. He therefore urged Congress to provide for the -purchase of large quantities of warlike material, but that body, -infatuated with the idea that there would be no war, proceeded to debate -whether it were advisable to add anything to the stock owned by the -states, which at that time was insufficient to arm one-thirtieth of the -population subject to military duty. - -Mr. Toombs once assured the writer that after the loss of valuable time it -was decided to send an agent abroad, it was proposed to purchase but eight -thousand Enfield rifles and that it was with the utmost difficulty that he -prevailed upon the government to increase the order to ten thousand. - -From this circumstance the extent of the infatuation may be inferred. The -peace delusions of Congress seem to have been fully shared by the -secretary of the treasury. - -At the time of the inauguration of the Confederate government and for -months thereafter, merchants and banks of the South held quantities of -gold, silver and foreign exchange which they were anxious to sell at very -nearly par for government securities, and yet this opportunity was -neglected. But as grave as that blunder was, it was, nevertheless, -insignificant when compared to another. There were then in the South about -three million bales of cotton which the owners would have sold for ten -cents a pound in Confederate money. - -The president accordingly suggested to Mr. Memminger that the government -buy this cotton, immediately ship it to Europe and there store it to await -developments. His theory was that if war should come, it must be a long -one and that in less than two years this cotton would be worth from -seventy to eighty cents a pound, which would then give the government -assets, convertible at any time into gold, of at least a billion dollars. -The plan was sound and feasible, for a blockade did not become seriously -effective until more than a year after the beginning of war, and we know -the price of cotton went even beyond Mr. Davis' figures. The secretary, -however, engrossed in the puerile plans of fiat money, which the history -of almost any revolution, from the days of Adam, should have proved a -warning, turned a deaf ear to this suggestion which at once combined -profound statesmanship and admirable financial sagacity, and the matter -came to naught. - -But this was only one of the many serious blunders and lapses which -retarded the adequate preparation which all at a later day recognized -should have been made by the Confederacy. - -When the stern logic of events portrayed this neglect as the parent of -failure, the spirit of criticism emerged even in the South and failed not -to spare Mr. Davis. But these critics have, for the most part, overlooked -the very important fact that it was impossible for the president to -accomplish a great deal without the co-operation of his Congress. - -The states' rights ideas, we must remember, were the predominant ones -entertained by the people and their representatives, and that they, more -than anything else, paralyzed action, promoted delays and fostered -confusion, can admit of no doubt. The forts, arsenals, docks and shipyards -belonged to the states, and although Mr. Davis early in his administration -urged that they be ceded to the general government, it was not until war -became a certainty that a reluctant consent was yielded and this most -necessary step consummated. Another weakness lay in the fact that the -provisional army, in so far as one existed, was formed on the states' -rights plan. - -That is to say, it was composed of volunteers, armed and officered by the -states, who alone possessed power over them. Any governor might at any -time without any reason withdraw the troops of his state from the most -important point at the most critical moment, without being answerable to -any power for his action. These are but two examples of many that might be -adduced, but they will serve to demonstrate how impossible it was for any -man, whatever his influence or position, to make the preparations demanded -by the situation while hedged about by such fatal limitations. And, -whatever Mr. Davis' failures may have been in this regard, they are -chargeable to the system adopted by the people themselves, rather than to -any serious derelictions on his part. - - - - -XIV. The Bombardment of Sumter - - -The bulk of the Confederate army was mobilized at Charleston, where, if -hostilities were to occur, they were likely to begin, owing to the fact -that a Federal garrison still held Fort Sumter. Mr. Davis, realizing the -critical nature of this situation, impressed upon the peace commissioners -that, failing to secure a treaty of friendship, they were to exhaust every -effort to procure the peaceful evacuation of Sumter. - -The history of those negotiations is too well known to need repetition -here. Mr. Seward's disingenious methods served their purpose of inspiring -a false hope of peace, and it is very probable that Mr. Davis suspected no -duplicity until fully advised of the details and destination of the -formidable fleet that was being fitted out at New York. When it sailed, -and not before, ended his long dream of peace. - -The attempt to reinforce a stronghold in the very heart of the Confederacy -was express and unmistakable notice to the world that the United States -did not propose to relinquish its sovereignty over the seceded states. To -allow the peaceful consummation of the attempt was to acquiesce in a claim -fatal to the existence of the new government. Therefore, if the -Confederacy was to be anything more than a futile attempt to frighten the -Federal government into granting concessions, the time had now come to -act. The president did not hesitate. General Beauregard was instructed to -demand the surrender of Sumter, and, failing to receive it, to proceed -with its reduction. - -The story of that demand and its refusal, of how at thirty minutes past -four o'clock on the morning of April 12, 1861, the quiet old city of -Charleston was aroused from its slumbers by that first gun from Fort -Johnston "heard around the world," and how the gallant Major Anderson, Mr. -Davis' old comrade in arms of other days, maintained his position until -the walls of the fortifications were battered down and fierce fires raged -within, are all history, and need no further comment or elaboration at -this time. - -[Illustration: Interior of Fort Sumter After the Surrender] - -There as at Matanzas in the beginning of the war with Spain, the first and -only life sacrificed was that of a mule. When Mr. Davis learned this, he -exclaimed: "Thank heaven, nothing more precious than the blood of a mule -has been shed. Reconciliation is not yet impossible." But he was hardly -serious in that declaration. The die was now cast, and for the first time -the North realized that the South was in earnest--the South, that war was -inevitable. - -Mr. Lincoln's call for volunteers to coerce the seceding states aroused a -perfect frenzy of patriotism throughout the South, and the full military -strength of the Confederacy could have been enlisted in thirty days, but -it is hardly necessary to say that a government which had reluctantly -ordered ten thousand rifles was in no position to take advantage of that -opportunity. - -The president immediately called an extra session of Congress. It convened -on April 29, and received his special message, which was in marked -contrast to his inaugural. There were no dissertations on agriculture and -morality now, but with that forceful perspicacity which usually -characterized his utterances, he marked out sensibly and well what should -be done, and suggested definite methods. This message was the first -utterance, public or private, which clearly demonstrated that his dream of -compromise was over. - -His recommendations embraced the creation of a regular army upon a sane -plan, the immediate purchase of arms, ammunition and ships, the -establishment of gun factories and powder mills, and a number of other -subjects, which leave no doubt that he saw the situation in its true -proportions, and was resolved to use the resources of the Confederacy to -meet it. That these resources were meager when compared with those of his -powerful adversary, is beyond question. But neither in point of wealth nor -population were the odds so great against the South as those over which -Napoleon twice triumphed, or those opposed to Frederick the Great in a -contest from which he emerged triumphant; and the conclusion so freely -indulged in of late years that the Confederacy was foredoomed from the -beginning would seem to rest rather upon an accomplished fact than upon -sound reasoning, if in the beginning the resources of the South had been -used to the best advantage. That they were not, was known by every -statesman and general of the Confederacy whose achievements entitle his -opinion to consideration. But it is eminently unfair to seek to saddle all -or the greater part of this failure upon Mr. Davis, as has been attempted, -in some cases, by the delinquents who themselves, contributed largely to -that result. Some of the causes of that failure we have seen. Another, and -perhaps the most potent cause, the writer believes, may be traced to -conditions which have been very generally overlooked. - - - - -XV. Conditions in the South - - -Previous to the Civil War, the large slaveholders constituted as distinct -an aristocracy as ever existed under any monarchy. Educated in Northern -colleges and the universities of Europe, it produced a race of men who in -many respects has never been surpassed by those of any country in the -world. It was small, but it was the governing class of the South, in which -the people, except those in the more northerly section, placed implicit -confidence. - -A majority of the latter were not slaveholders nor were they in sympathy -with slavery, and at heart they were unfriendly to the governing class, -its policies and politics--a fact which was responsible for giving to the -Union from the seceded states almost as many soldiers as enlisted for the -Confederacy. - -The educated class, of course, understood all sections of the country, but -at this time it is almost impossible to understand how little the rank and -file of the Southern people knew of the North, its resources and, above -all, of the motives that actuated its citizens. In a word, two sections of -a country separated by no natural barrier, speaking the same language and -in the main living under the same laws, were to all intents and purposes -as much foreigners as though a vast ocean had divided them. - -Nursed upon the theories of state sovereignty, the Southern people could -not at first understand how a seceding state could be coerced, and when -that delusion was dispelled, their attitude was one of angry contempt. -From colonial days, conditions in the South had been such as to develop -courage, resourcefulness and self-reliance in the individual. The idea of -coercion was to them ridiculous. Numerically inferior as they were, -they felt self-sufficient. So much so, in fact, that they took no trouble -to conciliate that class before referred to which, while out of sympathy -with them on slavery, were held by other ties which at first inclined them -rather to the South than to the North. What mattered it? Let them join the -Yankees, and they would whip both. This same confidence saw in the -approaching conflict a short affair, and among this people, naturally as -warlike as the Romans under the republic, there grew up the widespread -fear that the war would not last long enough for all to take a hand. -Valorous the attitude undoubtedly was, but at the same time the spirit -that gave it birth was fatal to that careful preparation which alone would -have insured a chance for success. - -[Illustration: Henry Clay Addressing the Senate on the Missouri -Compromise] - -This spirit invaded even the Congress, where strong opposition developed -to long enlistments. In fact, this body seems to have seriously believed -that the volunteers would be sufficient to maintain the struggle, and -while Mr. Davis saw the error and danger involved in both theories, the -most that could be secured was legislation which provided for a twelve -months' enlistment. This, in all truth, was bad enough, but it is doubtful -if it was so pernicious as the methods provided for fixing the rank of -officers by the relative position formerly held by them in the United -States army--a measure which from its inception proved a perfect Pandora's -box of discord and dissension. - - - - -XVI. The First Battle - - -The next step of Congress was unquestionably a fatal blunder. This was the -removal of the capitol from Montgomery to Richmond. From the very nature -of the situation, it was evident that the chief goal of the enemy would be -the capture of the capital and the moral effect of such a result must -prove extremely disastrous, by elating the North, discouraging the South -and impairing confidence abroad. - -Left at Montgomery, it would have compelled the enemy to operate from a -distant base of supplies, necessitating his keeping open lines of -communication eight hundred miles long, while it would have liberated to -be used as occasion demanded, a magnificent army which was constantly -required for the defense of Richmond. Located as that place is, within -little more than one hundred miles of the enemy's base, upon a river -which permitted the ascent of formidable war crafts and within a short -distance of a strong fortress on a fine harbor, it was a constant -invitation for aggressions which required all of the energies and most of -the resources of the South to meet and defend. - -When in May the president reached Richmond, its defense was already -demanding attention. The states had sent forward troops to the aid of -Virginia and these were divided into three armies. One of these was posted -at Norfolk. Another, under General Joseph E. Johnston, guarded the -approach to the Shenandoah Valley, and the third, under General -Beauregard, covered the direct approach to the capital from near Manassas. -The day the Federal army moved forward to the invasion of the South, Mr. -Davis was advised of the fact by one of his secret agents in Washington, -and he wired Johnston to abandon Harper's Ferry and effect a junction with -Beauregard--an order executed with the celerity and effectiveness which -could not have been surpassed by the seasoned troops of a veteran army. -But a difficulty now arose. Johnston and Beauregard were commanding -separate armies, and in the face of impending battle it was certainly -necessary to know who exercised supreme command. - -[Illustration: Edward Ruffin, who Fired the First Gun at Sumter] - -Under the law of Congress, it was doubtful if either exercised those -functions, Johnston therefore wired an inquiry and received from Mr. Davis -only the reply that he was general in the Confederate army. However, the -anomalous situation and perhaps another motive, which will be hereafter -noticed, induced the president to hasten forward, so as to be himself -present upon the field of battle. When he reached Johnston's headquarters, -the hard-fought day was closing, the storm of battle was dying away to the -westward and General McDowell's army, routed at every point, was -retreating in wild disorder toward Washington. - - - - -XVII. A Lost Opportunity - - -No man influential in the making of history ever knew less of the art of -divining character than Jefferson Davis. Entirely ingenous himself, he -persisted in attributing that virtue to every one else, utterly failing to -understand the mixed motives that influence all men in most of the affairs -of life. If he perceived one trait of character, real or imaginary, which -appealed to his admiration, it was quite sufficient, and forthwith he -proceeded to attribute to its possessor all of the other qualities which -he wished him to possess. That conclusion once reached, no amount of -evidence could overthrow it or even shake his confidence in its -correctness. - -That peculiarity, in some ways admirable in itself, was responsible for -many of his mistakes and misfortunes. The first vital one attributable to -that cause was Mr. Davis' selection of the head of the commissary -department of the Confederate army. Early in his military career, while -stationed at Fort Crawford, a warm friendship had sprung up between -himself and Lieutenant Northrop. About the time he resigned his commission -an accident befell Northrop which compelled him to retire from the army -also. Thereupon he studied medicine and afterward locating in Charleston -became a zealous convert to the Catholic faith and beyond the spheres of -church quarrels and religious polemics, remained an unimportant factor in -his community. Indeed he seems to have been unable to manage his own small -affairs with any degree of success, and many of his neighbors and friends -believed him to be of unsound mind. Mr. Davis had not seen him, and -probably knew little of his life since he left the army, a quarter of a -century before. A superficial inquiry must have demonstrated that Dr. -Northrop was wholly unfitted by education, temperament and experience for -a position which required business training and executive ability of the -first order. However, Mr. Davis, remembering the man as he had supposed -him to be years before, proceeded to appoint him to the most important and -difficult position under the government. - -[Illustration: Robert Toombs] - -Colonel Northrop, of course, had ideas of his own and he proceeded to -execute them without the slightest regard for the wishes or opinions of -the able and experienced generals who commanded the Confederate armies in -Northern Virginia. - -Near Manassas, where Johnston and Beauregard had been ordered to form a -junction, a railroad branched off from the main line and traversed the -famous Shenandoah Valley, then and afterward known as the granary of the -South. To have supplied the armies with provisions by the use of that line -whose rolling stock was then comparatively idle would have been one of the -easiest of military problems; but instead of following that course, -breadstuffs were transported first from the Valley to Richmond and thence -over the sadly overtaxed main line to the army at Manassas. But one result -was possible which, of course, was the almost complete failure of the -commissary department. Most of the Southern troops went hungry into the -battle of Bull Run, and not until ten o'clock at night could meager -rations be procured for the exhausted army. This fact was the real reason -why General Johnston did not pursue the routed army of McDowell. Johnston, -Beauregard and President Davis all concurred in the necessity of following -up the victory, and the latter actually dictated the order to Colonel -Jordan, but as the commissary department had completely gone to pieces, -no forward movement was possible then, or, indeed, for months afterward. - - - - - - -XVIII. The Quarrel with Johnston - - -A greater calamity than this, which practically nullified the fruits of -the victory, soon occurred in the beginning of that unnecessary and -calamitous quarrel between the President and General Johnston. Much that -is untrue has been written about its origin, but the facts as learned from -the principals themselves, and all the records in the case, refer it to a -single cause which may be stated in few words. - -[Illustration: General Joseph E. Johnston] - -In March, 1861, the Confederate Congress enacted that the relative rank of -officers should be determined in the new army by that which they held in -that of the United States. General Johnston alone of those who resigned -from the old army held the rank of Brigadier-General and therefore, it -would seem, should have become the senior general in the Confederate -armies. In fact, he was recognized as such by the government until after -the battle of Bull Run. - -However, on the Fourth of July the President nominated five generals, -three of whom took precedence over Johnston, thus reducing him from the -first general to that of fourth, and in August Congress confirmed the -nominations as made. Upon learning what had been done, General Johnston -wrote the President, protesting against what he conceived to be a great -injustice. His language was moderate and respectful, and it is impossible -to read his argument without acknowledging its faultless logic. The -President, however, indorsed upon the document the single word -"Insubordinate," and sent to the writer a curt, caustic note, which -without attempting any answer or explanation summarily closed the matter. -That Johnston was deeply wounded admits of no doubt, but he was too -great a soldier and man to allow this snub to influence his devotion and -service, and his attitude toward the President remained throughout the -struggle eminently correct. Mr. Davis however, was never able to -understand those who differed from his views. General Johnston often did -so; wisely as the sequel always proved, but the President invariably -attributed this difference to the wrong cause. The breach was thereby kept -open and with what results we shall see. - -[Illustration: Generals Lee, Jackson and Johnston] - -The most important result of the victory of Bull Run was the tremendous -enthusiasm that it stirred throughout the South. Volunteers came forward -so rapidly that they could not be armed and the belief became general that -it was to be "a ninety days' war." President Davis, however, nursed no -such delusions. He knew the temper of the great and populous states of the -North, and he fully realized that defeat would teach caution while -arousing stronger determination. He, therefore, sought to impress upon -Congress the necessity of stopping short enlistments and the advisability -of passing general laws which would place the country in position to -sustain a long war. But the times were not propitious for that kind of -advice, and it was lost upon a body whose enthusiasm had temporarily -exceeded its judgment and discretion. - - - - -XIX. The Battle of Shiloh - - -In the fall of 1861 Mr. Davis was elected President of the Confederate -States for a term of six years, and on the 21st of February in the -following year he was inaugurated. This message may hardly be called a -state paper, as it was devoted rather to a recapitulation of the events of -the war than to discussion of measures or the recommendation of policies. - -The tone of the message was hopeful, for notwithstanding the fall of Forts -Donelson and Henry, and the evacuation of Bowling Green, the fortunes of -war were decidedly with the South. - -However, in those catastrophes, which Mr. Davis passed lightly over, the -ablest generals in the Southern army saw the first results of the fatal -policy of attempting with limited resources to defend every threatened -point of a vast irregular frontier reaching from the Rio Grande to the -Potomac. The three hundred thousand men in the Confederate army at that -time could have captured Washington or localized the whole Federal army in -its defense, but scattered over an area of more than fifteen hundred -miles, strength was dissipated and at every point they were too weak to -attempt more than a defensive policy. Upon this point, however, Mr. Davis -was inflexible, and absolutely refused to abandon any place however -insignificant from a strategic point of view, even when the soldiers -holding it might have been used most effectively elsewhere. - -The Federal government soon perceived that this was to be the fixed policy -of the Confederate President and proceeded to make the most of it. -McClellan's preparation for a blow at Richmond diverted attention from -the West where General Albert Sidney Johnston was left without hope of -succor to deal with the armies of Grant and Buell. That great soldier, -however, was equal to any emergency and prepared to strike before Grant -and Buell could effect a junction. Fatally hampered as he was by the -Commissary General's lack of foresight or preparation and with a staff too -small and inexperienced to render the required services, he forced General -Grant into the battle of Shiloh. More brilliant generalship was never -shown upon any field than was that day displayed by the great Texan, who -drove the Federal army back upon the river in the wildest confusion and -disorder. At two o'clock the battle was won. A half hour later Johnston -was dead--a victim of the foolish practice of the Southern generals of -remaining on the firing line. The command devolved upon Beauregard who, -instead of completing the victory, stopped the battle while more than two -hours of daylight remained. He thereby lost all that had been gained and -insured his own defeat, for during the night, Buell's corps crossed the -river and easily routed his army on the following day. - -What motives actuated Beauregard in this matter can only be conjectured. -His amazing conduct was never even plausibly explained by himself. It was -certainly not treachery, for his patriotism was unbounded. It was not -incompetency, for tried by the usual standards, he was not lacking as a -general. - -He at that time was not on good terms with the President, and then and -ever he was vain and covetous of honors and fame. Had he completed the -victory, the administration, the world, history would have credited it to -Johnston. Had he succeeded in winning it on the following day, it would -have been his own. From all that can be learned some such reason must have -influenced him in halting a victorious army in the moment of its -triumph. - -[Illustration: C. G. Memminger] - -When the news of the fatal affair at Shiloh reached Davis, his rage knew -no bounds, but instead of relieving Beauregard of his command and bringing -him promptly before a court martial, as Frederick or Napoleon would have -done, he allowed him to remain at the head of the Western army without -even administering a reprimand. In fact, not until Beauregard had left the -army on sick leave about a month later did the President express any -disapprobation. Then he declared that nothing would ever induce him to -restore the offender to any command. But in most cases Mr. Davis' anger -was short lived, and while we must admire that gentleness which -undoubtedly was responsible for his never punishing any offender, it was -nevertheless a weakness in the South's Chief Executive from which it was -destined to suffer greater ills than flowed from the oblivion which soon -shrouded the offenses of this particular general. - - - - -XX. The Seven Days of Battle - - -The gloom cast over the South by the reverses of the West by no means -discouraged President Davis, and taking the field in person he aided and -directed his generals in preparing for the defense of Richmond against the -impending attack of McClellan. - -The seven days' battle before Richmond are particularly interesting to the -military critic by reason no less of the valor displayed upon both sides -than for the masterly strategy used by the two great antagonists. - -General Johnston, who had been severely criticised by the President, -remained long enough on the field of Seven Pines to demonstrate the -soundness of his plans by winning a great victory before he was stricken -down and borne unconscious to the rear. General Lee succeeded Johnston, -and being reinforced by the indomitable Stonewall Jackson, whose soldiers -were inspired by a series of recent magnificent victories in the Valley of -Virginia, drove McClellan back so rapidly through a strange and difficult -country that the wonder is he did not lose his entire army. - -For this feat, which must be regarded as one of the most brilliant pieces -of maneuvering in history, General McClellan was held up to execration and -even his patriotism was questioned. In fact, the belief is still general -that he lost the opportunity to capture Richmond, when as a matter of fact -he could not have done so with an army of twice the size he commanded, as -must be evident to any one who will remember that it took Grant, with an -army of 200,000 men, more than a year to accomplish that result when -confronted not by 100,000 of the best troops the world ever saw led by a -dozen generals, either one of whom Napoleon would have delighted to have -made a marshal, but by less than 40,000 worn, starved and ragged veterans -whose great commanders with one or two exceptions, had fallen in battle. -President Davis was not an ungenerous enemy and at the time, as well as -frequently in later life, expressed warm admiration for the soldierly -qualities that enabled McClellan to extricate himself from a situation -which must have proved fatal to a less able commander. - - - - -XXI. Butler's Infamous Order 28 - - -This series of victories in some measure offset the blow the South -sustained in the fall of New Orleans, and immediately thereafter the -President attempted to deal with the situation in that quarter in a way -which will serve to throw a strong side light upon another phase of his -character. General Butler had hanged a semi-idiotic boy by the name of -Munford for hauling down the flag from the mint. The act was one of -impolicy, if not of wanton barbarity, and it aroused a storm of -indignation throughout the South. This was, in a few days, followed by the -infamous "Order No. 28," which in retaliation for snubs received at the -hands of the women of New Orleans, licensed the soldiers, upon repetition -of the offense, "to greet them as women of the town plying their -avocation." - -President Davis at once issued a proclamation declaring Butler an outlaw, -and placing a price upon his head and commanding that no commissioned -officer of the United States should be exchanged until the culprit should -meet with due punishment. The officers in Butler's army were also declared -to be felons, their exchange was prohibited and they were ordered to be -treated as common criminals. - -As to the justice of the proclamation so far as it related to Butler -himself few North or South at this day who have read "Order No. 28" will -be inclined to question. But to attempt to attain to the officers of a -numerous army with the guilt of a personal act of its commander must, upon -due reflection, have appeared as absurd to the President as it did to the -rest of the country. As a matter of fact the proclamation was never -attempted to be executed although abundant chances were presented, and it -is very probable that had Butler himself fallen into the hands of the -Confederates he would have had nothing worse than imprisonment to fear had -his fate been left to the President. - -Mr. Davis, as we all know, issued some very sanguinary proclamations in -his time, but they were altogether sound and fury, "signifying nothing," -and not one of them was ever enforced. He no doubt hoped that their -terrible aspect would operate as a deterrent and no doubt they did at -first. But gradually their seriousness came to be questioned and then they -became a subject of amusement to both friend and foe. During his most -eventful administration, although hundreds of death warrants of criminals, -who richly deserved the extreme punishment, came before him he never -signed one of them or permitted an execution when he had the slightest -opportunity to interfere. - -This, of course, was charged by Pollard and other enemies to his desire -to save himself, in the event the Confederacy should fail, but no motive -could have been further from the correct one than this view of the case. -The truth is that Jefferson Davis was as kindly, tender, gentle and -considerate as a woman, and it was quite impossible for him to assume the -responsibility of inflicting serious punishment or suffering of any kind -upon any of God's creatures, human or otherwise. Had he hanged a few -prisoners upon one or two occasions, it would have been of inestimable -benefit to the South; had he executed one or two deserters in 1864, he -would at once have checked an evil which was threatening the very -existence of the Confederacy, but he did neither, although fully realizing -the impolicy of his course. And whatever we may think of his strength of -character we can but love the man whose humanity triumphed over passions, -prejudice, policy and wisdom and brought him through those awful times -that frightfully developed the savage instinct in the best of men without -the taint of bloodshed upon his conscience. - - - - -XXII. Mental Imperfections - - -History must finally charge all of Mr. Davis' blunders to no moral -defective sense but rather to imperfect mental conceptions augmented and -intensified by a strong infusion of self-confidence and stubbornness which -frequently destroyed the perspective and blinded him to the truth apparent -to other men of far less capacity. Criticism, however well meant, never -enlightened him to his own mistakes. - -If he made a bad appointment, he saw in the objection to his protege -ignorance of his merit, jealousy, a disposition to persecute, in fact -anything rather than the possibility that he himself might have made a -mistake. - -This unfortunate mental attitude, combined with the fixed idea that his -genius was that of the soldier was responsible for the most unfortunate -acts of his life. What his real merits as a soldier were we can only -conjecture. In the Mexican War he demonstrated first-rate ability, but his -highest command was that of a regiment. Although he constantly interfered -with some of his generals with suggestions, sometimes tantamount to -commands, he never exercised the military prerogative in directing troops -in the field. We know that those suggestions were often wrong, but before -concluding that his capacity as an active commander must be determined by -them, we must remember that they were given usually at a great distance, -and that they might have been otherwise had he understood the situation as -thoroughly as he supposed he did. There is probably no doubt that he would -have proved a splendid brigade commander, but it is more than doubtful if -he could ever have understood the science of war as Lee or Johnston or -Jackson knew it. - -[Illustration: The Site of the Prison Camp on the James Below Richmond] - -In Virginia, where President Davis did not attempt to interfere with his -generals, the most brilliant triumphs of the South were won, and while -this is not assigned as the only reason, the fact is nevertheless -significant. From second Manassas, where the vain, boastful General Pope, -who had won notoriety at Shiloh by reporting the capture of 10,000 -Confederates whom he must also have eaten as they never figured in parol, -prison or exchange lists--was annihilated by Jackson, to the brilliant -victory of Chancellorsville where the great soldier sealed his faith with -his life-blood, the army of Northern Virginia was handled with that -consummate generalship and displayed a degree of heroism which must ever -challenge the admiration of mankind as the most perfect fighting machine -in the world's history. - - - - -XXIII. Blunders of the Western Army - - -During this time the Western army suffered one disaster after another in -such rapid succession that the warmest friends of the Confederacy began to -despair of its future. Thoroughly alarmed. President Davis overcame his -animosity sufficiently to send General Johnston to the rescue, but instead -of giving him full authority over one or both of the armies he designated -him as the commander of a geographical department with little more than -the power usually invested in an inspector general. - -Bragg, the most unfortunate of all the Southern generals, commanded in -Tennessee, where he was out-generaled and defeated at Murfreesboro when he -held all of the winning cards in his own hands. His blunders upon that -field so enraged his officers that they were almost in revolt against him. -However, in his fidelity to his old friend and comrade, Mr. Davis failed -to discover what was evident to every intelligent lieutenant in the army, -and Bragg was continued in command to perpetrate other blunders still more -costly and unpardonable. - -The Southern corps of the Western army was still worse handled. The -Mississippi River, after the fall of New Orleans and Memphis, was of -little or no use to the Confederacy, but Mr. Davis conceived the idea that -it must be defended although that course, necessarily would weaken Bragg -and render success impossible to either corps. - -To the command of the Southern corps, Mr. Davis appointed General -Pemberton, a theoretical soldier who it was alleged had never witnessed -any considerable engagement. However this may be, his conduct fully -sustained the allegation, for, from start to finish, he seems to have -been mystified by the tactics of Grant and Sherman, and after a series of -marches and countermarches in which he lost much and gained nothing he -fell back on Vicksburg, perhaps the most indefensible city in America, and -prepared to sustain a siege, the outcome of which could not be doubtful -for a moment. - -[Illustration: On the Field of Cold Harbor Today] - -Being safely driven into a position from which there was but one line of -retreat, Pemberton appealed to the President for aid, and General Johnston -was instructed to furnish it. His soldierly mind saw at a glance that the -proper thing to do was to abandon Vicksburg, and he accordingly ordered -Pemberton to do so. That officer protested and appealed to Mr. Davis, who -sustained him and notified Johnston that under no circumstances must -Vicksburg be abandoned. That decision sealed the fate of Pemberton's army, -and on the day General Grant invested it he telegraphed to Washington -that its fall was only a question of time. How that prediction was -verified by the surrender of Pemberton's army of 30,000 men, thus leaving -Grant and Sherman free to double back on Bragg, are too well known to need -any discussion at this time. All thinking men realized that it sealed the -doom of the Confederacy unless the Northern campaign of General Lee should -prove successful. - - - - -XXIV. Davis and Gettysburg - - -The conception of the Gettysburg campaign has been properly attributed to -Mr. Davis, but much of the criticism that it has evoked is unfair being -based upon a misconception of the object sought to be attained. If one -will consider the moral effect that the victory of Chancellorsville -produced throughout the North, that many influential leaders and a large -part of the press openly declared that another such calamity must be -followed by the recognition of the Confederacy, the idea of this Northern -campaign, it must be conceded, was founded upon sound military principles. -Military critics are very generally agreed that Gettysburg would have been -a Confederate instead of a Union victory had the Southern troops occupied -Little Round Top on the evening of the first day. That they did not is a -fortuitous circumstance, which can militate nothing against the soundness -of the idea involved in the campaign, while the fact that a victory so -great as to have been decisive lay within easy grasp of the Confederates -would seem to amply justify the hazard on the part of President Davis. - -The last reasonable hope of success was over when Lee retreated from -Pennsylvania, but if Mr. Davis recognized that fact he gave no indication -of it. On the other hand, adversity had begun to develop that real -strength of character which a little later was destined to win the respect -of his enemies and the admiration of the rest of the world. - -Confederate finances had now sunk to so low an ebb that a collapse seemed -inevitable. Congress passed one futile piece of legislation after another, -each worse than its predecessor, and matters went from bad to worse with -startling rapidity. Mr. Davis was not a financier, but he brought forward -a plan which, while it laid perhaps the heaviest burden of taxation ever -placed upon a people, nevertheless served for a time to stem the fast -rising tide of national bankruptcy. - -About the same time, deeply impressed with the suffering of Federal -prisoners caused by the cruel policy of refusing exchanges, he attempted -to send Vice-President Stephens to Washington to negotiate a general -cartel with President Lincoln, but Stephens was allowed to proceed no -farther than Fortress Monroe, and nothing came of the mission which was -conceived by Mr. Davis purely in the interest of humanity. - -As the fall drew on, Bragg was being pressed steadily back by an -overwhelming force under Rosecrans, and it became apparent that another -disaster was impending over the Confederacy. To avert it President Davis -hurried Longstreet's corps forward as reinforcements, a policy the -soundness of which was demonstrated a little later by the great victory of -Chickamauga. - -But again Bragg failed to measure up to the situation, and instead of -capturing or destroying his antagonist, which a prompt pursuit must have -insured, he actually refused to understand that he had won a victory until -its fruits were beyond his reach. Not even that costly piece of stupidity -could quite shake the confidence of the President in his old friend, and -it was not until Bragg had insured and received his own disastrous defeat -at Missionary Ridge and Lookout Mountain, by sending Longstreet's whole -corps away on a wild-goose chase against Knoxville, that his resignation -was accepted; and even then he was taken to Richmond and duly installed as -the military adviser of the Chief Executive. - -[Illustration: The Battle of the Crater] - -The fortunes of the Confederacy were now at a low ebb. The Western army -was demoralized and so hopeless seemed the task of reorganization that one -general after another refused to undertake it, until in his dilemma the -President turned once more to General Johnston. That splendid soldier, -forgetting past injuries, accepted the command and soon succeeded in -creating an army whose very existence infused new courage throughout the -Confederacy. In the meantime, Mr. Davis' resolution rose superior over the -reverses that were everywhere overwhelming his government, and our -admiration for the man vastly increases as we see him steering, wisely -now, his foundering nation into that dark year 1864, destined to reveal to -us a great man growing greater, better and more lovable under the heavy -accumulation of terrible misfortune. - - - - -XXV. The Chief of a Heroic People - - -The world has never witnessed a more sublime spectacle than that presented -by the Southern people at the beginning of 1864. The finances of the -government had gone from bad to worse until it required a bursting purse -to purchase a dinner. Or, rather it would have done so had the dinner been -procurable at all, which in most cases it was not. Gaunt famine stalked -through a desolate land scarred by the remains of destroyed homes and -drenched in the blood of its best manhood. Scarcely a home had escaped the -besom of death and destruction, and, on the lordly domains where once a -prodigal and princely hospitality had been daily dispensed, children cried -in vain for the bread that the broken-hearted mother could no longer give. -That such terrific desolation should have failed to force submission is -almost beyond understanding, but it produced exactly the opposite result. - -Delicately nurtured women, reared in ease and luxury, cheerfully chose to -starve in thread-bare garments while they sent their silver and jewels to -the government to enable it to continue the struggle. They bade their -husbands and sons and brothers to remain at the front and never sheathe -their swords unless in an honorable peace; and forthwith the stripling of -tender years and the gray-bearded grandsire, bowed with the infirmities of -time, went forth to perform prodigies of valor upon the last sanguinary -fields of the dying Confederacy. - -The President of the Confederacy was too wise a man not to realize the -significance of the situation at that time. He fully realized the awful -suffering of his people. He saw his armies driven from the West, the -lines of the Confederacy daily contracting. He saw the last hope of -foreign intervention die and he witnessed the birth, even in the -government, of a strong spirit of hostility to himself. What this must -have meant to a man of his sensitive, kindly nature we may readily guess, -but to the world his attitude was most admirable. Calm, resolute, majestic -he stood at the helm, steering the foundering craft of state through the -last storm as steadily, as resolutely as though he knew a haven of safety -instead of destruction to lie just beyond. - -[Illustration: Mr. and Mrs. Davis in 1863] - -Early in 1864 it became apparent that such an effort as had never been -made before to crush the Confederacy was impending. General Grant was -transferred to the East, and early in the spring with a magnificent army -of 162,000 began his advance upon Richmond. The great Confederate -chieftain, Lee, with a force one-third as great confronted him, and then -began that mighty duel which must always remain the wonder and admiration -of the world. In the Wilderness Lee struck a staggering blow, which halted -the advance and doubled up the Federal army. Grant announced that he -proposed to fight it out on that line if it took all summer, straightened -his lines and began the campaign, which one may more readily understand if -he will imagine some Titan armed with a ponderous hammer, confronting a -wily, agile antagonist, who must rely upon a rapier sharp, indeed, but -slender to a dangerous degree. Incessantly through those spring days the -forests rang with the clamor of blows. At Culpepper and Spottsylvania and -North Anna the hammer fell and was parried by the rapier, Grant always -moving by the flank and seeking to out-maneuver his antagonist and always -failing to do so. By June, the two armies in their side-stepping tactics -had reached Cold Harbor, where Grant in a great frontal attack lost 13,000 -men in a few moments, which must have convinced him that it would take -longer than all summer to fight it out on that line, as he then and there -abandoned it and adopted a new one. In three months he had lost 150,000 -men and was not so near Richmond as McClellan had been in 1862. - - - - -XXVI. Sherman and Johnston - - -In the meantime that campaign which was destined to place Sherman and -Johnston in the very front rank of the world's great commanders, was in -progress. Both were masters of military strategy and each fully -appreciated the ability of the other. Sherman ever seeking to draw -Johnston into a pitched battle was constantly thwarted. At Dalton, Resaca -and Marietta Johnston delivered hard blows, falling back before his -antagonist could use his superior numbers to any advantage. - -By this means he reached Atlanta with a larger army than he had in the -beginning of the campaign, while that of Sherman had decreased from one -hundred to little more than fifty thousand. Johnston's tactics of wearing -out the enemy by drawing him through a hostile country away from his base -of supplies is now admitted by military critics to have been a piece of -masterly strategy. It is also generally conceded that Sherman could not -have captured Atlanta by siege with three times his force. But although -Johnston had repulsed every assault upon his works and was daily growing -stronger, President Davis was greatly displeased with this defensive -policy and constantly importuned him to give battle. This Johnston refused -to do and was relieved of the command by the President, who appointed -General Hood, whom he declared "would at least deliver one manly blow for -the South." - -In so far as the delivery of the blow was concerned he was destined not to -be disappointed, but very greatly so in the result. - -[Illustration: The Davis Children in 1863] - -The very day that he took command, Hood, a brave, impetuous man of slight -ability and poor judgment, left his works, furiously assaulted Sherman, -and was promptly cut to pieces. The Confederate army was practically -annihilated, and the fall of Atlanta made certain the success of that -famous march to the sea which alone would have doomed the Confederacy. - -General Johnston, too great to cherish resentment, once more yielded to -the appeals of the President and took command of the shattered army. But -the time had passed when he might have accomplished any substantial -results and henceforth even his genius could not serve to postpone the -end. - - - - -XXVII. Mr. Davis' Humanity - - -In the meantime, amidst these disasters and the gloomy forebodings that -were settling over the South, Mr. Davis did not forget the sufferings of -the army of captives that languished in Southern prisons. Time and again -he had sought to establish a cartel for the exchange of all prisoners but -it had never been faithfully observed by the Federal government, and at -last General Grant had refused to exchange upon any terms, declaring that -to do so would ensue the defeat of Sherman's army. The result was that the -Southern prisons were rapidly filled, and as supplies and medicines -failed, the sufferings in some places, notably Andersonville, became -intense. The prisoners were placed upon the same rations as the -Confederate soldiers, but they had never been used to such fare and it -meant starvation to them. The ravages of malaria among them was appalling, -and yet as the Federal government had made quinine contraband of war not -an ounce of it could be procured for their use. - -Mr. Davis, whose strongest trait of character was gentleness and humanity, -felt keenly this state of affairs, and sought by every power at his -command to ameliorate it. When the proposition to exchange was rejected, -he asked that medicines and supplies be sent for the exclusive use of -Northern prisoners. When that was refused, he asked that doctors and -nurses be furnished from the Federal army. That also failing, and the -condition of the sufferers at Andersonville growing worse he finally -offered to liberate them provided the government would take them out of -the South--a proposition which was not accepted until after many months of -useless delay which cost thousands of lives. - -[Illustration: The Famous Libby Prison as It Appeared at the Close of the -War] - -Thus it will be seen how baseless was that calumny which yet survives in -some quarters that Jefferson Davis was responsible for the sufferings of -those poor unfortunates who in reality were sacrificed by an indifferent -government, which feared to recruit the ranks of the Confederate army by -the exchange of prisoners although such a course was dictated by the laws -of civilized warfare no less than by motives of humanity. In reality Mr. -Davis did far more than required by the laws of nations, and the verdict -of history not only acquits him of any share in that great iniquity, but -places him in marked contrast to his antagonists who chose to sacrifice -their soldiers rather than jeopardize the prospects of an early final -victory. - -The brilliant victory of Colquitt at Ocean Pond, of Forest at Fort Pillow, -and other minor successes gained by the Confederate leaders added scarcely -a transient ray of hope. Clouds of smoke by day, a pillar of fire by -night, marked the advance of Sherman through Georgia. The most fruitful -region of the South was left a charred and desolate ruin. Tilly, the Duke -of Alva, nor Wallenstein ever left destruction so complete and -irremediable as that which marked the path of that great soldier who -declared war was hell and fully lived up to that harsh conviction. - -After the fall of Savannah, the blue legions now irresistible, turned -northward, and it became apparent that the vitals of the Confederacy lay -between the two huge iron jaws of Grant's and Sherman's armies which were -closing with a steady force that nothing could resist. - -Day and night Grant rained his mighty sledge-hammer blows upon the -defenses of the devoted capital, which Lee met and parried with the skill -of consummate military genius. But the blade of the rapier was growing -thinner and the time must come when it would break. Holding works forty -miles in length with less than a thousand soldiers to the mile, he -inflicted repulse after repulse until the Southern people came to regard -him as invincible. - -Even Mr. Davis, who was now almost constantly with his great Captain, -seems to have shared the delusion, and despite his warnings that the end -must soon come delayed his departure from Richmond. - -At last on Sunday, April 2, 1865, a courier entered old St. John's in the -midst of services and handed the President a telegram. It was General -Lee's notice that he could no longer hold his lines. Mr. Davis quietly -left the church, but all understood and soon a panic reigned in the quiet -old city. This was increased by the terrific explosions that came from the -river and arsenals where warships and military supplies were being -destroyed. That night the fires from burning warehouses lighted the train -that bore out of the doomed city the President and his cabinet and the -archives of the fugitive government. Whether from the sparks of the -burning arsenals or from the torches of incendiaries will never be known, -but that night a fierce conflagration swept over the city, and when in the -gray dawn of the next morning General Godfrey Weitzel's cavalry rode -through the smoldering streets and raised the stars and stripes over -Virginia's ancient and the Confederates' recent capital, it floated over a -scene of desolation only a little less complete than Napoleon beheld when -he looked for the last time from the ancient Krimlin upon destroyed -Moscow. - - - - -XXVIII. General Lee's Surrender - - -History has fully recorded the last scenes of the heroic effort of the -peerless Lee to fall back upon Danville and effect a junction with General -Johnston and it is unnecessary here to relate how surrounded by -overwhelming numbers and reduced to starvation he finally at Appomattox -surrendered the remaining 7,500 of that superb army which, without doubt, -had been the most magnificent fighting machine in the world's history. - -In the meantime the fugitive government reached Danville in a pouring -rain. There were no accommodations for the officials, no place to install -the executive machinery. General Breckenridge, sitting upon a camp stool -in front of the damp dingy little station, studied a map and drew the -lines along which Johnston and Lee should advance. The Secretary of -State, reclining upon a knapsack, talked hopefully of the recognition that -was certain to arrive from England and France in a few days. Mr. Reagan -chewed a straw and said nothing. It was a dull day in the department of -justice, and the Attorney-General paced the platform and looked -thoughtfully toward Canada. At last it was decided to begin work and the -clerks seated themselves around tables in the cars, and the government was -soon once more issuing all kinds of orders. Mr. Davis, calm and tranquil -as usual, had made up his mind never to surrender as long as resistance -was possible unless he could secure favorable terms for his people. For -himself he asked nothing, but he believed it his duty to continue the -struggle until the fundamental principles of a free people should be -secured for the South. This he did not doubt could be accomplished by the -junction of Lee and Johnston. It was, of course, a great blow to his -hopes when the news of Lee's surrender reached him, but he belonged to -that rare type of man whose courage and resolution grow stronger in the -face of adversity. His only hope now lay in Johnston's army, but with it -he declared the South could conquer an honorable peace against the world -in arms. - -[Illustration: The Surrender of Lee] - -With this idea in view the wandering government moved on to Greensboro. -There, the President was informed by General Johnston of the utter -hopelessness of longer continuing the struggle. That the old veteran was -right now admits of no doubt, but Mr. Davis combated the idea most -vigorously. Johnston assured him that while a surrender was a matter of -days in any event that Sherman would sign an agreement guaranteeing the -political rights of the people in the subjugated states. This Mr. Davis -rightfully believed the Federal government would repudiate, but left his -general full discretion in the matter, moving on southward, intending to -cross the Mississippi, join the army of Kirby Smith and continue the war -in Texas. - -Just as he was leaving Greensboro he received the news of President -Lincoln's assassination. None who ever really knew Mr. Davis can doubt -what his feelings were upon that occasion. General Reagan, who was with -him, says his face expressed surprise and horror in the most unmistakable -manner. "It is too bad, it is shocking, it is horrible!" he declared, and -then after a moment's reflection added, "This is bad for the South. Mr. -Lincoln understood us and at least was not an ungenerous foe." - -That very morning the little daughter of his host came running in and in -wide-eyed terror said that some one had told her that "Old Lincoln was -coming to kill everybody." Mr. Davis, taking her upon his knees, said -soothingly: "You are wrong, my dear, Mr. Lincoln is not a bad man. He -would not willingly harm any one, and he dearly loves little girls like -you." These incidents, trivial enough in themselves, are nevertheless -interesting as indices of Jefferson Davis' opinion of Mr. Lincoln. - - - - -XXIX. The Capture of Davis - - -Proceeding to Charlotte, Mr. Davis there learned of the surrender of -General Johnston. Determining to make his way to Texas he decided to take -a southerly route which he hoped to find free from Federal troops. A -cavalry force of about two thousand accompanied him as far as the Savannah -River, but there discovering General Wilson's brigade to be in the country -in front it was deemed advisable for the force to disband and Mr. Davis, -with Burton Harrison, his secretary, and a few others to go forward in the -hope of escaping discovery. - -At Irwinsville, Ga., he learned that his family, which was also proceeding -westward, was but a few miles away and he was advised that the country was -filled with marauders who were rifling and robbing all strangers whose -appearance indicated the possession of valuables. This information, -coupled with the story that Mrs. Davis' party was believed to possess a -valuable treasure, so alarmed Mr. Davis for the safety of his family that -he resolved to join it at all hazards. This resolution cost him his -liberty. - -Perhaps no event of history has ever been so grossly and malignantly -misrepresented as the capture of Jefferson Davis. At the time an absurd -story was published along with a cartoon in even so respectable a paper as -_Harper's Weekly_, which represented Mr. Davis at the time of his capture -arrayed in shawl, bonnet and hoop-skirts, and, strange as it may seem, -this ridiculous screed is still accepted by thousands of intelligent -people as correct history. The true facts of the case, as learned from Mr. -Davis and corroborated by both General Wilson and Mr. Burton Harrison, are -as follows: - -[Illustration: Richmond as Gen. Weitzel Entered It] - -The Confederate President reached the spot where his wife's party had -pitched its tent after nightfall. During the evening it was decided that, -to avoid discovery, he would leave the party on the following day and -thenceforward would proceed westward alone. About daylight the travelers -were awakened by firing across a nearby stream, and Mr. Davis thinking it -an attack from marauders remarked to his wife that he hoped he still had -enough influence with the Southern people to prevent her robbery and -stepped out of the tent. Almost immediately he returned saying it was not -marauders but Federal soldiers. Mrs. Davis, frantic with fright, begged -him to fly. In the darkness of the tent he picked up a light rain coat, -which he supposed to be his own but which belonged to his wife, and she -threw a shawl around his shoulders. His horse stood saddled by the -roadside and he ran toward it, but before he could reach it a trooper -interposed and with leveled carbine bade him surrender. Intending to place -his hand under the foot of the soldier and topple him out of the saddle he -gave a defiant answer and rushed forward. Mrs. Davis, however, now -interposed and Mr. Davis seeing the opportunity lost walked back to the -tent, where a few moments later he surrendered to Colonel Pritchard of the -Fifth Michigan Cavalry. - -No soldier who took part in the capture of Mr. Davis ever supposed that he -attempted to disguise himself, and the story of the bonnet and the -hoop-skirts is, of course, pure fiction. The picture of the illustrious -captive, presented in this edition, represents him exactly as he appeared -at the time of his capture, when divested of the shawl and raglan, which -in no way served to conceal his identity, much less his sex. - -Despite the efforts of Colonel Pritchard to spare Mr. Davis all -indignities, many insults were heaped upon him enroute to Macon. Once -arrived at that point he was furnished with a comfortable suite of rooms -and after a time General Wilson sought an interview, during the course of -which Mr. Davis first learned that he was accused of complicity in the -assassination of President Lincoln, and of Andrew Johnson's proclamation -offering $100,000 reward for his apprehension. - -Those who knew Mr. Davis will remember him best by his habitual expression -of calm dignity and benign gentleness. One would imagine that scorn or -contempt could never disturb that face, but General Wilson says that when -he imparted the above information that his lips curved in contempt, that -his brows were knitted and that there was a deep gleam of anger in his -eyes which, however, soon softened away as he remarked, with a half rueful -smile, that there was at least one man in the United States who knew that -charge to be false. General Wilson, of course, asked who it was, and Mr. -Davis replied, "The author of the proclamation himself, for he, at least, -knows that of the two I would have preferred Lincoln as president." - -From Macon Mr. Davis was sent under guard to Augusta, and from thence on a -river tug in company with Clement C. Clay and Alexander H. Stephens, to -Port Royal, where they were transferred to a steamer which conveyed them -to Fortress Monroe. During the time they were anchored off shore crafts of -all descriptions swarmed around, and the insults and gibes of the morbid -sight seekers keenly annoyed the illustrious prisoner, and it was a relief -when a file of soldiers came to escort him ashore. He requested permission -from General Miles for his family to proceed to Washington or Richmond, -but this was curtly refused and they were sent back to Savannah. - - - - -XXX. A Nation's Shame - - -In fortress Monroe, Mr. Davis was confined in a gun room of a casement -which was heavily barricaded with iron bars. Two sentries with loaded -muskets and fixed bayonets were posted in the room, while two others paced -up and down in front of his cell. - -Escape would have been impossible for any one, however strong and -vigorous, and he, now an old man, was weak, feeble and emaciated. - -Yet on the third day after his incarceration, while the victorious troops -of the republic were passing in solemn review before the President and -generals of a great nation, there was enacted in that little cell at -Fortress Monroe a scene which must forever cause the blush of shame to -mantle the brow of every American at its mere mention. A file of soldiers -entered the cell and Captain Jerome Titlow, with evident pain and -reluctance informed Mr. Davis that he had a most unpleasant duty to -perform, which was to place manacles upon him. Mr. Davis demanded who had -given such an order, and upon being informed that it was General Miles, -asked to see him. This was refused by Captain Titlow, who sought to induce -him to submit peaceably to the inevitable. "It is an order which no -soldier would give and which none should obey. Shoot me now and end at -once this miserable persecution!" At the same time the fallen chieftain -drew himself up to his full height and faced the soldiers, his hands -clenching in convulsive grasps and his eyes gleaming like those of a -hunted tiger driven to bay. A word from Captain Titlow and a soldier with -the shackles in hand advanced, but before he could touch the captive he -dealt him a blow which felled him upon the floor. Necessarily the struggle -was a short one and in a few moments heavy irons were riveted upon his -ankles and one of the foremost of living statesmen lay upon a miserable -straw mattress chained as though he had been the vilest of desperate -criminals. - -Had Garibaldi or Napoleon after Sedan been subjected to the crowning -indignity inflicted upon Jefferson Davis all Europe would have rung with -the infamy of the brutal act, and yet the whirlwind of sectional strife -had so fanned the fires of prejudice and hatred that the act was generally -applauded at the North, and the officer responsible for this crime against -civilization for many years exhibited the shackles as though they had been -a trophy of honorable victory. - -Let us as Americans be thankful that such perverted sentiment was short -lived, and that a day came when the infamous act was repudiated as -wantonly cruel and brutal, and its perpetrators were more anxious to avoid -the responsibility for it than formerly they had been to assume it. There -is now no longer any doubt as to the person who is responsible for placing -Jefferson Davis in irons, but it is only fair to General Miles to say that -he was very young at the time. The grave charges against Mr. Davis, no -doubt, served to mislead his immature judgment, and from the fact that -Louis Napoleon had recently escaped from a fortification in France he, no -doubt, believed that the extreme and cruel measure was necessary. - -In justice it should be further stated that as soon as General Miles -believed the danger of escape no longer great he gave orders for the -removal of the shackles, and thereafter treated Mr. Davis with much -kindness. The story of Mr. Davis' two years' imprisonment at Fortress -Monroe is too well known from Dr. Craven's impartial, if somewhat -fragmentary, account to need further repetition here. - - - - -XXXI. Efforts to Execute Mr. Davis - - -It is a difficult matter at this distance of time to realize the attitude -of public sentiment against Jefferson Davis the state prisoner of Fortress -Monroe. As the chief executive of the late Confederacy, he was, in popular -estimation, the incarnation, if not the proximate cause, of all the sins -and suffering of Rebellion, but worse than all the administration which in -feverish, puerile haste had declared him an accessory to the assassination -of Mr. Lincoln and upon that score had paid out of the public treasury -$100,000 for his capture, could not, or rather dared not reverse its -attitude and speak the truth. The result was, of course, that the vast -majority of the people at the North believed Mr. Davis to be as guilty of -murder as he was of treason, and consequently there was a mighty clamor -for his summary execution. - -Had there been a scintilla of evidence, nay, had there been any fact which -human ingenuity could have tortured into a plausible resemblance to guilty -knowledge of Mr. Lincoln's death, no one will now doubt that Jefferson -Davis would have been murdered as was Mrs. Serrat. - -Andrew Johnston within ninety days after he had issued his ridiculously -false proclamation admitted it to be without foundation--a fact which all -along was fully realized by every member of the government who had -personally known the accused. And yet a coterie of radicals, headed by a -conspicuous member of the Cabinet, continued to search by such -questionable means for incriminating evidence that it disgusted the just, -conservative men of all parties, and they demanded that the senseless -accusation be dropped for all time. - -However, a chance yet remained to dispose of the fallen chieftain without -incurring any of the trouble and risk that must arise from a trial -according to the laws of the land. - -Thousands of Federal prisoners had starved and died at Andersonville and -throughout the North this tale of suffering had inspired such horror and -indignation that there was a general demand for the punishment of those -who were supposed to be responsible for it. Captain Wirz, the commandant -of Andersonville, was accordingly haled before a drum-head court martial -and, despite the fact that he conclusively demonstrated that conditions -responsible for the horrors of that pest hole were beyond his own control, -or that of any man or number of men in the Confederacy, he was promptly -convicted and was sentenced to death. - -Then a serviceable, if not honorable, idea seized the hysterical radicals, -which was nothing less than the feasibility of holding Jefferson Davis -responsible for the horrors of Andersonville. But there again the -ingenuity of malice failed to discover any evidence except that which was -highly creditable to the intended victim. - -All that followed in the nefarious plot is not and never will be fully -known, but from the declaration of the priest, who was Captain Wirz's -spiritual adviser, as well as from other authentic information, there is -no room whatever to doubt that the condemned man was offered his life and -liberty if he would swear that in the management of the prison he had -acted under the direction of Jefferson Davis. Captain Wirz, however, was a -brave and honorable man and scorning to purchase his life with such a lie, -he met his fate like a soldier. This left but one other course open. If -Mr. Davis were to be punished at all, it must be for treason. The idea -appealed to the radicals with something of the same zest that a child -experiences from its first gaudy toy, and for a time they fairly reveled -in visions of a court martial which, unincumbered of the troublesome rules -of evidence observed in courts of law, would speedily give the desired -result. - -But fortunately for the American people, there were men in the Cabinet and -in Congress, who knowing the law, clearly saw that such a course of -procedure must shock the whole civilized world and reduce the guarantees -of the Constitution to a parity with the so-called organic law of the -revolutionary despotisms of Central American and South America. Against -this sentiment the ravings of the vindictive cabal availed nothing, and, -as the months went by, it became evident that if a trial ever came, it -must be according to the laws of the land. - - - - -XXXII. Indictment of Mr. Davis - - -In the meantime Mr. Davis was constantly demanding that he be given the -speedy and impartial trial provided in such cases by the Constitution. - -Charles O'Connor, then the greatest of living lawyers, Henry Ould and many -other leading members of the bar from the Northern states volunteered to -defend Mr. Davis, while Thaddeus Stevens proffered his services to Clement -C. Clay. Horace Greeley, through the columns of the _Tribune_, constantly -demanded that Mr. Davis be either liberated or brought to trial, and by -the spring of the year 1866 he had created such a sentiment throughout the -country in favor of his contentions that the government could no longer -delay some action. - -Accordingly in May an indictment was procured, charging Jefferson Davis -with high treason against the United States, and in June of the same year -Mr. Boutwell offered a resolution in Congress that the accused should be -tried according to the laws of the land, which passed that body by a vote -of 105 to 19. - -But despite that resolution, there were those who clearly foresaw the -danger involved in it, and hoping that time might dispose of the necessity -for any trial at all, urged delay as the wisest measure. Consequently, -despite the efforts of Greeley and Gerritt Smith, and other great men of -the North, the trial was postponed until May, 1867. - -Mr. Davis, weak pale and emaciated, appeared before Chief Justice Chase -sitting with Justice Underwood in the Circuit Court at Richmond. The -court-room was crowded to its utmost capacity and despite the stern -discipline sought to be enforced it was with the greatest difficulty that -the applause could be suppressed that from time to time greeted the -profound logic and masterly eloquence of Charles O'Connor's great speech -on a motion to quash the indictment. The arguments lasted two days and at -their conclusion Chief Justice Chase voted to quash the indictment, while -Justice Underwood voted to sustain it, thus necessitating a reference of -the matter to the Supreme Court of the United States for final decision. -In accordance with a previous arrangement Mr. Davis was soon afterward -admitted to bail, Horace Greeley, Gerritt Smith, Augustus Schell and a -number of other former political enemies becoming his bondsmen. - - - - -XXXIII. Why Davis Was Not Tried for Treason - - -From that moment the administration knew that Jefferson Davis would never -be tried for treason and drew a long breath of relief. Yes, the -administration knew, but the general public, beyond the gilded vagaries -about humanity and the magnanimity of a great nation to a vanquished foe, -sedulously promulgated to obscure the real reason, has never understood -why Jefferson Davis was never tried for the high crime which it was -alleged that he had committed against the United States. - -Unfortunately the restricted space at this time at the disposal of the -author precludes anything more than setting forth the conclusions based -upon the evidence now in his possession, of why this charge was so -joyously abandoned by an administration which less than two years before -had moved heaven and earth to discover any pretext which might lend the -color of justice to the summary execution of the illustrious chieftain of -the Confederacy. - -To one in any way acquainted with popular sentiment, with the temper of -the administration even in 1867, all declarations of magnanimity, -generosity and abhorrence of extreme measures must seem the merest cant. -It is, of course, not beyond the pale of possibility that those who in -1865 were willing to descend to any depths of infamy to secure a pretext -for the execution of Mr. Davis _might_ have experienced a change of heart -in two years sufficiently marked to create conscientious scruples against -putting him upon a fair trial in a court of justice on the charge of -treason. But that theory of the case would be altogether unlikely even if -we did not know that the desire of the administration to hang Jefferson -Davis was just as intense in 1867 as it was two years before. That it did -not attempt to accomplish that result through the regular channels of -justice, is due entirely to the fact that such a trial would have opened -up the whole question of secession for final adjudication by our highest -court of last resort. It would have been a trial not so much of Mr. Davis -as of the question of state rights, and the able lawyers of the -administration, partisans as they were, had no desire to see the highest -judicial body of the land reverse an issue which had been satisfactorily -decided by the sword. - -Charles O'Connor's bold declaration that Jefferson Davis could never _be_ -convicted of treason under the Constitution as it then stood first aroused -the administration to the dangers of the task that it had assumed. Mr. -Johnson sent for his attorney-general and had him prepare an opinion on -the case. In due time it was submitted. It was a veritable bombshell which -fairly demolished every theory upon which Jefferson Davis might have been -convicted of treason or any other crime. - -Mr. Johnston then called to his aid two of the greatest constitutional -lawyers of the age, and they agreed with the conclusions of Mr. Stanberry. -Not satisfied with this, he invited the chief justice to a conference for -a full discussion of the matter. - -If there was ever a partisan, it was Salmon P. Chase, but at the same time -he was a great lawyer and an honest and fearless man. "Lincoln," he said, -"wanted Jeff. Davis to escape. He was right. His capture was a mistake, -his trial will be a greater one. We cannot convict him of treason. -Secession is settled. Let it stay settled!" Significant words truly from -that source, and they explain the vote of the great judge who would have -quashed the indictment against Mr. Davis no less than the question so -often asked, "Why was Jefferson Davis never tried for treason?" - -Immediately after Mr. Davis' release on bond, he went with his family to -New York, and a few weeks later to Montreal, where he continued to reside -until May of the following year when he again appeared before the Circuit -Court in Richmond for trial. But despite the efforts of his counsel to -force a trial of the case, it was dismissed by the government and thus -ended ingloriously the boast of the government that it intended "in the -arch traitor Davis to make treason odious." - - - - -XXXIV. Freedom, Reverses, Beauvoir - - -Impaired in health and longing for rest far away from the tragic scenes of -the past few years, Mr. Davis accepted the invitation of English friends -to visit them. But it was soon discovered that his visit was to be a -continuous ovation. Everywhere he was greeted as though he had been the -conqueror instead of the vanquished. The spirit that prompted those -manifestations he appreciated, but it revived sad memories of the cause -for which he had staked all and lost, and to avoid this lionizing he took -up his residence in Paris. - -The cordiality of the Frenchmen, however, surpassed that of their English -brethren, and Mr. Davis soon found himself so much in the public eye that -he decided to return to England. Before quitting Paris, the emperor -conveyed his desire for an audience, which Mr. Davis courteously refused. -Napoleon, he conceived, had acted in bad faith with the South and such was -the moral rectitude of the man that he could never disguise his contempt -for any one, of however exalted station, whom he believed to be guilty of -double dealing of any kind. - -As the guest of Lord Leigh and the Duke of Shrewsbury in Wales, Mr. Davis' -health gradually improved until he felt himself once more able to enter an -active business of life. The war had left him a poor man, and when a life -insurance company of Memphis offered him its presidency with a fair salary -he accepted, and with his family returned to America. The people of -Memphis soon after his arrival presented him a fine residence, but this he -refused. - -Mr. Davis was probably a very poor business man and his associates of the -insurance company were in no way superior, for its affairs soon became -anything but prosperous. All of his available capital was invested in it, -but this he gladly sacrificed in order to sell his own company to a -stronger one which could protect the policies of the former. - -[Illustration: The Davis Mansion] - -The people of Texas, learning of Mr. Davis' losses offered to give him an -extensive stock farm in that state, but this he also refused. - -Upon the Gulf of Mexico, near the little station of Beauvoir, Mr. Davis -owned a tract of land which he conceived would support his family, and -there, far from the strife of the busy world, he resolved to spend the -declining years of his life. However, retirement at best could only be -partial, for a man loved and venerated as Mr. Davis was throughout the -South, and Beauvoir accordingly became the shrine of the public men who -sought the counsel of its sage. But with the modesty characteristic of the -man he refused to advise any one upon measures of national import, since -by the action of Congress he was forever disfranchised. - -He would not ask pardon, sincerely believing that he had done no wrong, -and when the people of Mississippi would have elected him to the United -States Senate he declined the honor in words which should be perused by -all who know the man as he was, during this period of his life: "The -franchise is yours here, and Congress can but refuse you admission and -your exclusion will be a test question," ran the invitation to which Mr. -Davis replied: "I remained in prison two years and hoped in vain for a -trial, and now scenes of insult and violence, producing alienation between -the sections, would be the only result of another test. I am too old to -serve you as I once did and too enfeebled by suffering to maintain your -cause." - -Any word that might serve to still further increase that alienation never -passed the lips of the gentle, kindly old man, who still the idol of his -people, preferred to all honors the quiet life there among the pines, -where amidst his flowers he played with his children and their little -friends, and far into the night, surrounded by his books, he worked -assiduously upon his only defense, "The Rise and Fall of the Confederate -States of America." The concluding paragraph of that book, written in the -gray dawn of a summer morning after a night of continuous labor, should be -read by every one who would understand the motives that actuated Jefferson -Davis in the great part that he played in the world's history. - -"In asserting the right of secession it has not been my wish to incite to -its exercise. I recognize the fact that the war showed it to be -impracticable, but this did not prove it to be wrong; and now that it may -not be again attempted, and the Union may promote the general welfare, it -is needful that the truth, the whole truth, should be known so that -crimination and recrimination may forever cease, and then on the basis of -fraternity and faithful regard for the rights of the states there may be -written on the arch of the Union 'Esto perpetua.'" - -It is the voice of the soul in defeat, yet strong and conscious of its own -integrity, recognizing the inevitable and praying for peace and the -perpetuation of that Union which Jefferson Davis still loved. - - - - -XXXV. Death of Mr. Davis - - -His life's work was done with the completion of his book, and trusting to -impartial posterity for that vindication of his motives which he realized -must come some day, he turned away from the scenes of controversy and -contentions, seeking in books, the converse of his friends, in long -rambles with his children across wood and field, for oblivion of all -painful memories. Defeat and persecution never embittered him. Cruel and -false accusations found their way to his sylvan retreat. That they -grievously wounded can be doubted by no one who knew his proud spirit, -supersensitive to every insinuation of dishonor, but with the gentle smile -of a philosopher he passed them by, fully realizing that his beloved -people of the South, at least, would understand the stainless purity of -all his motives. - -A harsh or an unkind word never passed his lips concerning any of his -personal or political enemies. In fact, it would be no more than the truth -to say that this gentle old man cherished no sentiment of enmity toward -any of God's creatures. The storm and stress of life were over, its hopes -and its passions were dead, and grandly, majestically this man, who at -once embodied the highest type of American manhood and all of the virtues -of the perfect Christian gentleman, calmly awaited the end. It came on the -6th of December, 1889, in New Orleans, at the home of Judge Fenner, his -life-long friend. When the news of his death went forth, even the voice of -malice was subdued, and many of those who had sought to fix everlasting -infamy upon his name ceased for a time to be unjust and agreed that a -majestic soul had passed. Over the bier of the dead chieftain the whole -South wept and nine of its governors bore him to the grave. - -[Illustration: The Davis Monument at Richmond] - -No proper estimate of the life and character of Jefferson Davis is -possible in the restricted scope of this work, but lest I should be -accused of partiality I shall here append the conclusion of Ridpath, the -historian, written after a residence of almost a year under the same roof -with Mr. Davis, which I heartily endorse as a correct estimate of the man. - -"Before I had been with Mr. Davis three days every preconceived idea -utterly and forever disappeared. Nobody doubted Mr. Davis' intellectual -capacity, but it was not his mental power that most impressed me. It was -his goodness, first of all, and then his intellectual integrity. I never -saw an old man whose face bore more emphatic evidences of a gentle, -refined and benignant character. He seemed to me the ideal embodiment of -'sweetness and light.' His conversation showed that he had 'charity for -all and malice toward none.' I never heard him utter an unkind word of any -man and he spoke of nearly all of his famous opponents. His manner may be -best described as gracious, so exquisitely refined, so courtly, yet heart -warm. Mr. Davis' dignity was as natural and charming as the perfume of the -rose--the fitting expression of a serene, benign and comely moral nature. -However handsome he may have been when excited in battle or debate, it -surely was in his own home, with his family and friends around him, that -he was seen at his best; and that best was the highest point of grace and -refinement that the Southern character has reached." - -Lest any foreigner should read this statement, let me say for his benefit -that there are two Jefferson Davises in American history--one is a -conspirator, a rebel, a traitor and "the Fiend of Andersonville"--he is a -myth evolved from the hell-smoke of cruel war--as purely an imaginary a -personage as Mephistopheles or the Hebrew Devil; the other was a statesman -with clean hands and pure heart, who served his people faithfully from -budding manhood to hoary age, without thought of self, with unbending -integrity, and to the best of his great ability--he was a man of whom all -his countrymen who knew him personally, without distinction of creed -political, are proud, and proud that he was their countryman. - -This is a conclusion by no means extravagant, a conclusion which, despite -the fact of some mental faults that prevented him from quite attaining to -the first rank of the greatest statesman, nevertheless leaves him -pre-eminent as one of the purest and best of the men who has played a -conspicuous part in the world's history. - - -FINIS. - - - - - - -End of Project Gutenberg's The Real Jefferson Davis, by Landon Knight - -*** END OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK THE REAL JEFFERSON DAVIS *** - -***** This file should be named 43979-8.txt or 43979-8.zip ***** -This and all associated files of various formats will be found in: - http://www.gutenberg.org/4/3/9/7/43979/ - -Produced by The Online Distributed Proofreading Team at -http://www.pgdp.net (This file was produced from images -generously made available by The Internet Archive.) - - -Updated editions will replace the previous one--the old editions -will be renamed. - -Creating the works from public domain print editions means that no -one owns a United States copyright in these works, so the Foundation -(and you!) can copy and distribute it in the United States without -permission and without paying copyright royalties. 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