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Merret History — Jefferson Davia — The BMebel Cabinet — General Hindman, Rte. Ete Mesers, Harper Brothers will publish this week a work by H. Foote, of Mississippi, entitled “War of the Rebellion; or, Leyla and Charybdia: consisting of Observations upon the Causes, Couree, and Consequences of the late Civil War in the United States.” As will be gathered from the tithe, Mr. Foote gives in this volume his opinions on the war, and the causes which led to it. He discusses the political his tory of the country from the retirement of the colonies, rapidly, and blames abolitionists and secessionists alike for the war. He is of opinion that sectional parties brought on the war: he seem 0 forget that slavery can sel the sectional parties. He seems to imagine that it was only the result of political squabbles. His discussion of political questions has little value or interest. It is an attempt to warm up very stalements. There are issues and questions so dead that they can never be infused with life again now that the struggle is over which killed them. The nation has stepped a step higher—it does not care to turn back and carefully examine the mud through which it has passed. But Mr. Foote scatters through his book reminiscences of public men, some of which are of interest. Liere wa sketch of JEPPRUSON DAVIE, I saw him firet mm the city of Vicksburg more than thirty years ago as Lieutenant Davis. He was then a young man of modest and pleasing arpect anid manners, but gave slight indications of any abilities likely to lead to future distinction. He married, left the army, and settled himseff on a planation of respectable dispensions to the southern part of the county of Warren, some twenty miles from the city of Vicksburg, where he has constantly resided fines, until he became President of the Confederate States. Mr. Davis whose oficial associates had no correct Conception oF the true character and dimensions of the war into which mere 80 hastily plunged, as was afterwards frankly con fessed in many a lingubrious barangue, hod im more tan one solemn oficial doeuent. They did not believe at Uist that the conflict would endure for a twelve month, and were even weak enough to calculate most confolently upon strong Northern aid, which it is now well known there never was the least probability of their receiv ing; albeit ex-resident Pierce and several others, whose letters to Drr. Davis have recently seen the light, had plied this confiding personage with secret promises of support, upon which he built io part his hopes of one day wielding an imperial service. As to the interposition of forview powers in behalf of the now warring States of the South, though many desertful assurances were received from abroad at differ ent periods of the contest, no man of sound in tellect anywhere now supposes that ether the French or English Government ever seriously thought of embroiling itself in a transatlantic civic feud. Mgr. Davis yot oud more vills during the short provisional regime than all the Presi dents of the United States put together, from Washington to Lincoln inclusive, and no at tempt to pass a single bill over his head was ever made, DAVIS’ CABINET. There were only two of these functionaries whose oficial qualifications were even respecta ble—the Attorney-General, Mr. Watts, of Ala bama, and the Postwaster-General, Mr. Reagan, of Texas. The Secretary of War (Mr. Benjamin), besides his inability to meet the military exigen cies which he had been encountering, as well as the more serious ones in prospect, was subject to other objections as the Incumbent of a high cabinet position of the greatest and most vital character. his reputation for integrity had never been good, and at late years it had become deeply tarnished by his known partici pancy in schemes of notorious corruption both to the State of Louisiana and in Washington city. The offensive moral odor arising from the celebrated Lioumnastrand (one of the most un blushing and profligate legislative transactions that had ever disgraced the annals of a free people) bias affixed such a stigma upon the repu tation both of Mr. Benjamin and his friend and atron. Mr. John A. Slidell, as it was not possi le that any lapse of time could entirely efface. CURIOUS SECRET MISTORY. Just about the time that I was laboring most assiduously to relieve the Department of War of Mr. Benjamin, by calling forth, as far ne wt might be in my power to do so, co-operative responses from the people, an occurrence took drave in social life in Richmond which had much effect, not only upon the fate of Mr. Ben jamin, but which, in the sequel, had much in fluence also upon the course of public events. I chanced to be invited to a dinner-party, where some twenty of the most prominent members of the two Houses of the Confede rate Congress were congregated, including the Speaker of the House of Representatives, Mr. Orr, of South Carolina, and others of equal rank. General Joseph . Johnston was also an invited guest. While the banquet was proceeding, Mr. Benjamin's gross acts of official misconduct becoming the subject of conversation, one of the company turned to General Johnston, and inquired whether he thought it even possible that the Confederate cause could succeed with Mr. Benjamin as war minister. To this inquiry, General Johnston, after a little pause, cooveatioally responded in the negative. This high authority was imme diately cited in both Houses of Congress against Mr. Benjamin, and was in the end fatal , his hopes of remaining in the Department of Mr, Mr. Davis, after deferring the sending in of his nominations for Cabinet appointments, un der the permanent Consitution, for nearly four weeks, in order to have it in his power to per suade the Senate to confirm Mr. Benjamin as Secretary of War, so the event of his being re nominated, ultimately relinquished this object in despair—that body, however accommodating it was in general to Executive fancies, having been found unwilling to participate in the terri ble responsibility of sea on act. Mr. Benjamin was nully nominated for the Department of State, and was confirmed, by a very small ma jority, for that place, where he had it in his power, both abroad and at home, to perpetrate more Larenced acts of corruption and profligacy than any single individual has ever been known to commit in the same space of time in any part of Christendom. I will bere remark, in pasting, that this rank and manly declaration of General Johnston rendered both Mr. Davis and Mr. Benjamin allie hostile to him, and he was fated to experience the effevt of their ma levolence on more than one subsequent occa sion previous this ultimate deprivation of military command. Very great miccief notoriosly resulted to the Confederate cause from the long retention in the office of Commissary-General of Colonel Northrop. This person is understood to be a native of South Carolina, and had spent some years in the city of Charleston anterior to the War #84 practitioner of medicine upon the vege tarian system. Some mysterious circumstances, not heretofore explained, had, in some way. Many years previous to the commencement of the war, estabolished relations of special amity and confidence between himself and Mr. Davis in consideration of which he had been tocat, in an offici position for which he was in every way as utterly mot as any human beng could be well imagined to be. His appearance was most seee cunced a wenecns were comme, overbearing, iting; bie bemper was qustere, crabbed and irrt a; he was utterly ignorant of the duties of the post as signed him, and was not at all soligitous to make elf acquainted with them, self-esteem was the most inordinate that I have ever known any human being $0 posses, and no man at all capable of judging of such a matter would have mighoes him an in all A compon mantis, imon had long prevailed in Charleston that he was, in point of fact, more or lest disordered in mind; and during the three seats that I occupied a seat in the Confederate Congrers, I received numerous letters from citi zens of the highest respectability residing there. Urging me, in the warmest forma, we aid in dis picibe han from the position which he way #o ssenally I am not prepared to assert anything In regard to his ‘y honesy, but it # undoubtedly true that all over the Confederate States he had men employed to purchase supplies for hie department of notoriously bad character, not a small number of whom are known to have accumulated fortunee during the war, the names of some of whom I could, were it necessary, quite enerly specify, having ee their iniquities heretofore to the view of Confederate Congress. The heartless tyran actived by this monster of iniquity in all the fates of the South, in connection with the system of forcible impressment exablished, am persuaded, scarcely ever been equalled. The brutal Indifference to the ansferings of the Confederate coldiure, by all of whom he was most cordially detested; his indecent and habi tual disregard of the requisitions made upon his department, from time to time, by various mili tary commanders with whom he was necessarily thrown into contact; hi open and notorious employment of disrespectful and contemptuous language in regere to to every official station, to whom he was legally subordinate, are matters ree which it would be now superfluous to well. Yet he was retained in the Commissary De part ont for four years, in utter contempt of remonstrance, of complaint, and of direct and assive nerogations of delinquency. It is even se that Mr. Northrop was not a constitutional officer; after the commencement of the perma nent Confederate Government he was never nominated to the Senate. But, though this matter was brought to Mr. Davie’ special notice by erave proceedings in both Towsea of Con ere, he still held on to Northrop, nor did he ever deign to present his name to the Senate for the sanction of that body up to the latest mo ment of his own ofcial existence, KOON. The career of Mr. Seddon, as Secretary of War, will long be remembered by all who ever entered the War Department, while he sat en throned therein, with unominated regret and indignation. It may be safely asserted that he did not posress one of the qualities needful to a creditable and tieful perfomance of the duties which were now devolved on him. He was never able to learn even the ordinary routine of offical business, and often scornfully declined attendance to mattes of the most urgent im boice. THe was arrogant and insulting to hore who approached him in his oficial sanctum, as he was notorously servile and fawning to his own executive chief. He evinced, from his very entrance into office, an utter disregard of all constitutional obucations; and in the exercise of the authority committed to him he proved him self to be the most heartless and rationly tyrant whom I ever yet saw in the possession of official power. Though he had always been an ardent State-rigts man in profession, up to the break ing out of the war, it soon became evident that he had never sincerely belieled the smnilest regard for the principles embodied in the well known State-rights creed; and he habitually trampled under foot, and without a blush upon his livid and atrabiious visage, all the anciently recognized muniments of State sovereinty, GENERAL HINDMAN ONE OF DAVIN’ FETS, General Hindman, of Arkansas, when a very young man, had, in the State of Mississipp), been HOt NOlKY ANG wnscrupulous Advocate of Jef ferton Davis and secession at that time pro pounded—had afterwards gone to Arkansas, where he had led for several grate a very turbu lent and disreputable life, but, by force of party drill, had been sent for a year or two to the Federal Congress—when the war broke out, was almost immediately given a high military com mand, and was rapidly promoted, until, as a major-general, he was sent to the State of his own residence, for the purpose of holding an important position there, is man, as his own formal report to the War Department evidenced, finding, as he said, that the very comprehensive provisions of the conscription law were not ulo comprehensive enough to suit his purposes, eliberately amplified them by proclamation, declared martial law throughout Arkansas and the northern portion of Texas, and demanded the services of all whom he had thus illegally and tyrannically embraced in his own wide -weepng conscription list. All who refused to obey his mandate, as he ex pressly confesses, were Sppreh faded, subjected to trial by a military court appointed at the in stant by Hindman himself, and when convicted, as a considerable number were, of an offense which he unblushingly acknowledges in this same report wholly unknown to the law of the land, he had them executed, and going even be yond the infernal Jeffreya himself in his mar ority, he, as he also ostentatiously declares in that same report, took care to be present to witness the dying agonies of his victims. This man seized upon all the cotton and other pro erty for which he had woe (as he boldly avows), until some, retained some, and appropriated a third portion to such purposes as he pleased. His cruelties were so enormous in Arkansas that it became unease that he should remain there longer, SEDDON AB A CHEAT. And yet Mr. Davis retained this man in the office of Becretary af War, amid continual indi cations of popular indignation and disguse, from Tenth to month and from would he have been at last secial position which he had so long mere dis honored, but for the undeniable fact that year to year, not seen to vacate the had directly charged him upon recorded testimony, that is to say, upon the evidences supplied by the books of his own department, having cared to be paid to himself, by his own official subordinates, forty dollars per bushel for his whole crop of wheat for the year 106d, while he was, by the instrumentality of forcible im vestment, compelling the Carolina, Georgia, and other farmers of North States to yield up their wheat to the Government officials at the inadequate price of from seven to nine dol lars in Confederate paper, I made this ex position in the last speech which I del ivered in the Confederate Congress. Mr. Sed don resigned the Department of War the very next day. As chairman of a special committee of the Confederate Congress, organized at my own instance, for the purpose of inquiring into cases of illegal imprisonment, I obtained from the superintendent of the prison house in Rich mond, under the official sanction of the Depart ment of War itself, a grim and main cata logue of several hundred prisoners then in con inement therein, not one of whom wanch with anything but suspected political inddelty, and this, too, not upon oath in a single instance. Before I could take properlt to procure the discharge of these unhappy men, the second sus pension of the writ of y occurred, and I presume that such of them as did not die in jail remained there until the fall of Richmond into the hands of the Federal forces, THE ERLANGER LOAN, The celebrated Erlanger loan, the proposision to enlist in which came to Richmond under the sinister auspices of Mr. John A. Slidell, seemed to a considerable number of the members of the Confederate Congress to be a speculative re ject, adroitly set on (out chiefly for the benefit of Merris, Slidell, Benjamin Co., their aiders and abettors in the United States and in foreign countries, and we, therefore, struggled most earnestly to defeat it by every expedient known to parliamentary tactics. By the aid of the cele brated ten minutes rule and the sitting with closed doors 10 was finally carried by a some what menere majority in the House, POREIUN INTERVENTION. The fact was very well known to me that Mr. Davis and his friends were confidently coking for foreign wid, and mom several quarters, was stated in my hearing repeatedly, by several special friends ot (ie Confederate President, this one hundred thousand French soldiers were ex pected to arrive within the limits of the Confede rate States by way of Mexico; while It was more than remoned that a secret compact, wholly un authorized by the Confederate Constitution, with certain Polish commissioners who had been lately on a visit toidhmend, had been effected, by mheane of which Mr. Davie would soon be suppsed with some twenty or thirty thousand additions troops, aca refingnee tom Poland, Alleged Monster Fraud—Thurlow Weed Accused of Selling the Rights of Others ,Injunction to Restrain Thurlow, Etc. New Yous Surenson Covnr—Judge Roberteon. Ivensson developmente of some pure tenice evelopment public in motion was made by 8. W. Cooper, counsel for plaintifix, for an injunction to issue (not the defendants, which was granted upon the follow ing aMaavit, which explains the nature of the canti— Orty and County of New York, and—Charles F. Seco and William H. Secor, of the city of New York, being only sworn, depose and say, that during the month of August last past they, the deponents, through their agents, Charles A. Secor, in connection with others, whose names are as follows, viz.s—Thurlow Wead, James L. Pond, Edmund Green, William L. Riley, and —— Conant, agreed together and between themselves, orally, that upon the obtaining by them, the deponenta and the above name individuals, of certain concessions and grants from the War Department of the United States, viz., permission to construct, military aid, subsistence, forage, and such other aid we lay in the province and power of said War Department to afford, a line of magnetic tele graph should be constructed from the city of New Orleans, in the State of Louisians, to San Francisco, in the State of California, or some other point on the Pacific coast of the United States not designated; and that these deponants and the above-named individuals should have each an equal interest in the permesion and rivileges so granted by the War Department of the Uunited States. That during the month of October art pastor thereabouts, the Honorable Edwin M. Stanton, Secretary of War of the United States, granted to the deponents and the above-named individuals permission to con struct such a line of magnetic telegraph, and promised all and every such wid as lay in the power of said War Department to afford. That onoreb out the 18th day of January last past, William L. Riley and —— Conant, two of the individuals shore named, transferred, assigned and set over to the President, Directors, an Company of the American Telegraph Com pany, for a valuable consideration, all their right, title, and interest in, and to the permission and privileges grand as above described by the Hon. Edwin M. Stanton, Secretary of War of the United States; and that at about the same time, to wrt, on the 1éth day of January, Thurlow Weed, James L. Pond, and Edmund Green entered into ful agreement with the said President, Directors, and company of the American Telegraph Com pany 10 Fell and transfer to the said company, at some future day, and for a valuable considera tion, all their right, title, and interest in the above described grant; and that such sale and agreement to sell and transfer were made with out the permission or consent of these depo nents or either of them. That such sale and transfer have not yet been consummated by the said Weed, Pond, and Green. That upon being duly informed of the sale and intended sale and transfer of their several interests by the indi viduals above-named, one of the percesa se pro tested, in a letter addressed to the Secretary of the above-named American Telegraph Company, against the payment of any consideration what ever to the individuals so calling and transfer ring until said company had paid or secured to him, one of the deponents, to be paid such in terest as he represents; and also only informed the said Secretary of the said American Tele ph Company in the above-mentioned etter of protest, that they, the deponents, were interested equally with the individuals who had sold and transferred and were about to sell and transfer their interests as above described, viz., that their interests were and are one-seventh of the whole. That it was and is the pero of the above named Weed, Pond, Green, Riley, and Conant to defraud them, tthe deponents, of their interest in the grant above described by sells and transferring such grant to the President, Directors, and Company of the American Tele graph Sears And these deponents further say that they have commenced an action in the Superior Court, in and for the City and County of New York, against the said Weed, Pond, Green, Kiley, and Conant, and that the defendants, or a portion of them, are irresponsible and unable to respond in damages. Crantes F. Spoor, William H. Secor. Sworn to before me this 12th day of January, 1866,.—John Hayes, Notary Public in and for New York count. The following is the order of injunction: NEW YORK SUPERIOR COUrt. Charles F. Secor and William H. Secor vs. Thurlow Weed, James L. Pond, Edmund Green, William L. Ruley, and —— Conant. It appear ing eotsfactorily to me by the affidavit of the above named Spenne, dated on the 12th day of February, 1866, that sufficient fnds for the order of injunction exist, tho hereby order, on I notion of Sidney W. Cooper, Eisq., of counsel for the plaintiffs, that the defendants be and they are hereby enjoined and restrained from gelling, transferring, or assigning, or from consummating any agreement, verbal or written, to sell, trans fer or assign to the President, Directors, and Company of the American Telegraph Company, or to any party or parties whatsoever, their several rights files, and interests in a‘certain grant of the Honorable Edwin M. Stanton, Secretary of War of the United States, of a permission and right to construct a line of magnetic telegraph from the city of New Orleans, in the State of Louisiana, to the city of San Francisco, in the State of California, or from receiving from the said president, directors, and company, or either of them, any sum or sume of money, or other valuable consideration whatever, for or on Ac count of their several interests in said grant until the further order of this court; and in case of disobedience to this order you will be liable to the punishment therefor prescribed by law. Anthony L. Ronerreon, Chief Justice Emperor Court. Ainsry W. Cooren, Plaintiff's Attorney. New York, February 12, 1866.—N. ¥. Herald.
Newspaper Details
Philadelphia Evening Telegraph
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, US
Thu, Feb 15, 1866
Page 6
Full Page
Clipped by
Tanisha C.
USA 01 Jul 2026
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