Secrets of the Late Rebellion, Now Revealed for the First TimeFreese, Jacob R.
History
Secrets of the Late Rebellion, Now Revealed for the First Time
Freese, Jacob R.
United States -- Politics and government -- 1861-1865
"O all you host of heaven! O earth! what else?
And shall I couple hell? O fie! Hold, hold my heart;
And you, my sinews, grow not instant old,
But bear me stiffly up!--Remember them?
Yea, from the table of my memory
' I'll wipe away all trivial records,
All saws of books, all forms, all pleasures past,
That youth and observation copied there,
And these base deeds alone, alone shall live
' Within the book and volume of my brain
' Unmixed with baser matter;
And on my tablets I will set it down
That one may smile, and smile, and be a villain!"
We could ourself add more, much more, from what our informant told us;
but our heart sickens over such recitals, and our readers, we are sure,
have had quite enough of it.
The first question, and the most natural question for any one to ask,
after reading the terrible atrocities just recited, would be, Who was or
is accountable for all this suffering?
The gentleman from whose lips we gathered most of the foregoing facts
had opportunities of learning the individual sentiments of President
Davis upon this subject, as upon many others, quite as well, perhaps, as
any man within the lines of the Confederacy, and he assured us that
Mr. Davis regretted, as much as any man could regret, the sufferings of
Union prisoners, and that, whenever reports of their ill-treatment came
to his ears, he at once gave them attention. That, time and again, Mr.
Davis appointed gentlemen of high character to visit the prison-places
we have named, and report to him any and all abuses of which they might
learn; that, again and again, he cautioned, reprimanded, and in some
cases re moved, officers charged with cruelty to Union prisoners; and
that he did whatever it was possible for him to do to mitigate their
sufferings. In view of the high personal character which Mr. Davis bore
before he became President of the Confederacy, and, of the consistent
Christian character he has since borne, it is to be hoped that this is
a correct interpretation of his sentiments with reference to Union
prisoners. It would almost make one lose faith in humanity were it
otherwise.
If President Davis was not responsible, the next most natural question
would be, Who is? and to this answers would differ with almost every
one who might attempt to make reply. While the outrages were being
perpetrated, the people of the North generally held Mr. Davis
responsible for all of them, on the principle heretofore stated; but
towards the close of the war, and during the ten years following the
war, public opinion greatly changed, until few, if any, held him longer
responsible; and now there are not probably ten men in the whole United
States, of such as know anything of the facts, who hold him personally
responsible for these outrages.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
Reviews
Reviews
No reviews yet
Be the first to share your thoughts on this work.
Elsewhere in the archive
Join the Discussion
Join the discussion
Sign in to leave a comment or review.
Sign InorCreate an account