The new South. (Port Royal, S.C.) 1862-1867, April 25, 1863, Image 2
T HE "TWTO'UT H.
Jos. H. Sears, Editor and Proprietor.
PORT ROYAL, SATURDAY, APRIL 25, 1863.
Their Last Legs.
At a time like this, when there is a temporary
lull in the storm of actual war, when both sides
are nerving themselves for a struggle more arduous
thaa any preceding one, it may be well to
glance for a moment at the position of the iasurgents,
and the chances of success which the
present aspect of affairs suggests.
The rebels, having abandoned all hope of carrying
out the magnilicent programme with which
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their Secretary of War, stated, the capture of
Washington, the liberation of the border States
and a wiuter of revelry in the cities of the North,
with the material gains to bo derived from the
nack of Philad .'Iphia and the loot of Wall Street,
have at last been driven from line to line, successively
taken and lost, on the coast and in the
Middle States, and have rallied for a final struggle
at a few decisive points. The remnant of their
ragged cohorts now stand on the defensive merely
at Port Hudson, Vicksbnrg, Chattanooga, Frederictiburg
and Charleston. The scattered detachments
in other quarters are not specially worth
considering, 'lhese points are their last hope.
They must all be held or their cause is lost. If
Hooker defeats their army on the Rappahannock,
no carthlv Dower can stav the flood of rout and
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_ _ ruin that will sweep irresistibly down over Virginia
* and &ortn Carolina. lfPorf Hudson falls, Tlckabuig
must fall at once, and if Vicksborg surrender,
the loss of Port Hudson most inevitably follow.
The loss of the Mississippi will finish the rebellion
in the West. For besides the vast moral effect of ,
an advantage so immense, this will at once relieve ,
two armies for further service. Any weakening of
their force in Tennessee would leave them at the ,
mercy of Rosecrans, who has proved himself ,
equal to every emergency in which he has been ?
placed. They are compelled to act on the defensive,
for the loss of any one of these points would
be fall of ft succession of disasters. All aggressive 1
efforts which they have lately made, have been
miserable failures. Yan Dorn recently attacked '
Kosecrans right wing at Franklin under General '
Granger, and was whipped back In six hours with
bloody slaughter. Their necessities hamper all 1
their operations to the narrowest limits.
Meanwhile, the odds are growing fearfally against
them. Time, which in the beginning was their '
frirnd and ally has turned and become their deadliest
enemy. They must fight and finish the war or
__ they are mined. They cannot abandon their defensive
attitude and initiate an aggressive move
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certain destruction.. And they cannot much longer 1
remain as they are, without incurring the slower
but equally sure and more dreadful fate of starva- :
tion and exhaustion. Their currency has become
nearly worthless. The Charleston Courier of the
9th instant speaks with impotent rage of the con.
duct of a clothing merchaut of that city who pays i
in his trade a premium of 700 per cent for gold, ,
and strives to array the passions of the mob against <
the irresistible facts of finance. 1
1
1 heir armies have reached their limit. Their ,
merciless conscription has forced into the ranks
every man capable of bearing arms and no reserve
is left throughout their territory. The blockade
becoming every day more efficient, is closing with J
its iron fingers every avenue of resource from ,
Europe, and every ounce of ammunition they fire <
away will soon be worth its weight in rebel script.
We have our own choice now, when we shall
move. There is no opportunity for any aggressive
movement on their part. If we were to rest on
our arms their rebellion would die in time, like
a scorpion ringed with fire. The edifice built in
treason, and cemented with fraud and theft and
murder, is beginning to crumble by the very vices
of its composition. If we let it alone, it would fall
amid the scorn of the world.
But we snail not let 11 aiont. ai me proper
time and in the proper way, our armies and navies
wi J move, and by crushing the rebellion, liberate
the South, and utilte the severed members of our
cherished Union.
Of course, their boastings and vaporings are as
loud and incessant as ever. But their swaggerings
are as harmless ai jthose of the savage, who struts
as proudly as it his ragged and lousy blanket were
the imperial purple, and whose var-whoop is
fraught only with the agony of hunger and
despair. , .
- Oca Admiral ajid his Captaixs.?It would be
amusing, if it werenot most pitiable, to see the attempt
made in certain quarters to censure Admiral
Dn Pont and his gallant officers for not having
converted into a final attack their recent reconnoissance
of Charleston Harbor, its forts, batteries and
obstructions. The miserable scamps who indulge
this style of critfotam, whether in the press or from
the barrel-head,, ?ou Id not to-day be hired individ
p?ny ror ?ue ice-sirapie ch ? * principality per
man" to take part with the heroes they would
slander in the operations Du Pont is blamed for
not having pushed to a premature issue.
? But let tbingswork,*' as General Halleck says.
" Time straigtena out aH such men and matters;"
and when our Great Admiral next wins the applause
of a grateful country by a victory as far
surpassing that ofport Royal, as Port Royal in its
day surpassed all previous achievements of the
war,?no tongyeg will be more loudly blatant in
his praise than those now blistered thick with the
infamies of attempted detraction. Judged by h s
peus,?men skilled in their profession and willing
to hasard their limbs and lives wherever and whenever
ordered,?the Admiral's conduct in the late
affair only elevates to an equal standard with his
high courage that admirable judgment which dictated
his immediate withdrawal the moment the
object of his initial movement bad been success.
fully Accomplished.
?Brig. Gen. Truman Seymour goea North
to-day on a leave of absence granted, we regret
to say, on account of ill health. Hia constitution
being too mnch impaired to stand exposure to this
climate during the heat of summer, he will report
to the General-in-Chief for orders on the expiration
of hia leave. In Gen. Seymour, the Department!
loses the services of an active and valuable officer.
RESiGMATiox*:~The resignations of the following
officera^iave been accepted during the past
week: 2d Lieutenant H. F. Hopkins, 8d New
Hampshire Vola.; Chaplain J. P. Caldwell, 85tb
Pennsylvania Yob.; 1st Lieutenant H. L. Wood,
Regimental Quartermaster, 67th Ohio Vols.; 2d
Lieutenant LeviC. Gilbert, 6th Connecticut Vols.;
Lieutenant-Colonel J. F. Twitchell, 8th Maine
Vols.; Surgeon J. D. Mitchell, 8th Maine Vols.;
burgeon W. S. Woods, 52d Pennsylvania Vols.;
1st Lieutenant Dcziel Gleason, 3d Rhode Island
Vols.;
Promotions?Commissary Sergeant H. 0. Beach
3th Maine Vols., to be 2d Lieutenant 1st S. C.
Vols.; Quartermaster Sergeant E. W. Robbina,
18th New York Vols., to be 2d Lieutenant 1st S.
3. Vols.; Quartern aster Sergeant W. B. Dickey,
3th Maine Vein.. In he 9 I T l?nf?n?n? w c r? !
Vols.; Sergt. Michael Sullivan, 47th New York
Vols., to be 2dLieut. 47thNew York Vols.
?Col. James L. Frazer, of the 47th New York
Vols., has beet honorably discharged the service
)y the Secretary of War on account of disability,
ind Col. Henry Moore, who resigned the same portion
some tiiae ago, has been reappointed Col.
>f that Regiinmt.
1
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A Camp Stort.?Camp gossips are apt to be
very zealous disciples of St. Munchausen, and the
Barons narratives furnish models for numerous
camp yarns, which gain currency as veritable facta
among those whose experience has not taught
them better. In the camp Munchausenisms rosy
doubtless very properly be classed the following
startling revelation, which the original relator*
will swear to the truthfulness of. The story is
that loss than a year since a recruit of rather delicate
appearance, but much enthusiasm, vivacily
and a very fine address, was received into one of
the New England regiments, and has since performed
his doty most creditably, until just before
the late expedition sailed lor Charleston, when he
was taken suddenly ill and removed to the hospital.
On the day after the sailing of the expedition
a promising daughter, weighing just seven pounds
sad a half, according to one ; eight pounds and
three-quarters according to another, and so on, up
to fifteen pounds and a fraction, each statement
of weight having a host of eye witnessing vouchers,
was born unto him. Investigation showed
that the mother had been, since she joined tb* .
regiment, occupying the same tent with her husband,
whom she had followed to the wars. The
story which robs the transaction of all sinfulness,
reducing the offence to a alight social irregularity,
ia well given, and the origiuator ought to be employed
by Bonner, to write exclusively for the
Ledger, the limited apace of the New South being
inadequate for a proper exercise of his talent.
Axothkr.?Two officers in a regiment not
far away, who had been indulging in rather too
many innocent imbibitions, fell into a dispute
about the beauty and many accomplishments of
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bg North. Words succeeded words, and as they
were not sufficiently convincing, blows naturally
ensued, the rapidity of which would do credit to
any magnate of the ring. Pistols were finally
called for as a dernier retort. The weapons were
handed to the seconds to be loaded, and instead of ?
powder a little sand was used; the places chosen,
distance paced off, when the fun was suddenly
interrupted by some officers. The ardent admirers
of the fair one were taken from the ground
to their quarters to ruminate over their foolishness.
Capture or a V aluable Prize.?On Monday
last the gunboat Stettin arrived at this port, hav
ing in tow the prize steamer St. Johiu, captured
by her the previous day, while tryiug to run into
Hull's Bay. She was discovered early in the
morning, and was taken with little trouble. She
was formerly on the line between Savannah ami
the St. John's river, connecting with her sister
ship the St. Marya, now lying sunken iu
that river. When the war broke out sh? was taken
off the line, and was jnst from Nassau when captured.
Her engineers and some of her other offi
cers and crew are New Yorkers, and it is reported
that her proprietors are also residents of that loyal
city. All the officers and crew were taken on
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ably to New York. The steamer has one mast
now, which has been added to make her a more
effective blockade runner. She is about the size
and something the shape of the Canonicuand
is about 400 to 500 tons.
? We have received the first number of a new
Union paper named The Penintula, published at
Fernandina, Fla., by James 34. Latta, Esq. It is a
spicy little sheet, rather larger than our own and
chiefly devoted to the local interests of Florida.
As it will, no doubt have the advertisement
of Tax Sales of the Commissioners at a good
round price, we have no doubt of its pecuniary
success. Long may il wave.
Sword Presentation.?Capt. Scollay D. Baker,
Co. I, 9th Maine Vols., was presented, on tbe 14th
inst., by tho non-commissioned offioers and privates
of his Company, with a handsome sword,
sash and belt.