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sum,F,MEW TO rOBPILU RMIllltEU. JEFFERSON DAVIS." A Long and Eventful Career in Business, War and Politics. FOUK SCORE .YEARS AND MORE. The Two Kentucky Boys, Lincoln and Davis ? On the Northern Frontier ? A Cotton Planter?Enters Congress ? The Mexican "War?President of the Southern Confederacy?Imprisonment, Release and Old Age. More than eighty years ago two Kentucky boys, born in widely different social spheres, entered upon still more widely diverse careers: Abraham Lincoln, in Hardin (now Larue) qounty, and Jefferson Davis, in Christian (now Todd) county; Lincoln born February 12,1809, and Davis on the 3d of June preceding. JEFJ-ERSOtf DAVIS. [From a war time portrait.] No dark sibyl hailed them at their birth as the coming exponents of an awful struggle. No prophet would have dared predict in the npnmi'noriPO '.Vint t.VlA DlCOfpfl UOJO Ul J/? Vliuui uvv OO Lincoln was soon to fall, whil? the defeated, ail invalid during a third of his life, would survive his great antagonist for a quarter of a century, outliving all the actors of his age in the great struggle, yet such was to be the irony of fate. History presents many paradoxes, but none greater' than this: that the victor should fall in the very hour of victory and the defeated live till almost every trace of the conflict had vanished, to die of mere old age. The ancestors of Jefferson Davis were of > pure English stock, but so long resident in America that the type had become thoroughly southern American. On both sides they served in the war for American independence, his father, Samuel Davis, winning some distinction in the mounted troops of Georgia. Of his two sons, Jefferson early became a soldier, while Joseph, a man of talent, scarcely, if at all, inferior, gained a local success as lawyer and planter in Mississippi. The brothers were notably affectionate in childhood, and remained through life devoted to each other. Soon after the birth of Jefferson, Samuel Davis removed to Mississippi, locating near Woodville, in Wilkinson county. The sons there acquired an unusually good English education for the time, and at an early age Jefferson entered Transylvania college, Kentucky. In 1824, however, President Monroe appointed him a cadet at West Point, whence he was graduated in 1828, at the early age of 20. He had stood high in his class, and at once entered on active duty, though for some time commissioned only as a brevet second lieutenant. Promotion was very slow in those peaceful times, but he soon won his full commission, and in the next three years demonstrated his organizing capacity, both as infantry and staff officer on the northwestern frontier. The year 1S31 brought a surprise and many promotions. Black Hawk entered on his famous campaign, and Jefferson Davis was at once given an active and responsible position to muster in and organize the new recruits. There has long been a tradition that in this capacity he mustered in the company of Illinois volunteers from New Salem and vicinity commanded by Capt. Abraham Lincoln, but there is no record of it.' CAMPAIGNS AGAINST THE INDIANS. Early in 1833 Lieut. Davis was transferred from his place in Company B, First United States infantry, and in recognition of his services in the Black Hawk war was promoted to a first lieutenancy in the First United States dragoons, of which command he was soon made adjutant. In this position he made a very brilliant record, not only as an organizer and efficient administrator in garrison life, but in several active campaigns against the Comanches, Pawnees and other Indians. And it is at this stage of his career that active, one might say acrid, criticism first concerns itself with Jefferson Davis. Those writers who persist in attributing the downfall of the Southern Confederacy to President Davis allege that thus early he ex hibited the same faults and virtues which marked his administration in greater and greater degree with each successive increase of rank and power. The greatest fault alleged, perhaps, is unreasonable attachment to a few friends and corresponding prejudice against other persons. It was while in this service that Lieut. Davis wooed and won a daughter of the eminent general and president, Zachary Taylor. Her father was in command cf Fort Crawford, near Prairie Du Chien, and his daughter, a beautiful and refined young lady, was the center of attraction among the subordinate officers. Innumerable are the romantic stories of their rivalries, the final success of Lieut. Davis, the bitter opposition of the "stern parent" and old Indian fighter, and the final departure by night oS the young couple to be married by a priest on the western bank of VJEFFERSON DAVIS' BIRTHPLACE, the Mississippi. Let the young and romantic continue to read and believe. Suffice it that the father remained obdurate for some time, and was uot completely reconciled to his sonin-law till the latter lay ^e^inded in his tent after the battle of Buena Vista. There are as many accounts of what was said there as of the battle of Shiloh. Gen. Taylor's words appear to have been these, or very near them: "Colonel, you have saved the day?God bless you! When Dolly would have you, she was a better judge of a man than I was." EIGHT YEARS A PLANTER. June 30, 1S35, Lieut. Davis resigned his commission and located in Mississippi, where he lived for eight years the quiet life of e cotton planter. Then came a "crisis;" the annexation of Texas may be taken as the first issue over which distinctively northern and southern parties confronted each other. In 1843 Lieut. Davis took an active and most effective part in the state campaign and ir 1844 he was one of the Democratic elector: for Mississippi. In 1845 he was ^"elected ? representative in t ongress, and in Decembei of that year took his seat in the house. Ii was called then a "stormy session," but ir retrospect after the long session of 1849-'50, ii was thought mild. Mr. Davis took an active part in the dis cussions on the tariff, the Oregon boundary issue, the Mexican imbroglio, and the slaver] question so far as it came up, but his speech? at that time indicate a position far mori moderate than was afterwards attributed t< him. It is of no great consequence now, bu worth noting as curious matter of history that in the heated discussions regarding Texas the threats of disunion came largel] from the extreme northern men, while th< most eloquent eulogies upon the union cam* fwM-n fViQ cnnf.Vi Tn ? cr?eer*h on the Orecoi question, Feb. 6, 1846, Mr. Davis said: "From sire to son has descended the lov< of union iii our hearts, as in our history ar? mingled the names of Concord and Camden of Yorktown and Saratoga, of Moultrie anc Plattsburg, of Chippewa and Erie, of Nev Orleans and Bunker Hill. Grouped togethe: they form a monument to the common glor^ of our common country; and where is th southern man who would wish that tha monument were less by one of the uorthen names that coustitute the mass?" COL. JEFFERSON DAVIS. His Heroic and Successful Action a Buena Vista. "While Mr. Davis was active in congress ii July, the First regiment of Mississippi volun teers eurolled for the Mexican war electei him their colonel. He resigned at once, over took bis regiment at New Orleans, organize) and drilled it to a high state of efficiency and early in September was on the Ri Grande, in the army of his father-in-law Gen. Zachary Taylor. A few days later h bore a conspicuous part in the siege an< storming of Monterey, and, as commissioner aided in drawing up the terms of capitula tion. Five months of comparative quiet followed and then came the crowning glory of hi military career, the achievement of which j.1 _11 , 1 ? ? more iluui uu eiw, iuru mm in. iuij iu m affections of the southern people, aided hin effectively at each turning point in his subse quent career, made him secretary of war an< finally president of the Southern Confeder acy. This was his gallantry, coolness in dan ger and soldierly skill at the battle of Buem Vista, Feb. 23, 1847. In July, 1846, Mr. Davis was in congress, ii September he was leading his regimen against Monterey; in February, 1847, he wa at Buena Vista, and July of the same yea found him again a peaceful planter, theregi ment's term of service having expired. Ii August, 1847, the governor of Mississippi ap pointed him a United States senator to fU a vacancy; the legislature in 1848 re-electe< him to complete the term, and in 18o0 re elected him for a full terra. The ever mem orable congress of 1849-'51, at its long session had adopted the noted "compromise meas ure," but fully satisfied neither party. I MKMMINQKK. "WALKER. MALLOItY. STEPHENS. REAGAN. BENJAMIN. TOOMBS. CONFEDERATE CABINET AND VTCE PRESIDENT The result was the famous Foote-Davi gubernatorial campaign of 1851. Tbe "Union party, as it was called, carried the state b] 7,500 majority on the convention question but Mr. Foote's majority for governor wa but 999?a remarkable proof of the popular ity of Col. Davis. He had resigned his sea in -the senate, apd now remained in retire ment till 1852, when he canvassed severa states for the Democratic candidates. WAR SECRETARY DAVIS. His Able Administration of the War De partment. March 4,1S53, President Franklin Pierci named Col. Jefferson Davis as secretary o war. That of Pierce was a strong cabinet and secretary Davis was certainly among thi strongest men in it. Men of all parties agre that his administration of the war depart ment was marked by ability and energy, an< many old officers testify that of all secre taries in their time Col. Davis was (save fo; his quarrel with Gen. Scott) most popula; TT J _1 x xl with the army, ne reorgamzeu uimusi/ un entire service, drafted a new code of arnr regulations, introduced the light infantr rifle system of tactics, tried the experimen of camels for transportation on the south western deserts, added four regiments to th< regular army, and improved the entire svs tern of sea coast defenses. He also had th boundaries between Mexico and the Unite* States fixed accurately, and secured the com plete survey and almost the adoption of th southern route for a Pacific railroad. H sent Capt. George B. McClellau and twi - A-1?? Pw'moo f a ofiirltT fVtn mill Ob Lit?!' UiliUtT! 3 tO tLlO \Jl , uv ouwivxj vuu mm tary tactics of the armies there (in 1854-'5) and was so pleased with their report that h retained warm personal feelings for then even through the civil war. With the events of President Pierce's ad ministration congress and the country ma; be said to have entered in full course upoi the proceedings which led to the civil war It is not to be expected that any Americai could at this time take a dispassionate am philosophical view of that part of history All that remains then is to recite the princi pal events and quote briefly the maturet judgment ot menus anu ioes. At his retirement from the cabinet h March, 1837, the legislature of Mississippi hac elected Mr. Davis as United States senato: for the term to close March 4, 18G3. H< plunged at once into the heated debates of tb time,maintaining the rather extreme southen view, and with an ability and courtesy whicl elicited warm praise even from his foes. Tb editor of Harper's Weekly has this sketch o him in 1858: "In the north, Col. Davis is regardedsomewhat unjustly, perhaps?as a typo of th< southern fire eater. Many persons who hav( never seen him fancy him quarrelsome, petu lant, hot beaded, turbulent. His appearance it the senate does not justify these views. A prim smooth looking man, with a precise manner stiff soldierly carriage, and cold expression bis head fuller, seemingly, of statistics ant hard, dry principles than anything else; hii voice cool and firm, without tremor or ex> citement; lie is the last persona spectatoi l would pick out as 'the fire eater.' In hisowr s country he is intensely beloved, chiefly froir < his kind and gentle disposition. He is a mar i of whom Mississippi may well be proud." He also took an active part in opposing the ; French spoliation bill and advocating th< 1 southern route for the Pacific railroad. Hf 5 led the so-called "Lecompton party" in con i gress in opposition to Senator Douglas, anc * in debate with the latter propounded the onc< b celebrated queries and propositions whicl 1 drew from the Illinois senator his famoui fc theory as to the right of a territorial legisla ture to adopt "unfriendly legislation" agains - slavery, and his article in Harper's Magazine j which set forth the creed of the "Dougla 7 Democrats." The breach was now complete s Meantime, in the summer of 1858, he madi 3 a tour for health and pleasure through th< ? eastern states, delivering several addresses t in which the warmest attachment to th< , union was avowed?always, however, with i ; proviso, expressed or implied, that aggres 7 sions upon the south would certainly be me o ~C 4.1 9 Willi resisia.net!. oume ui mtsn auuicssc 9 have a strange sound now. In a letter ac 1 knowledging an invitation to join in a Bostoi celebration of the birthday of Daniel Web 9 ster, in January, 1859, he wrote: 9 "I seud you my cordial greetings to th , friends of the constitution, and ask to be en i rolled among those whose mission is, by fra v ternity and good faith to every constitu r tional obligation, to insure that, from th f Aroostook to San Diego, from Key West fc e Puget sound, the grand arch of our politica t temple shall stand unshaken." 1 DID WAR BEGIN IN 1859? An event was at hand, however, which wa to precipitate the conflict?namely, the ec terprise of John Brown. A million souther men and women, who had laughed at the ide of duuger from "northern aggression," wer suddenly converted, saying, as one of then 1 expressed it, "We can no longer live in peac ' with the north; our allies have become ou ^ enemies, and we must seek release from th " connection while we can do so with safety. * The feeliugs of Jefferson Davis for the nex ? fifteen months may be gathered from the fol 0 lowing letter, written at the close of the dis ? cussion to his long time friend, ex-Presiden ? Pierce; 3 Washington, D. C., Jan. 20,1861. My Dear Friend?I have often and sadly tnrne my thoughts to you during the troublous time through which we have been passing, and now come to the hard task of announcing to you tha g the hour is at hand which closes my connectio with the United States, for the independence an ? union of which my father toiled and in the servic e of which I have sought to emulate the exampl a he set for my guidance. Mississippi, not as i- matter of choice, but of necessity, has resolved t i enter on the trial of secession. Those who hav _ driven her to this alternative threaten to deprivi _ her of the right to require that her governmen shall rest on the consent of the governed, to sut a stitute foreign force for domestic support, to re duceastate to the condition from which the co! a ony rose. In the attempt to avoid the issue whicl t had been' joined by the country, the present ad s .. ministration has complicated and precipitate* r the question. Even now, if the duty "to preserv "the public property1' was rationally regarded, th _ probable collision at Charleston would be avoided Security far better than any which the Federa r troops can give might be obtained in considers I tion of the little garrison of Fort Sumter. If th i disavowal of any purpose to coerce South Care - lina be sincere, the possession of a work to com _ mand the harbor is worse than useless. When Lincoln comes in he will have but to cor ] tinue in the path of his predecessor to inaugurat a civil war, and leave a soi-disant Democratic ad ministration responsible for the fact. Gen. Cush ing was here last week, and when he parted i seemed like taking a last leave of a brother. I leave immediately for Mississippi, and kno\ not what may devolve upon me after my return Civil war has only horror for met, but whateve circumstances may demand shall be met as i duty, and I trust be so discharged that you wi! not be ashamed of our former connection or ceas to be my friend. ? Mrs. Davis joins me in kind remembrance t Mrs. Pierce, and the expression of the hope tha we may yet have you both at our countiy home Do me the favor to write to me often. Addres Hurricane P. O., Warren county, Miss. May God bless you, is ever the prayer of you friend, . Jeff'n Davis. President F. Pierce. < < In that fifteen months events had move* rapidly towards the dread culmination. Ii the first Democratic convention of 1800, Mr Davis received some votes, Benjamin F Butler voting for him 57 times. In th subsequent election the "two northern candi dates," as Mr. Blaine styles them, received al the votes of the northern states save a mer handful, less than 100,000, while Breckin ridge and Bell received the almost solid vot ^ of the southern states. "In truth as well a ' in appearance,'" adds Mr. Blaine, "it was i s sectional content, in which the north support ~ ed northern candidates and the south south ? ern candidates." "Disunion "was already 1 completed in the hearts of the people," say Tourgee, "the sections simply fell apart be cause there was no cohesion." These opinion of philosophic observers long after the strug gle, have their value. THE CONFEDERACY FORMED. 9 f Jefferson Davis Sees Washington for th< I Last Time. 0 South Carolina led off in secession; Mis e sissippi soon followed, and five more states r It is idle to recount the futile attempts a 3 compromise. Senator Davis was named om -- of the committee of thirteen in the senate r but asked to be excused on the ground tha r propositions for compromise at such a timi 9 ought to come from northern men, am y men whose party standing was a guar Y antee of good faith?a position highly praisec t in the north at the time. A little later h< - consented to assist, saying: 1 THE WHITE HOUSE OF THE CONFEDERACY. "If, in the opinion of others, it be possiblf - for me to do anything for the public good 1 the last moment while I stand hero is at thi command of the senate. If I could see an] i means by which I could avert the catastro 1 phe of a struggle between the sections of th< r union, my past life, I hope, gives evidenci e of the readiness with which I would mak< e the effort. If there be any sacrifice which J i could offer on the altar of my country t< i heal all the evils, present or prospective, n( e man has the right to doubt my readiness t( f do it." "With only two or three exceptions the de - parture of southern statesmen as their state: 3 seceded was singularly calm and dignified 3 On the 21st of January, 18G1, the senator - from Florida, Alabama and Mississippi with i drew. Mr. Blaine praises the manner of Sen , ator Davis, adding: "No man gave up more , than Mr. Davis in joining the revolt againsi ; the Union. In his farewell address to th( I senate there was a tone of moderation anc ? dignity not unmixed with regretful and ten' - der emotions." Before Senator Davis could reach home t Mississippi hod appointed him commander in a i chief of all her forces, with the rank of major tl i general. On the 4th of February, 1861, dele- tl gates from several states convened in Mont- e: 5 goinery, Ala., and soon adopted a constitu5 tion for the Confederate states. On the 9th h i the convention unanimously elected Jefferson ti - Davis president. Alexander H. Stephens was n I named for vice president and inaugurated at tl i once. On the 16th Mr. Davis arrived; on i the 18th he was inaugurated. S THE CONFEDERATE CABINET. tl He named for his cabinet: Robert Toombs, h t of Georgia, secretary of state; Leroy Pope h , Walker, of Alabama, secretary of war; f s Charles G. Memminger, of South Carolina, v . secretary of the treasury; Stephen R. Mai- t a lory, of Florida, secretary of the navy; Judah t e P. Benjamin, attorney general, and John H. v , Reagan, of Texas, postmaster general. Id t b the divisions which soon arose, Messrs. f i Toombs. Walker and Memminger retired; \ i- the others remained in the cabinet to the last, t t Mr. Benjamin was popularly credited with * a s being the "ruling spirit." He was among s the last to leave Richmond and to part with t 3 President Davis; he escaped arrest and im- I prisonment by flight to London, where be ? became a British subject, and soon entered on e a career at the bar so brilliant and successful s - that it caused his American failures to be al- c most forgotten. r / ; 1 r d DAVIS IN PRISON. t ? The inaugural address of President Davis t J was read with breathless interest in every c part of the country, as, in the prevalent c ^ ignorance and confusion, men sought in it the r Ap no ah wor Rnf. if. n/uC nrif 41 ? IliUl^ai/lUilO \JL VX "Ul, f ww ?w f?uw UWI e in the power of any mail, however wise, at i a that time to give assurances. The most sig t o nificant passage in it, perhaps, was this: e e "We have entered upon a career of inde- t 9 pendence, and it must be inflexibly pursued. Through many years of controversy witb y our late associates of the northern states we e [. have vainly endeavored to secure tranquil- t b lity, and obtain respect for the righ ts to which c I- we are entitled. As a necessity, not of choice, 8 3 we have resorted to the remedy of separation, g e and henceforth our energies must be directed ^ f to the conduct of our own affairs, and the e j perpetuity of the Confederacy which we have c ? formed. 1 e Commissioners were sent to Washington [ t- and fruitless negotiations conducted. Be- c i- tween the inauguration and the 1st of April c public opinion ih both sections turned to the r l" contemplation of war. In vain did President t 0 Lincoln proclaim that he "certainly had nc \ desire and believed he had no authority tc t t interfere with slavery." In vain did Presi- t dent Davis reiterate that he longed to avoid s 1 the effusion of blood. On the 12th of April. ? 1861, the war began with the attack on Fort 1 Sumter. ? "The uprising of the north"?that most marvelous of all recent popular phenomenafollowed at once. The uprising of the south o was scarcely, if at all, less prompt arid unani- , t ,mous, save in the northern tier of states. > Virginia seceded April 17; Tennessee and , ? Arkansas followed May 0, and on May 20 l r North Carolina completed the list of eleven i * Confederate states. May zu tne couiederare government was transferred to Richmond, j and President Davis followed in a few days. His journey was a coutinued ovation; his , speeches were chiefly exhortations to unity i" and courage, with brief arguments which j g were merely variations of the clause in j his first message to congress, April 29. s i . viz., "All we ask is to be let alone?that t e those who never held power over us j shall not attempt our subjugation by arms. ; e This we will, we must, resist to the direst j ? extremity." i " At Montgomery the congress had already f provided for "a vigorous prosecution of the ^ war"?that is, for a loan of $50,000,0U() at ? f _ per cent., in addition to a previous loan of y c $15,000,000, and the creation of an army r u which "might, in the discretion of the presi- i v dent, be increased to 100,000 men!" Priva- s teering was also organized. The people re- j sponded with such alacrity that President j Davis, on arriving at Richmond, had only tc t officially confirm their action. In a surpris- r ingly short time 60,000 men were organized B in Virginia, and fifteen vessels commissioned ? as privateers. The Federal government was r also moving with a celerity that now seems s wonderful, but to the impatient people at the r ^ time seemed criminal slackness. A blockade r g of all Confederate ports was proclaimed t April 19, and nearly 100 vessels were soon fi ? armed to enforce it. By the 1st of July a j B Federal army of over 200,000 men was or- c j ganized. s t j A PERSONAL DIGRESSION. s 3 1 Faults of Administration Urged Against q President Davis. y And here the biographer of Jefferson Da-^ f vis is compelled to take notice ot a contro- s versy which went on in a quiet way during t the war and more openly afterwards, till it c reached a furious climax, and is still waged fi with much bitterness. Without indorsing the harsh philippics of Edwin Pollard and Gen. Thomas Jordan, or even the milder criticisms of Gens. Johnston and Beauregard, 1 Federal and Confederate may now agree that President Davis made two serious? should one say fatal??mistakes: the one was s , common to him and nearly all the leaders on s i both sides, the other peculiarly his own. It v ; was a manifestation of that spirit which is v * often praised as the quality of "always c sticking to one's friends"?a very amiable c quality indeed in a private man, but one v 3 which in a commander-in-chief in time of I , war may be a criminal folly. A most un- u 3 happy instance is thus set forth by Gen. t' r Thomas Jordan, chief of staff to Gen. Beau- c - regard: t! 3 "Mr. Davis had been at West Point, and 1< 3 subsequently served for several years in the d 3 Iragoons at a frontier post with a Lieut. Nor- c [ throp, to whom ho became attached. The c 3 latter was disabled by an accident, went to e > his home and turned parish doctor. Mr. c ) Davis became in time a politician. Lieut, t! Northrop grew so eccentric and full of mental 1 - crotchets as to be generally regarded in b 3 Charleston as of unsound intellect and unfit T . for the management of. his own small affairs, c 3 He had not served long enough in the army - to acquire familiarity with military adminis- ? - tration; neither had his avocation in Charles- r 3 ton brought him in relation with men engaged si b in large commercial affairs. This man, with c 3 whom Davis had no personal association since tl I they were cavalry lieutenants together on the ii Indian frontier, he did not hesitate to make ti his chief of subsistence, nor scruple to intrust a 3 with the organization and administration of tl bureau upon which the very existence of le Confederate armies must depend, and for ne labors of which it is apparent the soundst practical order of intellect was essential." It would be easy to find Confederates of igb rank and approved judgment in miliary affairs who still look upon this appointlent and two others as the main causes-of he downfall of the Confederacy. WHO KOKKSAW A LONG WAKT As to the other charge so persistently urged, hat Mr. Davis was "not able 10 compreend the proportions of the struggle impendag," the obvious answer is, Who was? A ew, a very few, thoughtful men in the north, vho drew their conclusions largely from hisory, predicted a long aad bitter struggle; in he south it is exceedingly doubtful if there vere fifty men who believed the contest vould outlust a year. If there was one who, rom the begiiuiing, anticipated a four years' vur, lie succeeded admirably in concealing lis views. That President Davis, his cabinet md all his advisers shared the current deluion that the war would be short and its thea re confined principally to the coast unrt tne ?order between the two sections, is certain. 5uch belief was the parent of many errors. In the first place, it was estimated that the outh had almost arms enough, and the first oriel* sent to Europe was for but 10,()00 Enfield ifles! Before the blockade could be made ffective it was urged that the Confederate government should take the cotton and tolacco, of which a large stock was still on land, Issue bonds to pay the owners, export he stuff to Europe, and make it the basis o 1 i fund to draw upon. The owners generally vere willing, and the effect wonld have been reinendous. At. the same time a considerable amount of foreign exchange in the banks vas offered to the government on favorable erms. Both propositions were rejected ox gnored, and the golden opportunity soon lassed, never to return. It should tie noted dso that the legislation of the provisional ougress, and of the first session of the reguar congress at Richmond, shows the same ack of perception as to the gTetttness of the mpending struggle. On the Federal side of the line much of th? roth and nonsense about "a short war" wa* wept away by the battle of Bull Run; th? est was done for at Shiioh. After the lattei houghtful men both north and south mad< Ip their minds that the issue was to be tena :iously fought to a close. The north erred tften in expecting great and decisive victoies; the south quite as often in expecting oreign interference or a division in the north. Prue, Mr. Benjamin at Richmond continued o promise "pacification in ninety days" long ifter Mr. Seward at Washington had ceased o do so, but he found few echoes. an appalling difficulty. The victory of Bull Run produced great imitation in the south, but appears to have lad a decidedly sobering effect upon Presilent Davis and cabinet. It may now be conidered proved that he was in for aggressive iction immediately after that battle, but delded to the adverse opinions of Johnston rod Beauregard, and thereafter, with rare exceptions, insisted upon, a defensive policy. )uring the long period of inaction which folowed he embraced every opportunity to de ilare his earnest desire for peace. He even ixcited criticism by suggesting conciliatory neasures; for many months all his utterroces were amplifications of that passage in lis first regular message. "The moment that his pretense of our subjugation is abandoned, ;he sword will di^op from our grasp and we hall be ready to enter into treaties of amity md friendship." MR. DAVIS' EDDSK, BJCaUVOTR In November, 1861, a general election was leld, and President Davie and Vice President 3tephens were re-elected for the full term of ix years. Feb. 18, 1862, the first congress rader the permanent constitution assembled n Richmond; on the 22d, President Davis vas inaugurated, and delivered a careful!y )repared message. Disasters hitd already set n, to continue with scarcely an intermission or three months. Before President Davis vas this ominous situatioa: Iu all the Conederate states thei^j were not quite 0,000,00C vhite people, among whom the per cent, oi nen capable of bearing arms was aurprisngly small. In the Federal or "adhering tates," excluding all the doubtful and dismted strip, were at least 18,000,000 white )eople, among whom the per ceut. of adult nales was phenomenally, one might say unmturally, large. By the census of 1860 the south contained ibout 200,U00 more women than men, the lorth about 400,000 more meu than women; o the north could seud into the field 600,00( nen and still have at home a percentage oi nen equal to that of the south iu peace. Ol he euormous immigration of 1845?'61, conlisting largely of young and strong men, only ! per cent, had -located in the south. This sxplains the paradox that such states as Kanas and Nevada sent a larger per cent, of heir total population into the field than anj tate of the south, and yet had many more nen left at home than older states ever have luring the longest peace. The disparity in vealth was far greater?by some estimates bur times as great. "Without accepting sc trong a statement it may yet be admitted hat the Federals were three tftnes as numer?us and eight times as rich as the Confederites. "THE LOST CAUSE." [lie Confederacy Overthrown?Twoiity-flve Years iu Peace. Nevertheless hope and confidence were trong. President Davis' first state papers howed great ability, and he assented, somewhat reluctantly, to a conscription law, which was among the first acts passed by the ongress. It excited much opposition, of ourse, and a little later the habeas corpus was suspended in a district ten miles around tichmond. and a military police organized nder Gen. Winder, which continued during he remainder of the war. The summer losed favorably to the Confederates though hey regained little or none of the ground Dst in the spring; and in December Presient Davis made a tour of the western amps, from which he returned greatly enouraged. In April, 1803, ho issued a rather xulting address to the people, but the laims in it were just. The Confederacy was hen at its maximum as a military power, 'he disasters of that summer from Gettysurg to Vicksburg need not be detailed, 'he year closed under the black shadow of oming doom. The real greatness of Jefferson Davis shone onspicuously as disasters thickened. He esolutely defended his appointees, and asimed the responsibility wherever it was not learly theirs. He regained the hearts of :ie people and almost nullified the opposition i the congress. A committee of investiga- i ion entered upon its work in a hostile spirit, ; nd ended by indorsing almost every one of j ae president's acts, and even exonerated bim from serious blame in the matter of Commissary Northrop. He exerted himself heroically in preparing for the campaign of 1864, and it opened with some slight successes. All the rest of the year presents a painful record of desperate struggle against the inevitable; every victory was barren, every defeat irremediable. As the ship of state sank deeper in the vortex, mutual recriminations naturally multiplied. The removal of Joe Johiis*ton, the enterprise of Hood and the restoration of Johnston, the "shelving" of Beauregard aud th? break with Governor Brown, of Georgia- there is not space to discuss them. Are they not argued and reargued at length in the magazines? Gen. Hood came nobly to the rescue by assinning full responsibility, and Governor Brown was so far reconciled as to cease serious opposition. FLIGHT AUD CAJTURFTbn wild projects iD the Confederate congress in the winter of 1804-'5 were hut the frenzies of dissolution and despair. Military movements really decided everything and iD [From a recent portrait.] them this fact was ever prominent: A man lost by Grant conJd be replaced if desired by three; a man lost by Lee was a final loss. On the 2d of April. 1865, seated in his pew in St. Paul's church, Richmond, President Davis received the dispatch from Gen. Lee announcing his complete discomfiture. At 8 p. m. the president, cabinet and other officials left for Danville, at which point President Davis issued his last proclamation, his last state paper. Ten days later he was at Greensboro, N. C.; a week later he halted at Charlotte, where he first learned that $100,000 reward had been offered for his capture as an instigaW of the assassination of President Lincoln. All men now admit that the charge was false. Another week found him almost alone, a fugitive in the forests of Georgia, with his wife and a few devoted adherents. On the 10th of May he was captured near Irwinsville, Ga., by a body of cavalry uuder Lieut. Pni Pritahard. "Mr. Davis." savs one of his captors, "had on when arrested an ordinary suit, with a very long raglan overcoat and a shawl on his shoulders." In the dim light of morning he was at first taken for a woman, hence the sfory so widely published. He was conveyed at once to Fortress Monroe, which he entered on the 19th of May, to remain a captive for nearly two years. And so all was over. The Southern Confederacy had dropped to pieces like a house of cards, and its president, once the beloved colonel, the honored senator, the Federal secretary of war, the successful statesman and aspiring politician, was a prisoner?in irons I Yes, all that was bright and hopeful was gone; nothing now remained but to hang the prisoner, as had been so of ten promised; to write his history so as to fix his name in infamy, and in no long time his own people would disown him as the cause of their woes. All this, in the opinion of many sanguine ones, was soou to be. Only it did not prove so. The world was now to witness another of those revulsions in popular feeling which so often delight the emotional and puzzle the philosophic. At sight of this sorely stricken man all southern criticism was instantly hushed, and in due time thoughts of something far nobler than vengeance pervaded the north. Mr. Davis bore his sufferings with such Roman fortitude that southern hearts were knitted to him as never before. His critics apologized, even when truth was on their side. His wife shared his captivity and excited the world's interest in his case. His first wife, daughter of Gen. Taylor, had died many years before,but the one who shared his fortunes as official and as captive was a lady of refinement and intellect worthy of any station. His oldest and most inveterate opponents were first to soften; the Abolitionists asked - leniency, and in May, 1S<17, before the United States circuit court at Richmond, Horace Greeley and Gerritt Smith joined ? rvion -?r* oinrninrv Vne lio 11 WILLI LUttiljr ^uutun u men u? oigiuu^ uio VMU bond. He had been formally indicted for treason; but, in December, 1SG8, by the same court, a nolle prosequi was entered, and the case of "The United States vs. Jefferson Davis" was ended forever and to the satisfaction of almost every American. RETIREMENT AND A QUIET LIFE. After a brief tour in Europe he located at Memphis as presidentof a life insurance comuewed' expressions Beau voir, Miss., on his son, a manly WINNIE DAVIS . gent lemon by yolloiv fever at Mem- federacy." phis, was a severe blow; but his wife and two daughters remained to him. Of these the younger, Varina Davis, affectionatelyjkuown as "Winnie, is styled "The Child of the Confederacy," having been born in the presidential mansion in Richmond during the war. She has lately shown [literary ability ot' a high order, and may yet rank among the noted authoresses of America. In no act was the wisdom of America's rulers more conspicuously displayed than in extendin ; clemency to Jefferson Davis; his existence tor twenty-five years after the war has been i continuous monument of the ability which recreated the nation, and to the magnanimity of the victors.