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About Weekly constitutionalist. (Augusta, Ga.) 185?-1877 | View Entire Issue (May 30, 1866)
BY STOCKTON & CO. OUR TERMS. The following are the rates of Subscription and Ad vertising in the Constitutionalist : Weekly—3 Months. $ 75 6 Months 1 50 TERMS FOR ADVERTISEMENTS; jl per Square for Ist insertion, and 75 cents for each additional time. Special Notices will be charged 25 percent, on the above rates. The Last Battle, Wounding and Death of Stonewall Jackson. The following authentic and deeply intercst icg account of the wounding and death of the threat Confederate chieftain, Stonewall Jackson, is taken from the May number of the Rich mond Medical Journal. No one will regret the space It occupies in our columns. The battle of Chanccllorsville was fought on the 2d and 3d of May, 1863. It was on the night of the 2d that the dreadful accident (General Jackson having received his wounds at the hands of his own men,) occurred, which was the turning point in the fortunes of tlie Confederacy. We append the account: Last Wound or the Late General Jackson (Stonewall)— The Amputation of the Arm — His Last Moments and Death.— By Hunter McGuire, M. 1)., Professor of Sur gery in the Medical College of Virginia, and late Medical Director of General Jackson’s Command. Supported upon either side by his aids, Cap tains James Smith and Joseph Morrison, the General moved slowly and painfully towards the rear. Occasionally resting for a moment to shake off the exhaustion which pain and the loss of blood produced, lie at last reached the line of battle, where most of the men were ly ing down, to escape the shell and eannister with which the Federals raked the road. Gen eral Pender rode up here to the little party and asked who was wounded, and Captain Smith, who had been instructed by General Jackson to tell no one of his injury, simply answered “a Confederate officer;” but Pender recognized the General, and, springing from his horse, hur riedly expressed his regret, and added that his lines were so much broken he feared it would be necessary to fall back. At tljis moment the scene was a fearful one. The air seemed to lie alive with the shrieks of shells and the whist ling of bullets; horses, riderless and mad with fright, dashed in every direction ; hundreds left the ranks and fled to the rear, and the groans of the wounded and dying, mingled with the wild shouts of others to be led again to the assault. Almost fainting as he was, from loss of blood, fearfully wounded, and, as he thought, dying, Jackson was undismayed by this terrible scene. The words of Pender'secmed to rouse him to life. Pushing aside the men who supported him, he stretched himself to his full height, and answered leebly, but distinctly enough to he heard above the din of battle, “ General, Pen der, yon must hold on to the field, you must hold out to the last.” It was Jackson’s last or der upon the field of battle. Still more ex hausted by this effort, he asked to he permitted to lie down for a few moments, but the danger from the fire, and capture by the Federal ad vance, was too imminent, and his aids hurried him on. A litter having been obtained, he was placed upon it, and the bearers passed on as rapidly as the thick woods and rough ground permitted. Unfortunately, another one of the hearers was struck down, and the litter having been supported at each of the four corners by n man, fell and threw the General to the grund. The fall was a serious one, and as he touched the earth, he gave, for the first time, expression to his suffering, and groaned piteously. Captain Smith sprang to his side, and as lie raised his head, a bright beam of moonlight made its way through the thick foliage, and rested upon the pale face of the poor sufferer. The Captain was startled by its great pallor and stillness, and cried out, “ Oh! General, are you seriously hurt ?” “No,” he answered, “ don't trouble yourself, my friend, about me,” and presently added something about winning the battle first, and attending to the wounded after wards. He was placed upon the litter again, and carried a few hundred yards, when 1 met him with an ambulance. I knelt down by him, and said, “ I hope you are not badly hurt, Gen eral.” He replied, very calmly, but feebly, “ I am badly injured, Doctor ; I fear I am dying.” After a pause he continued, “ I am glad you have come. I think the wound in my shoulder is still bleeding.” His clothes were saturated with blood, and haemorrhage was still going on from the wound. Compression of the artery with the fiuger arrested it, until lights being procured from the ambulance, the handkerchief, which had slipped a little, was readjusted. His calmness amid the dangers which surrounded him, and at the supposed presence of death, and his uniform politeness, which did not forsake him, even under these, the most trying circum stances, were remarkable. His complete con trol, too, over his mind, enfeebled ns it. was, by loss of blood, pain, &e., was wonderful. His suffering at this time was intense; his hands were cold, his skin clammy, his face pale, and his lips compressed and bloodless ; not a groan escaped him—not a sign of suffering, except the slight corrugation of his brow, the fixed rigid face, and the this lips, 60 tightly compressed, that the impression of the teeth could be seen through them. Accept these, he controlled, by his iron will, all evidence of emotion, and more difficult than this even, he controlled that dis position to restlessness, which many of us have observed upon the field of battle, attending great loss of blood. Some whisky and morphia were procured from Dr. Straith and adrainis* tered to him, and placing him in the ambulance, it was skirted for the Corps Field Infirmary, at the Wilderness Tavern. Col. Crutchfield, his Chief of Artillery, was also in the ambulance wagon. He had been wounded very seriously in the leg, and was suffering intensely. The General expressed, very feelingly, his sympathy for Crutchfield, and once, when the latter groaned aloud, he directed the ambulance to stop, and requested me to see if something could not be done for h ilk .relief. Torches had been provided, and every means taken to carry f them to the hospital, as safely and easily as | possible. I sat in the front part of the ambu- I lance, with my finger resting npon tbe artery ( above the wound, to arrest bleeding, if it ! should occur. When I was recognized by ac quaintances, and asked who was wounded, the General would tell me to say, “A Confederate officer.” At one time he put his right band upon my head, and piling me down to him, [Raked if Crutchfield JWs dangerously wound- Bed. When answered “ No, only painfully ■hurt,” he replied, “ I am glad it is no worse.” Bin a few moments after, Crutchfield did the feame thing, and when he was told that the ■General was very seriously wounded, he groan- B*d, and cried out, “ Oh, my God!” It was for AUGUSTA, GA., WEDNESDAY MORNING, MAY 30, 1866. this that the General directed the ambulance to be halted, and requested that something should be done for C.’s relief. After reaching the hospital he was placed in lied, covered with blankets, and another drink of whisky and water given him. Two hours and a half elapsed before sufficient reaction took place to warrant an examination. At two o’clock Sunday morning, Surgeons Black, Wall and Coleman being present, I informed him that chloroform would he given him, and his wounds examined. I told him that amputation would probably be required, and asked, if it was found necessary, whether it should be done at once. He replied promptly, “Yes, certainly; Dr. Maguire, do for me whatever you think best.” Chloform was then adminis tered, and, as he began to feel its effects and its relief to the pain he was suffering, he exclaimed, “What an infinite blessing,” and continued to repeat the word “blessing” until ho became in sensible. The round bail —such as is used for the smooth-bore Springfield musket—which had lodged under the skin upon the back of his right hand, was extracted first; it had entered the palm about the middle of the hand, and had fractured two of the bones. The left arm was then amputated, about two inches below the shoulder, very rapidly, and with slight loss of blood, the ordinary circular operation having been made. There were two wounds in Ills arm, the first and most serious was about three inches below the shoulder joint, the hall divid ing the main artery, and fracturing the bone.— The second was several inches in length; a ball having entered the outside of the forearm, an inch below the elbow, came out npon the op posite side, just above the wrist. Throughout the whole of the operation, and until all the dressings were applied, he continued insensible. Two or three slight wounds of the skin in his face, received from the branches of trees, when his horse dashed tli rough the woods, were dressed simply with isinglass plaster. About half-past three o’clock Colonel (then Major) Pendleton, the Assistant Adjutant General, ar rived at the hospital, and asked to see the Gen eral. He stated that General Hill had been wounded, and that the troops were in great dis order. General Stuart was in command, and had sent him to see the General. At first, I de clined to permit an interview, but the Colonel urged that the safety of the army and success of the cause depended .upon his seeing him. When lie entered the tent, the General said, “Well, Major, I am glad to see you, I thought you were killed.” Pendleton briefly explained the con dition of affairs, gave Stuart’s message, and asked what should be done. General Jackson was at once interested, and asked in his quick, rapid way several questions. Wiien they were answered, he remained silent for a moment, evidently trying to think; he contracted his brow, set his mouth, and for some moments was obviously endeavoring to concentrate his thoughts. For a moment it was believed he had succeeded, for his nostril dilated and his eye flashed its old fire, but it was only for a moment; his face relaxed again, and presently lie answered very feebly and sad ly, “ I don’t know —I can’t tell; say to General Stuart he must do what he thinks best.” Soon after this, lie slept for several hours, and seem ed to be doing well. The next morning he was free from pain, and expressed himself sanguine of recovery. He sent his Aid-de-Camp, Mor rison, to inform his wife of his injuries, aud to bring her at once to see him. The following note, from General Lee, was read to him that morning by Captain Smith : “ I have just re ceived your note, informing me that you were wounded. I cannot express my regret at the occurrence. Could I have directed events, I should have chosen, for the good of the coun try, to have been disabled in your stead. I con gratulate you upon the victory which is due to your skill and energy.” He replied, “General Lee should give the nraise to God.” Abut ten o’clock, jits right side began to pain him so much that lie asked me to examine it. Ho said he had injured it in-falling from the litter the night before, and believed that he had struck it against a stone or the stump ot a sapling. No evidence of injury could be discovered by ex amination ; the skin was not broken or bruised, and the lung performed, as far as I could tell, its proper functions. Some simple application was recommended, in the belief that the pain would soon disappear. At this time the battle was raging fearfully, and the sound of the cannon and musketry could be distinctly heard at the hospital. The General’s attention was attracted to it from the first, and w'hen the noise was at its height, and indicated how fiercely the conflict was being carried on, he directed all of his attendants, except Captain Smith, to return to the battle field, and attend to their different duties. By eight o’clock, Sunday night, the pain in his side had disappeared, and in all respects he seemed to be doing well. He inquired minutely about the battle, and different troops engaged, and his face would light up with enthusiasm and interest, when toid how this brigade acted, or that officer displayed conspicuous courage, and his head gave the peculiar shake from side to side, and ho uttered his usual “good, good,” with unwonted energy, when the gallant be haviour of the “Stonewall Brigade" was alluded to. He said, “ The men of that brigade will be, some day, proud to say to their chil dren, ‘I was one of the Stonewall Brigade.’” He disclaimed any right of his own to the name Stonewall. “It belongs to the brigade, and not to me.” This night he slept well, and was free from pain. A message was received from General Lee the next morning, directing me to remove the Genenil to Guinea’s Station as soon as his condition would justify it, as there was some danger of capture by the Federals, who were threatening to cross at Ely’s Ford. In the meantime, to protect the hospital, some troops were sent to this point. The General objected to being moved, if, in my opinion, it would do him any injury. He said he had no objection to staying in a tent, and would prefer it, if his wife, when she came, could find lodging in a neighboring house. “ And if the enemy does come,” he added, “ I am not afraid of them ; I have always been kind to their wounded, and lam sure they will be kind to me.” General Lee sent word again, late that evening, that he mast be moved if possible, and preparations were made to leave the next morning’. I was directed to accompany and remain with him, and tny duties witli the corps, .as Medical Di rector, were turned over to the surgeon next in rank. General Jackson had previously de clined to permit me to go with him to because complaints had been so frequently made, of general officers, when wounded, car rying off with them the surgeons belonging to their commands. When informed of this order of the Commanding General, he said, “ Genera! Lee has always been very kind to me, and I thank him.” Very early Tuesday morning lie was placed in an ambulance, and started for Guinea’s Station, and about 3 o'clock that eve ning he arrived at the Chandler House, where he remained till he died. Captain Hotehkis-, with a party of engineers, was sent .in front to clear the road of wood, stone, etc., and to order the wagons out of the track to let the ambulance pass. The rough teamsters some times refused to move their loaded wagons out Os the way for an ambulance, until toid that it contained Jackson, and then, with all possible speed, they give the way and stood witli hats off, aud weeping, as he went by. At Spotsyl vania Court House, and along the whole route, men and women rushed to the ambulance, bringing all the poor delicacies they had, and, with tearful eyes, they blessed him, and prayed for his recovery. He bore the journey well, and was cheerful throughout the day. He talk- freely about the late battle, and, among other things, said that he had intended to endeavor to out the Federals off from the United States Ford, aud, taking a position between them and the river, oblige them to attack him; and he added, with a smile, “My men sometimes fail to drive the enemy from a position; but they always fail to drive us aw.iy.” He spoke of Rotles, and alluded in high terms to his magni ficent behaviour on the field, Saturday’ evening. He hoped he would be promoted. He thought promotions for gallantry should be made at once, upon the field, and not delayed; matte very early, or upon the field, they would be the greatest incentives to gallantry in others. He spoke of Colonel Willis,* who commanded the skirmishers ofßodes’ Division, and praised him very highly, and referred to the death of Pax ton and Boswell very feelingly. He alluded to them as officers of great 4perit aud promise.— The day was quite warm, aud at one time he suffered with slight nausea. At his suggestion, I placed over his stomach a wet towel and lie expressed great relief from it. After he arrived at Chandler’s house, lie eat some bread and tea with evident relish, and slept well throughout the entire night. Wednesday he was thought to be doing remarkably well” He cat heartily, tor one in his condition, and was uniformly cheerful. I found his wounds to he doing very well to-day. Union by the first intention had taken place, to some extent, in the stump and the rest of the surface of the wound exposed, was covered with healthy granulations. The wound in his hand gave him little pain, and the dis charge was healthy. Simple lint and water dressings were used, both for the stump and hand, and upon the palm of the latter a light, short splint was applied, to assist, in keeping at rest the fragments of the second and third metacarpal bones. He expressed great satis faction when told that his wounds were heal ing, and asked if I could tell from their ap pearance how long he would probably be kept from the field. Conversing with Capt. Smith, a few moments afterwards, he alluded 4o his injuries, and said, “Many would regard them as a.great misfortune ; I regard them as one of the blessings of my life.” Captain S. replied, “ All things work together lor good to those that love God.” “Yes,” he answered, “that's it, tiiat’s it.” At my request Dr. Morrison came to-day, and remained with him. About one o'clock l Thursday morning, while I was asleep upon a lounge in his room, he di rected his servant Jim to apply a wet towel to his stomach, to relieve an attack of nausea, with which he was again troubled. The ser vant asked permission to first consult me, hut the General, knowing that I had slept none for nearly three nights, refused to allow the ser vant to distort) me, and demanded the towel. — About daylight I was aroused, and found him sufferings with great pain. An examination disclosed pleuro-pneumonia of the right side. — I believed, and the consulting physicians con curred in the opinion, that it was attributable to the fall t'nWn the litter,, the night he was wounded. The General himself referred it to tins accident. I think the disease came on too soon, after the application of the wet. cloths, to admit of the supposition, once believed, that it was induced by them. The nausea, for which the cloths were applied that night may have been the result of inflamatioii already begun Contusion of the lung, with extravasation of blood in his chest, was probably produced by the fall referred to, and shock and loss of blood prevented any ill effects until reaction had been well established, and then inflamatioii ensued. Cups were applied, and mercury, with nntiqio ny and opium, administered.* Towards the evening he became better, and hopes were again entertained of his recovery. Mrs. Jack son arrived to-day, and nursed him faithfully to the end. She was a devoted wife and earnest Christian, and endeared us all to her by her great kindness arid gentleness. The General’s joy at the presence of his wife and child was very great, and for him unusually demonstra tive. Noticing the sadness of his wife, he said to her tenderly, “ I know you would gladly give your life for me, but I am perfectly re signed. Do not he sad; I hope I may yet re cover. Pray for me, hut always remember in your prayers to use the petition, ‘Thy will be done.’ ” Friday his wounds were again dress ed, and although the quantity of the discharge from them had diminished, the process ofheal ing was still going oil. The pain in his side had disappeared, but he breathed witli difficul ty, and complained of a feeling o( great ex haustion. When Dr. Breckenridgc (who with Dr. Smith had been sent for in consultation) said lie hoped that a blister, which had been ap plied, would afford him relief, he expressed his own confidence in it, and his final recovery. Dr. Tucker, from Richmond, arrived on* Sat urday, and al! that human skill could devise was done, to stay the hand of death. lie suf fered no pain to-day, and his breathingwwas less difficult, but he was evidently hourly* growing weaker. When his child was brought to him, to-day, lie played with it for some time ; frequently caressing it, and calling it his “little comfort er." At one time, he raised his wounded hand above its head, aud closing his eyes, wag for some moments, silently engaged in prayer. He said to me, “ I see from the number of physi cians, that you think my condition dangerous, but I thank God, if it is His will, that I am ready to go.” About daylight, on Sunday morning, Mrs. Jackson informed him that his recovery was very doubtful, and that it was better that he should be prepared for the worst. He was silent for a moment, aud then said: “It will be infinite gain to be translated to Heaven.” He advised his wife, in the event of his death, to return to her father’s house, and added, “You have a kind and good lather, but there is no one so kind and good as your Heavenly father.” He still expressed a hope of his re covery, hut requested her, it he should die, to have him buried in Lexington, in the Valley of Virginia. His exhaustion increased so rapidly, that at eleven o’clock, Mrs. Jackson knelt by his bed, and told him that before the sun went down lie would be with his Saviour. He re plied, “Ob, no! you arc frightened my child, death is not so near; I may yet get well.”— She fell over upon the bed, weeping bitterly, and told him again that the physicians said there was no hope. After a moment’s pause, he asked her to call rne. “ Doctor, Anna in forms me that you have told her that I arn to die to-day; is it so ?” When he was answered, he turned his eyes towards the celling, and gazed fora moment or two, as if in intense thought, ttien replied, “ Very good, very good, it is ail right.” He then tried to comfort his almost heart-broken wife, and told her he had a good deal to say to tier, but he was too weak. Colonel l’endlcton came into the room about one o’clock, arid be asked him, “ Who was preaching at headquarters to-day ?” When told that the w hole army was praying for him, * be replied, “ Thank God —they are very kind.” He said: “It is the Lord’s dav ; my wish is fulfilled. I have always desired to die on Sun day.” His mind now began to fail and wander, and he frequently talked as if in command upon the field, giving orders in his old way ; then the scene shitted, mid be was at the mess-table, in conversation with members of his staff; now with his wife and child; now at prayers with his military family. Occasional intervals of re turn of his mind would appear, and during ono of them, I offered him some brandy and water, but he declined it, saying, “ It will only delay my departure, and do no good ; I want to pre serve my mind, it possible, to the last.” About hulf-pasf one, he wad told that he had but two hours to live, and he answered again, feebly, but firmly, “ Very good, it is all right.” A few mo ments before he died, he cried out in his deliri um, “Order A. P. Hill to prepare for action! pass the infantry to the front rapidly ! tell Ma jor Hawks ” —then stopped, leaving the sentence unfinished. Presently, a Rinilc of ineffable sweetness spread itself over iris pale face, and lie said quietly, and with an expression, as it of relief, “ Let us cross over the river, and rest un der the shade of the trees;” and then, without pain, of the least struggle, his spirit passed from earth to the God who gave it. * Subsequently killed In battle. t A detailed account of the treatment is prevented by the loss of notes kept of the ease. These notes, with other papers, were captured by the Federals, March, 1565. • The Notes of National Banks—Liability of Government for their Redemption. &c. The following letter, and the decisions it con tains, is peculiarly interesting at this time, when the public is turning a suspicious eye upon the National Banks and all that relates to them : “Treasury of the United States, ) “ Washington, May IC, 1866. ( “ Dear Sir : Your letter of the" 10th instant has just now’ been received. “ Yon ask to what extent is the Government liable for the redemption of the notes of the National Batiks. “ I answer to the full nominal face value of every note issued by the Comptroller of the Currreney to a hank, and by the bank put into circulation. “ You ask, ‘Should the hank deposits with the United States Treasurer to secure the cir culating notes witli the hanks depositing them bo inadequate to the redemption of the notes of the hank, by reason of the decline of the secu rities deposited, is the Government bound to redeem the notes at par ?’ The 47th section of the National Currency act not only gives the right to forfeit all the securities held tor any deficiency, but the Government has a first anil paramount lien npon all the assets of a default ing bank. 1 therefore answer this question affirmatively. “ You ask again, ‘ Could the absolute falling of a National Bank impair the value of the cir culating notes of the bank making such fail ure ?’ I answer, No. On the contrary, the notes of a National Bank that has failed arc rather better than those Os a bank in good standing, if away from the business marts or commercial centres of the country; for the reason that the Treasurer of the United States becomes the Cashier of such defaulting hank, and will, through his assistants and all other Government officers, redeem sueli circulation. “You ask, fourth, ‘Are the notes of the United States Treasury, beyond thefact of their being legal tenders, a greater security to the holders, than the currency of the National Banks. “ The United States legal tender notes afford no greater security to the holder than the notes of National Banks. The only real difference between the two is that while the latter nre only a legal tender from and to the Govern ment, the former are such legal tender from and to all parties, whether municipalities, cor porations or individuals. “ Very respectfully, yours, “ F. E. Sflnnek, Treasurer. “R. E. Daniel, Esq., Cashier Merchants’ Na tional Bank, Memphis, Tenm” | From the Mobile Times. A Just Rebuke. A Memphis sheet, the Daily Post, which we never yet iiad occasion to refer to, goes into hysterics over a passage written by tlie editor of the Mobile Times, warning the people of the United States against the gangs of disbanded foreign emissaries who, for filthy lucre, became part of the United States army, and who, thrown out of their bloody employment in the murdering of innocent women and children, are now roving through a country not tneir own, under a flag they never knew, till paid for it, and committing ail sorts of depredations, both North and South, as illustrated by Probst, the murderer of the Decring family. The Mobile Times, speaking of that assassin, warned, and again warns the people against the number of those disbanded Janissaries who can claim neither country nor flag, and become ene mies to the whole human race the moment their bloody trade is at an end. Such men, in all ages and countries have, as soon as discharged, been treated as vagabonds. In the middle ages, their cowardly ferocity was such that, to get rid of them, France sent Du guesclin to Portugal to upset Pedro the Cruel, aud as we have no enemy on whom to throw those foreign Janissaries, we advise the people of these United States to see that the country be not devastated by those night prowlers. The sooner they leave the better; they en listed for pay, they killed for pay—-war is at an end, let them go or make them go. They are not and never were the soldiers of the Union ; they were Mercenaries, Janissaries, Strelitzes —but not soldiers of the Union. We now five under one and the same flag—equals in spirit, if not in rights—and we shall protect ourselves against foreign hirelings, having no longehjllie sanction of the Government; their work is done, and they have received the price of blood —let them go. But, of all things, iet not the Post misquote and say that we excite animosity against the soldiers of the United States, respect, when the voice of duty called them to the res cue of their own section, and let him not try to eonfouud the hearty and devoted delender of the Union with the vile scum which the ex pectation of plunder and the thirst lor gold brought over to our shores. The discharged native or naturalized soldier is now back to his farm or working shop, and the mercenary prowls over the country to live by pillage or murder. Somebody has died lately and left Mr. Charles Stewart, editor of the Jackson county, Wiscon sin, Banner, a fortune of half a million of dol lars. Young gentlemen in search of professions should not fill into the mistake of supposing that all editors are liable to he overtaken by such a calamity as that which has befallen poor Stewart. VOL. 24. NO. 22. (From the N. Y. World. The World at War. The actual condition of Christendom to-day affords a striking commentary upon an obser vation of Stuart Mill, that “the remark of the early enemies of the Gospel, see hovr these Christians love one another, is not likely to be made by anybody now.” While the Moham niedian and Pagan nations of the world arc get ting on peacefully and quietly enough, the Christian powers in both -continents are In a ferment of war and war’s worst passious. In the new world, Christian Canada is arm ing against the Christian Fenians; Christian Mexico is in ahlazeofdomestieconfllct; Chris tian Brazil and her republican allies of Eastern South America are thundering away at the gates of Christian Paraguay ; Christian Chill and Peru are battling for dear life with the fleets of Her Most Catholic Majesty of Spain ; and In our own model Christian republic of the United States, a great political party, professedly de voted to progress and philanthropy, is making the most persistent and furious efforts to keep alive and intensify ali the hatreds, rancors, and spites engendered by the greatest aud most ter rible civil war on record. In Europe, Prussia and Austria, fresh from a combined and successful attack upon the laws of nations, are preparing to cut each other’s throats over the division of the spoil snatched by them from the gallant little monarchy of Denmark ; Italy is summoning all her strength into the field to strike • for the liberation of Venice from the tyranny of a foreign state; and France while loudly declaiming against a violent solution of the great European questions of the day, calls out her military reserves, and raises an army as large as the host with which the First Napoleon marched to the iuvosion of Russia. ; "• With what face can the missionaries sent out by pious people In Christian States to preach to the rest of the cartli an evangel of peace on earth and good will to man, undertake now to fulfil their errand ? Turkey and Persia, Egypt and Morocco, really seem to tie in less need of such a dispensation just now than ourselves. The Crescent just now sheds a milder and less balefril light on mankind than the Cross. If we go no further than our own capital we roust, admit that the worst ravings of a cruel and re morseless fanaticism under the conquering Islamite Caliphs of old nre dnily paralleled by the way in which men claiming to he Christian and republican legislators talk of their follow citizens, lately their enemies, but now lying defeated In the power of the Government. What dervish or cadi ever transcended Mr. Thaddcus Stevens’ atrocious exclamation on the floor of the American Congress that “ the people of the South ought, to be confined by bayonets in tbo penitentiary of hell?" And Is it not enough to try cue's faith lu the reality of human progress that a lumper such as this should, after eighteen centuries of Christianity, he the outcome of the grerit American experi ment of government by life people I It certainly applies a. higher average civiliza tion In the Old World thu,( there is probably no country in Europe iu which,a public man could venture to-day to utter such Savage and brutal sentiments as this of Thhddeus Stevens, which, bad as it is, lias been repeatedly rivaled by the language of other prominent men ot the same party speaking on the same subject. But the present political condition ol Europe reveals the formidable ascendency on tlmt continent, also, of the same spirit of violence which Just now domineers over {he West. Three years ago the Emperor Napoleon 117. expressed his fears ot the progress of that spirit to the greater European cabinets, and urged it upon them to convene a general European Congress, in which the European questions then pending might be settled by diplomacy. England de feated this appeal of the French sovereign by her refusal lo take part in such a Congress; her statesmen, accustomed to a policy of temporiz ing and evasion, having convinced themselves that it was better to ran the risk of n general European conflagration tliau to have France acquire an absolute and visible predominance in the councils of Europe by carrying through to a satisfactory settlement all the vexed ques tions of the hour. All that Napoleon Ilf. three years ago fore saw and feared lms already come or Is fast com ing lo piiss. Central Europe, from the Baltic to the Adriatic, lms been suffering for months past most of tiie worst financial and moral mischiefs which actual war could impose ; anil the London journals which three years ago pooh-poohed the Imperial propositions for a Congress of nations, arc now uttering doleful cries over the prostration of commerce, and querulous complaints of llit* brutality which in sists upon fighting over questions which diplo macy ought to resolve. Meanwhile, every day which passes weakens the hold of reason and law upon the public conscience of Europe, and strengthens the passions which hold directly to the worship of Force as the arbiter of nations. Great armies are marching and countcr-marcliing; the un certainty of all things, political and financial, unsettles men’s reason and excites tlicir emo tional nature; the pride of blood and the traditions of iiuHoiihl glory are evoked. In Prussia an energetic and unscrupulous premier sees ills golden opportunity dawning ; in Austria a high-spirited and vehement young monarch, dinting under |thc memories of the last war with France, grows daily more im patient of Hie provocations addressed to him self and his people, bv his Prussian rival on the one hand, and his Italian enemy on the other ; in Italy the passions of a whole race are aroused to complete its triumph over a hereditary foe, and to crown Its newly constituted unity by the redemption of every acre of Italian soil to the protection of the Italian banner. To keep the peace of the world in the midst of such instigations and such chances of strife is proba bly a task beyond the reach of diplomacy ; and all signs conspire to indicate that Europe is entering upon another “ Bottle Summer," not less terrible than the memorable season which earned that dread natfTe on fields drenched with Mood from the Rhine to the Vistula, and from Naples to the Northern Sea. If this return of Thor the Hammerer to the control of human affairs were accompanied by, or were the melancholy but necessary condition 01, any great development of new principles in politics, it w'oul d be less shocking and alarm ing than it is. But this is very from being the case ; so far from being the case that both in the Old World and in the New, there is Just now a visibly growing disposition to abdicate much of the ground gained for political free dom in the past. The “ thirty years’ peace,” which in our time lias come to an end, really threatens, it would seem, to be followed by an age of political lassitude, in which tin- soundest principles of liberty arc as likely to be called iu question and for a time overthrown as to he pushed forward to new mid grander results. On the 16th instant the Louisiana Episcopal Convention met to elect a successor to tlie late lamented Bishop Polk. The Rev. Dr. Moli&n, of Baltimore, Is spoken of as the person likely to be elected,
