ADVERTISING RATES: EX-PRESIDENT JEFFERSON DAVIS. tlw Story of His E«entful Life Told by Himself. r'^-0 itmgaMin*. t was born Jupe 8,1808, in Chris tian County, KyViu that part of it which, by a subsequent division, is now in 'Todil County. At this place has since arisen tho village of .Fairyiew, and. on the exact spot ' Where I was bom has been construc ted the Baptist Church of the places My father, SamueTDavis, was a na ; tive of 6a., and served in the War of the Revolution, first in the ‘‘mounted gunmen" and afterwards as captain of infantry at the seige of Savannah. . During my infancy , my .father removed to Wilkinson county, Miss. After passing through the County Academy I entered Transvaal College, Kentucky, at the age of sixteen, and was advanced as faros the senior class when I was appointed to the United States Mil itary Academy at West Point,which 1 entered in September, 1824. I graduated in 1828, find then, in ac cordance with'the custom of cadets, entered active service with the rank> of lieutenant, serving os an officer of infantry "Oh the North west fron tier until 1838, when a regiment of dragoons having been created, I was . transferred to if. After asuccessfu] campaignagainst the Indians, I re signed from the army in 1835, being •uximis to fulfill & long existing en ; gagempnt with a' daughter of Coi.Zazary Taylor, whom I mar ried, not “after a romantic elope ment,” as bus so often been stated, but at the house of her aunt and in the presence of many of her rela tives at a place near Louisville, Ky. Then-1 become a cotton planter in Warrfen Couuty. Miss. It was my ■ misfortune, early in my married life, • to lose my wife; and for many years thereafter I lived in great Sehlusiou on the plantation in the swamps. of the Mississippi. In 1843 I for the first time took part in the political life of the country. Next year 1 Was cljosen one of the Presidential electors at 1 rge of the State; and in the succeeding year was elected to Congress, taking my scat in the House of Representatives in Decem ber, 1845. Tho proposition to ter minate joint.occupaucy of Oregon, find the reformation of the. tariff were the two questions arousing most public attention at the time, and. I took an active part in - their discussion, especially m that of .the first. During this period hostilities with Mexico commenced, and in the leg islation which the Contest rendered toy' military education enabled me to take a'somewhat proiSineiiF parL, In Jnne, 1840, a regiment of Mississippi volunteers w;js organized «t Vicksburg, of which I was elect, jed colonel. On receiving notice of the election, I proceeded to overtake the regiment, which was already on' its way to Mexico, and joined it at •.New Orleans. Reporting to Gen. Taylor, then .commanding at €a matgo, my regiment, although the iiast to arrive—having been detained for some time at the mouth of the Rio’Grande—was selected to move Wrtfi advance upon the city of Mon tery. The want of transportation prevented Gen. Taylor from taking -the—whole body of volun teers : 'Who had reported there for duty. The Mississippi regiment' was armed entirely with percussion rifles. And ■here it may be interesting to state that Gen. Scott, in Washington, ' endeavored to persuade me not to take more rifles than enough for lour companies, and objected partie ■ iilorly to percussion arms, as not having been sufficiently tested for the use of troops m the field. ■; Knowing that the Misaipians would h.ayfl no confidence in the o|d flint lock muskets, I insisted on thoir be .ing armed with the kind of rifles then recently made at New Haven, Conn.—the Whitney rifle. From having b?en first used by the Mis eissippians these reflesnave always been known as the Misissippi ri fles. ■ -. Iii an attack on Montery Gon. .Taylor divided- his force; . sending one port of it by a circuitioua road to attack the city from the west,4 while he decided to lead in person •the attack on the east. The Mis sissippi regiment Mvaueed the re lief or a force which’0 hod attacked •Fort Lenaria but had been repulsed --before the Mississippians~ arrived; 4 They carried the redoubtj and the i fort which was in the rear of it sur rendered. The nest day our force on the west Hide carried successfully .the height which stood the Ilishep’s FeJaee^whieh commanded the city. :i.. On the third day the Misflissip tdatis advanced from the fort which ■they held, through lams, and gar dens, skirmishing and driving the : .enemy Wore them until they reach ed the corner; oft " a two-story house at the corner oft the Grand Plaza. Here they were join ed by a regiment of Texans, and front the windows of this house they opened fire on the artillery and such other troops as were in view. But to gel 0 better position for;fir ing the principal building of. the Grand Plaza, it was necessary .• to cross the street, which, was swept by canister and grape, rattling on the pavement like hail; and as the street was very marrow it was determined to construct a flying barricade. Some long timbers were found, and with pack-saddles and boxes, which served, the purpose; * barricade was formed- - * . - ' - Here occurred an, incident to which I have since frequently re ferred with pride, • In breaking open a quartermaster’s store house to get supplies for this barricade, the men found bundles of the" much-prized' Mexican blankets, and also of very serviceable shoes and pack-saddles. The pack-saddles were freely taken; as good material for the preposed barricade; and one of my men, as his shoes were broken and stones had Hurt his feet, asked my permission to "take a pair from one of the boxes.' This, of course, was freely accorded;; but not one of the very valuable and much-prized Mexican blankets was taken. -■■■■■-■ ■ About the time that the flying harricade> was completed, arrange ments were made by, the Texas and and Mississippiam to occupy houses on the north side of the streets for the purpose:of more effective fire into tho Grand’ Flaza. It hav ing been deemed necessary to increase our force, the Mississippi sergeant-major was sent -back for some companies of the First Missis sippi, which had remained behind. He returned with the statement that the enemy was behind us, that all our troops had been withdrawn, and that orders had been throe times sent lneito return. Gov. Henderson, of Texas, had accompanied the Tex as troops, ana on submitting to him the question what we should do un der the massage, he realized—as was very plain—that it was safer to re main where -we were thah—our sup ports having been with lrawii—to return across streets where we were liable to be fired oh by artillery, and Across open grounds, where cav alry might be expected to attack us. Butrhe added, he supported the Or ders came from the general-in-chief, and we were bound to obey them. So we mode dispositions to retire quietly, but, in passing the. first square ws found that our movement had been anticipated and that a bat tery of artillery was posted to cpm Aland the street. The arrangement made by me was that I should go first; if only one gun was fired at me, then another man should fol law; and soon, another and another, until a volley should be fired, and then all of them should rush rapid ly across before the guns could be reloaded. In this manner the men got across with little loss. We then made our way to the superb, where we found that an officer of infantry, with two campaniee and a section of artillery, had been posted to wait for us, and in case of emergency to aid our retreat. r Early next morning Gen. Ampu dia, commanding the Mexican force, sent in a flog and asked for a con ference with a view to capitulation, Gen. Taylor acceded tq, the proposf tionand appointed Gen, Worth, Gov,. Henderson and myself commission* ers to arrange the terms of capitula tion.. Gen. Taylor received the'city of Montery, with supplies, much needed by his army, anil shelter for the wounded. The enemy gained only the privilege of retiring peace fully, a privilege which, if jt had not l>een accorded, they had tlie' power to take by any one of the three roads open to them. The point beyond which they should with draw was fixed by the terms of cap itulation, and the time during which hostilities, were to be suspended was determined by the length of -time necessary to refer to and receive an swers from the two Governments. A few days before the expiration of the time so fixed tho Government of the United States disapproved of the capitulation and ordsred the truce to.be immediately terminated. By this decision we lost whatever credit had been _ gained to us for generous terms in the ’ capitulation, and hpstilitierwerfr t'O ' w-lrwameo without auy preparations having been made to enable, Gen. Taylor, oven with the small force he had, to advance further, into the enemy’s country. Gen. Taylor’s letter to Mr. Marcy, Secretary of War, Was a very- good-response, to tin anjust critieism; and in the' Washington Union of that tirnej alike publish ,dd a very full explanation of the acta of ike commissioners undoftne ^ — ': - ", • ' '' <i> ~ military question* involved in the matter of communication in prefer ence to continuing the seige and at*' tack.: . den. Taylor aasnming that it was intended for him- to advance into the interior tit Mexico, then prepar ed.himself for such a campaign. To this end he made requisition for the needful transportation, as well as munition, including amoilg other supplies, Iarge-india-rubber bags in which, to carry provisions for days, and which, being emptied liefore we reached the desert of sixty miles, would, by being filled with water, enable his troops and horses to cross those desert plains. These and oth er details had been entered into un der the expectation .that the cen sure of the treaty of Mpntelj meant a march into the interior of .Mexi co. Another thing required Was a new battery of field pieces to 'take .the place of the old Ringgold bat tery, which by long service had be come honey-combed. When all arrangements were nearly comple ted, it was decided to send /Sen. ^cott, with discretionary powers, which enabled him to take nearly all the tried troops Gen. Taylor had, including even the engineer then employed in the construction of a fort, apd the battery of now guns to replace the old , ones, which were deemed no longer safe, but which, under the intrepid.Capt. Bragg, .af terwards did good service in the bat tle of Buena Vista. . Wen. laytof, with the mam body of his army, went to Victoria, and' there made arrangements to send them all to report to Gen. Scott, at Vera Cruz, except the small force he considered entitled to as an escort on his route hack to Montery through an unfriendly people. That escort consisted, of a battery of light artillery, a squad ron of dragoons, and the regiment of Mississippi riflemen. With these he proceeded to Montefy and Saltil lo to AguaKoera, where he was joined by the division of Gen. Wool, who had-made the campain of Chi huahua, , Gen. Santa Anna, commanding the army af Mexico, was informed of the action which had Seen taken in stripping Gen. Taylor of his forces, and was also informed that he had at Saltillo only a handful of volunteers, which could be easily dispersed on the approach of an ar my. "Thus assured, and with the prospect of recovering the country to the Rio Grande, Santa Anna ad vanced upon Agua Neva. Gen. Taylor retired to the Angos tura Pass, in front of the Aeienda of Buena ViBta, and there made his dispositions to receive the anticipa ted attack. As sage' as he was brave, his dispositions were made as well as the small forces at his command made it possible. After two days of bloody fighting Gen. Santa An na retired before this little force, the greater part of which hkd never before been under fire. The encounter with the enemy was very bloOdy. The Mississip pians lost many pf their best men, for each of whom, however, they slew several of the enemy. For -trained marksmen, they never touched the trigger without having an object through both sights, and they seldom fired without drawing blood. The infantry against whom the advance was made was driv en back, but the cavalry then mov ed to get in the rear of the Missis sippians, and this involved the Ne cessity of falling back to' where the plain was narrow, so as to have a ravine on each flank. In this position the second dem onstration of the enemy’s cavalry was received. They were repulsed and it was quiet in front of the Mis sippians until an aide came and call ed from the other side of the ravine, which he could not pass, that Gen. Taylor wanted support to come as soon as possible for the proteption of the artillery on the right flank. The order was promptly obeyed at doub le-quick, although the distance must have been nearly a mile.'' They found the enemy moving in three j lines upon the batteries of ,.Gapt. Braxton Bragg and the section of artillery commended by George H. Thomas. The Mississippians came up in line, their right flunk opposite the first line of the advancing ene my, and at a vasy short range open ed fire.' All being sharpshooters, those towards the left of the line obliqued to the right and . at. close quarters and against three long lines very few shots could have pissed. At the same time the guns of Bragg and were firing grape. The effect was decisive; the infantry and artil lery os the enemy immediately re tired. A... . " .At the 01086 of the day Santa An na bugled the retreat, ns was sup* posed, to go into quarters, but when the next sun rose there was no ene my in our front. " The new? of this victory was re ceived m tHe United States with a degree of emthusiaih proportionate to the small means with which it was achieved; and generosity was eseited by the fedmg that Gen. Taylor had been treated with in instice. Thenceforward the march of “old Rough audjjeady" to the White House waaa<, foregone cen clusion. Inthfs battfet while advancing to meet the enemy, then pressing some of our discomfitted volunteers on the field of battlftj I received a pain ful wound, which was rendered mOre severe ih consequence of re maining in the saddle all day, al though wounded early in tie morn ing. A ball had passed ^through the foot, leaving to the wound bro ken bones ana foreign ^matter, which the delay had inado it i mpos sible then to extract] In' conse quence 1 bad to return home on crutches. ■ ' 1 in the? meantime ! a Senator of Mississippi had died and the Gover nor had appointed me his snecessor. Before my return home President Polk had also appointed me Briga dier-General of Volunteers, aa ap pointment vrhieh I declined on the gfround that volunteers are militia, and that the Constitution reserved to the States, the appointment of all militia officers. Tins was in 1847. In January, 1848, the Mississippi Legislature unanimously elected me United States Senator for the rest of the unexpired term, and in 1850 I was re-elected for the full term as my own successor. In the United States Senate I was Chairman of the Military Committee, and 1 also took an active part in the debates on the Compromise measures of 1850, fre quently opposing Senator Douglas, o£ Illinois, in his theory of squatter sovereignty, and Advocating, as a means of pacification, the extension bf the Missouri Coin promise line to the Pacific. When the question was presented to Mississippi aa to wheth er the State should acquiesce in the compromise legislation of 1850 or whether it shquld join - the other Southern States in a Convention to decide as to the best eourse bo pursue in view of the threatened usurpations of the Federal Government, I advo cated a convention of the Southern States, with a view to such co-oper ation as might effectually check the exercise of the constructive powers, the parent of despotism, by the Federal Government. The canvass for Governor com menced that year. The candidate of the Democratic party was by his op ponents represented to hold extreme opinions—in other words, to be a disnnionist. For, although he was a man of high character and had served the country well in peace and War, this supposition waseo artfully cultivated that, though the Demo cratic party was ‘estimated to be about eight thousand in majority, when the election occurred in Sep tember the Democratic candidates for a convention were defeated by a maiority of over seven thousand, ana the Democratic candidate for Governor withdrew. The election for Governor was to occur in November,-and I was called on tq take the place vacanted by the candidate who had withdrawn from the canvass, ■ It was a forlorn hope, especially as my health had been impaired by labors in the Sum mer canvass, and there was not time before the approaching election to make such a canvass, as would be needed to reform the ranks of the Democracy. However, as a duty to the party I accepted the position, and mode as active a campaign as time permitted* with the result that the majority against the party was reduced to less than one hundred. From this time I remained engaged in quiet farm labors until the nom ination of Franklin7 Pierce, when I went, out to- advocate his election, having formed a very high opinion of him as a statesman and a patriot, from observations of him in 1837 and 1838, when he was in the United States Senate. » un His election as President l be came a member of bis Cabinet-, fill ing the office of Secretary of War during his entire term. ; During these four years. I pro posed the introduction of camels for service on the Western ‘plains, a suggestion which was adopted. ' I also introduced an improved system ‘of infantry tactics; effected the sub stitution of iron for wood in -gup carriages; secured rifled muskets and rifles and the use ..of Minie balls, and advocated the increase of the de fenses of the sea coast by heavy guns and the use of larged grain powder. Li_ While in the Senate I had advo cated, as a military necessity arid as a means of preserving the Pacific Territory to the Union, the con struction- of a military ..railway across tiie-pontinent: ami, as §ecre tary of War, I was put in. charge of the surreys of the various routes proposed. Perhaps for a similar, reason—my previous action in the Senate—I was alsopnt in charge of the extension of the United States Capitol. The administration of Mr. Pierce presents the single instance of an ex ecutive whose Cabinet witnessed no change of person during the whole term. At its close, having been re elected to the United States Senate, I re-entered that body. During the discussion of the Com promise measures of 1850 the re cusal to extend the Missouri Com promise line to the Pacific was early put on the gronnd that there was no constitutional authority to legislate slavery into or out of any teiritory, which was in. fact and seeming in tent a repudiation of the Miesouri Compromise; and it was so treated in the Kansas-Nebraska bill. Subsequently, Mr. Douglas, the advocate of what was called sqnat ter-sovereignty, insisted upon the rights of the first immigrants into the territory to deeide upon the question whether migrating citizens might take their slaves with them; which meant;if it meant anything, that Cougress could authorize a few settlers jbo do what it was admitted Congress itseif could not do. But ant of this bill' arose a discussion which finally divided the Democratic party, and caused its defeat in the Presidential election of I860. • And from this empty,- baseless theory grew the Iliad of our direst wpes. ... - ■ When Congress met, in the fall of 1860,1 was appointed one of a Senate Committee of Thirteen toex amine and report on some' practical adjustment of. the controversies which then threatened the dissolu tion of the Union, I at first asked to be excused from the Committee, but at the solicitation of friends agreed to.serve, avowing my will ingness to make any sacrifice to avert the Committee consists*_ fag to the three political divisions of the Senate: the States-rights men of _e. The of men belong the South, the Radicals,of the North, and the Northern- Democrats, with one member who did not acknowl edge himself as belonging to any one of the three divisions—Mr. Crit tenden, an old-time Whig, and the original mover of the Compromise Resolutions. When the Committee met it was agreed that, unless some measure which would receive the support of the majority of each of the three divisions could be devised, it was useless to make any report; and, after many day* of anxious dis cussion and a multiplicity of propo sitions, thrugh the Southern States rights men and the Northern Demo crats and the Whig, Mr. Crittenden, could.frequently agree, they conld never get a majority of the North ern Radicals to unite with them in any substantive proposition. Finally, the Committee reported their failure to find anything on which the divi sions could unite. Mr. Douglas, who was a member of the Committee, defiantly challenged the Northern Radicals to tell what they wanted. As they had refused everything, he claimed that they onght to be will* ingto tell what they proposed to do. When officially informed that Mississippi had passed the ordinance of secession, I took formal leave of the Senate, announcing for the last time the opinions I had so often ex pressed as to the State sovereignty, and, as a.consequence of it, the right* of a State to withdraw its delegated powers. Before I reached liome I had been appointed by the Conven tion of Mississippi commander-in chief of its army, with the raru of Major-General, and I at once pro ceeded with the task of organisation. I went to my home in Warren county in order to prepare for what I believed was to be a long and Se vern struggle. Soon a mossenger came from the Provisional Confed erate Congress at Montgomery, bringing the unwelcome notice that I had been elected Provisional Pres ident of the Confederate States. But, reluctant as I was to accept the honor, and carefully as I had tried to prevent the probability of - it, in the circumstances of the country 1 could not refuse it; and I was inau gurated at Montgomery, Feb. 18, 1801, with Alexander H. Stephens, of Georgia, as Vice-President. . Froui this time to the. fall of the Confederate Government my life was part of the history of tho Con federacy and of the war between the States, jit is impossible,, therefore, to follow it in detail. In the selection of a Cabinet I was relieved from a difficult; which 'surrounds that duty by the Presi dent of the'Uuited States; |ot there were no “sections” and no “party” distinctions. All - aapiratiohs, am bitions and interests had been merg f-d in a great desire for Confederate •independence. ‘ | In my inaugural address I assert ed that necesity, not choice, had led to the secesssion of the Southern States? that, as an agricnltnral peO pie, their policy was peace and free commerce with all the world; that the constituent parts, not the system of govmmenl, had been changed. The remoral of troops from For tress Moultrie to Fort Sumter, the guns of which threatened' the-har bor of Charleston, and the attempt to throw reinforcements into that fort—thus doubly breaking a pledge that matters should be kept in statu. quo-—constituted the occasion as well as the justification of the open ing pf fire upon Fort Sumter. Speed ily following this event came the call for a large army by Mr. Lincoln and the secession of other Southern States as the consequence of this un mistakable purpose of coercion. - Virginia, which had led in the effort, by a Peace Conference, to av ert National ruinin, when she saw the Constitution disregarded and the purpose to compel free States by military force .to submit to arbi trary-power, passed an-Ordinanceof Secession, and joined the Confeder ate States. '. Shortly after this as authorized hy the Provisional Congress, I removed the Confederate capital from Mont gomery to Richmond. Among the many indications of goodwill show when on my way to and after my arrival at Richmond was the purchase of a very fine resi dence in Richmond, hy leading citi zens. Ft was .offered as a present; but, following a rule that had gov erned my action in all such cases, I declined to accept it. I continued to live in Richmond until the Con federate forces were compelled to withdraw from the defences of the capital. u. Aflat event was not quite unexpec ted, bflt it occurred before the con ditions- were fulfilled under which Gen. Lee contemplated retreat. Af ter Gen. Lee was forced to surrender and Gen. Johnson consented to do so, I started, with a very few of the men who volunteered to accompany me, for the trans-Mississippi; but hearing on the road th at marauders were pursuing my family, whom -1 had not seen since they left Rich mond, but knew to be en route to the Florida costal changed my direc tion, and, after a long and hard ride found them encamped and threaten ed by a robbing party. To give them the needed protection I travelled with them for several days, until in the neighborhood of Irvinville, Ga., when I supposed I could safely leave them. But, hearing, about nightfall, that a party of marauders were to attack the camp that night and' supposing them to be pillaging deserters from both armies and that the Confederates would listen to me I awaited their coming, lay down in my travelling clothes and fell asleep. Late in the night my colored coach man aroused me with the intelli gence that the camp was attacked, and I stepped out of the tent where my wife and children were sleeping, and saw at once that the asssailants were troops deploying around the encampment, I so informed my wife, who uvged me to escape. Af ter some hesitation I consented, and a servant woman started with me carrying a bucket as if going to the spring for water. One of the sur rounding troops ordered me to halt and demanded my surrender. I ad vanced towards the trooper, throw ing oft a shawl which my wife | had put over my shoulders. The tooper aimed his carbine, when my wife, who witnessed the act, rushed forward and threw her arms around me, thus - defeating my intention, which was, if the trooper missed his' aim, to try to unhorse him and es cape with his horse. Then, with every species of petty pillage mid offensive exhibition, 1 was taken from point to point until incarcer ated in Fortress Monroe. There I was iuiprisoned for two years before being allowed the privilege of the writ of habeas corpus.* •For a fuller account of my arrest see statements of United States Sen ator Reagan; W. R. Johnston, Pres ident Tulane University; F. R. Lub ock, Treasurer of Texas; B. N. Har rison, Esq., of New York City, all eye witnesses. ^ — At length, when the writ was to lie issued, the condition was imposed by the Federal Executive that there should be bondsmen influential in the “Republican" .party of the North, Mr. Greeley being specially named. Entirely as a matter of justice and legal right, not from motives of personal regard, Mr. Greeley, Mr. Geyrit Smith and other eminent Northern citizens went on. my bond. Iu May, 1867, after being released from Fortress Monroe, I went to Canada, where my older! chil dren wore, with their grandmother; my wife, as soon as permitted, having shared my imprisonment, and brought onr infant daughter with 'her. From time to time I o&eysA summonses to go before the Federal Court at Richmond, until, finally, [the case was beard by Chief-Justice Chase and District Jhadge Uunder-... wood, who were divided in opinion, which sent the case to the*Supreme ' Court of the United States, and the proceedings were quashed, leaving me without the opportunity ' to vin dicate myself before the highest Federal Court. >' - , After about a year’s residence in Canada. I went to England with my family under an arrangement that I was to have sixty days’ notice whenever the United States Court required my' presence. After being . abroad in England and on the Con tinent pbout a year I received an i offer of an appointment as President^ of u life insurance company. Thereupon I returned to this couB- V try and went to Memphis and, took ' charge of , the Company. Subse quently I came to the Gulf Coast of Mississippi, as a quiet place where! - could prepare my work on "The Rise and Fall of the Confederate Government,”* A friend from her infancy, _ Mrs. Dorsey shared her home with me, and subsequently sold to nie her property of Reanvoir, an estate of five or six hundred acres ■ about midway between Mobile amd New Orleans. Before I had fully / paid fOr this estate Mrs. Dorsey died leaving me her sole legatee. From the Spring of 1876 to the Autumn of 1879 I devoted myself to the pro duction of the historical work just mentioned. It is an octavo book in twovolumesof about seven hundred pages each. I have also from time to time contributed essays Is the AfartA American Review and Bel fora's Magazine, and have just com pleted the manuscript of “A Short History of the Confederate States of America,” which is expected to ap pear early in 1890. . Since settling at Beanroir I have per sistcntly refused to take any active* part in politics, no merely beeause of my disfranchisement, but from a belief that snch labors could not be made to conduce to the public good, owing to the sectional hostil ities manifested against me since the war. For the same reason I have also refused ■ to be a candidate for public office, although it is well known that I could at any time have been re-elected a Senator of the United States. *"\ - 1. have been twice married, the second time being in 1844, to n daughter of Wm. B. Howell, Natchez a son of Got. Howell, of New Jersey. She has borne me six . children—four sous and two daugh ters. My sons are all dead; my daughters survive. The elder is Mrs Hayes, of Colorado Springs, Col. and the mother of four chrildren. My youngest duughter lives with us at Beauvoir, Miss. Born in the last year of the war, she became famil iarly known as “the daughter of the Confederacy.” Jefvkbson Davtb. Beauvoir, Miss. November, 1889. ♦“The Bise and Fall of;the Cofederate Government,” page 700, vol, li,; and for my life at Fortress Monroe. - “The Prison Life of Jefferson Davis,” by Dr.' L. J, J. Graven. New York: CarJetonJ "" __.:.n 1888. GENERAL NEWS. It is estimated that there have been 800,000 divorces In the United States in twenty years. 7 At a meeting of the German rail road society at Berlin, Prof. Geor. . ing said that Germany ought to* adopt the American system of rail way cars, wliioh makes reading and * writing possible. He denounced the present German style of travel ing as torture. Postmaster Van Cott is endeavor ing to establish the system of Col lecting the mails in New York Cite. by carts., ..i. :■ , g In the Virginia House of Dele gates a bill has been introduced pro viding for the punishment of petit larceny by the infliction of stnpes. The bill proposes that the stripes shall not exceed tweenty in any one day, and not over twentynine, the limit under the old ante-belum regime. The whipping post existed in Virginia as far back as about 1870, and flogging was restored ta as a punishment for petty thefts. The criminal records show that the great majority of these offenders are negroes. The commitment to jail and other ppnal institutions of this class of offenders is not regar ded hy them as any great punish, ment. When Mahone came into power one of the first measurers he advocated was the repeal of the law authorizing corporal punishment, It is this law that Mr, Downing pro—

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