Image provided by: University of Oregon Libraries; Eugene, OR
About Medford mail tribune. (Medford, Or.) 1909-1989 | View Entire Issue (Feb. 6, 1961)
10 A MONDAY, FEBRUARY 6, 1961 MEDFORD MAIL TRIBUNE, MEDFORD, ORE. Smal! Worlds Around ii. CIVIL WAR YOUR COMPLETE FAMILY SHOPPING CENTER Under One Roof Pjlynn W. -Tl . Watkins (HtjIsCtr & Tribune Syndicate, 1961) A NEW NATION In the classic Georijiun capitol on a hill at Montgomery, Ala., dele gates from southern states, comparing their task to that ol the founding fathers at the first Continental Congress, met in 1881 to form a new nation. From a list of names they picked "The Confederate States of America" and, despite certan objections, named Jefferson Davis as TVesident. The photo above shows crowds standing on the grounds of the capitol awaiting word from the meetings. The sessions were kept secret, and until Davis' election was announced, little information was forthcoming. (UPf Telephoto) Confederate States Are Formed By MERTON T. AKERS UPI Correspondent , In the classic Georgian Capi tol on a hill in Montgomery, Ala., 44 delegates from six southern states met Feb. 4, 1861, to create a new nation. Delegates from a seventh stale, Texas, were on their way, the stale having seceded Feb. 1. The Montgomery gathering was distinguished, the average ability higher than "any of the 16 Congresses I have been in at Washington," Alexander H. Stephens, a delegate of Geor gia, concluded. The delegates likened their task to that of the Republic's founding fathers at the First Continental Congress. Free men shaking off the shackles of tyranny, they called them selves in the metaphorical language so dear to the hearts of the orators of the day. New Nation Formed There was no Thomas Jef ferson to write their aspira tions into a ringing declara tion of independence; no Washington to head up an army of liberation. But the will to break off from the rest of the United Slates was resolute and In four days the delegates formed a provision al government, adopted a pro visional constitution and in one more day - on Feb. 9 -elected a provisional presi dent - Jefferson Davis of Mis sissippi, one-time U.S. senator and secretary of war. They called their new na tion the Confederate States of America, although Thomas R. R. Cobb, another Georgian, suggested "The Republic of Washington" to snow tho seceded southerners were going back to first principles. Another name put forth, "The Confederacy of the Cotton States," was right on the tar get because Virginia, North Carolina, Tennessee and Ar kansas still were outside and at the moment showed no in clination to go along. ' But parallels between the Montgomery assembly and the First Continental Congress were few. Where the Conti nental Congress worked in open session, the Confederate Congress drew the blinds and worked secretly. Where the Continental Congress met in Philadelphia, the largest city In the colonies, the Confeder ate Congress selected a com paratively obscure capital, founded only 44 years before, and passed up such more fa mous cities as Charleston and Columbia, S C., or Savannah and Mtlledgevillc, Ga. One parallel did exist without doubt, Montgomery orginally was named New Philadelphia. Sessions of the Confederate Congress were so secret that little is known about them even yet. Not until 1!)04 was a skimpy journal published and then by the U.S. government. Only glimpses of the meetings have come through in letters of delegates. On the surface the decisions of the. delegates of the six slates were unanimous. Under neath individual ambitions clashed, an inevitable result when 44 politicians meet together. Howell Cobb of Georgia was named to head the one- chamber Congress by virtue of his fame as secretary of the treasury under President Bu chanan. He also was angling for the presidency of the bud ding nation. So was his col league, Robert Toombs, shag gy, tobacco-chewing Georgia planter and former U.S. sena tor. A mild boom also blos somed briefly for Stephens. With the provisional consti tution - copied almost In full from the U.S. Constitution - out of the way and a commit tee named to draw up a per manent document, the busi ness of electing the first presi dent got under way. The question of whether Davis was drafted for the office as he contended, or whether he was elected acci dentally as Stephens claimed to the day of his death, seems destined to go down in history as unsolved. There is little doubt thai Davis wanted to be command er-in-chief of the Confederate Army rather than President. And it seems just as certain that Georgia rated and ex pected to obtain the presi dency. Both ambitions broke on the rocks of the over whelming desire for unani mous action so as to present a solid front to the world. Cobb soon faded out of the presidential picture. He had Jumped to the Whig side in me Compromise of 1850 and the '81 Democrats had long memories. When the Georgia delega tion met the night of Feb. 8 to name its choice for the elec tion next day - each state has only one vote - Toombs indi cated his willingness to under take the presidency if it came "cordially." But then Georgia heard that four states had plumped for Davis - Mississip pi, his home state, abstaining from recommending him in deference to his wishes for a i military position. To maintain unanimity. Georgia went along and Davis : was elected, 6-to-0. As a sop, j Stephens was elected vice president, also unanimously. Stephens claimed a foul - that Toombs really was the choice for the presidency and his animosity against Davis dated from that day. Davis was working in his rose garden at Briarfield, the Mississippi plantation h I s brother, Joseph, had given to him, when a messenger ar rived with the news. Mrs. Varina Howell Davis wrote later that her husband drop ped his shears in surprise and turned pale when he read the telegram. "He looked so grieved that I feared some evil had befallen our family," she wrote. "After a few minutes of painful si lence he told me, as a man might speak of a sentence of death. As he neither desired nor expected (lie position he was more deeply depressed than before." The Vicksburg telegraph office was being held open for his reply and Davis immedi ately wired acceptance. The clanging plantation bell summoned Davis' slaves. He made a short speech to them - the last time he would see Ihem in bondage - and dis tributed supplies, giving Uncle Bob, a 'rheumatic old hand, an extra quantity of blankets to shut out the Mis sissippi River chill. Another slave, Isaiah Mont gomery, rowed Davis out into the river to Old Tom Leath ers' steamboat the Natchez. It headed north to Vicksburg, and the President-elect of the C.S.A. was on his way to Montgomery and his inaugura tion ceremonies. Mrs. Davis would stay and set the planta tion in order before following with the children. Enroute Davis, with sincere regret, resigned his commis sion as major general of the Army of (the state) Mississip pi, putting away forever the Would an Animal Commit Suicide? The daily press frequently runs a story about the strange and unusual behavior of some one's pet dog that apparently attempts to end its own life. One report tells of such an instance, when after several attempts failed, the dog finally tried to kill itself by going on "a hunger strike," refusing all food in spite of the fact an examination indicated the animal was in perfect health. Committing voluntary sui cide is a human prerogative, you think, and anyone who claims differently is certainly "teched in the head." Maybe yes, and maybe no no one can say for sure. But the evi dence so far presented indi cates a strong possibility that self-destruction does happen among animals, aside from man, and rather frequently. Complex Subject -Here is a problem ii thought processes, and the possibility of delving into the inner recesses of a living brain, be it that of a man monkey or mouse, is a com plex and little understood subject. Here, even the most advanced psychologist or psy chiatrist is only a small child wandering and all but lost in a vast wilderness. Many records of apparent suicide among animals are on record, even instances where it was actually premeditated and successfully carried out. No one knows what thought processes and wild ideas go through an animal s mind at such a time, any more than we know exactly what goes on in the mind of a human when self-destruction seems to be "the only way out." There must be a powerful motive to prompt such an action. Rate Increases As the intelligence rate goes up in higher animal forms, the apparent frequency at self destruction seems to be great er. Every person who has been in long contact with animals, such as a zoo keeper or pet owner, has had experiences where animals will die when there is absolutely no disease or apparent physical defect. Nearly any pet owner fa miliar with dogs can recall times when a pel develops blindness or any of a dozen ailments, and in desperation does something that has all the outward appearance of suicide. A recent newspaper story tells of a dog, nearly blind and severely crippled with rheumatism, who licked his master's hand and deliberate ly swam away, lo drown in a lake. The owner called, bul for the first time in its life the dog failed to obey the call of the master. He never looked back, but swam away, and sank beneath the water. It seems that to some of the lower animals, as well as to some people, death by self destruction offers Ihe only escape from real or fancied troubles. specially designed uniform that went with it. Another president-elect was on his way to inauguration, too. The day before Davis re nounced a military career, Abraham Lincoln had said farewell to Springfield, 111., and started a 12-day journey to Washington. Dr. Robert D. Gallagher announces the opening of his office at The Medical Center Bldg. Suite 419 Chiropodist - Foot Specialist SPring 3-6864 VW1 ..iK-Mii "iwj. saw' 6 INTEREST PAID SEMI-ANNUALLY Withdraw principal and all accrued interest whenever you choose. Any multiple of $10.00 acceptod. Name of Board of Directors on Request CRATER FINANCE 8 135 PINE croirT L NO 4-1273 Ig Don't be Half sure We invite you to shop BIG Y and COMPARE If you want to be SURE you're getting the greatest value for your dollar, make your own shopping comparison. Shop the BIG Y (your old stand by) from one end to the other . . . Compare the Quality, the Variety, the Freshness, the Service and the Friendliness . . . then double check the total at the bottom of the receipt. We know you'll agree with the thousands of families that have shopped BIG Y every week for years: BIG Y offers more-more Shopping Pleasure more for t Your Money, including t t ' i ' An Extra Discount 1 MEDFORD'S ONLY SUPER MARKET WITH A COMPLETE DRUG DEPT. (INCLUDING PRESCRIPTIONS) KEEP COLDS with SILVER DOLLAR STAMPS UNDER CONTROL SUN-Powdered DETERGENT 'ZEE 7 c Coupon on Each Pkg. TOILET TISSUE JACK 'N THE BEAN STALK PUMPKIN GIANT BOX I BIG Y-Ouality Controlled GROUND I I 1 Vp MORRELL'S-PALACE BRAND J SLICED "The Ground Beef With the Steak Like Flavor." Just What You Want for Meat loaf, Casseroles, Hambur gers, Etc. I 2'"" OS- v tans tor j-Jjgj J 111 m II lb PORTER'S WW s 5 Western Wheels Va FISHERS mm kDristan W TABLETS Available Only At A Prescription Dept. Cough Syrup mm. 98c feJ Size -S-J Size DEL MONTE ALKA-SELTZER 25 TABLET 54c Value CATSUP v 14 oz. Bottles Tomato SAUCE 5"le 6for 49c I BACON MIRACLE WHIP Salad Dressing ORCHIDS BOILED OYSTERS LOU-Z-ANA BROKEN SHRIMP IV2ACAR0 BISKIT EV1IX BUTTER 40 oz. box 12 'oz.O.'. Not Quartered Jorgensen's or Sniders MIX 'EM or MATCH 'EM PEACHES-?J0El,RcD.nBr!,nd DCADC GOLD HILL Brand rCHIl-No. 2 can APRIC0TS-N2"peclcd GRAPEFRUIT-no! 3o03ntcaSncclions YOUR CHOICE wx- w S Vegetables That Are Fresher i kJIICT CTII I DC norkiiKirL w 1 I CELERY HEARTS I Specials Effective Thru Wed., Feb. 8 LIMIT RIGHTS RESERVED MUST STILL BE GROWING salad mil at arc M. SIZE I VlflH I Utd A Basket 23c LETTUCE Crisp Firm Heads Early Birds DON'T FORGET , BREAKFAST At The BIG Y BUDGET DINETTE DINETTE OPEN At 6 A.M. 7 DAYS A WEEK W7 Serving the Most Wonderful People in the World ... in the Notion's Finest Community i 1 t
