Brigadier-General G. F. Shepley, having been announced as military governor of Richmond, issued the following order: HEADQUARTERS MILITARY GOVERNOR OF RICHMOND Richmond, Va., April 3, 1865. I. The armies of the rebellion having abandoned their effort to enslave the people of Virginia, have endeavored to destroy by fire the capital which they could not longer occupy by their arms. Lieutenant-Colonel Manning, provostmarshal-general of the Army of the James and provost-marshal of Richmond, will immediately send a sufficient detachment of the provost-guard to arrest, if possible, the progress of the flames. The fire department of the city of Richmond, and all the citizens interested in the preservation of their beautiful city, will immediately report to him for duty, and render every possible assistance in staying the progress of the conflagration. The first duty of the Armies of the Union will be to save the city doomed to destruction by the armies of the rebellion. II. No person will leave the city of Richmond, without a pass from the office of the provost-marshal. III. Any citizen, soldier, or any person whatever, who shall hereafter plunder, destroy, or remove any public or private property of any description whatever, will be arrested and summarily punished. IV. The soldiers of the command will abstain from any offensive or insult ing words or gestures towards the citizens. V. No treasonable or offensive expressions, insulting to the flag, the cause, or the Armies of the Union, will hereafter be allowed. VI. For an exposition of their rights, duties, and privileges, the citizens of Richmond are respectfully referred to the proclamations of the President of the United States in relation to the existing rebellion. VII. All persons having in their possession, or under their control, any prop erty whatever of the so-called Confederate States, or of any officer thereof, or the records or archives of any public cfficer whatever, will immediately report the same to Colonel Manning, provost-marshal. In conclusion, the citizens of Richmond are assured that, with the restoration of the flag of the Union, they may expect the restoration of that peace, prosperity, and happiness which they enjoyed under the Union, of which that flag is the glorious symbol. G. F. SHEPLEY, Brigadier-General U. S. V., and Military Governor of Richmond. While the scenes of terror and destruction we have narrated were taking place in Richmond, the North was celebrating, with those fervors and shows known only to the Yankee, the fall of the Confederate capital. In New York and in Washington were the most swollen exhibitions of the popular triumph. In the former city there was an unlimited display of flags; bells were rung; impromptu meetings were gotten up, and wild and enthusiastic congratulations were exchanged on the streets. The New York Herald said: "People fairly danced in the excess of enthusiasm. To state that they howled would sound harsh and flat, but it would nevertheless be the simple truth. Huzzaing and cheering were heard, as never they were heard before. Singing also formed part of the popula. mode of letting off the exuberant feelings of the masses. Down in Wall-street, a chorus, which Maretzek could never hope to rival, almost made the ancient piles of stone and brick tremble in sympathy." The rage for flags was immense. Half an hour after the receipt of the news of the capture of the Confederate capital, there was, says a New York paper, not a single large flag of a national character in the whole city left unpurchased. Every housekeeper showed his loyalty and satisfaction, by exhibiting the stars and stripes from some portion of his establishment. The railway cars and horses were decorated with miniature flags. Carts, stages, and wagons, all over the city, displayed the same symbol of loyalty; and every spot, where a piece of bunting could properly be fastened, was so decorated. At noon, the bells of Trinity and St. Paul churches were rung. The chimes of Trinity resounded melodiously through the air, above the din of rumbling stages and heavy vehicles of every description. The example of these two churches was speedily followed by almost every church in the city; and for half an hour or more the ringing was heard from Trinity to Harlem-a distance of six miles. A large meeting of leading merchants, and other prominent citizens, was held at the custom-house, to make arrangements for a suitable celebration of the great victory. A number of speeches were made on the occasion. At the conclusion of one of the speeches, some persons present, with a grand chorus, began the hymn, to the tune of "Old Hundred," generally known in churches as the Doxology: "Praise God, from whom all blessings flow; Praise Him, all creatures here below; Praise Father, Son, and Holy Ghost." The whole crowd joined in. The chimes of Trinity came in at the proper time ith good effect, and, as the voices of over twenty thousand singers subsided, the echoes of the chimer from the towers of Trinity came floating on the breeze, and repeating in musical accord "Praise Him, all creatures here below."* * From the appearance of the New York papers one would suppose that the general excitement, produced by the capture of Richmond, had culminated in the commercial metropolis of the North. The Tribune occupied one-half of its first page with an enormous spread eagle, and the eighth page with a map of Richmond. The editor, while congratulating his readers on the fall of Richmond, could not avoid saying, that "it might have been ours long ago." An Irish drinking song, prepared for the occasion, and beginning, “Bad luck to the man who is sober to-night," was published on the inside, and proposed a good health to every official who had been connected with the military department of the Government, not excepting Shtanton." The World's columns were chiefly occupied with a brilliant and lengthy account of the battles, but the displayed heads of the news were jubilant and expressive; and the editor declared, that "the taking of Richmond was a greater event, and more fully justified exuberant rejoicing, than any previous achieve ment in the history of the war." The New York Herald declared, that the taking of Richmond was "one o the grandest triumphs that had crowned human efforts for centuries." The following specimen of Yankee poetry on the occasion was published in a New York paper: RICHMOND IS OURS! Richmond is ours! Richmond is ours! Hark! to the jubilant chorus ! Up, through the lips that no longer repress it, Leapeth our joy, like an ocean!--- Glory to Grant! Glory to Grant! Hark! to the shout of our Nation! Up, from the Irish heart, up from the German- Up, from all peoples uniting— Freedom's high loyalty plighting Glory to all! Glory to all! Heroes who combat, and martyrs who fall! The people of Washington vied with those of New York in demonstrations of joy over the fall of Richmond and Petersburg. In accordance with the recommendation of the Secretary of State, the Executive Mansion, the Capitol, and all the departments and other public buildings, and the City Hall, were at night illuminated, and each in a blaze of light was exhibited in its beautiful proportions. The National flag was a prominent adornment, and appropriate mottoes were conspicuously displayed. Pennsylvania Avenue and the principal streets were thronged with pedestrians. Bonfires were kindled in various parts of the city, and rockets ignited. Washington was, in short, ablaze with lights. The residences of the heads of the departments, and other officers of the Government, were also adorned and illuminated. The Capitol made a splendid appearance. It was the centre of attraction, and from basement to dome was a blaze of light. Over the main entrance, fronting on Pennsylvania Avenue, was a large transparency, on which was inscribed, "This is the Lord's doing, and it is marvellous in our eyes.' Over the main entrance to the War Department was the motto, "The Union must and shall be preserved," and underneath an eagle, the word, "Richmond." Over the main entrance to the Patent Office building was an immense gas-jet, displaying the word, "Union." Over the Fling out the Flag! Flash out the Flag! Up from each turret and steeple ! Up from the cottage, and over the mansion, Liberty seals us forever! Up from each valley, and out from each crag, Richmond is ours! Richmond is ours! Hark! to the joy that our Nation convulses, Voices of martyred ones blending: Mingling like watchwords on Liberty's towers, Freedom rejoiceth in Heaven! lower entrance of the Treasury building, on Fifteenth-street, was a huge transparency representing a ten-dollar Treasury note, over which was the motto, "U. S. greenbacks and U. S Grant Grant gives the greenbacks a metallic ring." Over the front entrance of the State Department was displayed the motto, "At home, union is order, and order is strength; abroad, union is strength, and strength is peace. Over the Fifteenth-street entrance was the following motto, "Peace and good-will to all nations; but no entangling alliances, and no foreign intervention." Thousands of persons of both sexes attended a public meeting at the southern portico of the Patent Office, where the word "Union" was largely prominent in flaming gas jets. Speeches were delivered by a number of persons, among them VicePresident Johnson. He made a long and intensely Union speech, in the course of which he said he could live down all the slanders which had been uttered against him. He was particularly severe on "the rebels," at the head of whom he placed Jefferson Davis, and he asked, what should be done with him. The response from many voices was, "Hang him! hang him!" To this he agreed, and applause succeeded his remark that Davis ought to be hanged twenty times higher than Haman. The following are passages from Vice-President Johnson's speech: "At the time that the traitors in the Senate of the United States plotted against the Government, and entered into a conspiracy more foul, more execrable, and more odious than that of Catiline against the Romans, I happened to be a member of that body. I was then and there called upon to know what I would do with such traitors, and I want to repeat my reply here. I said, if we had an Andrew Jackson, he would hang them as high as Haman. Humble as I am, when you ask me what I would do, my reply is, I would arrest them; I would try them; I would convict them; and I would hang them. I say this: 'The halter to intelligent, influential traitors.' But to the honest boy, to the deluded man, who has been deceived into the rebel ranks, I would extend leniency; I would say, return to your allegiance, renew your support to the Government, and become a good citizen; but the leaders I would hang. It is not my intention to make any imprudent remarks or allusions, but the hour will come when those nations that exhibited towards us such insolence and improper interference in the midst of our adversity, and, as they supposed, of our weakness, will learn that this is a Government of the people, possessing power enough to make itself felt and respected." .... |