Inaugural Address. The following is the text of the inaugural address, delivered at Montgomery, Ala., Feb. 18, 1861: Gentlemen of the Congress of the Confederate States of America, Friends, and Fellow-Citizens, Called to the difficult and responsible station of chief executive of the provisional government which you have instituted, I approach the discharge of the duties assigned me with an humble distrust of my abilities, but with a sustaining confidence in the wisdom of those who are to guide and aid me in the administration of public affairs, and an abiding faith in the virtue and patriotism of the people. Looking forward to the speedy establishment of a permanent government to take the place of this, and which by its greater moral and physical power will be better able to combat with the many difficulties which arise from the conflicting interests of separate nations, I enter upon the duties of the office to which I have been chosen with the hope that the beginning of our career as a confederacy may not be obstructed by hostile opposition to our enjoyment of the separate existence and independence which we have asserted, and which, with the blessing of Providence, we intend to maintain. serted the right which the Declaration of Independence of 1776 defined to be inalienable. Of the time and occasion of its exercise they as sovereigns were the final judges, each for himself. The impartial, enlightened verdict of mankind will vindicate the rectitude of our conduct; and He who knows the hearts of men will judge of the sincerity with which we labored to preserve the government of our fathers in its spirit. The right solemnly proclaimed at the birth of the States, and which has been affirmed and reaffirmed in the bills of rights of the States subsequently admitted into the Union of 1789, undeniably recognizes in the people the power to resume the authority delegated for the pur poses of government. Thus the sovereign States here represented proceeded to form this Confederacy, and it is by the abuse of language that their act has been denominated revolution. They formed a new alliance, but within each State its government has remained. The rights of person and property have not been disturbed. The agent through whom they communicated with foreign nations is changed, but this does not necessarily interrupt their international relations. Sustained by the consciousness that the transition from the former Union to the present Confederacy has not proceeded from a disregard on our part of our just obligations or any failure to perform every constitutional duty, moved by no interest or passion to invade the rights of others, anxious to cultivate peace and commerce with all nations, if we may not hope to avoid war, we may at least expect that posterity will acquit us of having needlessly engaged in it. Doubly justified by the absence of wrong on our part, and by wanton aggression on the part of others, there can be no cause to doubt the courage and patriotism of the people of the Confederate States will be found equal to any measures of defence which soon their security may require. Our present condition, achieved in a manner unprecedented in the history of nations, illustrates the American idea that governments rest upon the consent of the governed, and that it is the right of the people to alter and abolish govern ments whenever they become destructive to the ends for which they were estab lished. The declared compact of the Union from which we have withdrawn was to establish justice, insure domestic tranquillity, provide for the common defence, promote the general welfare, and secure the blessings of liberty to ourselves and our posterity; and when, in the judgment of the sovereign States now composing this Confederacy, it has been perverted from the purposes for which it was ordained, and ceased to answer the ends for which it was established, a peaceful appeal to the ballot-box declared that, as far as they were concerned, the government created by that compact should cease to exist. In this they merely as- those to whom we would sell and from An agricultural people, whose chief interest is the export of a commodity required in every manufacturing country, our true policy is peace, and the freest trade which our necessities will permit. It is alike our interest, and that of all whom we would buy, that there should be required. These necessities have, doubtbe the fewest practicable restrictions upon less, engaged the attention of Congress. the interchange of commodities. There can be but little rivalry between ours and any manufacturing or navigating community, such as the Northeastern States of the American Union. It must With a constitution differing only from that of our fathers in so far as it is explanatory of their well-known intent, freed from sectional conflicts, which have interfered with the pursuit of the general follow, therefore, that mutual interest welfare, it is not unreasonable to ex would invite good-will and kind offices. If, however, passion or lust of dominion should cloud the judgment or inflame the ambition of those States, we must prepare to meet the emergency and maintain by the final arbitrament of the sword pect that the States from which we have recently parted may seek to unite their fortunes to ours, under the government which we have instituted. For this your constitution makes adequate provision, but beyond this, if I mistake not, the judg the position which we have assumed ment and will of the people are, that among the nations of the earth. We have entered upon a career of independence, and it must be inflexibly pursued through many years of controversy with our late associates of the Northern States. We have vainly endeavored to secure tranquillity and obtain respect for the rights to which we are entitled. As a necessity, not a choice, we have resorted to the remedy of separation, and henceforth our energies must be directed to the conduct of our own affairs, and the perpetuity of the Confederacy which we have formed. If a just perception of mutual interest shall permit us peaceably to pursue our separate political career, my most earnest desire will have been fulfilled. But if this be denied us, and the integrity of our territory and jurisdiction be assailed, it will but remain for us with firm resolve to appeal to arms and invoke the blessing of Providence on a just cause. a As a consequence of our new condition, and with view to meet anticipated wants, it will be necessary to provide a speedy and efficient organization of the branches of the executive department having special charge of foreign intercourse, finance, military affairs, and postal service. For purposes of defence the Confederate States may, under the ordinary circumstances, rely mainly upon their militia; but it is deemed advisable in the present condition of affairs that there should be a well-instructed, disciplined union with the States from which they have separated is neither practicable nor desirable. To increase the power, develop the resources, and promote the happiness of the Confederacy, it is requisite there should be so much homogeneity that the welfare of every portion would be the aim of the whole. Where this does not exist, antagonisms are engendered which must and should result in separation. Actuated solely by a desire to preserve our own rights, and to promote our own welfare, the separation of the Confederate States has been marked by no aggression upon others, and followed by no domestic convulsion. Our industrial pursuits have received no check, the cultivation of our fields progresses as heretofore, and even should we be involved in war, there would be no considerable diminution in the production of the staples which have constituted our exports, in which the commercial world has an interest scarcely less than our own. This common interest of producer and consumer can only be intercepted by an exterior force which should obstruct its transmission to foreign markets, a course of conduct which would be detrimental to manufacturing and commercial interests abroad. Should reason guide the action of the government from which we have separated, a policy so detrimental to the civilized world, the Northern States included, could not be dictated by even a stronger army, more numerous than would usually desire to inflict injury upon us; but if it be required on a peace establishment. I be otherwise, a terrible responsibility will also suggest that, for the protection of rest upon it, and the suffering of millions our harbors and commerce on the high will bear testimony to the folly and wickseas, a navy adapted to those objects will edness of our aggressors. In the mean time there will remain to us, besides the ordinary remedies before suggested, the well-known resources for retaliation upon the commerce of an enemy. Experience in public stations of a subordinate grade to this which your kindness had conferred has taught me that care and toil and disappointments are the price of official elevation. You will see many errors to forgive, many deficiencies to tolerate, but you shall not find in me either want of zeal or fidelity to the cause that is to me the highest in hope and of most enduring affection. Your generosity has bestowed upon me an undeserved distinction, one which I neither sought nor desired. Upon the continuance of that sentiment, and upon your wisdom and patriotism, I rely to direct and support me in the performance of the duties required at my hands. We have changed the constituent parts but not the system of our government. The Constitution formed by our fathers is that of these Confederate States. In their exposition of it, and in the judicial construction it has received, we have a light which reveals its true meaning. Thus instructed as to the just interpretation of that instrument, and ever remembering that all offices are but trusts held for the people, and that delegated powers are to be strictly construed, I will hope by due diligence in the performance of my duties, though I may disappoint your expectation, yet to retain, when retiring, something of the good-will and confidence which will welcome my entrance into office. It is joyous in the midst of perilous times to look around upon a people united in heart, when one purpose of high resolve animates and actuates the whole, where the sacrifices to be made are not weighed in the balance, against honor, right, liberty, and equality. Obstacles may retard, but they cannot long prevent the progress of a movement sanctioned by its justice and sustained by a virtuous people. Reverently let us invoke the God of our fathers to guide and protect us in our efforts to perpetuate the principles which by His blessing they were able edged, we may hopefully look forward to success, to peace, to prosperity. Davis, JEFFERSON C., military officer; born in Clarke county, Ind., March 2, 1828; served in the war with Mexico; was made lieutenant in 1852; and was one of the garrison of Fort Sumter during the bombardment in April, 1861. The same year he was made captain, and became colonel of an Indiana regiment of volunteers. In December he was promoted to brigadier-general of volunteers, and commanded a division in the battle of Pea Ridge early in 1862. He partici pated in the battle of Corinth in 1862; commanded a division in the battles of Stone River, Murfreesboro, and Chickamauga in 1862-63; and in 1864 commanded the 14th Army Corps in the Atlanta campaign and in the March through Georgia and the Carolinas. He was brevetted major-general in 1865, and the next year was commissioned colonel of the 23d Infantry. He was afterwards on the Pacific coast; commanded troops in Alaska; and also commanded the forces that subdued the Modocs, after the murder of GEN. EDWARD R. S. CANBY (q. v.), in 1873. He died in Chicago, Ill., Nov. 30, 1879. Davis, JOHN, jurist; born in Plymouth, Mass., Jan. 25, 1761; graduated at Har to vindicate, establish, and transmit to vard College in 1781; admitted to the their posterity; and with a continuance bar and began practice at Plymouth in of His favor, ever gratefully acknowl- 1786. He was the last surviving member March 12, 1889. of the convention that adopted the federal active in other engagements. He was proConstitution; comptroller of the United moted rear-admiral, and retired in NoStates Treasury in 1795-96; and eminent vember, 1886. He died in Washington, for his knowledge of the history of New England. In 1813 he made an address on the Landing of the Pilgrims before the Massachusetts Historical Society, over which he presided in 1818-43. His publications include an edition of Morton's New England Memorial, with many important notes; Eulogy on George Wash ington; and An Attempt to Explain the Inscription on Dighton Rock. He died in Boston, Mass., Jan. 14, 1847. Davis, JOHN, statesman; born in Northboro, Mass., Jan. 13, 1787; graduated at Yale in 1812; admitted to the bar in 1815; member of Congress in 1824-34, during which time he opposed Henry Clay; and was elected to the United States Senate in 1835, and resigned in 1841 to be come governor of Massachusetts. He was a strong antagonist of Jackson and Van Buren, and was re-elected to the United States Senate in 1845, but declined to serve. He protested strongly against the war with Mexico, and was in favor of the exclusion of slavery in the United States Territories. He died in Worcester, Mass. April 19, 1854. Davis, JOHN W., statesman; born in Cumberland county, Pa., July 17, 1799; graduated at the Baltimore Medical College in 1821; settled in Carlisle, Ind., in 1823; member of Congress in 1835-37, 1839-41, and 1843-47; speaker of the House of Representatives during his last term; United States commissioner to China in 1848-50; and governor of Oregon in 1853-54. He was president of the convention in 1852 which nominated Franklin Pierce for President. He died in Carlisle, Ind., Aug. 22, 1859. Davis, RICHARD HARDING, author; born in Philadelphia, Pa., April 18, 1864; son of Rebecca Harding Davis; educated at Lehigh University and Johns Hopkins University; became a newspaper reporter. In 1888 he joined the staff of the New York Evening Sun, to which he contributed some of his best short stories. In 1890 he became the managing editor of Harper's Weekly. He particularly distinguished himself as a chronicler of the Czar's coronation and Queen Victoria's jubilee, and as a reporting observer of the American-Spanish War. His publications include Soldiers of Fortune; The Princess Aline; Our English Cousins; Van Bibber and Others; About Paris; The Rulers of the Mediterranean; Three Gringos in Venezuela and Central America; Cuba in War Time; A Year from a Davis, JOHN CHANDLER BANCROFT, statesman; born in Worcester, Mass., Dec. 29, 1822; graduated at Harvard in 1840; appointed secretary of the United States legation in London in 1849; and assistant Secretary of State in 1869, which post he resigned in 1871 to represent the United States at the Geneva court of Correspondent's Note-Book; Stories for arbitration on the Alabama claims. He was appointed United States minister to Germany in 1874, judge of the United States court of claims in 1878, and reporter of the United States Supreme Court in 1883. He is the author of The Case of the United States laid before the Tribunal of Arbitration at Geneva; Treaties of the United States, with Notes, etc. Davis, JOHN LEE, naval officer; born in Carlisle, Ind., Sept. 3, 1825; joined the navy in 1841; served with the Gulf blockading squadron in 1861 as executive officer of the Water Witch; and on Oct. 12 of that year took part in the action with the Confederate ram Manassas, and in that with the fleet near Pilot Town. Dur Boys; Cuban and Porto Rican Campaigns, etc. Davis, VARINA ANNE JEFFERSON, author; second daughter of Jefferson Davis; born in Richmond, Va., June 27, 1864; known popularly in the South as "the Daughter of the Confederacy." Her childhood was mostly spent abroad, and for several years she devoted herself to literature. Her works include An Irish Knight of the Nineteenth Century; Sketch of the Life of Robert Emmet; The Veiled Doctor; Foreign Education for American Girls; and A Romance of Summer Seas. She died at Narraganset Pier, R. I., Sept. 18, 1898. Dawes, HENRY LAURENS, statesman; ing the remainder of the war he was born in Cummington, Mass., Oct. 30, 1816; graduated at Yale in 1839; admitted to the bar in 1842; served in the State legislature in 1848-50, and in the State Senate in 1850-52; member of Congress in 1857-73, and of the United States Sen 1870: studied law and was admitted to the bar in 1872; began practice at Canton, O.; served as judge in the court of common pleas in 1886-90; appointed judge of the United States district court ate in 1875-93; and then became chairman for the northern district of Ohio in 1889, of the commission of the five civilized but resigned before taking office on actribes. He is the author of many tariff measures, and also of the system of Indian education, and to him is due the introduction of the Weather Bulletin in 1869. Dawes, WILLIAM, patriot. On April 18, 1775, he accompanied Paul Revere, riding through Roxbury, while Revere went by way of Charlestown. On the following day, when Adams and Hancock received the message from Warren, Revere, Dawes, and Samuel Prescott rode forward, arousing the inhabitants. They were surprised by a number of British at Lincoln, and both Dawes and Revere were captured, Prescott making good his escape to Concord. Dawson, HENRY BARTON, author; born in Lincolnshire, England, June 8, 1821; came to New York with his parents in 1834. He is the author of Battles of the United States by Sea and Land; Recollections of the Jersey Prison-Ship; Westchester County in the Revolution, etc. For many years he was editor of the Historical Magazine. WILLIAM RUFUS DAY. count of ill health. In March, 1897, he was made assistant Secretary of State, Day. The Washington Prime Meridian and on April 26, 1898, succeeded John Conference adopted a resolution declaring Sherman as head of the department. the universal day to be the mean solar day, beginning, for all the world, at the moment of mean midnight of the initial meridian, coinciding with the civil day, and that meridian be counted from zero up to 24 hours, Oct. 21, 1884. See STAND ARD TIME. Day, or Daye, STEPHEN, the first printer in the English-American colonies; born in London in 1611; went to Massachusetts in 1638, and was employed to manage the printing-press sent out by Rev. Mr. Glover. He began printing at Cambridge in March, 1639. He was not a skilful workman, and was succeeded in the management, about 1648, by Samuel Green, who employed Day as a journey man. He died at Cambridge, Mass., Dec. 22, 1668. Day, WILLIAM RUFUS, statesman; born in Ravenna, O., April 17, 1849; graduated at the University of Michigan in While in the State Department he had charge, under the President, of the delicate diplomatic correspondence preceding and during the war with Spain, and of the negotiation of the protocol of peace. After the latter had been асcepted Judge Day was appointed chief of the United States peace commission, his place as Secretary of State being filled by John Hay, recalled as American ambassador to Great Britain. After the ratification of the treaty of peace, Judge Day was appointed judge of the United States circuit court for the sixth judicial circuit (Feb. 25, 1899). Dayton, ELIAS, military officer; born in Elizabethtown, N. J., in July, 1737: fought with the Jersey Blues under Wolfe at Quebec; was member of the committee of safety at the beginning of the Revolution, and became colonel of the 3d New Jersey Regiment. He served in New |