Staunton Spectator

Gen'l Early, "old Jubal," as he was called by the soldiers, is in Havana, and expects to got in a short time to the city of Mexico. We publish in this issue a letter of his dated Havana, December the 18th, 1865, addressed to the Editor of the N. Y. News. If not rebellious, he is still unrepentant, and, like, "Bill Arp," does not want any "short winded, one horse pardon." He says that he would not accept a pardon from the President of the United States if gratuitously tendered him without conditions or restrictions of any kind -- that he has nothing to regret in the course pursued by him during the war, except that his services were not of more avail to the cause for which he fought -- that his faith in the justice of that cause is not at all shaken by the result, and that the world has never witnessed so great a political crime as that committed in the destruction of the Confederate Government by armed force. He shows that great disparity in the forces of the two parties engaged in the war, and says that more glory attaches to the "heroic band of Confederates" than to the "Grand Army of the Union."

A clergyman who was in Alexandria at the time says, that the negroes commenced parading the streets on Sunday night, armed with pistols, knives and clubs, and marching to the beating of drums. They kept up this demonstration until Christmas morning. On Christmas day, they insulted a number of white persons in various ways. They halted in front of several houses, uttering threats at the inmates, shouting at and cursing the inhabitants generally, and brandishing their knives and pistols. Finally, these disgraceful scenes culminated in an attack upon a white man who was passing along the street. A general fight soon after ensued between the whites and blacks, which resulted in the killing of several persons, and among them a Mr. Mitchell, who belonged to the 2d United States regiment of District of Columbia volunteers. The white persons engaged in the riot were entirely of the class known as "loyal." General Augur has directed as investigation to be made into the circumstances of the riot, and will bring all parties responsible for the affair to justice.

Those who anticipate so much danger from the reception of colored testimony, under the forms and sanction of the law, instead of in patriarchal courts of the family and the farm, do not sufficiently distinguish, we think, between the competency, and the credibility of a witness.--To declare a witness competent, is simply to allow him to be heard. To be credible he must be worthy of being believed. The law prescribes and the court decides, as to the competency of a witness; the jury judges of his credibility, and values his evidence accordingly. It must not be feared, therefore, that cases in court would be decided simply upon the wild statements of mendacious colored witnesses. Our citizens have been so long accustomed to study the character, and weigh the statements of the slave population, that there is little danger of any intelligent jury, aided by the bar, being imposed upon by perjuries when they have the witness before them, and are thus enabled to question him, and to watch his countenance, and compare his different statements.--Rich. Sentinel.