The Rebel and the Rose is a romantic-sounding title. There is a bit of romance, but this is a non-fiction book, and yet again we are caught up in the War Between the States.

Authors and researchers Wesley Millett and Gerald White have examined many letters and diaries and have recently found new sources of information about the last days of the Confederacy.

Those of us here in Washington- Wilkes will be interested in reading about Jefferson Davis and the leaders who left Richmond in haste as Grant advanced. Even though we may know the story, we once again cry, "if only . . ." There was certainly nothing romantic about the flight south, or in Davis' desire to gather scattered forces and try to resurrect the Confederacy. Based on accounts by the participants, Millett and White give details of the conversations and difficulties the men (and a few women) experienced.

A key figure in this book who has seldom been the focus of other stories is James A. Semple. He was a bonded naval officer who had worked to provide the Southern navy with supplies during the war and served at the end by storing food in several places where Davis and his companions could findhelp as they fled. It turns out that he is important, too, because he was entrusted with the famous -- and perhaps missing -- Confederate gold. He is the "rebel" of the title, a friend of the "rose," Judith Gardiner Tyler, widow of President John Tyler.

It is a while before we get to the Rose. The book begins as Richmond is falling. "The total destruction of property, the vast loss of homes and businesses -- including hotels, flour mills, restaurants, newspaper offices,and all the banks in the city -- would not be caused by the enemy." Semple, along with all the cabinet officersand leaders, is packing and cleaning out records, burning some to keep them out of the hands of the Yankees. General Richard Ewell was expected to maintain order in the city and "to destroy the cotton and tobacco in the warehouses without setting fireto the city. He failed at both."

The assets of the treasury were also being packed. Silver bullion, Mexican coins, and gold (coins, nuggets, and bullion) were sealed in boxes. Never officially counted, it was estimated later to have been "less than $600,000." The writers give us details about the "treasure" as the men move on to Danville, Charlotte, Abbeville, and Washington.

Meanwhile, we learn that Julia Tyler is living in the North, having left her Virginia plantation and her two older sons, to findsafety in Connecticut. Though born in the North, she was a Southern sympathizer, and her sons served in the Rockbridge Artillery toward the end. She is in this book because of her relationship with Semple. As already mentioned, he is here because of the gold!

On page 119, we get to Washington when Varina Davis' party cuts across country to elude the Union Army patrols looking for Jefferson Davis. As we all know, Varina Davis found hospitality in this small Southern town, and Captain William H. Parker was able to confer with Judge Garnett Andrews.

Although Charlotte receives credit for the "last cabinet meeting," many stories about Jefferson Davis and his stay in Washington are given. Semple and the gold (from the Treasury and the Richmond banks) are here. Millett and White explain the disbursement and "disappearance" of both. It is a dramatic tale, told well.

The Rebel and the Rose is available at the Mary Willis Library.