Southern Historical Society Papers, Volume 3.
Reverend J. William Jones, Ed.

[273] indeed know their man. General Cooper, upon such an important issue as the one he was called upon to meet in his own person, allowed no dictation and asked no advice. That he should have cast aside the personal possession of comfort and plenty to the end of his days, and embarked with his family and household gods upon an unknown sea, over which the storm clouds were riding and the winds of war were blowing, and upon which many perils were to be encountered, many difficulties surmounted, many dangers contested, before the waters grew calm or the voyage prosperous, is, in the estimation of his Southern admirers, the strongest proof of the pure and conscientious character of the old hero. “Fiat justitia ruat coelum,” we can almost hear him exclaim, as he dared to follow his convictions of right, and permit self-interest to be taken prisoner by conscience and duty.

The new Confederacy of States, in the act of breathing life into its corporal substance, and staggering at the amount of organization to be performed to perpetuate national existence, warmly welcomed Adjutant-General Cooper's offer of services, because they found in such a proposal the master mind, the perfect knowledge and vast experience, necessary to put the intricate machinery into successful operation. The President of the Confederate States had served as Secretary of War in Pearce's Cabinet, and was thus brought into close official relations with General Cooper in the discharge of the latter's duties as Adjutant-General in the United States army. No one knew better than he did the character and qualifications of the soldier who joined him at Montgomery, Alabama. His clear conception of this fact was at once manifested by placing him at the head of the Adjutant and Inspector-General's Department, and afterwards making him a full general — the first on the list of five--the remaining four being Generals Albert Sydney Johnston, Robert E. Lee, Joseph E. Johnston and Beauregard, holding respective rank in the order named.

During the four long years in the life of the Confederacy, General Cooper fully discharged the onerous duties confided to him with a fidelity, an exactness, a loyalty and an honesty, which, whilst perfectly consistent with his conscientiousness and ability, gave great satisfaction to the army and the country.

It is indeed difficult to place a proper estimate upon the value of his service during that trying period, so great was his capacity for work.