Richmond enquirer. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1815-1867, 1837-02-04
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~ ~ s.Ja1 r., !, c,nupxinn with this pn.ns the
Court will please loo: a. that par: "' crs E'Ss", ms =,
timonv, detailing lie rs::a:ks emu aurN w. e., IT,,
Augusta. 4; thr end Of JLnuary' i1'". ! y .
.m rhI;..d T., ab,,!yc il in iis place. &c! Lindsay haa
served with sl#i General Jacksnn ag"rn$! u F"'t u
the same lndians IN the campaign VI 1919 Al P'nI.
nal object 1T which WAS laccntuihG |" l"e "'tmFeS1 ~
drive the So. n:nnle. from ;h2 Grors.a 'Fnatief, across
the Suwaay-; thai Gen. JACKSON carried INTO we iriu
"a force amounting 10: perhaps, o.oJo men iHS "eS
said in answer 10 nay Sh question. 10 Tue OH! .He
Colonel had reviously said, The country east o ~
Suyu. &c is infinitely more :mpracNcasie than the c"un,
try west he adds many striking nlnerehces' al
against our troops, aud it is known that e'enerai oacE'
sons operations Terminated on the west hanH u mat
river. In respect to the advice gwen on lhF supJeIt
of detochiug. lhe witness said. < believe mentioned
10 General Scott" .lhal | derived that advice i;oi" 9s-
neral Jackson, who, OF some occasions, when | want
ed to 90 on detached service, made use OF 'his enip'iS;.
ic tx pressivn: . Sir, | never detach against ineiaEs.
And, sgaiR, in the same campaign, General J. observed
20 The witness, " that he never detached or suiui'u
small parties to ,narch ,krough The Indian country. IHe
Court will please to bear in mind the ohlcial relation tnI'
subsis,ed in January, 1886, between Gen. Jackson, No''
Lindsay, and myself; that | had never oeeh III lhc III
rior of Eiorida; t!,at Gov. Eaton, in his letter to me u!
February 3, 1896, speaking o! the Eos!Hs HS"',n%apH'
said: "lheir numerical force Garnet IT less INA o''00'
probably more;' that Col. Lindsay hos TESTIFIED, IN an
aver In mv 9th question, what must be evident from Tie
surface of The country, that, from dispersion. the enemy
had great facilities of concentration; tha: | had seen, be-
fore the columns advanced from Fort Drane and VoIusla,
BY Gen. Gaiues's letter TO Gen. Ciinch, dated The Z9lA
Of February, that the writer Supposed hiuse! 10 nave
been surrounded in Camp lizard, by mot esE tE1n ! ,ou0
warriors, and that, although he had t7om q Thousand 10
2 HOO good troops with him, | saw that he could Ee!tler
pass The Wythlacoochee nor venture TO make a softie' All
these considerations induced ne, MIR. Presidrnt,' TO hold
the troops under my command IN three columns, Gnl!i l
could feel my way q little, and judge for myself. When
/ had satisfied my mind that tlere were not, IN all fl",
rida, more than l,200 Indian warriors, probably less; ana
that, Of that force, perhaps not $40 had been cnncenttu.
sAI al ~ titnn in tho yyur the COutt Will mud mat ]
then became q little holder, and detained freely and far
in all directions; and it is gratifying TO recall, that not
wilhslanding all the b~ugbears by which had been Tor d
moment friGhted from my bent, not d dlsIster-noto one
defeat ensued. | speak, sir, of delachineuts beyoad SEP
porting dtstance; for all the columns were haulluaHy sub
divided seahts that limit IN searching tor and IN rtlack'
ing the enemy.
The fret Of these distant ds;echmenLs was that Of $40
men, left under MAJOR Cooper, only twelve miles sni'l,
OF the Wylhlacoochce, and which CALAMITY maintained
itself from the I'd of april Till the 18Th, when Ii was ao
sorbed on the return OF Ciinch > ccicInE. MAJOR Cooper
commenced E work for defence, but tie enemy gave
him no leisure 10 complete it. Gen. Eust!S, ap2rodci'
ing Tumpa, brought his mounted ne. 10 that depot: but
left his foot, from the 9Th OF Apris:c the 18th, at Camp
Shelton, under Brigadies' General Bull, sixteen miles IN
the rea., without ever a c.cas: work for lis cstrnce.-
With the sane body Of foot, | myself marched to Fort
Alabama, whilst The Sorth Carolina horse, under Col.
Gpodw:n, was on tie distant service Of searching for
the enemy, about the head Of Peas creek. AT the same
time, Col. Smith, and his Louisiana volunteers, 1T ior
duty, <a5oot 83VD with small parties fie.: the I States
ship pandalia, under Lieut.. Powell, and from The re.
venue catLer Dallas, under Cap.cin Green, secured
the lower part OF that creek 10 the extent u about
sixty miles from Charlotte liaetor. Colonel .SalH!
and Colonel Goodwin tsas visited what We had
supposed to be among the tavori,c haunts and ,et.oug.
holds Of the enemy. |, myself, the 10Th Of A priL, with
q single company Of South Carolina horse, marched
ftofn the Big across tie Little Wythlacoocllee again,
tire oath, with but two companies, | went to .FuIusla, u
day iE. advance OF Eustis column sent q smell De.
techafent the 10Th 10 scour the country east OF Spring
Garden Lake, and personally proceeded, sS,th Gel: Gads-
den, Captain Garfield, and Lieut.. J. E.:Johnson, and II
linen, in a miserable little STEAMER, 20 explore the ST.
john river to the head OF Lake Monroe. Gen. Cilnch
aud Col. Lindsay also made detcchn!ents about the sauie
period. and had detached Major Reed with The hat,a.
lion of F%loridians, by wafer, to search the lover Wyth-
lacoochee, as early as tie l7th.
AS this last expedition was the only one. made under
MY command that failed to reach the destination given,
and to accomplish It's objects, aud for Lhat, reason uiOns,
had brought upon me infinite oblunuy; ! beg the Court
will pardon Inc .uI dwelling upon it u moment.
1t has been seen by the deposition Of Mr.. ,Newcombs,
the Quarler-Masle at Tampa in A pril last, that by extra.
ordinary exertions on his part, ehd not a little energy on
in.ne, ample, and ereI extra, means were. provided iur
Major Read 8 smat! battalion OF, perhaps, about 2UO men.
First, there were two large and one smaller schooner !;
ttco llnsteec o! one cutters, under MidsbipG!en Reid aud
Drake, manned and furnished, at my request, from the
U. S. ship ~Fandalia, Capt. Webb; large scow in pieces,
with mechanics, nails, oakua, and pitch, So that it
might be put together, and launched in two hours; many
ship boats, or yuwls, and pikts. TIE deBonent, all ex.
perlenced and excellent officer, decierec,"i respect to
the suthclency OF those means: both for transporting the
troops to t!ie mouth of the river, and tor ascending IL
II DID not doubt, nor CO | know that any tody else did
/ do not think Major Read himself doubted, %altLouy!.
ne attempted to find fault with The means" {se4. sisY
Col. 'Gedseea's dcposiuon.1
But let Us now see what use was made .sy the ,,o:,-
OF the o%uthtthusf furnished. stA!l'4-o'v MS report 10
, ,as' a ~n.I, ,I de he w val soe E:tlj be- es snHs: h''"--''
81 despatched all the small craft 10 thetrcnsDerts, with
orders to the officers in cdnsmsndekssrA ct ,be4a TO COLI
mence ~debaTking the. men as 1ast as possible =
y TIE return OF the boats, transporting, as | haG or.
dereG, ss nauy iren as they could receive, the morning
reports OF the officers in coGnuiaad were Lundet 10 me.
ny which tue tfigh!tul picture Of an increase of forty (4Uj
Z tho sick list In less .tkan two days, was pnessu,ed-
Special COMMUNICATIONS trDm The surgeonS xere ai:7
.hapoeo @e, IN which the most horrible consequences
were predicted, unless the men could be take$l forthwith
u some place where medicines ana xeo&. ~ a:er could he
procured. The water on hoafG tie SCHOONER. Caroline,
u vas SAID, had already 0eecG:e oplrld. Without going
,abourG, L despatcbeS en- order Cor the transports to hoS,
all sail, andto prpcsed with the utaost possible despatch
10 St. Marks, the nearest port. l raa:anieG absurd tic
detachment first ordered to deba1k ,a"d directed e~se!ecl
number Of 10 to join me on board the SINAI; craft iNs ihe
.aurpose of making the reconnaissance and surveys, wk;ch
! FIND, Upon peIusing sny order more carefully than al
first l did, were the principal objects of the expedition"
= 4'AFhec inicr'i!ed Ky zoe pilot that ~"
were almost at the mouth, 1 went tnyse;. i"se.he second
cutler of the Vandalia; it draws less water lhan tkaU!ber,
taking with ME only two Of my detachment
"When | had gotten over The bar, proceeded some two
aniles and upwards, to within = sAorl distance OF a large
smoke, the fire thet afforded wkicS., was, perhaps, t;sste
miles dn,aIt. ldeemed It ia: prudent te 20 f~uri;es, &ad
caused The boat to return" Whel the Major prsceeted
to St. Marks after his haslalis=.
Here, will rot peys A;:;- President, WHY all his Gre
and haste? But | may es;a. whence all This SMOKE aud
precipitation? Some partsrci the report are, ~doubllrss,
as obscure rs others are strange. For example Whea
The Major heard Of the new csses eli sickness, how ncaEy
well men were left? lie does not tell us. Ike water,
too, OH board of one Of The transports had suddenly se.
come put.id, and lbe medicines deficient. Aow so =
Why no. have gone o.. boarI, 10 order to inquire into
those extraordinary matters IL persona And WAS llere
no good water in the other veSssi:, o: in ls WE. lacoo.
chez, at the ~tart:eGt, within nine or twelve miles, at the
falls? We have seen that there were many wei! men
remaining, ten Of whom Re retained with him, aud sent
back others in the boats which had.!-c4aht them from
che iransnnrfs IHhu MI hnua r,n,u.L'.i 49,, -