Wilmington journal. [volume] (Wilmington, N.C.) 1844-1895, 1858-01-01
.t.,,.a Account of walkers surrender interesting

Narrative.
VIZ .re indebted to the New York Times for the fol-
lowing dated Aspinwall December lgsh:
Vo hoard nv the Star of the West Of the landing OF
one U walker and his men the Point Arenas, d
rectv under the guns of the Saratoga have now to
annonnce TO YOU his capture. Upon landing he took
nossession of SCOTS buildings and also OF schooner
v;no at the wharf Capt. Chatard oil he'oaratoga IN
o5 him that he must give up the schooner and evacu
ate the buildings which he did, moving further up the
Point where he hired few small bulldngs-huts, may
call them. and hoisted his flag there -,
uo assumed that Point Arenas was the headquarters
Of the army of Nicaragua and upon one occasion When
T;ent Cliey, of the Saratoga in company with two
other officers landed on the point, he was ordered to
leave it. CiIiey told him that he did not recognize his
authority but that if he repeated the ORDER having e
power to enforce it, he would leave lie states t!a'
Walker threatened to shoot him If he came tnere
On the 4th instant fortyfve of his men under Coonel
Anderson who had previously gone up the river captur
ed two steamers and the Fort OF Castillo linus lar al
had gone we'll He had command of the river, and only
waited for his renorcemens to go up into the interior
and carry all before him.
next dav Commodore Pauldng hoisted his flag on the
Fulton and Immediately set about his preparations TO
capture Walker and his men, whom ne found encamped
on Punta Arenas It appears that the Commodore mad
received by the Fashion, before he sailed from Aspn-
wall, which was on the 3d. most presumptuous letter
from Walker in which the writer styled himself Presl-
dent of Nicaragua and Commandern Chief OF the Army
of Nicaragua" This letter complained bitterly against
Captain Chatard and his officers for pesumng toqueson
his rights as sovereign of the country, &c. and among
other things asserted that when he threatened
Lieut. CIey of the Saratoga, that he would shoot him
if he came near his headquarters the Lieutenant was
without his uniform and consequently he had no right to
claim that he was United States naval officer. in
this letter Walker avowed his intention of asserting his
right as President Of Nicaragua by force of arms, if ne
cesSary
On the 18th Commodore Paulding sent, through Cap
IT,,
model of brevy, but couched IN language so plain
and pointed as admitted of only interpretation and
invited no reionder The Commodore buntly disputed
all his facts and premises plainly telling him that his ex
petition was an Illegal and wicked one and that he had
come there to break up AS regarded his threat to
Lieutenant ClIey he could only say that he had the
eutenants authority for saying that he in uniform
and it concerned General Walker to know that any vo
lence used by him any officer of the squadron would
result in an act of rerbuve justice toward the offender
The dispatch concluded by commanding General Walk
er to lay down his arms, and surrender himself and men
to the United States naval forces.
Commodore Pauldng had previously blockaded the
mouth of the river San uan that there was no chance
for the escape of the busters On the 9Th the broad
side of the Saratoga was brought to bear Gen. Wal
ker's camp Capt Engle had the day before received
his written orders to the armlng and disposition OF
the launches He was directed to land, when he should
be at convenient distance from the Shore with small
arms and Immediately to present the letter and summons
above referred to- In of resistance he directed
to seize the principal officers first using only just so
much force was necessary to accomplish his purpose
Everything being ready, 100 marines from the Wa
BASH and $50 sailors from the Wabash and Saratoga,
feat very difficult of accomplishment-yet the utmost
regularity and the most perfect discipline were observed
throughout. The scene with the many boats dancing
on the waves full of armed men, the launches with their
twelve-pound hOwzers the three ships of the Uni
ted States and the British line-ofbattleship Brunswick
in the harbor, was magnificent The landing effect
ed without the slightest accident. There no appear
ance of any contemplated resistance the part of Wal
ker When Captain Engle stepped forward and presen
ted his demand for the surrender General w replied at
once" Captain Enge, am under your ORDERS"
| Some seventy men Immediately embarked
the Fulton and SarotogaWalker the former vessel
Some twenty thirty slid away into the bushes.
Captain Engle at placed marine guard the
stores and munitions of war; and then sent out to
hunt up and bring in the missing filibusers Notwth-
standing the used to the and stores the
struggling lbusers got considerable quantity of them
into the bush and hid buried them. Among the
plumber of the camp few barrels kegs of whiskey
had not been forgotten Jack could find all sorts of
things in the bush but, strange to say he always
ported no whiskey." 1t was very amusing, however,
to see jack driving in his prisoners. Every little
while sailor might be observed emerging from the
i thcket, pompously with cutass and pistol in hand,
driving before him poor chopalen fibuster, both as
drunk as Julius Caesar from the influence of the whs-
/ key Jack could not find
! Just as Walker hauled down his flag the river steamer
4 Charles Morgan hove in sight. She was Immediately
taken possession of by Commodore Paulding. She
under command of one of Walkers officers who went up
the Colorado with Col. Anderson, and had on board
about forty men, women and children, found in Fort
Castillo at the time of its capture day two before
by Anderson She also had on board two deserers from
Anderson's force of whom under sentence of
DEATH and who would undoubtedly have been shot had
Walker not been compelled to surrender
/ 1t appears that Anderson, after encampng on Leafs
Island, at the junction of the Colorado with the San
Juan, dispatched twenty men of his forty-seven five
miles up the river where they landed the Costa Rca
side the place of Costa Rcan by the name of Limo
RI Pataca Here they joined by Anderson and the
whole force assembled the river to the vicinity of Castillo
in the fiat botomed boats brought out by the Fashion
Landing, they marched the fort which taken by
surprise and with little no resistance 1t said that
two of the garrison were killed 1t under command
of COL Avarado and nearly deserted only the
forty persons named being found in it, the main portion
having gone up to Fort San Carlos.
On Saturday, the 26th SO men were dispatched to
Norfolk in the Saratoga and General Walker with his
Secretary, Mr. Tabor received on board the Wa
bash, which arrived at Aspinwall Monday morning
, l4th.
| 1t is not true, as stated in the Panama STAR that
Walker shed tears on hauling down his flag. When he
was told by the Commodore the Fulton that he was
to be sent to the States the Saratoga he was very
much agitaed and begged hard to be sent on some 9TH
err vessel There very bitter feeling existing be-
tween Walker and Capt. Chatard and his officers as
well between Walkers officers and men and the Off
GERS and men the Saratoga-So bitter indeed that
had Captain Chatard before the arrival of the Commo-
dore, offered to modest Walker, conflict would have
been the result This the that Walker OBJ
ected strongly to going home his vesse-and the
Commodore finally agreed to receive him on board the
Wohoc IIo