Nashville union and American. [volume] (Nashville, Tenn.) 1853-1862, 1861-09-20

like true hearted, bold and ehivalrous Kentuck>
ians have the manliness to say so.
Look upon the map of our country and you viii
at once perceive that this portion of Kentucky,
4 especially the city of Columbus, as a military posi-
tiOn, is Of the utmost Importance. If the Northern
army proposes to make movement into Tennessee
and the cotton States further South to occupy
| Memphis and the country In the vicinity Of that
city, then it is absolutely necessary that they have
possession Of Columbus because from the nature of
the nights approaching to the waters edge, this
position commands and controls the navigation Of
the Mississippi and By that river they would natur
ally receive their supplies and reinforcements. In
Ike manner in order to Illustrate such forward
movement to oVerrun the Southern States, the pos
session Of Columbus to fortify and plant their bat
teres is Of the last Importance to the forces Of the
Confederates. In 4 word, Columbus has been by
both governments looked upon as the key which
opens closes the entrance to the cotton States
We do know that hitherto the Southern government
has been withheld from occupying this place by
their sense of the obligation they were under to
respect the neutrality of the State of Kentucky.
We know that Tennessee, as also the Confedsrte
authority have fully recognized the right of Ken
lucky to ordan this neutrality for herself because
in the assertion of that position she only exsr
csing State sovereignty, principle fully admitted
1 and praeticed by all the Confederate States. We
know, therefore thst Notwithstanding the powerful
| inducement which this commanding position held
out to them, they have permitted consideration
| Ct that nature to persuade them 10 oTerstep their
1 ODuBauOQ klSlef sovereign STATE. DuL, on the
contrary, have allowed the neutral posture of Ken
tueky to stand as an impossible wall between them
| and a much coveted object We know also, that
while the Southern army have been persistently
and regularly observing Kentucky's position Of
neutrality, 1t has all the while been under protest
that long this position at Columbus was with
held from enl it not to be suffered TO fan into
the hands Of their enemy. That the very first in
dication of purpose to take military possession of
that place would be signal for rush to arnE, to
prevent a result which, to them, would be so dam
| aging Such has been the feeling action and sur-
pose Of the Confederates from the beginning of the
| unhappy war that is now being so bitterly waged
between two powers, one Of whom has all the
while held large army only twenty miles above,
and the other similar force about the same dis
| lance below this point.
While the citizens Of this portion Of Kentucky
have felt the most unbounded confidence that Col
umbus was protected from military occupancy on
| the part of the southern army, by reason of the
declaration of neutrality, have never felt, nor
have we had any evidence 70 create any hope that
We were equally secure on the part of the soldiery
| of the northern army. We PURPOSE, in So brief
manner as possible, TO give you the reasons why.
As already stated, we knew that the right of Ken
lucky to take this position fully recognized by
! the southern government. To deny it would have
been to stultfy themselves. Because, State sover
eighty is the principle which lies the very founda-
| ton of their government We had furthermore
seen the tempting bait held out to them more than
once, and they refused it. We have seen their anx-
/ iety to approach Cairo where their enemy was in
| force, and we have seen them restrained by the
fact that to do they would be compelled 70 tread
with armed force on Kentucky sod. We have
/ been witnesses of the removal of q large force
from the enesmpmsnt at Union City to New Madrid
in Missouri. We knew that the railroad from Union
City to Hickman would have transported the troops
and they would have been in Missouri in couple of
hours without toll or exposure. But that railroad
passed across the bosom Of Kentucky and ter
minated in city of that State. This safe,
convenient and expeditions mode of transportation
| was rejected and a tedious, worrying and expen-
| siye route by land was adopted. Now let us in
Qure what has been the conduct of the other party
to this war. In the first place they utterly deny
the right Of Kentucky to assume her posture of
neutrality. They claim this is itself secession and
rebellion and that the soil of Kentucky is and of
q right must be open TO their army. So they have
never acknowledged any. restraint on them imposed
| by kentucky's neutrality. In the second place
they have repeatedly shown their contempt for this
position, by openly infracting the neutrality of the
State, and fOrcibly entering her limits and mstreat
ing her c!tzens-and, finally, by actually organic.
| ing an armed force and qusrtering them in the
very heart of the Stste-placing arms in their
| hands and giving them commanders commissioned
by Abraham Lincoln. Now, fellow citizens bearing
these things in mind, let put you in possession of
what transpired at Columbus from the I'd to the 4th
day of this present month, and we will let the
/ did men Of Kentucky decide where the right of
| the cause doth lie. In order to understand this
Z =
your map. The Federal forces were in possession
of Ohio City or Birds Point and Charleston, the
county site Of Mississippi county. The Confederate
forces were encamped at Sikeston, ten miles west
of Charleston, and at New Madrid, about
| thirty miles south of it. These, were the
relative positions of the belligerents,- when,
on Monday, Sept I'd, the steamer Graham,
filled with soldiers and military armament, came to
| Columbus, Kentucky, from Cairo, accompanied by
| two Of the Federal gunboats The gunbOats took
their positions Immediately in front of the town and
anchored in the river, with their cannon bearing
point blank upon our citizens and our dwellings
The Graham then went to the Missouri shore and
dsembarkGd the cannon and men, infantry and cav
airy. This army, which was increased during that
and the succeeding day to the number Of three or
four thousand took their position the river bank
Immediately opposite Columbus, and putting their
cannon in position, and directed so as to command
| Columbus, set up their tents. This we could see
from our side What that object was, you may rest
assured fellowNcitizens, became anxious inquiry
among our citizens, and that inquiry could find but
one response.
We knew where their enemy was, and we knew
that the Missouri shore, opposite Columbus, was,
for any purpose for either assault defence of that
army, utterly unavailing and useless. Unless to
hide from the foe, that position WIS Of all others the
least to be desired for operations in Missouri
! What, then, was their object? We felt from the
first moment that it was to occupy Columbus. And
we feel now, that if a portion of the Confede-
rate army left at Union City had not made
rush to seize the place. IL would To-Day nave Deen
in the possession of the army of the North.
You may ask u.s. fellow citizens why we have
this confident belief that such would have been the
c6se. We answer, we have already pointed out its
impor lance we have said that Kentucky neutralis
! ty would have been no barrier. Perhaps you may
doubt that if you do, you are not apprised Of the
utter disregard with which they have treated it.
| Our observation has been quickened by our sense
of danger and we, perhaps, are better posted. Did
you hear Of the instance in which they land
! ed two hundred armed men in the dead of night,
marched them into the interior of Ballard county,
surrounded the dwellings, of peaceful citizens, and,
| arousIng the astonshed inmates from their slum-
bers, placed them under guard, absolutely forcing
them to take such oahs they chose to administer,
andpressiBg still further into the country announced
their intention to take squad of Kentucky citizens
! prisoners, and shoot them down if they resisted.
| Did you ever hear of the steamer Citysof Alton
while her soldiers stood to their guns, and the
nonneer stood with his lighted match to hurl death
among an unsrmed populace, they came on shore
and tore down flag, and amid cheers and derisiOn
carried it Off? Did you not know that only the week
before the army had come down with the gun boats
to Columbus, troop from Cairo had gone over into
Ballard county and made prisoners of Judge Vat
son and Mr. StsTal citizens Of that county and ear
ried them away from their homes to Cairo? These
things may have escaped your observation but they