Yorkville enquirer. [volume] (Yorkville, S.C.) 1855-2006, 1861-04-18

j. j. Brown, Captain; A K. Smith, lst
Lieutenant; James F. Sloan, I'd Lieuten-
ant; T. G. Brown, Sd Lieutenant
CColumbia Guardian
The War Movements.
An intelligent correspondent of North
ern paper writes from Troy, New York,
under date of Saturday last, as follows:
"Never since the Mexican war has there
been such an extraordinary activity display
ed at the United States arsenal in West
Troy as at the present moment. A few
days ago dispatches were received ordering
Lieut.. George T. Balch, to forthwith repair
to Fort Pickens, and report himself at that
post for active duty. In accordance with
orders, he Immediately left his post here,
and is now e', route for his place of destiua-
tion. He is an accomplished and euerget-
ic officer, and ranks as one of the first Lieu.
tenants in the service.
Major Mordecai, who has command of the
Arsenal, is Virginian, and is now absent
in his native State. The command, there
fore devolves now on Lieutenant Strong,
who is the oldest officer now at this post
Lieutenant Porter is the only other COM
missioned officer now here. Dispatches
have been received every day, and are con-
stautly being received, for the preparation
and shipment of ali kinds of munitions of
war.
The works are kept going night and day,
no iDtermission of any kind is permitted,
and the Sabbath day even is entirely disre-
garded, succeeded in visiting the works
last night, about midnight, and found every
department in full operation. Large num-
bers of men we're engaged with lantherns
hanging from the ceiling, in filling up six,
twelve and twenty. -four pound cartridges,
which as soon as filled, were transferred to
other parties, where they were placed In
boxes for shipment. In another room |
found large number of men busily engaged
in charging bomshells with powder, others
engaged in filing shells with bullets and
running them full Of melted roslu; the
latter were taken when filled TO another
room, and there, with machinery, hole
about three quarters of an inch in diane
ter was drilled into the bullets and rosin !;
then they were taken to another room and
charged with powder. A very ingenious
fuse completes this death-dealiug projec.
tile; it is made of lead, of size just to ill
the aperture in the shells, and is registered
into seconds, so that the exact time that
vii! slapse- -hssese-exPlesien, after leaving
the gun, can be established to second
Taken altogether, this is most ugly look
ing customer. [ saw, also, large quantities
of canister and grape, rifle and musket
balls and all other known implements of
war being prepared for shipment. visit
ed the grounds again this morning, and the
energy and activity which were so apparent
last night were more evident to day. Two
hundred thousand rounds of bail cartridges
were being placed on board barge lying
near; numbers of teams We're busy drawing
to the boat cannon balls, canister and grape
shot, grenades, musket and rifle balls, cart
ridges, guns and gun-carriages, mortaEss
and, in fact, every article used in war. -
What struck me as remarkable was the
large number Of siege guns and carriages
that were going on board, as could not
conceive of what possible use they could be
in the South except to the secessionists,
unless the Administration had determined
"to carry the war into Africa" and recap
ture the forts in the South held by the Sc.
cessionists
endeavored to gain some information
from the officers at the post, but they were
either very discreet of else they knew moth
ing. I incline to the latter opinion They
pretended they did not even know the des.
tiuaticn of all or any of the munitions Of
war which the Government had so suddenly
ordered. From what l could gather 10
conversation, and from my observations as
to the character of the supplies that we're
going forward, and having little knowl-
edge of military matters-I once belonged
to military eompauy-I have my own
theory, and it is this: The destination of
much Of the shipment is Fort Plckeus, and
Judge the Government have determined
to make that fort general rendezvous and
supply station having determined to hold
it at all hazards, they will fill it with men
and munitions of war, and from that point
all the operations against the extreme South
will be conducted. The siege guns and
carriages, which are of no use for defence,
and are only used to reduce fortified places,
will be stored in fort Pickens for furture
use; or, what is probable, they may be
destined for Texas for the support of old
Sam Houston in his attempts to keep ros-
session of the government of his State.
You may rest assured, from what have
seen here, that civil war is about to be in,
augurated. There is no mistaking these
indications, and fortnight hence will see
the republic plunged into contest which
will only terminate with the utter exhaus,
tion of both parties, with nothing gained
and everything lost. Truly we have fallen
upon evil times. Demagogues have usurped
the places of patriots. God save our coun'
try.
Scraps of News.
MONTGOMERY, April l2.-The President and
Secretary of War were serenaded last night at
the Exchange Hotel. The latter was called on
rhar hn rod thnt the Cnnfadar