The daily dispatch. [volume] (Richmond [Va.]) 1850-1884, 1861-12-02

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her owu exclusive property. save ervtn thou.
sand five hundred tl erred percussion muskcfs
kindly furnished by iHc bate Governor T. li-.
pf North Carolina, who felt and manifested
the dsepes' interest 10 All tliat concerned the
people of this Commonwealth Death has
removed him from the theatre OF action, but
his memory will be cherished. his manly vir
tues honored and his name held in grateful
remembrance by the executive and people OF
Virginia.
Ga Che 2Sth day of February. 1916. the lie
Armory to sell, under the direction OF the Elk
ecutive, all such arms and Announcements then
in the amory as were not worth repairing
This order was construed by Governor FlOvd
to include the iron siX-pounde rs then at the
a-mory, and by an order dated February -
1919, the Superintendent was directed to sell
them at not less than twenty-five dollars each
Fortunately for us, there were no bidders at
that price, and the guns remained in the pos
session Of the State and now each one Of those
pieces is in the field, and they have proven to
be equal to any guns of Ike calibre now in
service. How small circumstance controls
the greatest events. What embarrasSments
would have attended our operations in this
important struggle, if these pieces had not
been in our possession and ready for trans
pOrtarion to the field.
1t is to be regretted that Fortress Monroe is
not in our possession; that it was not as easily
captured as the Navy+Yard aud Harper's Fer
ry As far back as the Sth of January last, |
consulted with a gentleman whose position
enabled him to know the strength of that
Fortress, and whose experience in military
matters en- b!ed him 10 form an opini n as to the
number of men that would DO required to cap
tUre it. He represented it to be one Of the
strongest Notifications in the world, and ex-
pressed his doubts whether it could be taken
unless assaied by water as well as by land,
and simultaneously. He stated emphaticaly
and distinctly, that with the force then in the
fortress it would be useless to attempt its
capture without a large force thoroughly
equipped and well appointed. At no time pre-
vI1us to the secession of Virgiui. had We
military organization sufficient to Justify an at
tempt 10 take II ana events since that occur
renee demonstrate very clearly that with our
military organization since, and now existing.
it has not been deemed prudent to make the
attempt.
Prior TO the secession Of the State, indeed
from the commencement Of my guberuat0ral
term, | used all proper means within NV
reach, aided and supported by the military
commission, to prepare the stare for defence
In the first communication which [ had the
honor to present to the General Assembly,
used this language;
Whether the Union shall survive or Der.
ish, II is, nevertheless, your duty to place the
State III such condition that she will be nre-
pared at all times, aud upon the shortest no.
tice, to protect her honor, defend her rights.
and maintain her institutions against al as
sauits of her enemies With this view. [
recommend a careful revision of The militia
laws; and i'll this connection | suggest that
munitions OF war be procured and provision
made Ter the organization OF an efficient mill
tary staff. 1t would be we'll also to specifv in
the law the number of aids TO which the Gov
ernor is entitled, and designate their rank |
cordially approve the on herewith cent tor
the organization OF q brigade Of minute men.
prepared by gentleman remarkable for his
Intelligence, military knowledge and expert
ence. And finally | commend the Eirginia
Military institute to your favorable consider
alton, and urge that liberal appropriations be
made for enlarging the buildings, and extend
ing the sphere Of its usefulness"
In answer TO this recommendation, the
General Assembly appropriated one hundred
81. fy tttouG4nH al /
expended in the purchase of arms, equipments,
and munitions OF war. Ii we could then have
purchased all the arms desired to obtain.
our State would have been III a better c0ndi
ton to repel the assaults Of the Federal Elk
ecutlye. At the time we made the purchase
of five thousand muskets from the Federal
Government, we desired TO purchase ten tbon
sand additional but the authorities declined to
sell them to us, although five times the number
We're then in the arsenal at Washington
The appropriations for the purchase of arms
were made, as before stated, IN b0Hds all of
hich. under the law Of the State, had to be
nc 5otiated at par, before dollar could be
realized for purchases. This was a source Of
serious embarrassment, and nothing but the
untirng zeal and indomitable energy of the
military commission enabled US to overcome
the difficulties, and TO make many purchases
which proved of immense value in the strug-
gle in which we have been aud are now en-
gagged. The thirteen Parrot rified cannon.
and the five thousand muskets and the powder
then purchased, furnish examples in point 1t
is a memorable fact III connection with the
purchase of the powder, that the military
commission and the Executive were charged
with wasting the public money in the pur-
chase Of more powder than the State was
likely to consume in many years.
The record which Virginia presents in her
contributions to this war, is a Proud one
Her sons can look upon ii with satisfaction
aud pleasure. 1t demonstrates her perform
ance of duty. She has been true TO herself,
10 her ancient fame, and TO her sisters Of the
southern Confederacy with fun knowledge
when she passed her ordinance of Secession
That her OWE soil was to be the battle field
between the contanding parties, that she in
taking her position placed herself between
the enemy and her Southern sisters, and
would receive the blows that GIT other
wise fall upon them, she yet boldly occupied
the position, stepped torV ard and received
the shock How CALAMITY her sons have
maintained that posi- ton, history viii attest.
her patri otism, her devotion to the common
cause, viii be fully recognized and admit tied
by ali.
Il is impossible at this time 10 state the pre-
else mum Der OK volunteers and militia that
Virginia now mas in the field, owing to the
fact that the mastering officers at Norfolk
Lynchburg, bingdon, Staunton, Winches-
ter, harper's Ferry, the Potomac division
and other places have not made their returns
TO the Inspector Generals office in this city.
From the lights before me, estimate the
number at not less than seventy thousand
We have in service fifty-uine regiments of IT,
fantTy, aud conside ra ole number of bat
talions and companies ia this arm of the ser
vice that have not been organized into regi-
ments. We have eight Organized regiments
of cavalry. and number OF companies at
tached to different coramands, which, if con-
solidated, would make probably three regi-
ments more. We have issued three hundred
and fifteen pieces of artillery, nearly all OF
lery regiment only has been organized, and
that was organized at the instance of General