The Evansville daily journal. [volume] (Evansville, Ia. [i.e. Ind.]) 1848-1862, 1861-05-15
why 1t was Done.

We have received the following state
ment Of facts concerning the effort of the
Government officers to stop the shipments OF
provisions and munitions of war up Green
River, to be sent thence to points in Tenn
essee and Virginia. As thousand ridicu-
lous and wrong reports are in circulation
touching the affair, we give the following
as perfectly correct. 1t is known that the
orders of the Government to the Surveyors
are to prevent shipments of articles contra
band of war to points in the insurrectiona-
ry states. The Surveyor of this port was,
on Sunday evening" informed by an agent
of the Treasury Department that two boats,
the Masonic Gem and Pocahontas, had left
Louisville for Bowling Green, loaded with
meats, some of which were marked Peters
burg, Virginia, and other packages were
intended to be sent to Nashville. On this
information, which was unquestionably re-
boats at the mouth of Green River or in the
Ohio, should they be intercepted above the
mouth. A steamboat was chartered here
to take party up, There being no men
at the disposal OF the Surveyor for such
service, he made a written requisition on
Col. Wallace of the IIth Regiment of Indi-
ana volunteers for a sufficient force to &C
complish the purpose.
Capt Klauss, of the volunteer artillery
company at Evansville, was also requested
to send gun with a small squad to enable
the party to bring the boats to, by firing
blank cartridges. 1t became necessary, to
ensure the success of the plan, to prevent
word being conveyed up the river to the boat;
coming down. The steamboat Trio, which
would have left this port about one o'clock,
Monday morning, was detained here by
placing a squad of Col. Wallaces men
aboard of her, until Monday 10 o'clock
Two Pittsburg boats, bound up the river,
were stopped by the Gillum about three
miles from Newburg and requested to wait
until some news had arrived touching the
boats from Louisville. News came by tele
gram, forwarded from Evansville to New
burg, about twelve o'clock, that the Gem
and Pocahontas had been detained at Louis
vile, and the Pittsburg boats were allowed
to go on up, and the Gillum returned t.
Evansville.
This expedition, then, about which 81
many reports are in circulation, was sim
pie effort on the part of the surveyor here
by the advice of special Agent of the De
partment, to carry out the instructions con
tanned in the circular of May I'd, 1861.
The people on both sides Of the rive
should pay no attention to these reports
There is no intention on the part Of th
Government, or the Surveyor of this port
to interfere in any manner with the Lawful
commerce and trade of Kentucky. Article
contraband of war, including hay and al
kinds of provisions, will be stopped in thi
Revenue District, when there is reliable in
formation that they are intended for point
in the insurrectionary States. If any of tn
citizens of Kentucky lend themselves to thi
unlawful traffic, they will have to bear TIL
loss of the shipments. We are also inform
ed that provisions will not be allowed to b
sent to Louisville or Paducah from the port
in this Revenue District. Shippers ha
better pay strict attention to these direc
tions, as the penalty OF their disobedience
very heavy.