Arkansas true Democrat., 1861-05-16

fusal to listen to our commissioners, and the tortuous course of the government of the United States. l was sincerely anxious to avoid the effusion of blood, and directed a nronosal to be made to the commander of Fort Sumter. who had avowed himself to he nearly out of provisions, that we would abstain from directing our fire on Fort Sumter if he would promise not to open fire on our forces unless first attacked. IT. This proposal was refused, and the con c,usion was reached that the design of the limited States was to place the beseiging force at Charleston between the simultane- ous fire of the fleet and the fort. Their re- mained. therefore, no alternative but to ,i;rect that the fort should at once be re- luced This order was executed by Gen. Baaurepard. with the skill and success which were naturally to be expected from the we'll known character ot that gallant officer: and, although the bombardment asted only thirty.three hours, our flag did mt waive over its battered walls, until after the appearance of the hostile fleet off Charleston. Fortunately, not life was lost on our side, and we were gratifed in being spared the necessity of q useless effusion of blood. by the prudent caution of the officers who commanded the fleet, in abstanlng from the evidently futile effort to enter the har- bor for the relief of Major Anderson. re- fer to the report of the secretary of war, and the papers which accompany 1t, for further details of this brilliant affair.
 In this connection l cannot refrain from Q well deserved tribute to the noble State the eminent soldierly qualities of whose peo- pie were so conspciously displayed in the port of Charleston For months they had been irritated by the spectacle of fortress held within their principal harbcr, as standing menace against their peace and in dependence. Built in part with their own money. its custody contided with their own consent to an agent who held no power over them other than such as they had themselves delegated for their own benefit, intended to be used by that agent for their own protection against foreign attack, they saw it held with persistent tenaclty as a means of offense against them by the very government which they had established for their protection. They had beleaguered 1t for months-felt entire confidence in their ;.ower to capture it-yet yielded to the re- ouiYements of discipline, curbed their i'm patience. submitted without complaint to the unaccustomed hardships, labors and privations of a protracted seige; and when at length their patience was rewarded by the signal for attack and success had crown ed their steady and gallant conduct-even in the very moment oftriumph-they eylnc-
 | r1 ha faaiI n the brave but unfortunate officer who had been compelled to lower his flag. All manifestations of eXnltation were checked in his presence. Their commanding gener- al, with their cordial approval and the con sent of this government, retrained from i'm posing any terms that could wound the sensibiiteS of the commander of the fort. He was permitted to retire with the honors of war, to salute his flag, to depart freely with all his command, and was escorted to the vessel in which he embarked, with the highest marks of respect from those agalnst whom his guns had been so recently direct ed. Not only does every event connected with the seige reflect the highest honor on South Carolina, but the forebearance of her people and of this government, from mak- ing any harsh use of victory obtained under circumstances of such peculiar provo cations. attest to the fullest extent the ab- sence of any purpose beyond securing their own tranquility, and the sincere desire to avoid the calamites of bloody war;
 Scarcely had the President of the United States received intelligence of the failure of the scheme which he had devised for the reinforcement of Fort Sumter, when he is sued the declaration of war against this Confederacy which has prompted me to convoke you. In this extraordinary pro- duction that high functionary. affects total ignorance of the existence of an indepen- dent government, which, possessing the entire enthusiastic devotion of the people, is exercising its functions without question over seven sovereign States-over more than five millions of peope-and over a territory whose area exceeds half a million of square miles. He terms sovereign States combinations too powerful to be suppress ed by the ordinary course of judicial plo- ceedings, or by the powers vested m the marshals by law" He calls for an amy of 15, GOO men to act d posse conafofHS m
 
 no courts exist, whose mandates and de- crees are not cheerfuly obeyed and respect ed by willing people. He avows that the first service to be assigned to the forces called out" will be, not to execute the process of courts, but to capture forts and strongholds situated within the admit ted limits of this Confederacv and galrl soned by its troops; and declares that "this effort is intended ''to maintain the perpe- tuity of popular government He con cludes by commanding the persons com posing he combinations aforesaid" tow wit: the five millions of inhabitants of these States, to retire peaceably to their re- spective abodes within twenty days"
 Apparently contradictory as are the termes of the singular document, one point was unmistakably evident, The PresI- dent of the United States called for an army of seventy-fve thousand men, whose first service was to capture our forts. It was a plain declaration of war which was not at liberty to disregard, because, of my knowledge that under the constitution of the United States, the President was uSurp- ing a power granted exclusively to the congress. He is the sole organ of com munication between that country and foreign powers. The law of nations did not permit me to question the authority ot the executive of a foreign nation to declar war agaist this confederacy. Although might have refrained from taking active measures for our defense, if the States ot the Union had all initiated the action ot Vlr- ginia, North Carolina, Arkansas, Ken lucky, Tennessee and Missouri, by denoun- cing the call for troops as unconstitutional usurpation of power to which they refused to respond, 1 was not at liberty to dlsre- gard the fact that marry of the States seemed quite content to submit to the eX- ercise of the power assumed by the Presl- dent of the United States, and were active ly engaged in levying troops to be used for the purpose indicated in the proclama'