Council Bluffs bugle. [volume] (Council Bluffs, Iowa) 1860-1868, 1862-12-03
COUNCIL BLUFFS, IOWA, WEDNESDAY, DECEMBER 2. 1862

collect the customs at Charleston, ana
outside OF the port II need be. ia yes~
sci of war. Mr.. Goleoek, tide axistiag
.aollsslar,, ms had anticipated, ;rssigasd
his nfiee about the ead Of De&aHabsE, snd
Immediately 1hersafter ] nominated, TO
the Senate as his successor suitable
perssn, prepared at amp personal risk to
do his duty. That body, howevaT,
throughout its entiEa session. declined TO-
act on this nomination. Thuf, without
collector, 1t vas rendered impossible TO
collect the revenue +5-"
". 9ensr&l Ssuts's sEasaIae eos aliegss
that 50 tbs, ,ByooklJn, With Cspsain Eagde'a
company alone, left the Ckesapeak fer
Fort Pickaus about January 23h, and ON
the 29th President Buchanan, having sa =,
tered into gs1ass aYfnistioa wi th certain
leading Seeedazs at Pensacola and else
where, caused Secretaries Holt and Toa-
cey to instruct in joint note ths COM
Inander of the war vessels Of Pensacola,
and Lisat. Slsmmsr, commanding Fort
Plekens to commit no act ef hostility,
and not to land Captain Vogdaa' eamps-
ny unless the fort should be attacked. y =
He afterwards states within braekets,
"Thas joint nota never saw, bat sup
pose the aKmistlee vas eoassqueaS upon
the meeting of the Peace Contention At
Washington, and vas understood to ter
inmate with IT," /
These statements bsEray a singular
want of msmory on the part OF General
Scott. Il is scarcely credible that this
very joint note, presented in suRh odi0us
saiors, was submitted 80 General Scott on
ths day it vas prepared {29th J4n. } and
met bis entire appreciation. / Eoald net
venture to make this assertion il did
not possess conclusive evidence to prove
il. On that day Secretary Holt address
I'D me note, from which the flIywing
Is an extract; f'I have the sAsisfaeki II
saying that On submitting the paper to
General Scott he expressed hiRssE Il SAT-
isfsd with it, saying that there could be-
no objection TO the arrangement i'd mil
itary poiAt Of yisw or otherwise .P This
requires no comment. That Eha 5eaeral
had every reason to be satisfied with the
arrangement viii appear from the follow
ing statement: sHs s.-". -- -r
4 revolutionary outbreak ha i eecar~
red in Florida; the troops of the United
States had been expelled from Rensscola
and the adjacent Navy yard aa d Liaus
Siemmer, OF the artillery, with bis brave
little command, had been forced 70 take
refuge in Fort Pickens, whare h& was ID
imminent danger every moment .of being
captured BY a vastly superior force. Ow.
ing to the interruption Of regular com.
manieations Secretary Holt did not re-
ceive Information of these evetfs until
several days after their occurrence, and
then through letter TO the third person.
He instantly informed the Presi lent of
the fact, and reinfsrcemeass, pFb visions,
and military stores were desPa tohed by
the Brooklyn 10 Fort Piekens u #ithout q
moments delay. She left Fortr Rss Mon.
roe on the Oath of January.
Well founded approximations wtre, how.
ever entertained at the time of her de.
partuFa that the reinforcements, With the
vessels Of war as no great distance from
Fort Picksus, could not arrive id time 90
defend it against the impending attack
In this state Of suspense, aah whilst
Lieu EeaAn& SlemmsF was in extret tne peril,
Senators Slidell, Hunter, and Bi gier re-
csived a telegraphic dispatth FROM Sena+
TOR Mallory, Of Florida, dated at Pensa+
cola, on the 2Sth January, with the W,
gent request that they should lay 1t be-
fore the President This despatch ex.
pressed al earnest desire TO maintain tha
peace, as we'll - she most positive as
surraaca thas no attack would Ne made
on Fort Pieksns if the pressu status
should be preserved.
This proposal was carefully consider
ed, both With 3 view to the aafstT of the
fort and to the unhappy effect which an
aetaai collision, either at that or any
other point, might produce on the Peace
Convention then about 70 assemble al
Washington. The result was that
joint despatch Was carefully prepared by
tha Secretaries of War and Mary, ac-
eepting the proposal, with important mod
ifiestions, which was transmitted By tel
egraph On the 29th January, te Lieut..
Slemmer, aud to the naval com nanders
aear the station. Itis TOO long fbr trans
cripsioH; suffice it to say, it was careful
ly guarded 81 every point for the securi-
ty of the fort, and it's free eomnuniea-
sion wi Washington.
The result WAS highly forsanate. The
BEookla had long passage. Although
she left Fortress Monroe on the 24th of
January, she did not arrive Mt r pnsacola
antiI the 9th Of February. In the mean
time Fort Pieksns with Lieut. Slemmer
whose conduct deserves high com amenda-
ton. and bis bravo litEle band, were
placed, by virtue Of this arrangement, ia
perfect security until an adequste force
had arrived to defend IL against nay at
tack. The fort is still 10 our possession.
Well might General Scott have expressed
has sstizf action with this Arrangement
The General was correct In the hupposi
ton that this sErsngsznsutw was Cd expire
on she termination Of the Peace Donven-
ton.
v. But we nov come sa an important
period, when dates will bs easgnt taTly ne
cessary TO disintangia the statement Of
| General Scott. The South CaY0lna
| Commissioners we're appointed on the
22d, and arrived in W&shisgten on the
| 27th December. The day after their ar
rival il was announced shat Major Ander-
son had removed from Fort Moultrie to
Fort sumpter. This rendered them fu~
rious. On the same day, they addressed
/ an angry iesIaS 70 tbe Ffesiaeat 4iefaAho"
ing the surrender Of Fort SumptfT. The
President answered this lester on the 3Oth
Dacamber by . pasemptory rHfusal.---
This brought forth reply from 4he Com
niasiansss on she ID January, 1851, oi
snch an insulting character that Che Pres
iaanE instantly returned is to shAn with
the following endorsement:
ssThis psper, just presented 10 th'
prssidsnt, 10 OF such q character that b.
aaalinea 30 receive il, EFom that tina'
forward all friendly, politseal, and per
soual intercourse finally ceased betweet
, the revolutionary Senator's aud the PfesI
dent, aud he was sssawaIy attacked b.
them in the Senate, and especially by Mr.
] jefferson Davis. Indeed, their inter
course had previously besn of Tip coldsz
i cha cker aver airsca the psssidsxtps anti