The Cecil Whig., 1862-10-11

! Ihgeniously aFOlulliS any apparent snare
in the ac;s of treachery yet to follow.
ATTEMPTS TO CORRUPT THE SOLDIERS.
The work of drawing in our troops
! from outposts, many very distant, went
on slowl y E; the Texans were in no haste.
The Commissioners had seized all the
Government transportation they had
bound themselves to furnish transporta-
tion for the troops to the coast Colonel
Waite was at their mercy. Captain
Phillips supposcs two reasons for the
delay: unwillingness, by the sudden
withdrawal of United S 'atcs soldiers, to
expose the Safe to Indian outragcs, and
hope, which proved ill-founded, that
they might win over those faithful bands
to their own schemes. Earl Van Dorm,
who resigned ," in April, appeared in
Texas, and " openly avowed his inten-
tion to take wi h him such companies of
The Regulars as his abundant reputation
might enable him to enticc in;o the SER
vice of the Confedera States !" and on
this the San Antonio newspapers began
to explain to the faithful soldiers that, in
such case as theirs, they "wcre ma ur-
ally relieved from the oath of allegiance
they had taken, and at liberty to quit
the service" At the same time Lieut.
Thornton A. Washington, on whose
loyal y Colonel Waite had so thoroughly
relied as to trust him with supcrintend-
ing the business of cmbarking the troops
at Indanola, sent in his resignation, and
left his fort and the public property of
which, as guaran.y master, he had
| charge.
Green Lake was now occupied as a
fort near the coast, where the troops
could be ga hcrcd prcpara ory to en-
barka ion. Major Larkin Smith, in COM
nand here, also resigned, and at critical
moment, when he had been ordered to
Washington with Ucrbai. and therefore
probable important and secret message.
Thus poor Colonel Waite saw one after
another of the officers he trusted fall
away from him in the most dishonorable
manner these persons evidently choos-
ing the time when they could, most
advantagconsly to themselves and their
fellow trai ors, throw off the cloak of the
spy, and come out in their real character
of open Rebels.
THE SECOND ACT OF TREAcifERY.
IT. the meantime, Earl Van Dorm did
not meet wi h the looked for success in
corruptng our soldiers. They were
what the President once called "plain
people," and could not see in treason
anything better than treason. So Van
Dorm, unable to get the men, determined
at any rate TO s cal their arms. While
preparing for this a part of our force
sailed for the North. Fourteen COM
panics remained. Part of these reached
indianola, but found no steamer to take
them. The Star Of the Vest had dis
appearcd-captured, as we know now
also, by an act of vulgar treachcry,
which was nothing less than piracy before
the law. Major Sibley, in command of
this detachment, embarked in some
lighters, hoping to reach Tampico, in
Mexico; the lighters were not supplied
with coal, and the troops changed to
| two schonncrS.
just as they were ready to put to sea,
four steamers, carrying artillery and
nearly fourteen hundred Texans, block
AIDED the harbor's mouth, steamed along
side, and &C Colonel Earl Van Dorm, CT
the Confederate States Army" sent a
flag of truce with n demand for the sur
render of the troops-who were just then
leaving the country, protcc ed by the
pledged faith of Texas. Sicklers as
they were for State Rights, these Texans
never complained of the gross insult an
officer of the " Confederate States " thus
put upon the sovereignty of theil
State.
Van Dorm made a good haul. He
seized three hundred fine rifles, with
the equipments and the camp equipagc
of seven companies" all guaranteed tc
these troops and to Colonel Waite, by
The " formal and solemn agreement Of
February 18th. This occurred April
9th. The day previous, Colonel Waite
his staff and all the officers on duty al
San Antonio, we're made prisoners o.
war. with threats of personal violence
Major Maclin, lately paymastcr in oul
army, assis ing at this breach of a solemn
covenant. Lieu;cnant-C Colonel Reeve
bringing another part of his troops, late,
in April, down the El Paso Road, foune
himself surrounded by fifteen thousand
men, and wi h the supplies he needed il
the encmy's hands, he and his seven com
panies were forced to surrender.
Thus the Texans, under Confedera.,
officers, captured seven hundred soldier.
leaving the country in accordance witt
the terms of a solemn capitula;ion made
TO these very men, robbed them of thei
arms, equipments and ordnance stores
and sent them North as parolcd prisoner.
of war, after vainly but persfs cntl,
attempting to corrupt the common sol
diers and induce them to desert thci
coIors. Earl Van Dorm, the man wh
led in this work of trcachcry, had him
self but just deserted from the Unite,
States army; he was recognized office
and agent of Davis, and the Rebel Gov
ernment authorized his acts and promo
ted him for his success. He is now
Ma General in the Rebel army. 1t i
in such ways and by such deeds that tn
F " new nation" seeks to win the goo
graces of older ones. We commen
| si. tl,o Aof Al,