The Portland daily press. [volume] (Portland, Me.) 1862-1921, 1863-03-25
One Of the Causes of the War.

the Presidential chair when the war cloud
commenced to gather blackness, either him.
self or by his treacherous cabinet officers as
Stunning to act for him, made an agreement
with the rebels of South Carolina to allow
things to remain IN statu quo-the govern
ment doing nothing to strengthen or protect
itself, and the rebels graciously forbearing to
make an attack upon the forts In Charleston
harbor. True, while Mr.. Buchanan was keep
ing his part of the compact, the rebels were
erecting batteries within range of the federal
guns, and making all needful preparations to
reduce the forts when it should suit their
pleasure to terminate the armistice and to
open their guns upon the representatives Of
federal power. We are aware that the con-
summation or existence af such an agree
ment has been denied, but it is matter of his
tory that when Major Anderson removed his
garrison by night from Fort Moultrie to Fort
Sumter, the charge was openly made by the
South Carolina Commissioners in Washington,
that the Government had violated its faith
and broken its compact. 1t was said, too,
that Mr. Buchanan, having partially awaken
ed from the stupor which seemed to have Ia
ken possession of him, assigned two reasons
why no such agreement could have existed;
FIRST there was nobody authorized to make it,
and, secondly, no authorized power existed to
make it with. 1t is possible, therefore, that
Cobb, Floyd, Thompson & Co., took the liber-
ty of concluding the contract without consult
ing the nominal head of their firm.
xl... A. ,l,, Of fad
thority in which copperheads and traitors
have seen violation of good faith, and lack
of proper respect for our Southern breth-
rem" Hon. Thos. II. Seymour, of Connecti-
cut, candidate for governor Of that State, not
long since made speech In which he enume-
rated some of the causes of the war, and the
various opportunities through which an hon
orable adjustment OF our difficulties might have
been secured, had not the administration wick
eddy closed the door. and thus slapped the an
gel of peace in the iaee. One of these would
scarcely have been guessed by any loyal citi-
zen. When Major Anderson's little garrison
of less than a 4hndred men, hemmed in by
rebel batteries, cut off from its regular sup
plies from the city, and with limited means of
subsistence, was almost literally verging tow
ards starvation, the government resolved to
send q small unarmed vessel with needfnl sup
plies. Fearing that this vessel might meet
with the reception which had previously greet
ed the Star in the West, on a similar mission,
the precaution was taken of sending some
armed cruisers to convoy the missionary of
humanity, and TO stand watch off the harbor
while she went In aud accomplished her peace
full and benevolent errand. True, the rebels
precipltated their wrath, and the messenger of
the government did not 60 into the harbor,
but In this act-the act of great government
succoring its own fort-the act Of great gov
eminent daring to send vessel into one Of its
ports, flying its own flag, 10 minister TO the
necessities of one Of its own starving garri-
ssns-in such an act Mr.. Seymour discovers
high-handed offense against the South, the
chances of peace summariy cut of, and the
door of escape from war slammed violently in
the face Of opportunity; an act of wickedness
on the part of the government which should
consign the administrative officers to lasting
infamy. To show that we do not misrepre-
sent him we copy the following extract:
This brings me to speak of one chance more,
which, II it had been rightly improved, might
have averted the horrors OF civil war. We
shall see how that was thrown away also, and
the Union dashed on the rocks. 1t so happen
ed that the whole question Of peace or war
happened to turn upon one point-and that, a
fort In Charleston harbor. BY a concurrence
of circumstances Fort Sumter became the
point upon which the very existence OF the
Union hinged. But, in comparison with the
worth OF the Union aud the direful evils which
might follow a serious collision in that quarter,
the fort was of little consequence 10 any body.
A collision between the state and federal troops
should, II possible, be avoided. All that was
wanted was to gain time for reason TO have its
turn. The government might 90 on with its
blockade, but il should do nothing to provoke
the shedding of blood Now it was seen, and
plainly seen, that any attempt to reinforce
Sumter would provoke the very crisis which
some Of the best men IL our country wished to
avoid. All this was not only seen, but the
federal authorities at the capital gave their
pledge to Justice Campbell, of the Supreme
Court of the United States, that no such at
tempt should be made TO reinforce Fort Sum-
ter Put not your faith in princes" The
pledge have just referred TO had scarcely
been made wheE measures were actually taken
by the federal authorities Tor doing what SEEM
ed to be the very thing which the government
had solemnly agreed not TO do! A govern
ment fotla was sent to Charleston harbor
somewhere between the tenth and fifteenth of
April, 1861; and sent there for what? 1t was
sent there to accomplish certain purpose
and that purpose was to drdp the fire of Fort
Moultrie, in occupation OF southern troops, in
order that the federal authorities and the men
who were urging them to " blood letting"
might have the overt act they required to JUS
tify declaration of war against the South.
Their plan succeeded and we were pushed over
the brink Of ruin, and plunged into the very
vortex Of horribly destructive, awful, and ru-
inous civil war, the end of which no man can
tell.
Who could, even by severely taxing his dis
loyal imagination, conjure up more degrad-
ing and humiliating spectaclelthan the one Mr..
Seymour would have had bis government ex-
hibit! He would have a government repre-
senting thirty millions of people, and the maj
esty of thrty-four States, cover and hest
tate to perform one of the plainest acts Of du-
~ because menaced by single member of
the Confederacy! He would have the arm of
the government paralized by the threatening
attitude of mob. And have we any such
sham patrotism-such counterfeit Democra-
cy in Maine? A single fact will answer. The
speech of Mr.. Seymour, from witch we have
quoted, was copied into Maine paper,
leadieg organ of the Maine Dsmocracy-the
Saco Democrat-and commended for its sound