Daily intelligencer. [volume] (Wheeling, Va. [W. Va.]) 1859-1865, 1864-11-17


war for the purpose, and were finally
obliged TO employ the passenger steamer
the Star of the West. The vessel, but fol
the hesitation of the master, might, as is
! generally believed, have delivered at tht
fort the men and subsistence on board
This attempt at succor failing, I next YER
bally submitted to the late cabinet ethel
that suecor be sent by ships of war, fight
| ing their way by the batteries increasing
| in strength daily, or that Major Anderson
should be left to ameliorste his condition
by the muzzles of hisguusj that is, enforc.
ing supplies by ybombardment, and by bring.
ing to merchant vessels, helping himself
(giVing orders for payme1t,) or finally be
allowed to evacuate the fort, which, in that
case, would be inevitable. But before any
resolution was taken-the late secretary OF
the navy making difficulties about the
want of suitable war vessels-Rnother COM
missioner from South Carolina arrived,
causing further delay. When this had
passed away, Secretaries Holt aud Touoey,
Captain Ward of the navy and myself
with the knowledge Of the President (Bu-
chanan-settled upon the employment, un-
the Captain (who was eager for the expe-
dition,) of three or four small steamers,
belonging to the coast survey. At that
time Qate in January,) have but little
doubt, Captain Ward would have reached
Fort Sumter with all its vessels. But he
was kept back by something like truce
or armistice made (here,) embracing
Charleston and Pensacola harbors, agreed
upon between the late President and GER
tain principal seceders of South Carolina,
Florida, Louisiana, ETC., and this truce last
ed to the end of that administration.
There is similar history connected with
the Pensacola navy yard and forts, and the
other Notifications on the coast, all of
which might have been secured if General
Scott had been permitted to act. This is
what was done;-
Early in January removed (as has been
seen) my solicitations to be allowed to re-
inforce Fort Pickens; but a good deal of
time was lost in vacillations. First, the
President "thoughtif no movement is made
by the United States, Fort McRea will
probably not be occupied, nor Fort Pick
ems attacked. In case of movement by the
United States, which will doubtless be
made known by the wires, there will be
corresponding local movements, and the
attempts to reinforce will be useless. -
(Quotation from a note made by Aid de
Damp Lay, about Jan. 12, of the presidents
doubted whether it would be safe to send
reinforcements in an unarmed steamer, and
the want, as usual, of suitable naval
vessel-the Brooklyn being long held in
reserve at Norfolk for some purpose un-
known to me. Finally after had kept
body of three hundred recruits in New
York harbor ready for some time-(aud
they would have been sufficient to rein
force, temporarily, Fort Pickeus aud to
occupy Fort McRea also)-the president
about January 18th, directed that the sloop
Of war, Brooklyn should take single COM
pany NINETY men from Fortress Monroe,
Hampton Road, and reinforce Lieutenant
Slemmer, in. Fort Pickens, but without
surplus man for the neighboring Fort
McRea! The Brooklyn, with Captain
Vodge's company alone, left the Ohesa-
peake, for Fort Pickens, about Janusry
22d, and on the 29th President Buchan-
an, having entered into q quasi armistice
with certain leading seceders AZ Pepsa-
cola and elsewhere, caused Secretaries
Holt and Toucey, TO instruct, in a joint
note, the commanders of the war vessels
off Pensacola and Lieut.. Slemmer, COM
manding Fort Pickens, to commit no act
of hostility, and not 10 land Capt. Vodge's
company unless that fort should be at
tackled It was known at the
navy department that the Brooklyn, with
Capt Vodge's company on board, would
be obliged in open sea to stand off and
on Fort Pickens, and, in rough weather,
might sometimes be fifty miles of. Inr
deed, if SO at sea, the fort might have been
attacked and easily carried before the re-
inforcement could have reached beach Gn
open sea), where alone it could land.
To show how fully the rebels apprecia-
ted Gen. Scott's efforts, this passage is
given from eulogy pronounced by the
Richmond Examiner on Secretary of War
Floyd when he returned to Richmond -
1.-The plan invented by Gen, Scott to
stop secession was, like all campaigns de.
vised by him, very able in its details and
nearly certain of general success. The
southern states are full of arsenals and
forts, commanding their rivers and strait
egic points. Gen. Scott desired to trans
fer the army of the United States to these
forts as speedily and quietly as possible.
The southern states could not cut of com.
munication between the government and
the fortresses without great feet, which
they cannot build for years-or take them
by. land without one hundred thousand
men, many hundred millions of dollars,
several campaigns, and many bloody
SIEGE Had Scott been able to have got
these forts in the condition he desired
them to be, the Southern Confederacy
would not now exist"
NEWS FROM THE SOUTH.