Semi-weekly standard. [volume] (Raleigh, N.C.) 1853-18??, 1865-02-21
For the Standard.


the hands OF the Executive and his min:ons, hope
you will allow me, (through your paperO to make
known few facts, showing the actings and doings
of the military authorities in Wilmington and its
vicinity, towards your fellow citizens.
On the twenty-6rst day OF December, 1854, three
soldiers, all armed with guns came to my house,
ION Masonboro' Sound, in the county of New Han
over, gbout seven miles from Wilmington, and about
twenty miles from Fort FISHERY and told me they
had orders to arrest all men, white and coored, be-
tween a creek few hundred yards north Of my
house and Sugar Loaf
asked them " here they would take me? They
said before their Lieutenant alta house on the road
about two miles from my house. They took me
to the Lieutenant. l asked him the canse OF my
arrest? In an arrogant manner and tone, he told
me he knew the cause, but was not at liberty to
tell me. He asked the men who arrested me, If this
was the only man they had taken? They said yes.
He then took from his pocket, small book, appa-
gently memorandum book, and read out the names,
Fowler, Parsley, Quince, Cassidey Naming each
one, he asked if they had seen himI When he
called the names of one those gentlemen and asked
hequeston, one of the soldiers replied saw on the
piazza old gentleman and said nothing to him.
The Lieutenant replied: "Why, fhave arrested this
morning, q man eighty years old" | asked him
what he proposed to do with me. He said must
go still further on the road to Capt Dean. Within
short time, and one of my negro slaves, and an
other negro, (whom 1 found there also arrested0
were made fellow prisoners and marched off in CON-
pany, before soldier armed with gun to Captain
Dean asked him the cause of my arrest. lie
said he did not know, but he understood that there
were one or two men in the neighborhood, who had
been suspected of seeking to communicate with the
enemy, and he presumed they wished to take them
and to get them they concluded to take every body
This he said, however was all conjecture. | asked
him who gave the order for my arrest He said
the order was given to him by Colonel Conally,
and that it came from headquarters. | asked him.
what was TO be done with me 2 He said he should
send me to Wilmington, to appear before Colonel
Jackson Within short time, and Mr.. Martin
dale, (Who was also there under arrest) received
from him written order to appear forthwith in
Wilmington before Col. Jackson. Mr.. Martindale
IS an old man, sixty nine years of age. -
Just before we left, he said to US in a very stern
and emphatic manner: g. | wish yon to understand
that If you return without written permission to do
80, from Col Jackson, that you will be shot. That
is part of my order, and shall certainly execute
1t; always execute orders given to well
against the citisens as the enemy" In company
with my OLD neighhor Martindale. / rode to Viii
mingtou through gallo Of wind and rain. went to
COL Jackson and handed to him the written order,
stating to him that, in conformity with that order
l appeared before him, having been arrested and
sent by Capt. Dean The Colonel looked at the or.
der, and immediately replied: "Well, sir, | dis.
charge you." He said nothing more and was about
to leave me- told him that not sufficient Tor
me; that was not satisfied. | wished to know the
cause of my arrest, and who issued the order. He
said he did not know the cause of it. That he knew
| nothing about it, until he Informed that MORN
ing that about forty men from MasOnboro' Sound
were there, having been arrested and brought before
him; that he learned it then for the first time.
asked him who issued the order. He said that
Gen. Bragg issued the order; and that Gen. Whit
ing was only carrying out the order Of Gen. Bragg
called on Gen. Bragg aud asked him if he had is
| sued the order. He said he had not issued it and
knew nothing about it That he supposed Gen.
| Whiting had issued il, and had better see him
Gen. b. made very tight of it, and said with
| temptuous smile, that he supposed it had not put
| me to much Inconvenience. told him, it had put
me to serious inconvenience, to be taken out OF my
| house, arrested and brought there as a criminal
| through gale of wind and rain. Besides that an
| important principle was invoved-the liberty of the
| citizen. He said this was time to talk about
| liberty; that there was liberty except what the
military chose to give-that the military must do as
they pleased-that it time enough to talk about
| liberty after We had whipped The Yankees. | told
| him that differed in opinion from him. That in
! my case, thought it must be tried. That no man
was more willing than was to assist and sustain
the military, SO long they kept within The limits
of their authority. He seemed to scout the idea that
there were any limits to their authority, became
cited, and in hcctOring, dictatorisl manner and
| tone, said: 81 would burn your ho lse down
would shoot you down, if necessary for the defence
of the country" His manner and lone becoming
quite disagreeabe and provoking, thought it best
to cut short the interview by telling him that had
| only called to know il he had ordered INV arrest:
as he had not done so, was sorry that had inter-
rupted him, and took my leave-bidding Eim good
| morning.
I'had never seen this gentleman, and was intro
| duced to him by friend of mine, and gentleuan
/ holding confidential relations towards him, and
may be mistaken, but from the short interview which
| had with him, have come to the conclusion that
| he Is . man OF quarrelsome disposition, and of an
overbearing, tyraunical temper. 1t strikes me that
if there be found m this land man wicked enough
6llibuster, disorganizer and repudiator who for
the qualification Of his own puerile, selfish, con.
temptibe ambition, 10 willing to eSsIave his fellow
citizens by depriving them of their rights and Iiber
ty, in this man, Gen. Bragg, he iud most val
| liable Lieutenant ~.
could not see the relevancy between shooting
me down, it necessary to defend the country and any
unnecessary just6able arrest, for which NJ cause
| could be assigned, and no one could be found will
ling to admit that he had issued the order. called
| twice during the afternoon, once in company with
Col. Jackson, at the headquarters Of Gen. Whiting
He could not be found. After getting my - pass "
/ from the Provost Marshal and written permission
| from Col. Jackson to return to my house, without
being shot for doing so, | mounted my old horse,
and in company with my old neishbor Martindale,
| took the road tor home, both of US, ignorant of
the OF this outrage and degradation to which
| we had been subjected as when went.
On the day of my arrest and the night previous,
about twenty-five or thirty free white citizens en-
ployed by the State of North Carolina Through her
Governor) to make salt, and about twenty or twen-
ty.ive citizens residing in my neghborhood, were
T. also arrested. Some of them seventy and eighty
wars of age, taken out OF their houses about
midnight in the cold and rsin and under guard OF
armed soldiers hurried off from their homes. They
were sent to Wilmington guarded by twentv FIVE
or thirty soldiers, armed with loaded muskets. They
we're kept together by these soldiers in the streets
like herd OF cattle, and were not permit ed TO go in
under shelter, out of the rain when attempting to
do so, they were driven back into the street. They
were kept in this condition for two or three hours
When their cases were brought to the attention oi
| COL jackson, he discharged them as he did me-
with no cause for their arrest assigned, and no ex-
| PLANTATION given. As l compelled to do, each
one of them was obliged to obtain from Col. Jack
son his written protection to save them from being
shot upon their return 10 til ir homes.
Two or three weeks have elapsed, and no excuse
I L., L.,