The Portland daily press., 1865-06-22
7a87 7"1.1 4 THURSDAY MORNING JUNE a. 1865


dark hints thrown out by the prisoners. Th
| society numbered some thousands OF mem
beis, an fully armed, thoroughly drilled an
impatiently waiting signal to expledea min
deeper than that ID front Of Petersburg.
But the assembling Of the Chicago Gonyeu
4 tion was postponed 70 the 10th Of August, an
the 4th Of July passed away without The bon
1 FIRE and the firew0fks.et iia Ass4osI nI
The commandant, however, did not sleer
sButternuts" still ate prisoners, rations. an,
the red flames still brought out black Thought
on the white letter paper. Quietly the garri
son was re- enforced, quietly increased vigi
lance was eDjoined upon the sentinels; ant
the tranquil. assured look of the Oommand
ant teldsno one that he was playing with no
Goals on barrel OF gunpoWder.rsi,75
AT last the loyal Democrats had come to
gether to the great Convention. and with then
came Satan also. Bands OF i'll favored men
in bukhy hair, bad whiskey and seedy home
spun, staggered from the railway stations and
hung about the street corners, A reader o
Dante or Swedenborg would have taken then
for delegates from the lower regions, had no
their clothing been plainly perlshable, while
the devils wear everlasting garments. They
had come, they announced, to make Peace
President, but they brandished boWie-knives
and beloved for war even la the sacred pre-
eincts of the Peace Convention But war or
peace, the Connandant was ready for 1t.
For days re-enforcemerlts had poured iEto
the camp until 1t was bristiing with bayonets
On every side It was guarded with cannon,
and day and night mounted men patrolled the
avenues to give notice of the first hostile
gathering Butthere was no gathering. The
conspirators were there, 1000 strong. with
1000 Illini to back them. From every point
Of the compass from Canada, Missouri,
Southern Illinois, Indiana, New York, and
even loyal Vermont, bloody minded men had
come to give the Peace candidate q red bap
ism. Bu. discretion is the better part Of
valor.H The eonspirators saw the prepara.
items and disbanded. Not long afterwards
one Of the leaders said to me, "We had spies
in every public place--in the telegraph office,
the camp ITSELF and even close by the Com
mandants headquarters, and knew hourly all
that was passing. From the observatory, op.
posite the camp, myself saw the arrange
ments for our reception. We outnumbered
you two to one, but our force was badly dis
ciplined. Success in such circumstances was
impossible; and on the third day Of the Com
Vention we announced from headquarters that
an attack at that time was impraclicable. 1t
would have cost the lives oil hundreds of pri-
soners, and perhaps the capture or destruc-
ton OF the whole Of gus." So the storm blew
over, without the leaden rain, and its usual
accompaniment of thunder and Tightening.
dead. calm followed, during which the
llini slunk back into their holes: the prison
ers took to honest ink; the bogus "Butter-
nuts" walked the streets clad like Christians,
and the Commandant went to sleep with only
one eye open. So the world rolled rouud IN
to November. 1es -l4e
The election was near at hand, and the
comnandant obtained a furlough to go home
and mount the stump for the Union.
he was about to set out, his private secre-
tary was ready, and the carriage waiting at
the gateway, when an indefinabla feeling took
possession Of him, holding him back, and warn
ing him OF coming danger. Ii would not be
shaken of, and reluctantly he postponed the
journey till the morrow. Before the morrow
facts were developed which made his presence
in Chicago essential 70 the safety of the. city
and the lives OF the Inhabitants. The snake
was acotched, not killed. 1t was preparing
for another andsdeadiier spring.
That same night as the Colnmandant alone
% a. his room, was anxiously pacing the floor,
! visitor was announced. We quote the ac.
count ofthe interview which followed: .alasss
BE was . slim, light-hairsd young man, with
dne, regular features. and that indefinahle air
which denotes good breeding. Rscogpizing
The commander 6y the eagle on his shoulder.
be said, Can / see you alone. sirp1 sCertain-
~ answered the Union officer. notioning to
ais secretary to leave theroom, Il am Colo
nel In the rebel army said the stranger. sand
have put my lie into your hands. 10 warn Won
Of the most hellish plot in history, sYonr
life is sale, SIR replied the other. III your Wis
t is an honest one. Il shall be glad to hear
what you have to say. Be seated5d = 9'sgl
The rebel officer took the profisrad chair.
md sat there till far into the morninr. Inithe
limits of a nseazine article / cannot attempt
o recount ali that passed between them. The
written statement the rebel Colonel has sent
10 me covers fourteen pages of closely written
'oolscap; and my interview with him on the I
subject lasted Ave hours. by a slow watch
He disclosed all that Judge Holt has made
public, and q great deal more. Sixty days
previously he had left Richmond with verbal
dispatches from the Rebel Secretary of War
to Jacob Thompson, the rebel agent In Cana
da. These dispatches had relation to a vast
plot, designed. to wrap the West in flames
sever it from the East, and secure the indie
pendenee of the South. Months before, thels
plot had been concocted by JEFF. Davis at
Richmond; and Ia May previous, Thompson.
supplied with $25OO00 in sterling exchange.
mad been sent to Canada TO superintend it's ex-t
scution. This money was lodged Ia a bank
10 Montreal, and had furnished the funds
which fitted out the abortive expeditions
against Johnson's Island and Camp Douglas.
The plot embraced the order or, American
K0ights, which was spread all over the West,
aud nu nbered 100000 men, $4,000 OF whom
were armed. A force of 200 men-C Canadi.
an refugees, and bush whackers hon Southern
illinois and Missouri,--aas to attack Camp
Douglas on Tuesday might, the Sth of Novem
bar, nberate and arm the prisoners, and sack
Chicago This was to be- the signal for gen.
erai uprising through the West, and for d s,m-si
uItaneous advance by Hood upon Nashville,
Buckner upon Louisville, and Price upon ST.
Louis. q Valiandi CLAM was tohead the move
lnent 10 Ohio, Bow in Indiana, and walsh
Dayton. and Cincinnati In Ohio, New Albany
and Indianapolis In Indiana, and Rock Island