The evening Argus. [volume] (Rock Island, Ill.) 1861-1871, 1865-05-25
NO ARMS STOLEN UNDER BUCHANAN's
ADMINISTRATION.
THAT STORY REFUTED BIZ RE-
PUBLICAN CONGRESS.
The Union, of last evening, charges tna'
.na.. Rnchanan's administration

The Union, of last evening, charges that
nnasr Buchanan's Standardization
c.h;n.. osicers robbed sacred trust funds, stole
,ha r.tional arms, and conspired to overtime"
the government, without loss OF position OF oe'fi
ment to their partizan character or influence
The charges that cabinet officers robbed
sacred trust funds" and "oonspired to over
throw tho government, without loss OF posi-
ton or detriment to their pastizan character
or influence" needs no refutation, as no EVIL
dencs has ever been adduced to sustain II,
and no honest, intelligent person bell ewes IL
Il is one of those vague partizan charges
which are 90 often made, without proof, and
which nobody believes.
The osher charge, of stealing arms, is more
definite, and many honest and well-meanlng
people. from it's frequent repetition, believe
i. 10 be true. Their party papers have stud
iously avoided telling their readers that
republican committee of republican con
ersss investigated the charge and pronounced
il falsehood. And these papers continue to
repeat it, Notwithstanding committee OF
their own party pronounced it untrue,-and
their stump speakers reiterate it, knowing 1t
TO be false, while it constitutes one OF the
staple arguments of the street corner ana
doggsrey politicians.
In relation to this matter, Mr.. Buchanan
wrote q letter to Gen. Scott, in the early part
of Mr.. Lincoln's administration, which was
was published in the National Intelligencer,
and from which we make the following sx'
tract:
should have nothing more to add, had Gen
Scott, in his rejolnder confined himself to the
topics smbra ced in his original letter. He has
extended them, and now for the hrst time, and IN
q sarcastic and NO kindly spirit refers to the al
legged stealing of the public arms by Secretary
Floyd, and their transportation to the south, In
anticipation of the rebellion. The most conclus
answer to this allegation Is that, notwlthstand
ing the Boosting of Mr.. Floyd, at Richmond, evl
IDENTIFY with the view of cenciiiatlng his new alhes
cited BY the general as his authority, no public
arms euer stolen. fhe fact Is established
by the report of the committee on military affairs
of the house of representatives,, now before m e
made by Mr. Stanton, of Ohio, their Chairman, Ia
republican, on the 18th of February, 1861, and tc
be found in the second volume of reports OF com.
mittees of the house for the session OF lsoO-6l.-
This report, and the testimony before the com
mittee establish
l. That the southern states received in 1860
less instead of more than the quota OF arms to
which they were entitled by law; and that three
of them, North Carolina, Mississippi and Ken
lucky, received no arms whatever, and this slmp
ly because they did not ask for them. Well ma,
Mr.. Stanton have said, in the house, that "thert
are q great deal of rumors and speculations, ans
misapprehe nsions to the true state OF facts II
regard to this NATTER
2. Secretary Floyd, under suspicious circum
stances, on the 9th of December, 1860, and bu
a few days before he left the departmet, had
without the knowledge of the president, ordered
one hundred and thirteen columbiads and clever
thirty-two Founders to be transported from Pitts
burg to Ship Island and Galveston, in MISSISSIPPI
and Texas. This fact was brought to the knowi
edge of the president by communication iron
Pittsburg; and Secretary Holt Immediately there
after countermanded the order of his predecessor
and the cannons were never scot. The prompt
tude with which acted elected vote o
thanks, dated on the 4th of January, lS6l, iron
the select and ommon councils OF this city, "a
the president, the attorney general, and the act
ing secretary of war, MIR. Holt)
This report is complete and unanswera
BILE refutation of the ''stolen arms story
and newspapers which profess to deal hon
estly with their readers will inform them
the facts and cease repeating the story.