The Charleston daily news. [volume] (Charleston, S.C.) 1865-1873, 1872-12-25

| and, If you have watched the history oil ina
corps. you will have remarked that THEY GEN
ERALLT DO THEIR WORK WELL. TEE TRUTH I
| TIL WIZ lie ARMY IS BURNING TO WREAK THEIl
VENGEANCE ON SOUTH CAROLINA. AIMos
TREMBLE AT E FATE, BUT FEEL She DE
| SERVES L That SEEMS IN STORE FOR HER, 20
90 60. LOOK UPON COLUMBIA AS QUITE A
BAD AS CHARLESTON" &o., DO.
(slgned by General Sherman In A-J oficis
capsolly.)
General Sherman attempted to weaken tn
effect Of these communications by stating the!
were not ''orders," but upon Mr.. Walkers ask
Ing him II they were not signed and addressed
officially he was compelled to admit that the!
we're. An examination of these volumes
shows that, for areason which may be readil!
understood, the printed dispatches from sher
man, although dated from every other stop
| ping place on the march, are not 10 be foune
from the time OF the arrival of the Fedora
army at the Congaree to the date Of Its entr!
into Wlnnsboro'.
Upon his further cross-examinatloa zen
eral Sherman, testified that there were two
army corps that crossed the Broad Rlver, the
Seventeenth and the fifteenth that portions
of the Fifteenth were retained to guard ~
Columbia ; first stones Brigade and sub
sequently the forces under HAHN and Wood
that The s~entinels posted In Columbia were
from the Fifteenth Corps, and that all rellets
were from the Fifteenth Corps; that the
soldiers shelled by Hampton were of the
Fifteenth Corps; that he General Sherman)
had good reason to believe that they
would burn the city, but that he
took all necessary precautions such az
issuing orders for the protection Of
private property. Soldiers not on duty, and
Of the Fifteenth Corps, were allowed to dis
perse themselves about the city, and he de-
clsred that although he feared they would
burn the city, lie aoould not restrain them u
their ranks to saue every city In South Caro-
lima; that his men were thoroughly under
control, and were we'll disciplined, and that
the long roll would at any time have sum-
moued them 10 their ranks; that the general
orders were to destroy all ~cotton-cotson was
the llfs-b.ood of the Confede1acy-and 1t was
necessary thai 1t should be destroyed.
The officers subsequently cross-examtned
BY MIR. Walker knew nothing OF The trees OF
The. ~cottonLike snowlakes on Main street.
The counsel presenting their claims feel that
they have testimony 10 meet all the contradlc'
tory and improbable allegations In General
Sherman's statement, but every person who
can furnish them with additional testimony on
the following points will materially assist In
the prosecutlon,ofl these claims, and will be
performing q valuble service In the interests
of truth.
l. To prove that Sherman ordered the burn
ing OF Columbia. -
2. That United States soldiers were seen
firing houses, or pillagtng In the presence, OF
BY the order OF an officer.
3. That there never have beeu trees on
Main street, Columbia, and that the state
ments of Sherman In reference 10 the cotton
snow storm are absolutely false.
A. The hour at which the fires of the morn
ing OF the 18th February were extinguished.
s. That cotton will not fake and fy IN the
air, and that no cotton was flying hundreds oil
feet 10 the air on the night OF the conhagra-