The Abbeville press and banner. [volume] (Abbeville, S.C.) 1869-1924, 1879-08-27
'sTHE DIARY OF A PUBLIC MAN."

sTHE DIARY OF A PUBLIC MAN."
The True Inwardness Of the Civil
War. BY One Who Lived in Wash
ington and Knew. He Says q Good
Deal About South Carolina and Her
Leaders.
NORTH Amarican RcrtcU, Angtst.]
PRESIDENT BUCHANAN AND SOUTH CARO-.
LIMA.
WASHINGTON, December q. 1860.
A long conversation this evening with Mr..
Orr, who called on me, which leaves mo more
than anxious about the situation. He assures
me hat he and his colleagues received the
most positive assurances today from Presl-
dent Buchanan that he would receive them
and confer with them, and that these nssur-
tninly holds the most Confidential relations
with the President. not only us an editor OF
the official paper but personally. lie dcclar.
cd to Mr.. Orr that hndersOn's movement
from Mouitrie to sumter was entirely with
out orders from Washington. and offered to
bring him into communication with Mr.
Floyd on that point, which offer MI. Orr very
properly declined, ON tho ground that he rep
resented n "foreign state" and could not rs
sumo to get at the actions and purposes OF inc
United States Government through any pup.
lie officer In n private way, but must be lirst
regularly recognized by the head or the
seriously that l represscd the inclination to
smile which involuntarily rose in me. ! have
known Mr.. Orr SO long and u him so mrch
that I am almost equally loath TO think him
matter as this, and Of really believing In the
possibility OF the wild scheme upon which
the secession of South Carolina seems to have
been projected and carried out: He absolute
1y inc 1cfc flint no COOS M cOnStit1ttOnu reason
why the Federal Government should refuse
to recognize the withdrawal Of South Caro-
lima from the Union, since the recognition OF
the Federal Government by South Carolina
Is conceded TO laVc been essential to the e.
tablishmcnt of that Government. He brought
up tho old eases OF North Carolina and Rhode
Island, and put ut me, with an air or expected
triumph, the question, II Massachuset ISs haG
Quincy at the time OF the acquisition or
Louisiana, declaring the Constitution abolish
cd by that acquisition, what legal authority.
would there have been in the Executive Of
rebellion and march troops to reduce her ~
I tried to make him sec that the cases were
not analogous, but without effect, nor could L
bring him to admit my point that the provis-
ion made in the Constitution for the re2ula-.
ton of Congressional elections In the several
states by Congress Itself, In case my State
should refuse or neglect to ordain regulations
for such elections, carried with IL the conces.
sion to the Federal Government OF an implied
mower to prevcntany particular State from in
validating the general compact by q failure to
fulfill its particular obligations. He intimat-
ed TO mo that for his own part he would be
perfectly willing to let the claim Of the United
States over the Federal property in South Car
DINA be adjudicatcd by the supreme Court
under q special convention to that effect BE-
tween South Carolina and the United States,
after the President had recognized the action
by which South Carolina withdrew her "dele.
CATIONS Of sovereignty" to the Federal Cow
eminent. He was careful to impress on Inc,
however. thai this was simply his own pcrso-
nal disposition, and not his disposition as a
Commissioner.
All this was but incidental to his main OBJ
Ijcct in calling on me, which was to urge my
co-opcration with Mr.. Seward to strengthen
the hands of the President In ordering Major
Anderson back at once to Fort MOultrie. He
explained to me that, by this unauthorized
transfer Of his small force to Fort sumter
Anderson had immensely strengthened the
war scccssionlsts, not only In South Carolina
but In other States, who were loudly pro
claiming 1t as unanswerable evidence Oh mn
intention ON the part of the United States to
cocrcc South Carolina, and to take the initia-
tive in plunging the country into a horrible
civil strife, which would be sure to divide the
North, and in which the West would eventu-
ally find itself on tho side OF the South. he
had seen Mr.. Seward during the day, who had
fully agreed with him that AnderSonts move.
ment was q most unfortunate one, and had
suggested that the matter might be arranged
II South Carolina would evacuate Fort Moul.
trio and allow Anderson to rcoccupy that
post. both parties agreeing that Fort Sumter
should not be occupied Mt all by either. This
would, in fact, Mr.. Orr said, be conccding al
most everything to the United States, MS Sum:
ter could not be held against a sea force, and
Moultrie commands the town. His cxplana-
ton of Anderson's movement Is that he lost
his head over the excitement OF Two or three
of his younger officers, who were not very
sensible, and who had got themselYcs lnIo not
.,t 40, rt, uINrp Icith coma nf the nWlt
and silly young Sea Island bloods OF Charles.
ton. AS TO the willingness OF South carolina
to come into such an arrangement or course
he could not speak, though he did not believe
that MoultrIe would have eeen occupied TO.
day excepting TO afford q basis for 1t. l agreed
with him that anything which could proper.
~ be lone to avert an armed COLLISION De,
tween the forces of the United States and
and alarmed condition Of the public mind,
ou"ht to be done; but I frankly old him j
did not believe Mr.. buchanan would take inc
responsibility of ordering Anderson TO evac'
irle, and asked him what reason, If any, he
had to thini otherwise. He icsltated Il ittle
and finally told me that MIR. Seward had CIV
en- him reason TO think the decision could be
brought about through the influence or Sena'
tor -, whose term expires in March, but
who has great personal weight with the Presi
dent, and, ASA southern man by birth and 9
pronounced Breckenridge Democrat, no in
considerable hold upon tne moro eXtreine
States. Mr.. Seward, in fact, told him that the
subject had been discussed by him with TINS
gentleman last night pretty fully, and that he
thought MIR. Buchanan could be leu 10 see Ina
the crisis was an imminent one, and must be
dealt with decisively at once.
SOUTH CAROLINA o IN FAVOR OF A CON.
%FEDERACY.
For his own part, Mr.. Orr admitted that hi
dcnrccate above all things any course OF &C
ton which would strengthen the Confeder
ate party in South Carolina. He did notwisf
to see Il Confederate states government FORM,
ed. because he regarded it-and there agreed
with him-as sure to put new obstacles IN Int
wav of the final adjustment so imperatlvely
NECESSARY to the well-belng or al Secll0nS o
the country. He thought that II the Unitec
States Government wouldn't once adjust tht
Fort Sumter difficulty, n recognize the sc
cossion OF South Carolina ns an accomplished
fact within the purview OF the CONSTITUTION
the Independent party, rs ne called IL. II
south Carolina would atonce come forward
and check the now growing drift toward
now COnfcdcracy. The most earnest and bes
heads in South Carolina, he said, had no WIS.,
TO see the State linked too closely with th'
great cotton-growing Gulf states. Whicn mac
ssirrady "sucked so much of her blood" The,
looked to the central Vest and the upper Mis-
sissippi ond Ohio region as the railway MS
tory of the State indicated, and would not %
disDleased If tho state could he let entircl!
alone os Rhode Island tried to be at the tim'
when the Constitution was formed. In short
he pretty plainly admitted that south caro-
linn was more annoyed than gratlticd by tn
eaecrncss Of Ge9ala ana the ,o Gnii S'a nrt ~ u
threatening attitude given to the unitet
States by such acts rs the occupation OF FOR
Sumter could determine the victory IN ina
state Of the Confederate over the lndcpeno
ent movement.
I could not listen to Mr.. Orr without a feel
ing of sympathy. for 1t was plain TO me ina
he was honestly trying to make the pest 0
what he felt to be n Wretched business, hl'
that at heart he was as good n Union man a
anybody In Connecticut or New YORK. bu
when | asked him whether South Caroilnn
in case her absolute independence could DC es
tablishcd, would not at once proceed 10 max
the Gulf and the middle West as she Is, sh
would not make any protective system ador'
ed by the rest of the country q lallnTe' ~
could not answer in the negative. ne so
away from Inc point pretty smartly, though
by asking me whether n frec-trade polio:
adopted from South Carolina TO the Mexican
| border would not be n harder blow AZ GU
Wing system than n frce-tradc policy contll
ed to South Carolina. asked him Whctnc
Governor Plckens. who seems; from Whnt MI
Orr old mc-therc Is absolutely nothing trus
worthy In the papers about Ito have orucr
ed the occupation Of Moultrie ana ror
p]inckney, is really IN symP1n1 ad yon %' ask ed m N
If I knew Mrs. Pickens. "MrSS. Plckens' yo
may be sure,"!he said, "would not be we
pleased to represent a petty republic anr rtmo
but I suppose you know he went on, ~
PirI,ens Is the man who was born 1nsenslol
to fear. I don't think he Is likely to 0ppos
any reasonable settlement, but he Will neVe
originate ore" One Of Mr.. Orrs colleague
whom / did not think 1t necessary or deslri
hln To 500 came for him and took him awa
in a carriage. Almost his last words Wer :
"You may be perfectly sure that we Shall D
received and treated with"
SENATOR FLOYD AND THE PLOT TO ID
BUCHANAN.