The Abbeville press and banner. [volume] (Abbeville, S.C.) 1869-1924, 1886-11-17
SECESSION HILL.
THE SPOT UfoN WHICH SECESSION WAS
EJAJGJ2ATEO--TZIG PLACE WHERE
TEE EFFORT COLLAPSED.
Side lights illuminating SUBJECTS
Vhic. Will Never Cease TO E'l:cr-
90. ts,e People ef !taaseviIlc Co.sn.y.

Side lights illuminating Sn%jact
which Will Never Cease TO En:cr
90. ts,e People OF .s;,2sevilic Co..Mty y
\ cit2ca of q uiStan. Stat" sends the follow
ing clipping from the .Ncr )inIh SIM, and ask
if the statements therein made are c"rrcc
;nc reply to which viii follow below, to;r!hc
with various interesting sketches liz rclercnc
to the hill which has become historic:
ON n cold lrizzlv day in February, lSG1,
riOuS car attached. With il came ScNCIfl
agents, who busted themselves in hiring team
lnr the transportation nf the contents %! thi
car Ai.brvilic is about twenty nils from
Yin. Savannah River whirh divides SO@tl
Carolina from Geo: "ia and is In" terminus o
lhc branch Of tn" Columbia aud GrrrnNill'
from iloti :.S D'lmt 10 this village. Con So
Qucnily the only way to reach the Gror%l;
frontier is ny horse ToWCr "
By ~ n'rlorH tnnt night enough ho:s" trans
were secured, and :hcy EcGan loading from
thr mysterious ear. The goods rolled ou
were in stomt little KEGS of Phenomena
weight, AID though the packages were small
they tnX"d tlie strength of the ahrb0lira a q
grnrs detail cd fIr the work. Al length, Tho
;oa:.irg was acromp!i>hrd AMI amid the iitSi
of lanicrnS and lhc cracks of whips ana th(
cries Of drivers, the long line of teams pnl!c'
cut Of the muddy railroad yard up the S'"p?h
hill through the vill"gc STR e'S. where curious
crowds had gathered to watch th"m PASS, lilG
disappeared in The darkness ON The winding
.'S'l:iEe road that lads t. GCOr.ia.
When The teams had gone ahoat ten miles
forty or fifty masked mrr rushed uron the
a<tiniShrd drivers and rarctHk"rS, held them
mute under ih" muZHi"> of pistols and PRO
ccclr,i to unload Tic WI, yon< Of their stout lii,
tie kegs. y cloth wn> spread upon 'h;' ground
;ind around it assembled The riH%. with flick.
erins torches lie d a";f. whit ;!cif hands stove
in in" hCa,tS of the kegs ana poured their CON
tents into Il single heap. III WaS goit-hfi%i'
yellow. g!i'tcGin. goihpcc"S by il" Thousand
IEhc !iPJr!ry eyes h1ilind :hc masks glcam"d
vyjlta :circirti uvarire IT was Il weird. 'nyS'
Ii: scene, lik" page IroM 'nme Arabian ro'
nance. The ahyS:n:l silence 0f thr forest
broken only by the rcl::ng ana r!uH%i@g OF
the :.fr.ghtei! ,lnl"S, the ShFivciing ring OF
liy',t varying as the torches were moved ia
..:.u fro the surrounding gloom, tn" anxious
faces uf She negro drivers, "aHiag viii startled
eyes &nG gapng lips under ibis ;i,n!a>i: sl'c"-
t:irle the eager circle OF masks, and last. the
Solid pic Of sUyrrrignS the ccm'r" 0I Tie
Whul.--;Ill firiN"u Il panp!a:I. which taOsc
VINO slE will never iGr=ci,
NiJh oil puSS bic haste Tie lAoTC, was d.
yidc.l M between the masked men. and III If
ten minutes they were g,ae. So WIS the
gold. Euth;n" remained but The empty Kegs
and empty wagons. and ia" rarc-taEcTS of this
last rem IA IT q: rEn Tor t1dcralc treasury sent
the teams back to Ahb;vl'r. white they cos
tIuurd on th"ir way towards Georgia. What
srca:ue of ;h2 m"ncy and who get IL remains
to-t,y Il profound secret, and viii probably
forest Sc,av MAS derived !run one OF tic re
gro drivers OF The teams to wh0ni :: MA X hat
thrown a Tin bucket tulI OF gold III c%ciIan4c
E,r a G.,Iuln" "uiUuS ca pet x. aUl De *b 1w.u
the go:0 in confirmation ef tIc story.
\ few days aftcr this, stay squads u! Wheel
cr'S cavalry beam 10 wander through the
town. Sa"rul ms Il my had passed ihr'nGh
tieor sa and ihrIrl-h p.ri Of So4ih Carolina
- Il tie lover duWn tlian AhbrNile and was
now sa:;iuy AMI burning Columbia. The
b'u.icu fnrcrS wmirss uppnScd Sherman, were
.,1-f
seeking To reach the pm lands OF Gcar Ia.
One evening ahuu; sun down, Jefferson na-
eis rr lched Abbcvillr. Judah u. Benjamin
u;S with him and Two other ;nrnhcrS vi Ills
Cabinet, | think, hat who ;lcy were ito no!
now ieImeniar. Abhcrilc l. Il l"nG, Strag-
81 II town. Uf oae street, being built on the
c.cSt Of Il hi |, until II reaches APPOINT wacrc 1t
b"auchcS OH in:G the upper or WeSipri part
Gust in this fork is situated what uSLd To ur
the rcSdcnrc Of .\rmi>:cid Bart, WAC was BE-
fore The war u Cen :rc>$rlau rom Sunth Caro-
lima. Mr.. Bart is deal nnw. and the house l.
ia strange hands Tnc hou c it"citi> Il S;l"a"c
$. lid, uaniciurcsqHc lhr' c-Slo:y hU.Llin",
surrounded by what used 10 br lntciy::r"uadS
and gardens and orchards. jefferson Davis
and his Ca1in"t proceeded t. t'.c house uf Mr..
Bar, where ;licy were hospitality received.
No pa'fic d"niun >t!a;i''n w"s made on the
aTcivai ut the d"rot ar on ihe Public square
of Abbcvi!le. cX2ett ihatwhica was made by
so:lc .lf dnzca flrl>lSa"l S".!!,:S :: c.t
y ms vii hG2aCncI t. be StLEd!a- tn-ct..cr At
the Nj shall IL 'G<c corner. A. til" President
- y
hats xna gay" single cheer for the cuntct!rr-
;:te chirfra!n. whose only recognition "i ihr
saiuie was Tie raising uf his own Lat. His
lace BETRAYED the deep feeling and extreme
anxiety which ne felt for the safety uf the
Gpvc;nm, Mt on whicI lie il d paccl his
a. ART ANA fr the success OF ~hi"h he had so
earnestly dcvo cd al the powerful energies of
hiS grra. mind.
4 strange coincidence! Has 1t ever bccn
motel hc!nrc: l believe not. Here WAS about
I be prr!ormcd the i;t>t official ,c; a! the Con-
lIX..,
Inc spot VA, secession li:li, the g!ovc which
gave bi:th to the war. Just four years prev-
OuIy Ibis amphilil,Hti Cal hill, shaded by
oaks and other giant trees, WAS filled win y
s... of excited faces, al loaling towards II
Stand constructed against three tree Il uilk> III
liz foo, and containing the leading nen q:
the state. 1t was the first of the Sere>,i"n
aare:in"S. Speaker after speaker dill ted III
& owi3y tpr:ilS nn tlr ncr'S S-ity oi Srrrrin. the
relations of tnc state i;h the Union, Hn'l ~.
cry Mcrd was ce'rr' I" The echo. AZ lci!E!h
1iIc venerable JUd.e Ma"dlaw. Il nlaa whose
decisions hal ben Quicd throughout th"
land, and w':o n,;l u ;'lacr IN ia" font ranks
q; jurIs;S rISr and :nvHnuly warned the lco-
u" ag.iiD D!e - Ia step they %"rr Ia; in"
lie It'd thrm t:i;limly ;h.t l!cy would nr
Gu he'd, that Thy had not Il single cha!irr.
:.nd that. a>id. from arguments :'h"ui their
i!)!itca rights ii would hr better ;or Them l."
rem un in thc ni"a. with Disadvantages, :,
than to .lgiIt "nd l." forced back at the lGlnt
of i;" bayonr!, with AL ;lc evils ina: VA. ~ Il
defect wO;,ll entail. judge WaTdi:w wa>
hl<>c,l OF the Platform. Tnc people We're de-
icrmin'd on their course. But >uch OF 'hcm
a. Ru% survive are convinced OF the Wisdom
of his cuuEsrlS.
The t!muSt hrSc:tcd condition Gf Ahhcvi.lp,
on that bleak February dty. WHOM Jefferson
},aSS sought Tie hoSpitablc shelter of MIR.
Euri'S residence. bore murc but eloquent wit
ness tn the prnrEc .ir words OF Judge Ward
Law. In "lm:i% loneliness Davis and his alb
met Ass, mbird in one of Tie sitting rO;,Il :.
Thry he'd their last cun>U in,iom, discussed
pttIiS HAT were iii, cuSS. q uniy 10 he abandon
cd and finally decided that tho end had come
ana taat they had b"il r try TO escape. Thea
1apy examined such papers aS ihCy had with
L.I'In, and Wiira the bpUr at twelve struck
ti.r ash of nearly all of tiiuSc rHrrrS We're
Sn.ouidcrin" in the @luwing Goals OF the biz
wool fire. The question then came up Us Ia
tlc disposal of the seal o! the Southern Con.
faderutc States II was plain that it "u@, to
b. destroyed; but hnw could they doit Time
pressed. Thy should br on th"ir weary Hi.ht
10: safety even nov. There w:!S an old cover
e.l We'll in Mr.. Burt'S yard. and into this Mr..
Benanin threw the seal. 1t has since cavcd
Ill and filled up, and now ih" seal of the late
Conf ii ru;y i> safe under fifty feet Of ground,
an exactly in what spot there probably lives
10 man who can tel.
The SEQUEL IS known. A week or so after
t.i> meeting Mr.. Davis was rartu'e:l in G"0r-
g.. Mr. Benjamin escaped 10 Engard.-Ncc
York SmR.