Deseret evening news. [volume] (Great Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1867-1920, 1892-03-22

rfen both sections stood ready TO seize
he national forts, arcnals, vessels. arms
AMI other materials ~ war, what was
the connecting llnl. between the old, stnky
Armament Ciat went TO pieces on April u
anil thc now, firm power that arose 10 tho
lnst days OF April and the INT days q
Mly' ,...
OF Wa.Liugt01a dark days b. called mp
b. tir plans now under way for maiA-
moth reunion oi wur Veterans ~ tue cap,
iial next September. la the proposed
p.'rant " battle Scared soldiers aud bat
usturh hannogsou "Wwhington'a choicest
ascnur.' the place uf honor 40 the risls of
tls linn OF Grand hrmy posts has been
given Co tho sixth Massachusetts reii'
mcnt This was tho body Of volunteers
mubbod IN baltimore on April 10, 1881,
willis en- route 90 protect the capitol u
Ia. bccn flnrlod ont for special honor In
no great parnd, bccausc it was "thc ilrtt
10 reach tho capital after communications
had b,on severed" between Washington
ana the north. The iiist northern troops
to 10 through after that event were
the seventh New lorl, aud the Eghth
Massachusetts. The New iorkcys reached
Washington by way II Annapolis nt noon.
April - This was tue beginning oi the
end % the crisis that had hung over Wash
!ng.on, rot Tor days, but Tor weeks.
When tho first step Of the warwas taken
By tho dispatch Of a naval force TO Charles.
ION hHrb0r with an ultimhtum about Fort
sumter, President Lincoln began TO lon';
tothc defense of the capital In cnsc war
should break out over the sumter husi-
mess. That was about April l. and after
that date Gen. Scott nnd1 "a daily report
TO tho executive OF the state of the de
icnscs. The president was anxious not 20
create alarm or exceed his lawful authoi-
~ aud the only saic recourse Ia tho nd.
aencr Of regulars. which wcru widely die.
gsr.ed. waa TO call ugt the District militia
The call was issued April Q, tlirco days he.
iie sumter WAS fired upon.
o. the 10th, tho day after the presidents
al for 900 troops at large, Scott report
tthp stateof the forces NJ hand und fresh
uliiuon Of eight companies of District vol
tniccrs making sixteen In nll. "Thcsc,
thlak,n he concluded, place the capital a
liilo ahead OF impending dangers and We
will maintain NJ least that advantage til,
W the arrival un week. VI regulars and
abundant volunteers, our relative advau-
iagl will, | trust, la more than doubled 4"
On the @!d, when tho crisis was at It's
height tho ronds from Che north blocked,
the volunteers from Massachusetts and
New York lying helpless No Annapolis, the
llne OF the Potomac and Washington Itself
menacod by armed scccdcrT, hG declared,
u iccl confident that with our present
!0rcs wo eau defend the capital, the ar
aenal and al tho executive buildings
AGAINST lOolo troops not better than cur
District volunteers"
FNfHH
irgr troopsY Gen. Chgrlos =. Stone, who
commanded them, spoke In his Century
article In ,hs strains
u think that the country has never prop
eFly appreciated the services uf those d.
trct OF Columbia volunteers
They did their duty quietly, aud they did
81 well nul faithfully. Although not
mustered into the service and placed on
pay until after the iatal day when the fll,;
was lrl upon at sumter yet they ron'
deUd grCnt service before that tlmo In CIV
lng confidence 10 thSUnlon men, TO tho
members Of the legislature aud also TO the
president IN tho knowledge that NJ least
there was a small force ready 10 re-
ip1nd az my moment TO his call, ~
should be- Remembered that the frs
uo1pi mustered into tho service wcrg
companies Of those volunteer. nul that
during tho dark days WHOM Washington
WIS cut OF from communication with tho
north, wlcn railway bridges were burned
and tracks torn up, when the Potomac was
blocknded, thesn troops were tho only rclt
ancc OF the government for guarding ths
mbllc departments, for preserving order
aud for holding the bridges and other out
posts that these were the troops which 10
covered possession of tho railway from
Washington - Annapolis Junction aud
nude practicable the ruopcnlng OF commG