The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1900-05-22
THAT SOUTH CAROLINA CLAIM.
Fictitious CarOIinian Discusses
the Matter EntertainingIy.
From the New York Commercial.

From the New York Commercial
Col. Bras don Buckshot Beauregard of
South Carolina, yesterday honored the
Commercial office with call. The Co.onel
seated himself where the breeze from the
electric fan blew merrily through his
chin whiskers, and said: 81 have come,
sab, to offer my earnest protest against
this latest outrage of the United States
government"
"In regard to which, Colonel"
"In regard to that infamous bill for $780,
600 which has been sent in by the govern
ment at Washington against the state of
South Carolina. sab. This bill is for mil
itary stores taken by our gallant forces
from the United States arsenal in the city
of Charleston just after the Ordnance of
Secession was passed and the noble state
of South Carolina had Withdrawn from the
so-called Union.
These alleged military stores which I
myself conveyed away from the arsenal in
wheelbarrow by order of that matchless
chieftain and Southern gentleman, Gov.
PickenS, were never worth over 81 at the
outside, and now for this arrogant and
overbearing government to set a value of
$4,000 on them and actually send in a
claim for that amount. is enough to make
any Southern gentlemans blood boil, sab
Il desire 10 say. sah," countinued the
Colonel, land 1 wish the statement to be
printed in large type, that this claim,
which is an insult to every son of the state
of John c. Calhoun, will never be paid,
never l know, sab, that 1 voice the SEN
timent of the entire state when l say that
no more dastardly affront was ever put
upon a free and enlightened people than
this demand from Washington
las citizens of a great state we utter
ly refuse, sab, 10 take advantage of the
statute of limitations. but all The same
we Indignantly spurn the suggestion that
we pay this bill. am glad, sab, for one
thing, and that is that this preposterous
claim gives us once more an opportunity
to- remind posterity that we did cap
ture this arsenal-capture it, lock, stock
and barrel. Here is a copy of the de-
mand for the surrender, which desire to
have spread on the minutes, and Col.
Beauregard took from his pocketbook a
soiled clipping from a newspaper and
passed it over to the reporter, with a
solemn dignity that was most impress
sfve:
Charleston Dec. 20, 1SsO.-sir: I hero
with demand immediate surrender of
the United States arsenal at this place,
and under your charge. and delivery
TO me of the keys and contents of the
arsenal, magazines, etc
L am already proceeding to occupy 1t
with a strong armed detachment of
troops. l make the demand in the name
of the state Of South Carolina and by vir-
tue of an order from its Governor, a
copy Of which is enclosed. Very respect
fully. John Cunningham,
Col Seventeenth Rgt. Inf. S. C. NJ.
ION the making of this demand, sah
the United States arsenal at Charleston
ignobly surrendered and our forces took
possession. 1t affords me create pleasure
to shove that document down your
throat.
ut was not long after that, sab, till
the thunder of our guns, and incidentally
some of your own was directed against
emily made that frowning pile of granite
look like 30 cents"
1t was suggested to Col. Beauregard
that this was a bygone a memory a
part of the dead and buried past.
"Ah, quite true, sab quite true. But 50 is
this old claim of forty years stand'ng a
bygone, a memory a chestnut, which
should never have been plucked by the
roots out of the buried past. You might as
well. sab, bring in bill against Gu high
spirited people for the damage they in
hicted on Fort Sumter or any other of the
millions of dollars worth of government
property that our gallant armies destroyed
during the goddess war which you waged
against US.
II want to tell you, sah and I want to
tell this government, that this bill opens
M the whole question Of Southern war
claims. Press this claim, sab, and we will
ovepwhelm Congress with bills for the
hundreds of millions of dollars which we
lost by reason of that unjust and unholy
war Every slave that you illegally liher-
ated, every mule that you stole, every corn
crib and chicken coop that you robbed
must be settled for, sab, 10 the ultimate
nickel
ut is my desire. also" continued the