The Celina Democrat. (Celina, O. [Ohio]) 1895-1921, 1912-02-02

Nhins were in evidence in the sou
the Confederates on shore began
consider the expedition a failure.
IS the rigors of winter increased
throughout the north the people began
to grow anxious as to the hardshlps
suffered by the prisoners held IN klch-
mond. Soldiers in camp about 100
miles from Richmond wrote home sto
ries of snowstorms and freezing wealth
er and suffering. Naturally the pris-
oners, who we're wholly at the mercy
OF their enemies for creature comforts,
must be worse off. 1t was in hope OF
relieving the captives that the United
States secretary Of war appointed a
commission to visit war prisoners at
Richmond and provide for the comfort
Of Federal soldiers held there. This
was the first step in the ameltoratlon
of prison hardships.
The coastwise expeditions sent out
by the Federal government naturally
spread CONSERVATION all along the
southern coast. Commodore String
hams fleet had driven the Confeder-
ates at Hatteras out Of their shore bat
teries in August, 1861. A few weeks
later Flag officer Dupont had cap
tured two strong forts guarding the en-
trance to Port Royal sound, South Car
olina, with the guns of wooden shlps.
This feat led to the fall Of the seaport
town of Beaufort into Federal hands,
together with a vast country round
about. If wooden ships could batter
down forts on land no southern port
or section of coast could be considered
safe against Federal attack. The news
from the Carolina coast so alarmed
the inhabitants along the gulf that
whole towns were deserted in antici-
patton of attack. OF course slaves
were removed along with other belong
ings of their owners in order to pre-
vent the yankees" from getting them.
The Army and the Slaves.
The slave at this period of the war
was an ever present bone Of conten-
ton. Southerners almost universally
believed that the negro's freedom was
all the north cared for in prosecuting
the war. Yet the north was divided on
this very subject, the war prosecuting
party being itself split into factions.
West Virgials, for instance, was seek
ing to become a state in the northern
Union. Her movement for statehood
was a war movement, led by men who
wished the war to be prosecuted to the
end. The people had voted to secede
from the original state of Virginia and
ioin the Union column in the fight
against the south.
On the 27th Of January proposal
was made in the convention assem-
bled at Wheeling to so frame con
gtitution for the new commonwealth
as to prohibit slavery at the outset
This was considered extremely radical
The very next day petition was read
in the United States congress in which
citizens of Illinois prayed that body
not to abolish slavery in the District
Of Columbia. This was aimed at
bill recently introduced by Senator
Wilson of Massachusetts,.
A Gun Record Of 1852.
Il is of interest now to recall what
was considered a good gun record ear
ly in the civil war. On the 9th Of
the month Battery e, Third United
States artillery, commanded by Cap
tain r. B. Ayres, at practice in the
camp at Alexandria, Va, fired thirty
eight shells, landing thirty-five Of then
on the target 10 by IL feet in dimen
sion, at 1900 yards range. This rec
ord was widely commented upon as al
achievement. The guns were of thu
kind known az fieldpieces, such al
were drawn by horses, six to cannon
md went into action with infantry
troops. The large part Of the field
pieces then in use were smoothbore
One-third or less were rihed guns
that is, the barrel was provided witt
a groove to secure greater accuracy II
the flight Of the projectile. During the
course of the war many Of the smooth
bore cannon were converted into II
aed cannon by the simple expedient o.
boring a groove, Ayres' battery com