Year: 1861

for consultation with other officers. both
of the army and the navy, & at The end Of
four days came reluctantly. but decided.
y TO the same conclusion as before. He
also stated at the same lime that no suf.
ticient forco was then at the control of
the Government, or could be raised and
brought to the ground within the time
before the provisions in the fort would be
exhausted. In purely military point of
view. this reduced the duty of the Ad.
ministrAtion in the case to the mere mat
ter Of getting the garrison safely out Of
the fort.


This could not be allowed, starvation
was not yet upon the garrison, and ere it
would be reached, Fort Pickens might be
reinforced. This last would be a clear
indication Of policy. and would better en-.
able the country to accept the evacuation
of Fort Sumter, as a military necessity
An order was at once directed to be sent
for the landing Of the troops from the
steamship Brooklyn into Fort Pickens.
This order could not go by land, but must
take the longest and sowest route by sea.


The first return news from the order
was received but one week before the fall
of Sumter. The news itself was that the
officer commanding rhe Sabine, to which
vessel the troops had been transferred
from the Brook lyn, acting upon some quas.
81 atmistice of the late Administration
{ aad of the existence of the late Admin.
islratiOn, up to the time the order was
dispatched having had only too vague and
uncertain rumors to fix attention. had
refused TO land the troops to reinforce
Fort Pickens before a crisis would be
reached at Fort Sumter. This was i'm.
possible. rendered SO by the near ex.
hauslion'of provisions in the latter named
fort. 10 precautiou against such a con.
junction, the Government had a few
days before commenced preparing an ex-
pedition, as well adapted as might be to
relieve Fort Sum;eri which expedition
vas Intended to be ultimately used o.,
not, according to circumstances. The
strongest anticipated case for using it was
now presented. aud it was resolved to
send it forward as had been intended in
this contingency.


1t was also resolved to notify the Gov.
ernment'of South Carolina that she might
expect an attempt would be made to pro-
vision the Fort, and that if the attempt
should no. be resisted. there would be no
effort to throw in men. arms, or amun-
ton, without further notice, or in case of
an attack upon the Fort. This notice
was accordingly given; wbereupon the
fort was attacked and bombarded to its
fall, without even awaIlingthe arrival of the
provisioning expedition,


1t is thus seen that the assault upon,
and the reduction of. Fort Sumter, was
in no sense a matter of self defence on the
part of the assailants. They well knew
that the garrison in the fort could by no
possibility commit aggression upon them
They knew they we're expressly notified
that the giving of bread to the few brave
and hungry men of the garrison was all
which wo'd on that occasion be attempted,
unless themselves. by resisting so much,
should provoke more. They knew kat
the government desired to keep the gar
rison IN the fort, not to assail them, but
to merely maintain visible possession. and
thus 10 preserve the Union from actual
and immediate dissolution, trusting. as
hereinbefore stated, to time, discussion,
and the ballot box. for final adjustment;
and they assailed and reduced the fort fov
precisely the reverse object-to drive out
the visible authority of the Federal Un-
ion. and thus force it to immediate disso.
luton


That this was their object the Execu-
tive well understood; and having said to
them in the inaugural address: "You can
have no conflict without being your
selves the aggressors, he took pains not
only to keep this declaration good, but al
so to keep this case so free from the pow
er Of ingenious sophistry, as that the
world should not be able to misunderstood
it. By the affair at For! Sumter, with
its surrounding circumstances, that point
was reached, and thereby the assailants
of the fort begun the conflict of arms,
without gun in sight or in expectation
to return their FIRE, save on y the few in
the fort, sent to that harbor years before,
for their own protection, and still ready
to give that protection in whatever was
lawful.


In this act, discardng all else, they
have forced upon the country the destruc-
tive issue of immediate dissolution or
blood. and this issue embraces more than
the fate of these United States. II pre-.
sents the whole family of man, the ques.
ton whether Constitutional Republic or
Democracy. government of the people,
by the same people can or cannot main.
tain its Territorial integrity against its
own domestic foes. 1t presents the
question whether discontented individu
ais, too few in numbers to control admin
islration according to organic law. in any
case. and always upon the pretence made
in this case, or on any other pretences, or
arbitrarily without any pretence, can break
up their government, and thus practically
put an end to free government upon the
earth.


1t forces us to ask: "Is there in all
Republics this inherent and fatal weak
ness? Must government Of necessity
be too strong for tho liberties of its own
people. or too weak to maintain its own
existence? So viewing the issue, no
choice was left but TO call out the war
power of the government. and so to resist
force employed for its destruction by force
| for its preservation, The call was made