Year: 1861




The warmth and kindness of their greeting
somewhat surprised and disarned US, "Why,
gentlemen" said we, "for what possible
cause are you and we-talking the same
language, sprung from the same ancestors,
protesting the same faith, glorying in the
same history-this day clutching at one an.
others throats, and striking at one another's
hearts2"


"Why," said one of them, "you have come
down upon us with great army, invading
our soil, threatening our homes with fire aud
our fields with desolation. What could we do
less than meet war with WARP"


"You struck the first blow" we replied.
"We were all living in profound peace few
months ago. That peace it was the wish
ard the interest of the North to perpetuate.
Perhaps we were willing to make even too
large sacrifice to avoid collision. All of a
sudden, without the shadow of provocation
from the North, except the quietly putting
their votes into the ballot. box, and electing
Abraham Lincoln, you severed the Federal
bond, and seized on every ship, fort, mint
and arsenal belonging equally to us both,
within your reach. Even that, so inert and
averse TO hostilities was the North, was pas
sively endured. The world began to think
US poltroons, and we half suspected it our
selves. At that hour there was undoubtedly
a great party at the North-perhaps the
msjority-who were willing to say, Go in
peace, we will wait till you come to better
mind, or do without you. But few scores
of brave men were left in one fort, who still
held fast to their allegiance to the old and
whole republic. They bought their daily
food in your market till you denied them
| the privilege. The Government then
sent an unarmed vessel with supplies to
them. You fred on that uuarmed vessel
and on the national flag that waved over it.
Even yet the North trembled and shrunk
back as it looked down into the fiery abyss OF
civil war. But you went further. You gir'
| died that fortress with batteries. Without
the discharge of gun to provoke an attack,
| you assailed that handful of brave men with
odds of q hundred to one, and poured in shot
and shell upon them till the glorious flag Of
our country went down on mass Of black.
ened ruins. Then the nation awoke. The
fall of Sumter, like the shock of an earth
quake, shook the Republic to its center
Every feeling of reluctance, every partisan
division, vanished like dream. A stern
determination to put the old flag back or
every fort, ship and arsenal whence it haG
been taken down, to reconstruct the ole
Union Just as it was took possession of the
American people with unanimity which
there is nothing like in the history of nations
And rely upon it, gentlemen, the sword tina
was drawn then will never be sheathed til
the old flag is restored to all its houors ant
the old Union counts again its thirty 'thre
States.n


"Well," was the answer, 'you may rest as
sured that you can never conquer the South
You may shut up our ports, you may cut O
our trade, you may compel us to wear plai
clothes, but subdue us-never


The maker of this last remark was Oolone
Boone, a veritable descendant of the explore
of Kentucky-a tall, slender, but 1.-the an
muscular spt cimen OF Southwestern human
ity, having the frank and cordial manner
too, which characterize the Kentuckian
He halls from Mississippi, however, and wf
taken prisoner in the battle OF Bull Run, i
command OF a Mississippi regiment.