The American Annual Cyclopaedia and Register of Important Events of the Year, 1861-1865, vols. 1-5. New York: Appleton & Co., 1868.

Confederate States in 1861, Part 3: South Carolina

SOUTH CAROLINA, one of the original States of the Union, is bounded on the north and northeast by North Carolina, southeast by the Atlantic Ocean, and southwest by Georgia, from which it is separated by the Savannah River. Its area is 30,213 square miles. Population in 1800, 703,812, of whom 301,271 were free, and 402,541 were slaves. The population on which the State would be entitled to send representatives to the Federal Congress is 542,795. The value of real and personal property in the State by the census of 1860 is $548,138,774. The assessed value of the real estate is $129,772,684. The Governor, Lieutenant-Governor, and presidential electors are chosen by the Legislature. The Senate consists of 45 members, chosen by the people for four years, and the House of Representatives, of 124 members, chosen in the same manner for two years. The Constitution of the State was framed in 1790. {See New American Cyclopaedia.)

The Legislature of the State duly assembled on the 4th of November, 1860, and having chosen the presidential electors, adjourned. The political views of South Carolina have always been openly and plainly declared by her public men. In the year 1850 it was proposed to convene a "Southern Congress" for the initiation of measures looking to the defence of the South. The subject was brought up in the Legislature of the State, and the debate shows the spirit which then prevailed in that body.

Mr. W. S. Lyles said he would not recapitulate the series of wrongs inflicted upon South Carolina, and the only question which he would consider was the remedy. The remedy is the union of the South and the formation of a Southern Confederacy. The friends of the Southern movement in the other States look to the action of South Carolina; and ho would make the issue in a reasonable time, and the only way to do so was by secession. There would be no concert among the Southern States until a blow was struck.

Mr. Sullivan proceeded to discuss the sovereignty of the States and the right of secession, and denied the right or the power of the General Government to coerce the State in case of secession. He thought there " never would be a union of the South until this State strikes the blow and makes the issue."

Mr. F. D. Richardson would not recapitulate the evils which had been perpetrated upon the South. Great as they have been, they are comparatively unimportant when compared with the evils to which they would inevitably lead. "We must not consider what we have borne, but what we must bear hereafter. There is no remedy for these evils in the Government; we have no alternative left us, then, but to come out of the Government."

Mr. Preston said he was opposed to calling a convention, because he thought it would impede the action of the State on the questions now before the country. He thought it would impede progress towards disunion. All his objections to a convention of the people applied only to the proposition to call it now. He thought conventions dangerous things, except when the necessities of the country absolutely demand them. He said he had adopted the course he had taken on these weighty matters simply and entirely with the view of hastening the dissolution of this Union.

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Mr. Keitt said he would sustain the bill for electing delegates to a Southern Congress, because he thought " it would bring about a more speedy dissolution of the Union."

Such were the sentiments existing in the State in 1850. But the passage by Congress during that year of the so-called "compromise measures" appeared to be satisfactory to the South, and disunion views ceased to be advocated.

The last election for President was held on the 6th of November, 1860. On that day the vote of the State was given by the Legislature to John C. Breckinridge for President. On the next day the Legislature, being in session, the subject of withdrawal from the United States was taken up, and an act passed calling a State Convention to meet at Columbia on the 17th of December. Other measures were then introduced and adopted, the object of which was to place the State in a suitable position to meet the crisis about to be inaugurated. The Governor, Gist, in his Message at the commencement of the session, had called attention to the subject of a direct trade with Europe, the postal service of South Carolina as an independent State, slaves from Border States, an armory, the expected aid from other States, arming the State, &c. On the right of secession he expressed these views:

"It is true, no provision is made in the Constitution for dissolving the Union, and it is very probable that the patriots who framed the instrument had no idea that a loathsome fanaticism, pandered to by Northern politicians, would ever make it necessary for the safety of the South that they should dissolve the compact on account of its violation by the other section of the Confederacy; but it must be remembered as a rule of universal application, that a violation of a compact or agreement by one party, releases the other party from its binding obligation, and the only question is, who is to judge of the infraction?

"The simple statement of the case is this: Each State entered the Union under the Constitution; the Federal Government is the agent of the States, created for special purposes, and circumscribed in its action by the articles of agreement, or, in other words, the Constitution. 'Whenever the States, having power to control this agent, permit or command him to violate the compact, each State, not having surrendered its sovereignty, has a right to remonstrate or withdraw, as she may think proper, and no earthly power has a right to prevent her."

The military bill was the most important measure adopted at this time. It provided for maintaining an army of ten thousand men. There were in the State three hundred and eighty-two companies of infantry, fifty of cavalry, eighteen of artillery, and sixty-two rifle companies, being fifty-six regiments.

On the 10th of December Francis W. Pickens was chosen Governor of the State by the Legislature. Governor Gist, previous to his retirement, sent a farewell Message to the Legislature, in which he thus spoke of the progress of events:

"We have progressed thus far with firm and even tread, with calmness and deliberation, but with a constancy of purpose not to be shaken by any danger or suffering. A single pause, or the least vacillation, and all will be lost. However anxious we may be for cooperation, however certain we may be of obtaining it, let us first move ourselves as the best means of effecting that object, and, having forever closed the door from which we have passed out of the Union, so that no insidious device of the enemy, or false promises, or pretended friends can avail to open it. Then, and not till then, may we with safety seek cooperation and unity with other States who have assumed their sovereignty, and are prepared to form a more perfect union, and share with us a common destiny. Every sentinel should remain at his post, and not relax a fibre until the great work is completed, the great battle fought, and the glorious victory achieved

"The delay of the convention for a single week to pass the ordinance of secession will have a blighting and chilling influence upon the action of the other Southern States. The opponents of the movement everywhere will be encouraged to make another effort to rally their now disorganized and scattered forces to defeat our action and stay our onward march. Fabius conquered by delay, and there are those of his school, though with a more unworthy purpose, who, shrinking from open and manly attack, use this veil to hide their deformity, and from a masked battery to discharge their missiles. But I trust they will strike the armor of truth, and fall harmless at our feet, and that by the 28th of December no flag but the Palmetto will float over any part of South Carolina."

Governor Pickens was inaugurated immediately after his election. He improved the occasion to declare the cause of the movement on the part of South Carolina to separate from the Union. In his view it was as follows:

"For seventy-three years this State has been connected by a Federal compact with co-States, under a bond of union for great national objects common to all. In recent years there has been a powerful party, organized upon principles of ambition and fanaticism, whose undisguised purpose is to divert the Federal Government from external and turn its power upon the internal interests and domestic institutions of these States. They have thus combined a party exclusively in the Northern States, whose avowed objects not only endanger the peace, but the very existence of nearly one-half of the States of this Confederacy. And in the recent election for President and Vice-President of these States, they have carried the election upon principles that make it no longer safe for us to rely upon the powers of the Federal Government Page 648 or the guarantees of the Federal compact. This is the great overt act of the people in the Northern States at the ballot-box, in the exercise of their sovereign power at the polls, from which there is no higher appeal recognized under our system of Government in its ordinary and habitual operations. They thus propose to inaugurate a Chief Magistrate, at the head of the army and navy, with vast powers, not to preside over the common interests and destinies of all the States alike, but upon issues of malignant hostility and uncompromising war to be w aged upon the rights, the interests, and the peace of half the States of this Union.

"In the Southern States there are two entirely distinct and separate races, and one has been held in subjection to the other by peaceful inheritance from worthy and patriotic ancestors, and all who know the races well know that it is the only form of government that can preserve both, and administer the blessings of civilization with order and in harmony. Any thing tending to change and weaken the government and the subordination between the races, not only endangers the peace, but the very existence of our society itself. We have for years warned the Northern people of the dangers they were producing by their wanton and lawless course. We have often appealed to our sister States of the South to act with us in concert upon some firm and moderate system by which we might be able to save the Federal Constitution, and yet feel safe under the general compact of Union; but we could obtain no fair warning from the North, nor could we see any concerted plan proposed by any of our co-states of the South calculated to make us feel safe and secure.

"Under all those circumstances we now have no alternative left but to interpose our sovereign power as an independent State to protect the rights and ancient privileges of the people of South Carolina. This State was one of the original parties to the Federal compact of union. We agreed to it, as a State, under peculiar circumstances, when wo were surrounded with great external pressure, for purposes of national protection, and to advance the interests and general welfare of all the States equally and alike. And when it ceases to do this, it i9 no longer a perpetual Union. It would be an absurdity to suppose it was a perpetual Union for our ruin."

After a few days the Legislature took a recess until the 17th of December, the day on which the State Convention was to assemble. Preparations for the Convention were commenced immediately after the bill was passed by the Legislature. Candidates for membership were immediately nominated. All were in favor of secession, and the only important distinction to be seen among them consisted in the personal character of individuals. Those who were known to be men of moderate and conservative views were generally successful over individuals of a radical and ultra stamp.

The Convention assembled in the Baptist church at Columbia, the capital of the State, at noon, on the 17th of December. Unlike the conventions of the other States, its sessions were at first held with open doors, and its proceedings published to the country. When the Convention was called to order, David F. Jamison was requested to act as president pro tern. Upon taking the chair, he made a brief address, in which he said:

"If any thing has been decided by the late election, it is that South Carolina must be taken out of this Confederation in as speedy a manner as possible. I trust that no outside pressure, no guarantees from abroad, will drive us from our purpose; for, gentlemen, there are two dangers which we are to avoid—overtures from abroad and disputations from within. I trust that the door now is forever closed from any further connection with our Northern Confederacy. What guarantees can they offer us more binding, more solemn, and with a higher sanction, than the present written compact between us? Has that sacred instrument protected us from the jealousy and aggressions of the Northern people, which commenced forty years ago, and which ended in the Missouri Compromise? Has it protected us from the cupidity and avarice of the Northern people, who for thirty-five years have imposed the burden of sustaining this Government chiefly upon the South? Has it saved us from abolition petitions, intended to annoy and insult us, on the very floors of Congress? Has not that instrument been trodden under their very feet by every Northern State, by placing on their books statutes nullifying the laws for the recovery of fugitive slaves? I trust, gentlemen, wo will put no faith in paper guarantees. They are worthless, unless written in the hearts of the people. As there is no common bond between us, all attempts to continue us united will only prove futile to the least and smaller section of the country. Our greatest danger is from any division within our border. In inaugurating a great event like this, I trust we will go onward, and not bo diverted from our purpose by any dictates from without, but to do what we are sent to do. I can at this time offer you nothing better in inaugurating such a movement than the counsel of him who inaugurated the French Revolution—to dare, and again to dare, and without end to dare."

It was next proposed that a list of the members should be made, and that each one should present his credentials and bo sworn in. To this proposition Mr. Adams replied:

"Mr. President, I do not see how wo can consistently do that, as a clause of the Constitution of South Carolina makes provision that we shall take an oath to support the Constitution of the United States. We come here to break down a Government, and not to take an oath to support it."

The names were called, but an oath was not administered to the delegates. For president

Page 649 of the Convention, on the fourth ballot, David F. Jamison received 118 votes, J. L. Orr 30, and James Chesnut, jr., 3. Mr. Jamison was elected.

A motion was next made that the Convention adjourn, to meet in Charleston on the afternoon of the next day, owing to the prevalence of small-pox in Columbia. This motion was opposed by W. Porcher Miles, who said:

"We would be sneered at. It would be asked on all sides, Is this the chivalry of South Carolina? They are prepared to face the world, but they run away from the small-pox. Sir, if every day my prospects of life were diminished by my being here, and if I felt the certain conviction that I must take this disease, I would do so, and die, if necessary. I am just from Washington, where I have been in constant, close, continual conference with our friends. Their unanimous, urgent request to us is, not to delay at all. The last thing urged on me, by our friends from Georgia, Mississippi, Florida, North Carolina, Alabama, Texas, and Louisiana, and every State that is with us in this great movement, was, take out South Carolina the instant you can. Now, sir, when the news reaches Washington that we met here, that a panic arose about a few cases of small-pox in the city, and that we forthwith scampered off to Charleston, the effect would be a little ludicrous, if I might be excused for that expression."

The motion was adopted, and the Convention assembled on the next day at Charleston.

The following committee was then appointed to draft an ordinance of secession: Messrs. Inglis, Rhett, Sen., Chesnut, Orr, Maxcy Gregg, B. F. Dunkin, and Hutson, and another committee, as follows, to prepare an address to the people of the Southern States, viz.: Messrs. Rhett, Sen., Calhoun, Finley, J. D. Wilson, W. F. Do Saussure, Cheves, and Carn.

The following committees were also appointed, each to consist of thirteen members:

A Committee on Relations with the Slaveholding States of North America; a Committee on Foreign Relations; a Committee on Commercial Relations and Postal Arrangements; and a Committee on the Constitution of the State.

On the same day Mr. Magrath, of Charleston, offered the following resolution:

Resolved, That so much of the Message of the President of the United States as relates to what he designates " the property of the United States in South Carolina," be referred to a committee of thirteen, to report of what such property consists, how acquired, and whether the purpose for which it was so acquired can be enjoyed by the United States after the State of South Carolina shall have seceded, consistently with the dignity and safety of the State. And that said committee further report the value of the property of the United States not in South Carolina; and the value of the share thereof to which South Carolina would bo entitled upon an equitable division thereof among the United States.

Upon offering the resolution, he said:

"As I understand the Message of the President of the United States, he affirms it as right and constituted duty and high obligation to protect the property of the United States within the limits of South Carolina, and to enforce the laws of the Union within the limits of South Carolina. He says he has no constitutional power to coerce South Carolina, while, at the same time, he denies to her the right of secession. It may be, and I apprehend it will be, Mr. President, that the attempt to coerce South Carolina will be made under the pretence of protecting the property of the United States within the limits of South Carolina. I am disposed, therefore, at the very threshold, to test the accuracy of this logic, and test the conclusions of the President of the United States. There never has been a day—no, not one hour—in which the right of property within the limits of South Carolina, whether it belongs to individuals, corporations, political community, or nation, has not been as safe under the Constitution and laws of South Carolina as when that right is claimed by one of our own citizens; and if there be property of the United States within the limits of South Carolina, that property, consistently with the dignity and honor of the State, can, after the secession of South Carolina, receive only that protection which it received before." Mr. Miles, who had just returned from Washington, stated the position of affairs to bo as follows:

"I will confine myself simply to the matter of the forts in the harbor of Charleston, and I will state what I conceive to be the real condition of things. I have not the remotest idea that the President of the United States will send any reinforcement whatsoever into these forts. I desire no concealment—there should be no concealment—but perfect frankness. I will state here that I, with some of my colleagues, in a conversation with the President of the United States, and subsequently in a written communication, to which our names were signed, after speaking of the great excitement about the forts, said thus to him:

Mr. President, it is our solemn conviction that, if you attempt to send a solitary soldier to these forts, the instant (he intelligence reaches our people, (and we shall take care that it does reach them, for we nave sources of information in Washington, so that no orders for troops can be issued without our getting information,) these forts will be forcibly and immediately stormed.

"We all assured him that, if an attempt was made to transport reënforcements, our people would take these forts, and that we would go home and help them to do it; for it would be suicidal folly for us to allow the forts to bo manned. And we further said to him that a bloody result would follow the sending of troops to those forts, and that we did not believe that the authorities of South Carolina would do any thing prior to the meeting of this convention, and that wo hoped and believed that nothing would be done after this body met until we had demanded of the General Government Page 650 the recession of these forts. This was the substance of what we said. Now, sir, it is my most solemn conviction that there is no attempt going to be made to reenforce these forts."

Resolutions were offered and referred, which proposed a provisional government for the Southern States on the basis of the Constitution of the United States; also to send commissioners to "Washington to negotiate for the cession of Federal property within the State, &c.; also, the election of five persons to meet delegates from other States for the purpose of forming a Confederacy, &c.

On the 20th the committee appointed to draft an ordinance of secession made the following report:

The committee appointed to prepare the draught of an Ordinance proper to be adopted by the Convention in order to effect the secession of South Carolina from the Federal Union respectfully report:

That they have had the matter referred to under consideration, and believing that they would best meet the exigencies of the great occasion, and the just expectations of the Convention by presenting in the fewest and simplest words possible to be used, consistent with perspicuity and all that is necessary to effect the end proposed and no more, and so excluding every thing which, however proper in itself for the action of the Convention, is not a necessary part of the great solemn act of secession, and may "at least be effected by a distinct ordinance or resolution, they submit for the consideration of the Convention the following proposed draught:

An Ordinance to dissolve the Union between the State of South Carolina and other States united with her under the compart entitled" The Constitution, of the United States of America"

We, the people of the State of South Carolina, in Convention assembled, do declare and ordain, and it is hereby declared and ordained, that the ordinance adopted by us in Convention on the twenty-third day of May, in the year of our Lord one thousand seven hundred and eighty-eight, whereby the Constitution of the United States was ratified, and also all acts and parts of acts of the General Assembly of the State ratifying amendments of the said Constitution, are hereby repealed, and the Union now subsisting between South Carolina and other States, under the name of "The United States of America," is hereby dissolved.

The ordinance was then taken up and immediately passed by the unanimous vote of the convention.

After the passage of the ordinance of secession, the following ordinance was offered, in order to preserve the order of affairs under the altered political relations of the State:

Be it ordained by the People of South Carolina, by their Delegate) in Convention assembled. That, until otherwise provided by the Legislature, the Governor shall be authorized to appoint collectors and other officers connected with the customs, for the ports within the State of South Carolina, and also all the postmasters within the said State; and that until such appointments shall have been made, the persons now charged with the duties of the said several offices shall continue to discharge the same, keeping an account of what moneys are received and disbursed by them respectively.

The debate which followed on this ordinance showed very distinctly that, however unanimous the convention was relative to the passage of the ordinance to secede, there still existed a great difference of opinion among the member! as to its legal force and effect.

Judge Magrath, of Charleston, said: "I think the special matter of this ordinance should be immediately considered. To my understanding there is no collector of the port nor postmaster now within the limits of South Carolina. What you have done to-day has extinguished the authority of every man in South Carolina deriving his authority from the General Government. I am in favor of this body making such provisional arrangements as may be necessary in the interval which may exist between this moment and the time the Legislature may act. I am not, however, to be implicated as sanctioning the idea that there is no lawful authority within the limits of the State except the General Government." Mr. Gregg: "After South Carolina has abrogated the Constitution of the United States, are the laws still in force? I think not. All the laws of Congress fall instantly to the ground on the passage of the act of secession."

Mr. Cheves: "An immense chasm has been made in law. It is necessary that, to avoid inconvenience to the people, we must make temporary arrangements to carry on the Government."

Mr. Gregg: "There is now no law on the subject of the collection of duties in South Carolina, now that we have accomplished the work of forty years."

Mr. Hayne: "The Congress of the United States is no longer our Government. It will be for our Legislature to say what laws of the United States shall be continued, and what not. The simple act of secession does not abrogate all laws. We have a great many laws on the statute-books which were passed by the Governor and privy council."

Mr. Gregg: "The congressional laws for the collection of the revenue are for the support of the Federal Government at Washington. All the post-office laws fall on our dissolution from that Government."

Mr. Miles: "We have now to deal with stern facts and realities. We must prevent confusion and anarchy in the derangement of our Government affairs. Things must for the present remain in status quo, or confusion will arise."

Mr. Chesnut: "Two questions are involved: power and duty. We must prevent our people not only from inconveniences, hut from a chaotic condition. Wo must revivify such laws as are best adapted to preserve us from calamities. As to our duty, will yon turn the ship of State adrift? What becomes of her officers?"

Mr. Masyck: "There is no duty collector now for the ports. So, too, with the post-office. All are swept off by this act. My opinion is that the present system of postal arrangement is a nuisance. The public would be better served by private parties between the cities like the system in Philadelphia and New York. Have a postage of one cent instead of three Page 651 cents, and to less important places make it ten cents or more."

Mr. Calhoun: "We have pulled the temple down that has been built for three-quarters of a century. We must now clear the rubbish away and reconstruct another. We are now houseless and homeless. We must secure ourselves from storms."

Mr. Dunkin: "If that ordinance of secession be passed, things will still go on in the customhouse and post-office exactly as now until other arrangements are made by this convention. There is nothing in the ordinance to affect the dignity, honor, or welfare of the State of South Carolina. We must keep the wheels of Government going. The Constitution of the United States is not entirely abrogated by the ordinance. What is the legal tender for the payment of debts? Is it not the gold and silver of the United States?"

Mr. Carrel said the present officers of revenue would be continued till an act of the Legislature authorized otherwise.

Mr. Brown: "There is no longer any communication with the Government from which we are just separated."

Mr. Duncan: "The spirit of the ordinance is temporarily suspended till we treat with the General Government."

Mr. Gregg: "The President of the United States has thrown down the gauntlet in his Message. He has said it is his duty to collect the revenue, and that he will do it. On one side the Federal Government claims the right and declares its intention to execute the power of collecting the revenue in our ports. On the other side, we have declared that we are free. I desire no compromise. It is necessary, I maintain, that from fifteen to thirty per cent, of duties imposed by a Congress of the United States should continue to be levied; otherwise our people will suffer terrible calamity. As to the carrying of the mails, let the present contract be assumed by South Carolina instead of the United States." Mr. Rhett: "This great revolution must go on with as little change as possible to the country. By making the Federal agents ours, the machinery will move on. The Federal laws of taxation must not exist over us. We are now contending for the great principle of taxation. I trust the present system of taxation has fallen forever." Mr. Barnwell: "We have seceded from the United States and established our independence. We can't allow the United States to exercise authority over us any more. Let the postal convenience be sacrificed if necessary. There never was any thing purchased worth having, unless at the cost of sacrifice."

Mr. Masyck: "In regard to the mail, all restrictions must be removed. Let us appoint our own officers. Let the collector of the port battle with the difficulties as they come."

The Convention adjourned to meet at Institute Hall, and in the presence of the Governor, and both branches of the State Legislature, to sign the ordinance of secession.

At the close of the ceremonies the president of the Convention announced the secession of the State in these words: "The ordinance of secession has been signed and ratified, and I proclaim the State of South Carolina an independent Commonwealth." The ratified ordinance was then given to the Secretary of State to be preserved among its archives, and the assembly dissolved.

On the 21st the committee to prepare an address to the Southern States made a report, reviewing the injuries to South Carolina arising from her connection with the Federal Union. An ordinance was then adopted which prescribed the following oath, to be taken by all persons elected and appointed to any office.

"I do solemnly swear, (or affirm,) that I will be faithful and true allegiance bear to the Constitution of the State of South Carolina, so long as I may continue a citizen of the same, and that I am duly qualified under the laws of South Carolina, and will discharge the duties thereof to the best of my ability, and will preserve, protect, and defend the Constitution of this State. So help roe God."

In secret session, Messrs. Robert W. Barnwell, J. H. Adams, and James L. Orr were appointed commissioners to proceed to Washington, to treat for the delivery of the forts, magazines, light-houses, &c, within the limits of the State, also the apportionment of the public debts and a division of all other property held by the Government of the United States, as agent of the confederation of States, of which South Carolina was recently a member, and to negotiate all other arrangements proper to be adopted in the existing relations of the parties.

Mr. Memminger, then, from the special committee appointed to draught a "Declaration of the causes which justify the secession of South Carolina from the Federal Union," submitted a paper bearing this title, which was read to the Convention.

This paper commences by briefly referring to a portion of colonial history, the separation of the colonies from Great Britain, their organization into sovereign States, the adoption of the Federal Constitution, its ratification by the different States, including South Carolina, and then proceeds to declare the causes which have impelled South Carolina " to resume her separate and equal place among nations."

These causes are thus stated:

We hold that the Government thus established is subject to the two principles asserted in the Declaration of Independence; and we hold further that the mode of its formation subjects it to a third fundamental principle, namely, the law of compact. We maintain that in every compact between two or more parties the obligation is mutual; that the failure of one of the contracting parties to perform a material part of the agreement entirely releases the other, and that where no arbiter is provided, each party is remitted to his own judgment to determine the fact of failure, with all its consequences. In the present case that fact is established with certainty.

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We assert that fifteen of the States have deliberately refused for years past to fulfil their constitutional obligations, and we refer to their own statutes for the proof. The Constitution of the United States, in its fourth article, provides as follows:

No person held to labor or service in one State, under the laws thereof, escaping into another, shall, in consequence of any law or regulation therein, be discharged from such service or labor, but shall be delivered up on claim of the party to whom such service or labor may be due.

This stipulation was so material to the compact that without it that compact would not have been made. The greater number of the contracting parties held slaves, and the State of Virginia had previously declared her estimate of its value by making it the condition of her cession of the territory which now composes the States north of the Ohio River. The same article of the Constitution stipulates also for rendition by the several States of fugitives from justice from the other States.

The General Government, as the common agent, passed laws to carry into effect these stipulations of the States. For many years these laws were executed. But an increasing hostility on the part of the Northern States to the institution of slavery has led to a disregard of their obligations, and the laws of the General Government have ceased to effect the objects of the Constitution. The States of Maine, New Hampshire, Vermont, Massachusetts, Connecticut, Rhode Island, New York, Pennsylvania, Illinois, Indiana,* Ohio, Michigan, Wisconsin, and Iowa have enacted laws which either nullify the acts of Congress, or render useless any attempt to execute them. In many of these States the fugitive is discharged from the service or labor claimed, and in none of them has the State government complied with the stipulation made in the Constitution. The State of New Jersey, at an early day, passed a law for the rendition of fugitive slaves in conformity with her constitutional undertaking, but the current of anti-slavery feeling has led her more recently to enact laws which render inoperative the remedies provided by her own law and by the laws of Congress. In the State of New York even the right of transit for a slave has been denied by her tribunals; and the States of Ohio and Iowa have refused to surrender to justice fugitives charged with murder and with inciting servile insurrection in the State of Virginia. Thus the constitutional compact has been deliberately broken and disregarded by the non-slaveholding states, and the consequence follows that South Carolina is released from its obligation.

The ends for which the Constitution was framed are declared by itself to be 11 to form a more perfect union, establish justice, insure domestic tranquillity, provide for the common defence, promote the common welfare, and secure the blessings of liberty to ourselves and our posterity." These ends it endeavored to accomplish by a Federal Government, in which each State was recognized as an equal, and had separate control over its own institutions. The right of property in slaves was recognized by giving to free persons distinct political rights; by giving them the right to represent, and burdening them with direct taxes for three-fifths of their slaves; by authorizing the importation of slaves for twenty years, and by stipulating for the rendition of fugitives from labor. We affirm that these ends for which this Government was instituted have been defeated, and the Government itself has been made destructive of them by the action of the non-slaveholding States. Those States have assumed the right of deciding upon the propriety of our domestic institutions; and have denied the rights of property established in fifteen of the States and recognized by the Constitution; they have denounced as sinful the institution of slavery; they have permitted the open establishment among them of societies whose avowed object is to disturb the peace and to cloin the property

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* Neither Indiana nor Illinois have passed a personal liberty law.

of the citizens of other States. They have encouraged and assisted thousands of our slaves to leave their homes; and those who remain have been incited by emissaries, books, and pictures to servile insurrection.

For twenty-five years this agitation has been steadily increasing, until it has now secured to its aid the power of a common Government. Observing the forms of the Constitution, a sectional party has found within that article establishing the Executive Department the means of subverting the Constitution itself. A geographical line has been drawn across the Union, and all the States north of that line have united in the election of a man to the high office of President of the United States whose opinions and purposes are hostile to slavery. He is to be entrusted with the administration of the common Government, because he has declared that that "Government cannot endure permanently half slave, half free," and that the public mind must rest in the belief that slavery is in the course of ultimate extinction. This sectional combination for the subversion of the Constitution has been aided in some of the States by elevating to citizenship persons who, by the supreme law of the land, are incapable of becoming citizens; and their votes have been used to inaugurate a new policy, hostile to the South, and destructive of its peace and safety.

The declaration concludes as follows:

We, therefore, the people of South Carolina, by our delegates in Convention assembled, appealing to the Supreme Judge of the world for the rectitude of our intentions, have solemnly declared that the Union heretofore existing between this State and the other States of North America is dissolved, and that the State of South Carolina has resumed her position among the nations of the world as a free, sovereign, and independent State, with full powers to levy war, conclude peace, contract alliances, establish commerce, and to do all other acts and things which independent States may of right do. And for the support of this Declaration, with a firm reliance on the protection of Divine Providence, we mutually pledge to each other our lives, our fortunes, and our sacred honors.

Such is the sum of the grievances which were published to the world us sufficient to justify the destruction of the Union. No State had any additional ones to allege in its own special case. The apprehensions declared to exist in the minds of the Southern people looked forward to such a radical change in their social condition as would involve the extinction of the white inhabitants of the State. On the well founded nature and justness of these apprehensions they professed to act. Admitting that they were truthful and certain to become realities, there is not a patriot in the world, who, if placed in such a position, would hesitate to rush to arms and contend to the last moment of existence. No outside or incidental circumstances would bo needed to arouse to war a people thus placed. "Was such the position of the Southern States? Was there that danger of impending ruin which their apprehensions portrayed? Facts and their own declarations deny it. The act of Congress to amend the Constitution denies any right of interference in the domestic institutions of a State. One of the citizens of South Carolina thus described the manner in which secession was effected, thereby showing that whatever apprehensions for the future existed among the people, they were in a very torpid state:

"I know of no instance in the history of the Page 653 world in which a people have deliberately resolved upon an act of political dissolution. Even our fathers did not, and blood had been shed from Massachusetts to Georgia before there was the political intrepidity to assert their independence. And so it ever has been, that in States, as in men, the conservatisms of life have been stronger than the motives to destroy it. The stimulant of physical collision has been necessary to political movement, and blood has been ever required to the baptism of a regenerated nation. But in South Carolina we thought there was the chance of political action. For years we have been without the distractions of party issues; for years our attentions have been fixed upon the aggressions of the General Government. Our readiness to detect the danger was greater, perhaps, than that of the other States, and if any State could ever hope to act upon a political issue we could hope to act upon the issues presented by the election of Mr. Lincoln; hut there were also fortuitous circumstances that concurred to aid ns. It was a fortuitous circumstance that the Federal officers within our State were too spirited to hold commissions upon the implication of a willingness to perform the service aggression might exact, and upon the incident of that election were ready to renounce them. It was a fortuitous circumstance that our Legislature was in session, and was ready to respond to the feeling of our people. It was a fortuitous circumstance that no other event had occurred to preoccupy the public mind; and so it was that, as the feelings of our people became aroused, that as amid these circumstances there gleamed the hope of political action, we sprang to the occasion. We pressed the measure onward. We did all we could to inspire the popular heart to the great achievement, and we yet believe that in so acting only was there a possibility of success. If, instead of acting for ourselves, we had named some future time for the cooperation of the other States, we believe the measure would have failed. We believe that other Southern States themselves would have looked upon it as a backing-down, and would have lost the courage necessary to concurrence; and I myself believe that if the State of South Carolina had stated some distant day for future action, to see if other States would join us, and had thus allowed the public feeling to subside, she herself would have lost the spirit of adventure, and would have quailed from the shock of this great controversy ; but we did not do so. We pressed sternly onward, trusting that other States, with a generous confidence befitting the occasion, would properly conceive our motives."

A debate ensued in the Convention upon this declaration of grievances, which manifested quite a diversity of sentiment on the causes of secession. (See Confederate States, page 122.)

On the 24th the address was adopted, after a motion to lay it on the table had failed by a vote of ayes 30, nays 124. On this day Governor Pickens issued the following proclamation:

Whereas, The good People of this State, in Convention assembled, by an ordinance, unanimously adopted and ratified on the twentieth day of December, in the year of our Lord one thousand eight hundred and sixty, repealed an ordinance of the people of this State adopted on the twenty-third day of May, in the year of our Lord one thousand seven hundred and eighty-eight, and have thereby dissolved the Union between the State of South Carolina and other States under the name of the United States of America:

I, therefore, as Governor and Commander-in-Chief in and over the State of South Carolina, by virtue of authority in me vested, do hereby proclaim to the world, that this State is, as she has a right to be, a separate, sovereign, free, and independent State, and, as such has a right to levy war, conclude peace, negotiate treaties, leagues, or covenants, and to do all acts, whatsoever, that rightfully appertain to a free and independent State.

Given under my hand and the seal of the State, at Charleston, this twenty-fourth day of December, in the year of our Lord one thousand eight hundred and sixty, and in the eighty-fifth year of the sovereignty and independence of South Carolina.

F. W. PICKENS.

On the 25th the committee on the relations with the slaveholding States of North America made a report, and concluded by recommending the adoption of the following resolutions:

Resolved, First, that this Convention do appoint a Commissioner to proceed to each of the slaveholding States that may assemble in Convention, for the purpose of laying our ordinance of secession before the same, and respectfully invite their cooperation in the formation with us of a Southern Confederacy.

Second, That our Commissioners aforesaid be further authorized to submit, on our part, the Federal Constitution as the basis of a Provisional Government for such States as shall have withdrawn their connection with the Government of the United States of North America.

Third. That the said Commissioners be authorized to invite the seceding States to meet in Convention at such time and place as may be agreed upon, for the purpose of forming a permanent Government for such States.

On the next day the Convention adopted an ordinance, making provisional arrangements for the continuance of commercial facilities in South Carolina. Custom-house officers were retained in office under the State authority; the Governor was authorized to fill all vacancies; the revenue collection and navigation laws of the United States were adopted until otherwise ordered ; public documents, registers of vessels, &c, to be styled in the name of the State of South Carolina; and all duties collected to be paid into the State Treasury.

On the 27th an ordinance was adopted, authorizing the Governor to receive ambassadors, ministers, consuls, &c, and to appoint similar officers, &c.

The committee on the State Constitution on the 29th prepared an ordinance, transferring to the Legislature the powers lately vested in Congress, except during the existence of the Convention, when it shall not extend, without the Convention's direction, to duties on imports, post-offices, declaration of war, treaties, confederation, &c. The judicial powers of the United States courts are vested in the State courts. The General Assembly may direct that the court sitting in Charleston may have original Page 654 jurisdiction in admiralty cases, with the right of appeal when exceeding in Interest $2,000. In cases affecting the public ministers, the provisions are nearly the same as exist in the Federal courts. The act of Congress of March 3d, 1825, for the more effectual punishment of certain crimes, has been substituted by making all offences subject to the jurisdiction of the State courts.

The remaining sessions of the Convention were chiefly held in secret. Military measures were adopted.

An ordinance was passed, vesting all power necessary to make postal arrangements in the Legislature. Military officers in command of a volunteer or regular force raised under the orders of the Convention were allowed to hold seats in the Legislature.

Five thousand copies of the correspondence between the commissioners and the President of the United States were ordered to be printed.

The table, chair, and other appurtenances used on the night of signing the ordinance of secession, were ordered to be placed in the State House at Columbia, and the Convention adjourned on the 5th of January.

The forts in the harbor of Charleston early became an object of attention. If they were reenforced by the United States, it would require a bloody struggle on the part of South Carolina to obtain possession of them. On the other hand, an immediate seizure, before even a secession, would be an outrage which would occasion intense excitement against the State. After the passage of the ordinance of secession, when she declared herself an independent nation, her honor required that she should demand the surrender of the forts; and if this demand was not complied with, she could then proceed to capture them. An assurance was given to President Buchanan by the representatives in Congress from the State that the forts would not be attacked, and at his request it was made in writing, as follows:

To His Excellency James Buchanan,

                   President of the Untied Slates.

In compliance with our statement to you yesterday, we now express to you our strong convictions that neither the constituted authorities, nor any body of the people of the State of South Carolina, will cither attack or molest the United States forts in the harbor of Charleston, previously to the action of the Convention, and we hope and believe not until an offer has been made through an accredited representative, to negotiate for an amicable arrangement of all matters between the State and Federal Government, provided that no reinforcements shall be sent into those forts, and their relative military status shall remain as at present.

JOHN McQUEEN,

WM. PORCHER MILES,

M. L. BONHAM,

W. W. BOYCE,

LAWRENCE M. KEITT.

Washington, December 9, 1860.

Still later, in the month of December, and after the passage of the ordinance of secession, the Governor, on being serenaded, on December 21st, in the evening, expressed the following opinion as to war:

"That Convention is now assembled, and, under existing circumstances, it would be obviously improper in me to make any lengthy or protracted remarks. But, fellow-citizens, allow me to say to you that I hope and trust I am in possession of information that perhaps there may be no appeal to force on the part of the Federal authorities. But if I am mistaken in this, at least so far as I am concerned, we are prepared to meet any and every issue. I hope and trust that, under existing circumstances, there will be no imprudence; no rash appeals to counsels caught under the impulse of false rumors; that we will prove to the world that we are not only free and independent, hut that we are entitled to be so by our virtues and our character. The Convention, in all human probability, will, in a few days, send the ordinance to Washington which proclaims you to be, as you have a right to be, a free and independent republic. And, until they present the claims of South Carolina to your forts and your public places now in possession of the Federal Government, it is our duty to sustain that Convention by showing that we are ready to await a free and fair demand. But if, in the meantime, there is any attempt to increase the forces that now garrison them, so far as I am concerned, it shall not bo done without an appeal to arms. I sincerely desire that we shall triumphantly go through this great controversy without this appeal to arms. But, if it be necessary to vindicate the independence of my country, I vow to you here that all the power that I have shall be exerted to maintain to the last extremity the independence of South Carolina. Allow me to say that there is nothing at present in the present issue to excite the slightest alarm. Be firm, be united, be true to your country, and your country is safe. I desire to say nothing that is imprudent or rash. I desire coolness and calmness. I desire that every man shall be ready, standing at his post; ready to do his duty when the word is given to march. I tell you, as far as I am able, when necessary that word shall be given to march forward to honor and independence—now and forever."

The commissioners sent to Washington had a brief correspondence with President Buchanan on the 29th of December, but accomplished nothing. (See United States.)

Active movements immediately commenced for resisting any attempt on the part of the United States to exercise Federal powers within the limits of the State. Rumors that vessels of war had started for Charleston harbor, and that the commissioners to Washington were on their way home, created great excitement in the State, and all thoughts of peaceable secession were abandoned. A collector for the port of Charleston was nominated to the Senate by President Buchanan, but that body failed to confirm the nomination.

Meantime, Governor Pickens organized his Cabinet, as follows: Secretary of State, A. G. Magrath; Secretary of War, D. F. Jamison; Page 655 Secretary of the Treasury, C. G. Memminger; Postmaster-General, W. H. Harlee; Secretary of the Interior, A. C. Gurlington.

On the 31st of December, the State troops, which had been for some time acting as a guard to the arsenal, under orders from the Governor, took full possession, and relieved the United States officer who had been in charge. At half-past one o'clock on Sunday, the Federal flag was lowered after a salute of thirty-two guns. The State troops were drawn up in order and presented arms. The Palmetto flag was then run up, with a salute of one gun for South Carolina.

The arsenal contained at the time a large amount of arms and other stores. Meanwhile military preparations were actively pushed forward, and several volunteer companies from other Southern States tendered their services. Notice was given by the collector at Charleston that the masters of all vessels from ports outside of South Carolina must enter and clear at Charleston. Bank bills were also made receivable for duties.

The Legislature had continued its session, but no business of importance was transacted until after the adjournment of the State Convention. Under the military law, which had been passed, a call was made for volunteers by the Governor about the time that Fort Sumter was occupied by Major Anderson. This act required the Governor to receive one volunteer company from each battalion in the State, and two rifle companies from each infantry brigade, each company to consist, besides the commissioned and non-commissioned officers, of not less than sixty nor more than eighty-five men.

If volunteers in sufficient numbers did not present themselves, the order then required  that a sufficient number be drafted into the service of the State—thus compelling them to perform military duty. The term of their service was not stated.

A loan of $400,000 was also authorized, which was taken by the banks of the State, which were also authorized to suspend specie payments.

About this time the United States Assistant Treasurer was ordered not to pay any further drafts of Major Anderson, then in command at Fort Sumter. (See Sumter.) The money at this time in the hands of the Treasurer was $150,000.

The flag of the State, adopted by the Legislature, to whom the subject had been referred by the State Convention, consisted of a plain white ground with a green Palmetto tree in the centre, and a white crescent in the left upper corner on a square blue field.

On the 14th of January the Legislature unanimously passed a resolution declaring that any attempt by the Federal Government to reenforce Fort Sumter would be considered as an act of open hostility, and as a declaration of war. At the same time they adopted another resolution, approving the act of the troops who fired on the Star of the West, (see Star of the West,) and also resolved to sustain the Governor in all measures necessary for defence.

The Governor proposed, for the defence of the coast, the purchase of three steam propellers of light draught, each to bo manned by thirty-two seamen. One of the steamers should be stationed in Charleston harbor, one at Beaufort, and one at Georgetown. He also recommended that all inlets and mouths of rivers should be fortified with redoubts and ordnance, and that boats should keep up a constant communication between the several points as a protection against sudden invasion by lawless bands.

On the 16th an act passed the House, to stay the collection of all debts due by South Carolina to persons in the non-slaveholding States, until after December ensuing.

An act of treason to the State was detected at this time, and the criminal was arrested and confined for trial. The collector of the port at Georgetown, J. N. Merriman, was the person.

A letter was found, written by him, and addressed to President Buchanan, stating that he had just cleared vessels in the name of the United States, and that he would continue to do so. The letter urged upon the President to send a boat and men to collect the Federal revenue, and informed him of the progress made in the construction of the works near Georgetown, and promised to keep him informed from time to time in relation to the same. When arrested, he acknowledged himself the author of the letter.

The reply of South Carolina to the pence propositions of Virginia is to be found in these resolutions, adopted by her General Assembly of the Legislature.

 Resolved unanimously, That the General Assembly of South Carolina tenders to the Legislature of Virginia their acknowledgments of the friendly motives which inspired the mission intrusted to Hon. Judge Robertson, her commissioner.

Resolved unanimously, That candor, which is due to the long-continued sympathy and respect which has subsisted between Virginia and South Carolina, induces the Assembly to declare with frankness that they do not deem it advisable to initiate negotiations when they have no desire or intention to promote the ultimate object in view—that object which is declared in the resolution of the Virginia Legislature to be the procurement of amendments or new guarantees to the Constitution of the United States.

Resolved unanimously, That the separation of South Carolina from the Federal Union is final, and she has no further interest in the Constitution of the United States: and that the only appropriate negotiations between tier and the Federal Government are as to their mutual relations as foreign States.

The following resolution was also adopted about the some time by the Assembly:

Resolved unanimously, That this Assembly further owes it to her friendly relations with the State of Virginia to declare that they have no confidence in the Federal Government of the United States; that the most solemn pledges of that Government have been disregarded; that under pretence of preserving property hostile troops have been attempted to be introduced into one of the fortresses of this State, concealed Page 656 in the hold of a vessel of commerce, with a view to subjugate the people of South Carolina, and that even since the authorities at Washington have been informed of the present mediation of Virginia, a vessel of war has been sent to the South, and troops and munitions of war concentrated ou the soil of Virginia.

Dudley Mann was at this time sent out as commissioner on the part of South Carolina to arrange some system with foreign Governments respecting their varied interests, and more particularly in regard to opening commercial facilities and direct trade. On the secession of Florida, four thousand stand of arms were sent to the authorities of that State from the arsenal at Charleston. The Governor was also authorized to send volunteers to that State if they should be needed.

The forts in Charleston harbor, occupied by a small garrison of regular troops of the United States, afforded a standing denial of the sovereignty and independence of South Carolina. The first object to be accomplished by the State authorities to secure that respect duo to an independent nation, was to obtain possession of these forts. For this object the following correspondence took place:

State of South Carolina,

Executive Office, Charleston,

January 11, 1861.

To Major Robert Anderson, commanding Fort Sumter.

Sib: I have thought proper, under all the circumstances of the peculiar state of public affairs in the country at present, to appoint the Hon. A. G. Magrath and General D. F. Jamison, Doth members of the Executive Council, and of the highest position in the State, to present to you considerations of the gravest public character, and of the deepest interest to all who deprecate the improper waste of life, to induce the delivery of Fort Sumter to the constituted authorities of the State of South Carolina, with a pledge, on its part, to account for such public property as is under your charge. Your obedient servant,

F. W. PICKENS.

_______

MAJOR ANDERSON TO GOVERNOR PICKENS.

Head-quarters Fort Sumter, S. C.

January 11, 1861. 

His Exc'y F. W. Pickens, Governor of S. Carolina.

Sir: I have the honor to acknowledge the receipt of your demand for the surrender of this fort to the authorities of South Carolina, and to say, in reply that the demand is one with which I cannot comply.

Your Excellency knows that I have recently sent a messenger to Washington, and that it will be impossible for me to receive an answer to my despatches, forwarded by him, at an earlier date than next Monday. What the character of my instructions may be I cannot foresee. Should your Excellency deem fit, prior to a resort to arms, to refer this matter to Washington, it would afford me the sincerest pleasure to depute one of my officers to accompany any messenger you may deem proper to be the bearer of your demand.

Hoping to God that in this, and all other matters, in which the honor, welfare, and lives of our fellow countrymen are concerned, we shall so act as to meet His approval, and deeply regretting that you have made a demand of me with which I cannot comply, I have the honor to be, with the highest regard, your obedient servant,

                      ROBERT ANDERSON,

                     Major U. S. Army, commanding.

This reply of Major Anderson referred the question to the President of the United States, to whom, therefore, Governor Pickens then addressed the following letter:

State of South Carolina,

Executive Office, Head-quarters, 

Charleston, Jan'y 11,1861.

Sir: At the time of the separation of the State of South Carolina from the United States, Fort Sumter was, and still is, in the possession of the troops of the United States, under command of Major Anderson. I regard that possession as not consistent with the dignity or safety of the State of South Carolina; and I have this day addressed to Major Anderson a communication to obtain from him the possession of that fort by the authorities of this State. The reply of Major Anderson informs me that he has no authority to do what I required; but he desires a reference of the demand to the President of the United States.

Under the circumstances now existing, and which need no comment by me, I have determined to send to you the Hon. I. W. Hayne, the Attorney-General of the State of South Carolina, and have instructed him to demand the delivery of Fort Sumter, in the harbor of Charleston, to the constituted authorities of the State of South Carolina.

The demand I have made of Major Anderson, and which I now make of you, is suggested because of my earnest desire to avoid the bloodshed which a persistence in your attempt to retain possession of that fort will cause, and which will be unavailing to secure you that possession, but induce a calamity most deeply to be deplored. If consequences so unhappy shall ensue, I will secure for this State, in the demand which I now make, the satisfaction of having exhausted every attempt to avoid it.

In relation to the public property of the United States within Fort Sumter the Hon. I. W. Hayne, who will hand you this communication, is authorized to give you the pledge of the State that the valuation of Buch property will be accounted for by this State, upon the adjustment of its relations with the United States, of which it was a part.

F. W. PICKENS.

To the President of the United States.

For the result of this attempt to obtain possession of the fort, see Sumter; for the reply of the President, and his views upon the questions incidentally raised, see United States.

To furnish resources for the State, an act was passed by the Legislature appropriating $850,000 to meet demands upon the State; also $980,000 for military and other exigencies, and $50,000 for postal service. The amount not provided for by direct taxation was to be supplied by Treasury notes and bills receivable, in sums of $50, $100, and $500.

Preparations were now made to organize a volunteer force of 10,000 men, and the Governor appointed Milledge L. Bonham, of Edgefield, major-general; P. II. Nelson, of Sumter, brigadier-general; Major T. G. Rhett, late of the United States army, Samuel McGowan, of Abbeville, and A. G. Garlington, of Newbery, brigadier-generals.

All commerce had now ceased, and a general stagnation of commercial affairs ensued. A degree of popular excitement was maintained by the condition in which Fort Sumter was held, and by the preparations on foot for its ultimate capture. The Provisional Constitution of the Confederate States was adopted by the state Convention, which reassembled on the 26th of March. The vote on its adoption was 140 ayes and 29 noes. Thus South Carolina Page 657 relinquished her boasted sovereignty after a duration of little more than three months, and relapsed into the condition of a submissive member of an anti-free-trade and anti-slave-trade Confederacy. Fort Sumter was captured by orders from the Confederate Government, on which occasion the Governor addressed the people and thus reviewed the events that had taken place: "We have had a great many delicate and peculiar relations since the 20th of December last. Wo took the lead in coming out of this old Union, and in forming this new Confederacy. We, therefore, had certain relations to those who were to come out and stand by our side. We owed a great deal to those who were expected to come with us. We were bound to consult their feelings and their interests, and it was due that we should be forbearing as well as free. We are now one of the Confederate States, and they have sent us a brave and scientific officer, to whom the credit of this day's triumph is due. We have humbled the flag of the United States, and as long as I have the honor to preside as your chief magistrate, so help me God, there is no power on this earth shall ever lower from that fortress those flags, unless they be lowered and trailed in a sea of blood. I can here say to you it is the first time in the history of this country that the Stars and Stripes have been humbled. It has triumphed for seventy years, but to-day, on the 13th day of April, it has been "humbled, and humbled before the glorious little State of South Carolina. The Stars and Stripes have been lowered before your eyes this day, but there are no flames that shall ever lower the flag of South Carolina while I have the honor to preside as your chief magistrate."

This closed military operations in the State until near the end of the year, when the military and naval expedition under General Sherman and Com. Dupont arrived at Port Royal. {See Expedition.)

The volunteers of the State were sent away under the orders of the Confederate Government to defend the soil of Virginia from invasion by Northern troops. The number of these volunteers was about 19,000. The Representatives of the State in the Confederate Congress were R. Barnwell Rhett, and J. L. Orr, Senators; and W. W. Boyce, W. P. Miles, M. L. Bonham, John McQueen, L. M. Ager, and James Farran, Representatives. (See Charleston, also Sumter.)

ST. HELENA PARISH, S. C. This district, which has been the field of such important movements during the war, is situated on the coast of South Carolina, between 32° 05' and 32° 20' N. latitude. St. Helena Parish proper lies between the Combahee and Savannah rivers, and extends on the latter to the line of 32° 55', about 80 miles by the course of the river from its mouth; but the tract now included, under the name of Port Royal district, extends on the coast from a point above the Edisto River, and about 20 miles below Charleston, to St. Augustine, Florida, with a varying breadth of from five to twenty miles inland. This is the region in which the great bulk of the Sea Island cotton is produced. Along the whole distance the coast is lined with a series of islands forming the deltas of the Edisto, Ashepo, Combahee, Broad, Coosawhatchie, Savannah, Ogeechee, Camanchee, Altamaha, and Santilla rivers, and their interlocking branches. In most instances these rivers, at their several points of debouchure, have sand bars partially closing the entrance, and admitting only vessels of light draft, and these by tortuous channels, to the deeper waters inside. Only two entrances of considerable depth occur on this part of the South Carolina coast, viz.: St. Helena and Port Royal sounds, or entrances. Of these the latter is by far the best, and is, indeed, one of the finest harbors on the Atlantic coast of the Southern States. The Broad River here forms an estuary varying in width from 2} to 5 miles, and, interlacing with the Combahee and Port Royal rivers, encloses within navigable channels more than twenty islands of considerable size, of which the principal are Hilton's Head, St. Helena, Phillips, Hunting, Port Royal, Pinckney, and Parry islands. At the entrance of Port Royal harbor there is, at flood tide, sufficient depth of water for vessels drawing 23 feet to pass, and, once inside, the sheltered bay is sufficiently capacious for a navy to ride in safety. The larger of the forts captured by Com. Dupont on the 7th of November, was called Fort Walker, and was situated on Hilton Head Island, on the south side of the entrance, while the other, Fort Beauregard, was on Phillips Island, on the north side of the entrance, 2 ½  miles distant, and a small earthwork was about a half mile distant on the same island, commanding the approach from the northeast. (See Expeditions.)

The importance of Port Royal entrance as a harbor has long been known. In 1562 a body of French Protestants, under the direction of Admiral Coligni, and commanded by John Rebault, of Dieppe, explored the harbor, erected a fort on the site of Beaufort, and commenced a settlement. It did not prosper, however, and after two or three years was entirely abandoned. Nearly a century later the first British settlement was made here by Lord Cardross, a Scotch nobleman. They settled on Port Royal Island, but their numbers did not rapidly increase. In 1670 William Sayle was sent out as governor of this settlement. In 1700 the present town of Beaufort was founded. Notwithstanding the excellence of its harbor, the fertility of its soil, and the comparative salubrity of the climate, great efforts had been made to turn commerce aside, from Port Royal and to concentrate it at the much poorer harbor of Charleston. Port Royal and St. Helena islands became the favorite summer residences of wealthy merchants and planters, whose winters were spent in Charleston, and the luxurious dwellings of Beaufort and its vicinity were  abundantly supplied with all the appliances of Page 660 art and taste. Beaufort, or St. Helena district or parish, for it is called by each of these names, contained, in 1860, a population of 40,052 inhabitants, of whom 32,531 were slaves.

By way of Scull Creek, which divides Pinckney Island from' Hilton Head, Savannah is only 22 miles distant; while, by way of Beaufort River, which separates Parry Island from St. Helena, there is an interior route of 49 miles to Charleston; while, at a distance of about 20 miles inland, lies the Charleston and Savannah Railroad. On the capture of the islands the white population, being mostly sympathizers with secession, retreated inland, and have not since returned in any considerable numbers. "About 10,000, or nearly one-third of the slaves, have come into the Federal lines, and are now mostly employed either in the cultivation of the soil or in the labor requisite about the ships and forts.

CHARLESTON, the largest city in the State of South Carolina, is situated on a point of land between the Ashley and Cooper rivers, which unite immediately below the town and form a spacious harbor, communicating with the ocean at Sullivan's Island, seven miles below. The population of the city in 1861 was 40,554.

The harbor has six entrances, which, beginning with the one farthest north, are in order: Maffit's, or the Sullivan's Island channel, with eleven feet; the North channel, with eight feet; the Swash, with nine feet; the Overall channel, which is not used; the main ship channel, with eleven feet; and Lawford's channel, which gives eleven feet at mean low water. The entrance by the North channel is extremely precarious to vessels drawing seven feet of water, and impassable at low tides to any other. Swash channel varies in depth from seven to ten feet. Maffit's channel is narrow at the bulkhead near Fort Moultrie jettee.

The first open and public movement in favor of the dissolution of the Union was made in Charleston. The step had been long contemplated, and the time had been fixed lor its commencement. Nevertheless affairs apparently remained peaceful and quiet, although ripening for a desperate future. The military aspect of the United States was unchanged. A few soldiers, as usual, were at Fort Moultrie, and no repairs were known to be in progress upon that or either of the other forts, more than might be made at any ordinary period. The public property of the United States, however, was early seized by the authorities, acting under the State Convention, which resolved to secede from the Union on the 20th of December.

So long as Major Anderson apparently remained thus quiet at Fort Moultrie, his presence with a small military force was, at the utmost, only a slight annoyance "o the citizens. But when it was discovered that he was at work to place that old fort in a more effective state for defence, the public attention was at once attracted. An impetus was given to the work on these repairs at first by speeches which were made by some of the members in the South Carolina Convention. Fears were thereby aroused that the time would shortly come, which would call into exercise the use of force in protecting the public property. Public fooling was gradually becoming more excited, and had assumed a threatening aspect at the time the troops were removed to Fort Sumter. By this act Charleston was thrown into a state of the wildest excitement. A spectator thus describes it:

Page 100

"It was at first currently reported and believed that Fort Moultrie had been laid in ruins; that the guns were spiked, and the carriages, together with the barracks, burned, and that the post had been entirely abandoned. The reports spread like wild fire, and soon gained currency in every part of the city. Instinctively, men flew to arms. Orders were immediately issued to the military companies to hold themselves in readiness for service; and all of them, thus ordered out, promptly obeyed the summons.

"About noon the excitement in the streets had attained the highest pitch. The State Convention was known to be in secret conclave, and it was believed that this was the subject matter of their deliberations. The streets swarmed with people. Additional flags were displayed from the stores and houses on the principal streets. The custom-house and other buildings, formerly in the possession of the United States Government, displayed the bunting of the infant Republic of South Carolina. Every one looked upon the 'war as actually begun.'

"Later in the day, however, the excitement was somewhat abated, when it became known that the movement on the part of the forces of the United States at Fort Moultrie was not at the instance of the Administration at Washington, but was merely a precautionary measure taken by Major Anderson, under the conviction that his position within the fort on Sullivan's Island would not be tenable if attacked by well-organized and disciplined troops. The contradiction of the first report in relation to the damage done the fort by the troops that had evacuated it, also had a tendency to allay the excitement of the occasion."

Castle Pinckney, a small fort near the city, was immediately occupied by the troops of the State. Those troops also took full possession of the United States Arsenal, over which, for some weeks previous, they bad acted as a guard. The United States officer hitherto in command was relieved by them. It contained, at the time, seventy thousand stand of arms and other military stores, which were estimated in value at half a million of dollars. About the same time Captain N. L. Coste, who had been appointed to the revenue service in 1845, abandoned the cutter Wm, Aiken and discharged his crew. Captain, crew, and vessel afterwards passed into the service of South Carolina. At this time, also, the mob set at liberty the captain of a slave ship recently brought into Charleston in charge of a prize crow. The delivery of cement, stone, and other supplies for the United States officers was prevented. Military preparations were  actively commenced, and companies of volunteers from other Southern States were tendered. At the custom-house, notice was given to the masters of all vessels from ports outside of South Carolina that they must enter and clear at Charleston. Precautions were likewise taken in and around the harbor to prevent any reinforcement to Fort Sumter. In consequence of these proceedings, trade was almost entirely stopped, and money became scare enough to alarm the most sanguine. Anxiety was depicted in the faces of those whose interests were most seriously involved, and the brisk air of many of the inhabitants was gone.

Such measures were adopted to prevent all vessels of an offensive character entering the harbor of Charleston, that even those belonging to that city could not get out without aid. All the buoys were  removed, and some, if not all, of the beacons taken down. All lights were extinguished at night except that at Fort Sumter, which, for the purposes of navigation, might as well have been a hundred miles off, and the light-ship was withdrawn. From Cumming's Point to the lighthouse, a distance of several miles, sandbank batteries were erected and well manned, and vessels laden with paving stones and other heavy substances were placed at important points to sink, so that any vessels of an opposing character that might be disposed to prowl in would be stopped. Pilots were firmly charged not to pilot vessels of war into the harbor, but no restrictions were placed upon vessels of commerce and trade. When the steamship Columbia was ready for sea, although she belonged to the city of Charleston, so completely had all marks of the channel been obliterated that it cost the sum of one hundred and fifty dollars to get her clear of the harbor. It was estimated that the value of the vessel and cargo, which consisted of cotton, rice, domestic produce, &c, was not less than $450,000, and yet this large amount was "locked up " for some time rather than allow chances for the vessels of the enemy to make their way to the fort or the city. The new manifests and clearances were but slightly altered from the original ones, the only difference being that the words " United States of America" were struck out, and the words " Sovereign State of South Carolina " substituted.

The movements in Charleston and in the State had been of such a character that commercial men now began to feel their influence. Indications were manifest of a strong expression of dissatisfaction from that portion of the people. The trade of Charleston, and, in reality, that of the whole State, had ceased to exist. The port of Charleston was, for the time, blotted from the charts, its lighthouse dark, its beacons destroyed, the channel to its harbor a pathless maze.

Meantime, the work of fortifying the harbor was carried steadily forward by the South Carolina authorities. Steamers watched Fort Sumter constantly, and mortars were planted on Cumming's Point, the nearest land to the fort.

At Morris Island three large Columbiads were mounted and intrenched in sand-bags, with a forty-two-pounder and a formidable mortar.

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The batteries at Fort Johnson were made quite formidable, and it was intended to keep up a fire upon Sumter from the three forts for twenty-four hours before an attempt was made to assault the stronghold. The impression was that a breach could be made in the walls, and that Major Anderson's limited garrison would be so worn out by the severe labors of working the guns incessantly for so long a time, that the storming party on rafts would be able to accomplish the escalade without much difficulty or loss of life.

Such were the plans then rife in Charleston. Meantime the work of military preparation steadily moved on. The military-review held on the 2Sth was the largest parade which had taken place. On the same day two Dahlgren guns, of the heaviest calibre, arrived from Richmond, Virginia. They were put immediately into a proper battery. Five ten-inch mortars accompanied the Dahlgrens, and two more were expected in a day or two. Fifty thousand pounds of powder were also received the same day from Pensacola, (Fla.,) and twenty thousand pounds from Wilmington, North Carolina. It was said that they would have, in a few days, ready for an emergency, from three to four hundred thousand pounds of powder. The rate of taxation at this time in Charleston was, on real estate and on stocks of goods, 1 4—10 per cent. On interest on bonds, on dividends, commissions, annuities, and on gross income, it was 2 6-10 per cent. The tax on slaves was $3; on horses, (10; on dogs, $2; on single carriages $20; on double carriages, $30; and this is without reference to the value of the above kinds of property. The State tax was levied in addition to this city tax. Persons of Indian descent and free colored persons held a separate place among the tax-payers. It appears that the highest taxes paid by the former class (Indians) were, respectively, $384, $242, §227, &c.; by persons of color, $613, $491, $202, Ac Many of these paid taxes for the negroes whom they owned—the number owned by single persons varying from one to fifteen or twenty. The entire number of slaves thus held was over four hundred. Premiums of insurance were charged 1 25-100 per cent. The city expenditures were large, but the item of interest on the city debt was the most formidable and onerous. The city had within a few years, in the face of heavy taxes, increased its tax for public school purposes. On the 7th of April such a force had been gathered at Charleston, and preparations for an attack on Fort Sumter had been so nearly com that the commanding officer, General Beauregard now issued an order prohibiting all intercourse between the city and Fort Sumter. Notice of this order was also given to Major Anderson. On the next day five thousand more troops were ordered out. Companies of volunteers, which were constantly arriving, were stationed in different positions around the harbor. At this time all vessels were ordered to keep out of range of the fire between Fort Sumter and Sullivan's Island. Business was entirely suspended, and the most intense excitement prevailed. About five thousand troops were assembled on Sullivan and Morris Islands and along the coast. On the 9th a messenger from 'Washington was at Charleston and in conference with the authorities, but was not permitted to communicate with Fort Sumter. The attack on the fort was commenced at half-past 4 in the morning of the 12th, and continued thirty-three hours. {See Sumter.) The highest excitement existed in Charleston while this took place. Citizens of all classes were spectators of the scene. On the 16th troops were still pouring into the city, and it was estimated that 10,000 were present. They were in a half-disciplined state, and were immediately subjected to a rigid drill. The state of affairs, however, 60on became quiet, and business was to some extent resumed, until the blockade of the port commenced, about the 1st of May. So stringently was this maintained that all foreign commerce ceased, and utter stagnation ensued except in military affairs. These were conducted with much vigor.

At 9 o'clock on the night of the 11th of December a fire broke out in a sash factory at the foot of Hazel street, which extended to machine shops on the opposite side of the street, and fanned by a stiff breeze, with a lack of water, it soon became of a most formidable character. Several churches, and nearly all the public buildings, banks, and insurance offices became a prey to the flames. King street, Meeting street, Church street, State street, between Broad and Hazel streets, were the scenes of the greatest destruction. Thousands were rendered houseless and reduced to great extremity. The value of property destroyed was estimated at ten millions of dollars. Contributions were sent to the sufferers by citizens of the adjoining States to a moderate extent. The blockade of this port was very stringent during the temperate months of the year. Near its close, the attempt was made to seal up the channels of the harbor with sunken ships. The Secretary of the Navy thus states the plan:

"One method of blockading the ports of the insurgent States, and interdicting communication, as well as to prevent the egress of privateers which sought to depredate on our commerce, has been that of sinking in the channels vessels laden with stone. The first movement in this direction was on the North Carolina coast, where there are numerous inlets to Albemarle and Pamlico sounds, and other interior waters, which afforded facilities for eluding the blockade, and also to the privateers. For this purpose a class of small vessels were purchased in Baltimore, some of which have been placed in Ocracoke Inlet.

"Another and larger description of vessels were bought in the eastern market, most of them such as were formerly employed in the whale fisheries. These were sent to obstruct Page 102 the channels of Charleston harbor and the Savannah River; and this, if effectually done, will prove the most economical and satisfactory method of interdicting commerce at those points."

Two fleets of vessels were obtained for the blockade of Charleston and Savannah. The first consisted of twenty-five vessels; the second of twenty. The largest number of these vessels had been used in the whale fisheries and in the trade to India. They were ships and barks of a burthen between two and five hundred tons, which had become too old to encounter any longer the hazards of a long voyage at sea. They were purchased by the Government at about ten dollars per ton, principally in the seaports of New Bedford and New London. The vessels, although old, were substantial and generally double-deckers. They were stripped of their copper and other fittings not necessary for so short a voyage, and loaded with picked stone as deeply as was safe. At light-water mark in each vessel one or more holes were bored through the sides, into which a lead pipe was carefully inserted, the ends of which were nailed down on each side of the vessel, a plug was driven in from the outside and another from within, and both secured by a rod passing through them, and fastened within by a nut and screw. Each fleet carried about six thousand tons of stone. The vessels were each manned by about fourteen men. The orders given to the commander were as follows:

"To Captain , Sir: The now under your command, having been purchased by the Navy Department for service on the Southern coast of the United States, the following are your orders for your proposed voyage:

"You will proceed from this port on , the — instant, or with the first fair wind, and when clear of the land Make a direct passage to the port of , and there deliver your ship to the commanding officer of the blockading fleet off said port, taking his receipt for her return to me. After the delivery of your vessel, yourself and crew will be provided with passages to the port of New York, by the Navy Department, and on your arrival there you will call on , who will furnish you with funds to return to this port. "On the voyage down it would be well, as far as practicable, to keep in company of your consorts, to exhibit lights by night and sound horns or bells in case of fog near the coast.

"You will also examine daily the pipe in the quarter of your ship under water, to see that it remains safe.

"The only service required of you is the safe delivery of your vessel; and as she is old and heavily laden, you will use special care that she sustains no damage from unskilful seamanship or want of prudence and care.

"On a close approach to your port of destination, begin to put between-decks cargo into lower hold, and, before anchoring permanently, have your second anchor and chain, (if you have one,) secured on deck. On leaving your vessel, unless otherwise ordered, you will bring away papers, chronometer, charts, compasses, spy-glass, and any other valuable portable articles not required by the commander of the blockading fleet there, and return them safely to me.

"In case of disaster, to preclude going on, you can call at Fortress Monroe, Hampton Roads, to repair damages, reporting to the flag-officer there. "Wishing you a safe and speedy passage,

' I am yours, respectfully, "

The effect of sunken vessels upon the channels of a harbor, if uninfluenced by winds and currents, is to stop the navigation. These old hulks become points for the accumulation of alluvials which the rivers bear down, and of the sands which the tides carry back. Becoming thoroughly imbedded in the sand, they cause the accumulations to increase with time, forming unconquerable obstacles to re-opening the channels. The strong westerly winds which prevail at Charleston tend to sweep out the channels of its harbor by the increased force of the ebb tide. Two or three hulks which were sunk by the State authorities before the bombardment of Fort Sumter were soon afterwards swept out in this manner. In some instances obstructions of this kind have caused the water to cut out new channels. On the 21st of December seventeen of these vessels were sunk across the principal entrance to Charleston by orders from the Navy Department at Washington. They were placed in three or four rows across the channel, not in uniform, but in a chequered order.

The occupation of Beaufort by the Federal troops with an immense fleet of transports excited great apprehensions at Charleston. An increased military force was gathered; the defences increased and put in a complete state of readiness to resist an attack. In case of an alarm, the orders by which the troops in the city were to proceed were to this purport:

In case of an alarm, requiring the prompt assembling of all the troops in the city of Charleston, the signal for each assembling will be fifteen strokes upon all the fire bells; an interval of one minute, and the fifteen strokes will be repeated. The strokes will be repeated five times.

Upon the sounding of such a signal the troops in the city will immediately assemble, under arms, and in inarching order, at the respective regimental muster grounds, and being formed in line will await further orders.

The regiment of the reserves will assemble on the street immediately in front of the Citadel, the color company resting on the gate of the Citadel, and will bo retained in the city for its immediate defence, unless otherwise specially ordered.

The officers commanding the Sixteenth and Seventeenth regiments of infantry, First Regiment of rifles and First Regiment of artillery, will have their transportation wagons turned out and loaded with the regimental tents and stores, and will proceed to press horses and mules as may be required for the transportation.

Upon an alarm being communicated to the country, the officers commanding companies will immediately extend the same in the mode pointed out.

ST. HELENA PARISH, S. C. This district, which has been the field of such important movements during the war, is situated on the coast of South Carolina, between 32° 05' and 32° 20' N. latitude. St. Helena Parish proper lies between the Combahee and Savannah rivers, and extends on the latter to the line of 32° 55', about 80 miles by the course of the river from its mouth; but the tract now included, under the name of Port Royal district, extends on the coast from a point above the Edisto River, and about 20 miles below Charleston, to St. Augustine, Florida, with a varying breadth of from five to twenty miles inland. This is the region in which the great bulk of the Sea Island cotton is produced. Along the whole distance the coast is lined with a series of islands forming the deltas of the Edisto, Ashepo, Combahee, Broad, Coosawhatchie, Savannah, Ogeechee, Camanchee, Altamaha, and Santilla rivers, and their interlocking branches. In most instances these rivers, at their several points of debouchure, have sand bars partially closing the entrance, and admitting only vessels of light draft, and these by tortuous channels, to the deeper waters inside. Only two entrances of considerable depth occur on this part of the South Carolina coast, viz.: St. Helena and Port Royal sounds, or entrances. Of these the latter is by far the best, and is, indeed, one of the finest harbors on the Atlantic coast of the Southern States. The Broad River here forms an estuary varying in width from 2} to 5 miles, and, interlacing with the Combahee and Port Royal rivers, encloses within navigable channels more than twenty islands of considerable size, of which the principal are Hilton's Head, St. Helena, Phillips, Hunting, Port Royal, Pinckney, and Parry islands. At the entrance of Port Royal harbor there is, at flood tide, sufficient depth of water for vessels drawing 23 feet to pass, and, once inside, the sheltered bay is sufficiently capacious for a navy to ride in safety. The larger of the forts captured by Com. Dupont on the 7th of November, was called Fort Walker, and was situated on Hilton Head Island, on the south side of the entrance, while the other, Fort Beauregard, was on Phillips Island, on the north side of the entrance, 2 ½  miles distant, and a small earthwork was about a half mile distant on the same island, commanding the approach from the northeast. (See Expeditions.)

The importance of Port Royal entrance as a harbor has long been known. In 1562 a body of French Protestants, under the direction of Admiral Coligni, and commanded by John Rebault, of Dieppe, explored the harbor, erected a fort on the site of Beaufort, and commenced a settlement. It did not prosper, however, and after two or three years was entirely abandoned. Nearly a century later the first British settlement was made here by Lord Cardross, a Scotch nobleman. They settled on Port Royal Island, but their numbers did not rapidly increase. In 1670 William Sayle was sent out as governor of this settlement. In 1700 the present town of Beaufort was founded. Notwithstanding the excellence of its harbor, the fertility of its soil, and the comparative salubrity of the climate, great efforts had been made to turn commerce aside, from Port Royal and to concentrate it at the much poorer harbor of Charleston. Port Royal and St. Helena islands became the favorite summer residences of wealthy merchants and planters, whose winters were spent in Charleston, and the luxurious dwellings of Beaufort and its vicinity were  abundantly supplied with all the appliances of Page 660 art and taste. Beaufort, or St. Helena district or parish, for it is called by each of these names, contained, in 1860, a population of 40,052 inhabitants, of whom 32,531 were slaves.

By way of Scull Creek, which divides Pinckney Island from' Hilton Head, Savannah is only 22 miles distant; while, by way of Beaufort River, which separates Parry Island from St. Helena, there is an interior route of 49 miles to Charleston; while, at a distance of about 20 miles inland, lies the Charleston and Savannah Railroad. On the capture of the islands the white population, being mostly sympathizers with secession, retreated inland, and have not since returned in any considerable numbers. "About 10,000, or nearly one-third of the slaves, have come into the Federal lines, and are now mostly employed either in the cultivation of the soil or in the labor requisite about the ships and forts.


Source: The American Annual Cyclopaedia and Register of Important Events of the Year, 1861-1865, vols. 1-5. New York: Appleton & Co., 1868.