boasted that they had done so only to secure the temporary advantages attached to the act, and avowed their readiness to take as many oaths as Picayune Butler thought it necessary to impose; as no faith was to be kept with Yankees. All these things were noted by General Butler, who "bided his time."

Another of the general's precautionary measures, was the disarming of New Orleans. The city was full of arms. Nearly every house, of any pretensions, contained some, and nearly every welldressed man carried a weapon of some kind. At first, the general had no intention of depriving private persons of their arms, since he had assured the public, in his proclamation, that private property should be respected. Under the general order, commanding the disclosure and surrender of Confederate property, a considerable quantity of arms and munitions of war were seized; but the most virulent of the rebels were still allowed the inestimable privilege of carrying a pocketful of revolvers, and a bowie-knife parallel to the back bone. The event which led to the universal disarming of the city was this: In August, on the bloody field of Baton Rouge, were found dead and wounded citizens of Baton Rouge, wearing still their usual arms, who, on the very evening before the attack, had mingled familiarly with the officers of the Union army, and who, on the approach of Breckinridge, had hastened to join his troops, and to engage in the conflict. Lieutenant Weitzel reported this significant fact to General Butler, who immediately determined to compel the surrender of every private weapon in New Orleans. The requisite orders were issued; arms in great quantities were brought in and safely deposited; for all of which receipts were given. The French consul objected, of course. His protest had only the effect of adding one more to General Butler's amusing consular letters.

THE FRENCH CONSUL TO LIEUTENANT WEITZEL.

"FRENCH CONSULATE AT NEW ORLEANS, "NEW ORLEANS, August 12, 1862. "SIR:-The new order of the day, which has been published this morn ing, and by which you require that all and whatever arms which may be know that he could not get a license unless he took oath to be a good citizen under the national government. This interference on the part of General Butler and his subordinates with the unalienable rights of Secessia has, of course, thrown a new brand of discord into the community, and the fearful catastrophe seems impending, that will compel the habitués of the fashionable drinking-saloons to have the slow poison dealt out by loyal citizens."

in the possession of the people of this city, must be delivered up, has caused the most serious alarm among the French subjects of New Orleans.

"Foreigners, sir, and particularly Frenchmen, have, notwithstanding the accusations brought against some of them by certain persons, sacrificed everything to maintain, during the actual conflict, the neutrality imposed "pon them.

"When arms were delivered them by the municipal authorities, they only used them to maintain order and defend personal property; and those arms have since been almost all returned.

"And it now appears, according to the tenor of your order of to-day, that French subjects, as well as citizens, are required to surrender their personal arms, which could only be used in self-defense.

"For some time past, unmistakable signs have manifested themselves among the servile population of the city and surrounding country, of their intention to break the bonds which bind them to their masters, and many persons apprehend an actual revolt.

"It is these signs, this prospect of finding ourselves completely unarmed, in the presence of a population from which the greatest excesses are feared, that we are above all things justly alarmed; for the result of such a state of things would fall on all alike who were left without the means of selfdefense.

"It is not denied that the protection of the United States government would be extended to them in such an event, but that protection could not be effective at all times and in all places, nor provide against those internal enemies, whose unrestrained language and manners are constantly increasing, and who are but partially kept in subjection by the conviction that their masters are armed.

"I submit to you, sir, these observations, with the request that you take them into consideration.

"Please accept, sir, the assurance of my high esteem.

"The Consul of France,

"COUNT MEJAN.

"Lieutenant WEITZEL, U. S. Engineers, and Assistant Military Commandant of New Orleans."

GENERAL BUTLER TO THE FRENCH CONSUL.

"HEAD-QUARTERS, DEPARTMENT OF THE GULF, "NEW ORLEANS, August 14, 1862.

"SIR:-Your official note to Lieutenant Weitzel has been forwarded

to me.

"I see no just cause of complaint against the order requiring the arms of private citizens to be given up. It is the usual course pursued in cities

similarly situated to this, even without any exterior force in the neighborhood.

"You will observe that it will not do to trust to mere professions of neutrality. I trust most of your countrymen are in good faith neutral; but it is unfortunately true that some of them are not. This causes the good, of necessity, to suffer for the acts of the bad.

"I take leave to call your attention to the fact, that the United State forces gave every immunity to Monsieur Bonnegrass, who claimed to b the French consul at Baton Rouge; allowed him to keep his arms, and relied upon his neutrality; but his son was taken prisoner on the battle-field in arms against us.

"You will also do me the favor to remember that very few of the French subjects here have taken the oath of neutrality, which was offered to, but not required of them, by my Order No. 41, although all the officers of the French Legion had, with your knowledge and assent, taken the oath to support the constitution of the Confederate States. Thus you see I have no guarantee for the good faith of bad men.

"I do not understand how it is that arms are altered in their effectiveness by being 'personal property,' nor do I see how arms which will serve for personal defense ('qui ne peuvent servir que pour leur défense personnelle'), can not be as effectually used for offensive warfare.

"Of the disquiet of which you say there are signs manifesting themselves among the black population, from a desire to break their bonds, ('certaines dispositions à rompre les nens qui les attachent à leurs maîtres'), I have been a not inattentive observer, without wonder, because it would seem natural, when their masters had set them the example of rebellion against constituted authorities, that the negroes, being an imitative race, should do likewise.

"But surely the representative of the emperor, who does not tolerate slavery in France, does not desire his countrymen to be armed for the purpose of preventing the negroes from breaking their bonds.

"Let me assure you that the protection of the United States against violence, either by negroes or white men, whether citizens or foreign, will continue to be as perfect as it has been since our advent here; and far more so, manifesting itself at all moments and everywhere ('tous les instants et partout'), than any improvised citizens' organization can be." "Whenever the inhabitants of this city will, by a public and united act, show both their loyalty and neutrality, I shall be glad of their aid to keep the peace, and indeed to restore the city to them. Till that time, however, I must require the arms of all the inhabitants, white and black, to be under my control. I have the honor to be, your obedient servant,

"BENJ. F. BUTLER, Major-General Commanding.

"To Count MEJAN, French Consul."

To secure the surrender of arms still secreted, the following stringent general order was issued:

"NEW ORLEANS, August 16, 1862. "Ordered, That after Tuesday, 19th inst., there be paid for information leading to the discovery of weapons not held under a written permit from the United States authorities, but retained and concealed by the keeper thereof, the sums following:

For each serviceable gun, musket or rifle.....

10

7

5

5

แ

dirk, dagger, bowie-knife or sword-cane...

.....

3

"Said arms to be confiscated, and the keeper so concealing them to be punished by imprisonment.

"The crime being an overt act of rebellion against the authority of the United States, whether by a citizen or an alien, works a forfeiture of the property of the offender, and, therefore, every slave giving information that shall discover the concealed arms of his or her master, shall be held to be emancipated.

"II. As the United States authorities have disarmed the inhabitants of the parish of Orleans, and as some fearful citizens seem to think it neces sary that they should have arms to protect themselves from violence, it is ordered,

"That hereafter, the offenses of robbery by violence or aggravated assault that ought to be replied by the use of deadly weapons, burglaries rapes and murders, whether committed by blacks or whites, will be, on con viction, punished by death."

Union men, known and tried, were permitted to keep their arms To one or two old soldiers of the war of 1812, the privilege was accorded of retaining the weapons once honorably borne in the service of their country. Many weapons were, doubtless, still secreted; but, for all purposes of co-operation with an attacking force, New Orleans was disarmed. The whole number of surrendered weapons was about six thousand.

CHAPTER XXIV.

THE CONFISCATION ACT.

THE act of Congress confiscating the property of rebellious citizens was approved July 17th.

Before. the passage of the act, General Butler had taken the liberty to "sequester" the estates of those two notorious traitors, General Twiggs and John Slidell, both of whom possessed large property in New Orleans. These estates he held for the adjudication of the government, and, in the mean time, selected the spacious mansion of General Twiggs for his own residence and that of a portion of his staff. Among the papers found in this house were certain letters which tended to show that Twiggs had sought the command in Texas with a view to the betrayal of his trust, a crime only once paralleled in the history of the country. Twiggs fled from New Orleans on the approach of the fleet, conscious that such turpitude as his could not fail to meet its just retribution. He died soon after, but not before he had heard that the flag of his betrayed country floated over his residence as the head-quarters of the army of occupation.

Three swords, presented to him for his gallantry in Mexico, one by Congress, one by the state of Georgia, his native state, one by Augusta, his native city, were left behind in the custody of a young lady, and fell into the hands of General Butler. The young lady claimed them as her own. She said that General Twiggs had given them to her on new-year's day, with a box of family silver, alleging as a reason for this strange gift the recent death of a beoved niece to whom he had previously bequeathed them. Three facts were elicited which induced the general to set aside her claim. One was, that Twiggs had brought the articles to the young lady's residence, not on new-year's day, but at the moment of his flight from the city. Another was, that she had never mentioned so extraordinary a present to any member of her family-as appeared on the separate examination of each. Another was, that General Twiggs had left with the articles the document following: "I