to my notice until the 21st instant. It is as follows: "Memorandum of verbal instructions to Major Anderson, First Artillery, commanding Fort Moultrie, South Carolina. "You are aware of the great anxiety of the Secretary of War that a collision of the troops with the people of this State shall be avoided, and of his studied determination to pursue a course with reference to the force and forts in this harbor which shall guard against such a collision. He has therefore carefully abstained from increasing the force at this point, or taking any measure which might add to the present excited state of the public mind, or which would throw any doubt on the confidence he feels that South Carolina will not attempt by violence to obtain possession of the public works, or interfere with their occupancy. "But, as the counsel and acts of rash and impulsive persons may possibly disappoint these expectations of the Government, he deems it proper that you should be prepared with instructions to meet so unhappy a contingency. He has, therefore, directed me verbally to give you such instructions. "You are carefully to avoid every act which would needlessly tend to provoke aggression, and for that reason you are not, without necessity, to take up any position which could be construed into the assumption of a hostile attitude; but you are to hold possession of the forts in this harbor, and. if attacked, you are to defend yourself to the last extremity. The smallness of your.force will not permit you, perhaps, to occupy more than one of the three forts; but an attack on or attempt to take possession of either of them will be regarded as an act of hostility, and you may then put your command into either of them which you may deem most proper to increase its power of resistance. You are also authorized to take similar steps whenever you have tangible evidence of a design to proceed to a hostile act. D. P. BUTLER, "Assistant Adjutant-General. "Fort Moultrie, (S. C.) Dec. 11th, 1860. "This is in conformity to my instructions to Major Buell. "JOHN B. FLOYD, Secretary of War." These were the last instructions transmitted to Major Anderson before his removal to Fort Sumter, with a single exception, in regard to a particular which does not in any degree affect the present question. Under these circumstances it is clear that Major Anderson acted upon his own responsibility, and without authority,-unless, indeed, he had tangible evidence of a design to proceed to a hostile act" on the part of the authorities of South Carolina, which has not yet been alleged. Still he is a brave and honorable officer, and justice requires that he should not be condemned without a fair hearing. Be this as it may, when I learned that Major Anderson had left Fort Moultrie and proceeded to Fort Sumter, my first promptformer position, and there to await the conings were to command him to return to his tingencies presented in his instructions. This could only have been done with any degree of safety to the command by the concurrence of the South Carolina authori ties. But before any step could possibly have been taken in this direction, we received information that the "Palmetto flag floated out to the breeze at Castle Pinckney, and a large military force went over last night (the 27th) to Fort Moultrie." Thus the authorities of South Carolina, without waiting or asking for any explanations, and doubtless believing, as you have expressed it, that the officer had acted not only without but against my orders, on the very next day after the night when the removal was made, seized, by a military force, two of the three Federal forts in the harbor of Charleston, and have covered them under their own flag instead of that of the United States. At this gloomy period of our history, startling events succeed each other rapidly. On the very day, the 27th instant, that possession of these two forts was taken, the Palmetto flag was raised over the Federal custom-house and post-office in Charleston; and on the same day every officer of the customs-Collector, Naval Officer, Surveyor and Appraiser-resigned their offices. And this, although it was well-known from the language of my message that as an executive officer I felt myself bound to collect the revenue at the port of Charleston under the existing laws. In the harbor of Charleston we now find three forts confronting each other, over all of which the Federal flag floated four days ago; but now, over two of them this flag has been supplanted, and the Palmetto flag has been substituted in its stead. It is under these circumstances that I am urged immediately to withdraw the troops from the harbor of Charleston, and I am informed that without this negotiation is impossible. This I cannot do; this I will not do. Such an idea was never thought of by me in any possible contingency. No such allusion had been made in any communication between myself and any human being.. But the inference is that I am bound to withdraw the troops from the only fort remaining in the possession of the United States in the harbor of Charleston, because the officer there in command of all the forts thought proper, without instructions, to change his position from one of them to another. At this point of writing, I have received information by telegraph from Capt. Humphreys, in command of the arsenal at Charleston, that "it has to-day (Sunday, the 30th) been taken by force of arms." It 32 If is estimated that the munitions of war your attempt to retain possession of that JAMES BUCHANAN. Further demand of South Carolina for Fort Sumter. January 11th, 1861. F. W. Pickens, Governor of South Carolina, demanded of Major Anderson the surrender of Fort Sumter to the "waste of life." authorities of the State of South Carolina, "The demand I have made of Major An- high O "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 such property will be accounted for by this State, upon the adjustment of its relations 66 "F. W. PICKENS. with the United States, of which it was a part. "To the President of the United States." War Department, January 22d, 1861. GENTLEMEN: The President has received your communication of the 19th instant, with the copy of a correspondence between yourselves and others, " representing States which have already seceded from the United States, or will have done so before the first of February next," and Colonel Isaac W. Hayne, of South Carolina, in behalf of the Government of that State, in relation to Fort Sumter; and you ask the President "to take into consideration the subject of that correspondence." With this request he has complied, and has directed me to communicate his answer. In your letter to Col. Hayne of the 15th instant, you propose to him to defer the delivery of a message from the Governor of South Carolina to the President, with which he has been entrusted for a few days, or until the President and Col. Hayne shall have considered the suggestions which you It is unnecessary to refer specially submit. to these suggestions, because the letter addressed to you by Col. Hayne, of the 17th instant, presents a clear and specific answer to them. In this he says: "I am not clothed with power to make the arrange ment you suggest; but provided you can In regard to an assurance from the President "that the public peace will not be disturbed by any act of hostility towards South Carolina," the answer will readily occur to yourselves. To Congress, and to Congress alone, belongs the power to make war, and it would be an act of usurpation for the Executive to give any assurance that Congress would not exercise this power, however strongly it may be convinced that no such intention exists. get assurances, with which you are entirely tion. Should his safety, however, require satisfied, that no reinforcements will be sent reinforcements, every effort will be made to to Fort Sumter in the interval, and that the supply them. public peace will not be disturbed by any act of hostility towards South Carolina, I will refer your communication to the authorities of South Carolina, and, withholding the communication with which I am at present charged, will await further instructions." From the beginning of the present unhappy troubles, the President has endeavored to perform his Executive duties in such a manner as to preserve the peace of the country and to prevent bloodshed. This is still his fixed purpose. You, therefore, do him no more than justice in stating that you have assurances (from his public messages, I presume) that "notwithstanding the circumstances under which Major Anderson left Fort Moultrie and entered Fort Sumter with the forces under his command, it was not taken and is not held with any hostile or unfriendly purpose towards your State, but merely as property of the United States, which the President deems it his duty to protect and preserve," you have correctly stated what the President deems to be his duty. His whole object now is and has been, to act strictly on the defensive, and to authorize no movement against the people of South Carolina, unless clearly justified by a hostile movement on their part. He could not have given a better proof of his desire to prevent the effusion of blood than y forbearing to resort to the use of force under the strong provocation of an attack happily without a fatal result) on an unarmed vessel bearing the flag of the United States. I am happy to observe that, in your letter to Col. Hayne, you express the opinion that it is "especially due from South Carolina to our States, to say nothing of other slaveholding States, that she should, as far as she can consistently with her honor, avoid initiating hostilities between her and the United States, or any other Power." To initiate such hositilities against Fort Sumter would, beyond question, be an act of war against the United States. In regard to the proposition of Col. Hayne, that no reinforcements will be sent to Fort Sumter in the interval, and that the public peace will not be disturbed by any act of hostility towards South Carolina," it is impossible for me to give you any such assurances. The President has no authority to enter into such an agreement or understanding. As an executive officer, he is simply bound to protect the public property, so far as this may be practicable; and it would be a manifest violation of his duty to place himself under engagements that he would not perform this duty either for an indefinite or a limited period. At the present moment, it is not deemed necessary to reinforce Major Anderson, because he makes no such request, and feels quite secure in his posi I am glad to be assured from the letter of Col. Hayne, that "Major Anderson and his command do now obtain all necessary supplies, including fresh meat and vegetables, and, I believe, fuel and water, from the city of Charleston, and do now enjoy communication, by post and special messenger, with the President, and will continue to do so, certainly until the door to negotiation has been closed." I trust that these facilities may still be afforded to Major Anderson. This is as it should be. Major Anderson is not menacing Charleston; and I am convinced that the happiest result which can be attained is, that he and the authorities of South Carolina shall remain on their present amicable footing, neither party being bound by any obligation whatever except the high Christian and moral duty to keep the peace and to avoid all causes of mutual irritation. Very respectfully, Your obedient servant, J. HOLT, Secretary of War. January 31st, 1861. Col. Hayne, having received additional instructions from Governor Pickens, reciting the correspondence between the President and the ten Senators, and expressing his dissatisfaction with the terms of the latter's reply, demanded possession of Fort Sumter "as the legal officer of the State, asserting its undoubted right of eminent domain." February 6th. The President replied, through Secretary Holt, asserting the title of the United States to Fort Sumter as complete and incontrovertible, and declining the demand, as, " whatever may be the claim of South Carolina to this fort, he has no constitutional power to cede or surrender it." The closing paragraph of the President's reply is as follows: If the announcement so repeatedly made of the President's pacific purpose in continuing the occupation of Fort Sumter until the question shall be settled by competent authority, has failed to impress the Government of South Carolina, the forbearing conduct of the Administration for the last few months should be received as conclusive evidence of his sincerity. And if this forbearance, in view of the circumstances which have so severely tried it, be not accepted as a satisfactory pledge of the peaceful policy of this Administration towards South Carolina, then it may be safely affirmed that neither language nor conduct can possibly furnish one. If, with all the multiplied proofs which exist of the President's anxiety for peace, and of the earnestness with which he has pursued it, the authorities of that State shall assault Fort Sumter, and peril the lives of the handful of brave and loyal men shut up within its walls, and thus plunge our common country into the horrors of civil war, then upon them and those they represent, must rest the responsibility." they differ as to whether the arms so sold had been found, "upon proper inspection, to be unsuitable for the public service." Whilst the Committee do not deem it important to decide this question, they say, that in their judgment it would require a very liberal construction of the law to bring these sales within its provisions. It also appears that on the 21st day of November last, Mr. Belknap made applica tion to the Secretary of War for the purchase of from one to two hundred and fifty thousand United States muskets, flint-locks and altered to percussion, at $2.15 each; but the Secretary alleges that the acceptance was made under a misapprehension of the price bid, he supposing it was $2.50 each, instead of $2.15. Mr. Belknap denies all knowledge of any the performance of his contract. mistake or misapprehension, and insists upon The present Secretary refuses to recognize the contract, and the muskets have not been delivered to Mr. Belknap. Mr. Belknap testifies that the muskets were intended for the Sardinian government. It will appear by the papers herewith submitted, that on the 29th of December, 1859, the Secretary of War ordered the transfer of 65,000 percussion muskets, 40,000 muskets altered to percussion, and 10,000 percussion rifles, from the Springfield Armory and the Watertown and Watervliet Arse nals, to the Arsenals at Fayetteville, N. C., Charleston, S. C., Augusta, Ga., Mount Vernon, Ala., and Baton Rouge, La., and that spring of 1860 as follows: these arms were distributed during the Transfer of U. S. Arms South in To Charleston Arsenal, 1859-60. REPORT (Abstract of) made by Mr. B. Stanton, from the Committee on Military Affairs, in House of Representatives, Feb. 18th, 1861: The Committee on Military Affairs, to whom was referred the resolution of the House of Representatives of 31st of December last, instructing said committee to inquire and report to the House, how, to whom, and at what price, the public arms distributed since the 1st day of January, A. D. 1860, have been disposed of; and also into the condition of the forts, arsenals, dockyards, etc., etc., submit the following report: That it appears from the papers herewith submitted, that Mr. Floyd, the late Secretary of War, by the authority or under color of the law of March 3d, 1825, authorizing the Secretary of War to sell any arms, ammunition, or other military stores which should be found unsuitable for the public service, sold to sundry persons and States 31,610 flint-lock muskets, altered to percussion, at $2.50 each, between the 1st day of January, A. D. 1860, and the 1st day of January, A. D. 1861. It will be seen from the testimony of Colonel Craig and Captain Maynadier, that To North Carolina Arsenal, To Augusta Arsenal, To Mount Vernon Arsenal, To Baton Rouge Arsenal, All of these arms, except those sent to the North Carolina Arsenal,* have been seized by the authorities of the several States of South Carolina, Alabama, Louisiana and Georgia, and are no longer in possession of the United States. It will appear by the testimony herewith presented, that on the 20th of October last the Secretary of War ordered forty columbiads and four thirty-two pounders to be sent from the Arsenal at Pittsburg to the fort on Ship Island, on the coast of Missis sippi, then in an unfinished condition, and seventy columbiads and seven thirty-two pounders to be sent from the same Arsenal to the fort at Galveston, in Texas, the building of which had scarcely been commenced. This order was given by the Secretary of War, without any report from the Engineer department showing that said works were * These were afterwards seized ready for their armament, or that the guns were needed at either of said points. It will be seen by the testimony of Captain Wright, of the Engineer department, that the fort at Galveston cannot be ready for its entire armament in less than about five years, nor for any part of it in less than two; and that the fort at Ship Island will require an appropriation of $85,000 and one year's time before it can be ready for any part of its armament. This last named fort has been taken possession of by the State authorities of Mississippi. The order of the late Secretary of War (Floyd) was countermanded by the present Secretary (Holt) before it had been fully executed by the shipment of said guns from Pittsburg.* It will be seen by a communication from the Ordnance office of the 21st of January last, that by the last returns there were remaining in the United States arsenals and armories the following small arms, viz: Percussion muskets and muskets altered to percussion of calibre 69, Percussion rifles, calibre 54 . . . ... 499,554 42,011 Total.... 541,565 Of these 60,878 were deposited in the arsenals of South Carolina, Alabama, and Louisiana, and are in the possession of the authorities of those States, reducing the number in possession of the United States ties of Florida. To what further extent the small arms in possession of the United States may have been reduced by these figures, your committee have not been advised. The whole number of the sea-board forts in the United States is fifty-seven; their appropriate garrison in war would require 26,420 inen; their actual garrison at this The attempted removal of these heavy guns from Allegheny Arsenal, late in December, 1860, created intense excitement. A monster mass meeting assembled at the call of the Mayor of the city, and citizens of all parties aided in the effort to prevent the shipment. Through the interposition of Hoo. J. K. Moorhead, Hon. R. McKnight, Judge Shaler, Judge Wilkins, Judge Shannon, and others, inquiry was instituted, and a revocation of the order obtained. The Secessionists in Congress bitterly complained of the "mob law" which thus Interfered with the routine of governmental affairs. time is 1,334 men, 1,308 of whom are in the forts at Governor's Island, New York; Fort McHenry, Maryland; Fort Monroe, Virginia, and at Alcatraz Island, California, in the harbor of San Francisco. From the facts elicited, it is certain that the regular military force of the United States is wholly inadequate to the protec tion of the forts, arsenals, dock-yards, and other property of the United States in the present disturbed condition of the country. The regular army numbers only 18,000 men when recruited to its maximum strength, and the whole of this force is required for the protection of the border settlements against Indian depredations. Unless it is the intention of Congress that the forts, arsenals, dock-yards, and other public property, shall be exposed to capture and spo liation, the President must be armed with additional force for their protection. In the opinion of the Committee the law of February 28th, 1795, confers upon the President ample power to call out the militia to execute the laws and protect the public property. But as the late AttorneyGeneral has given a different opinion, the Committee, to remove all doubt upon the subject, report the accompanying bill, etc. Baton Rouge, Nov. 14 Do. State of Alabama......1,000 Nov. 6 Washington. Nov. 16 St. Louis. Nov. 24 Watervliet. Do. .2,500 State of Virginia.. ...5,000 Phillips county, Ark... 50 G. B. Lamar...10,000 The arms were all flint-lock muskets altered to percussion, and were all sold at $2.50 each, except those purchased by Captain G. Barry and by the Phillips county volunteers, for which $2 each were paid. The Mobile Advertiser says: "During the past year 135,430 muskets have been quietly transferred from the Northern arsenal at Springfield alone, to those in the Southern States. We are much obliged to Secretary Floyd for the foresight he has thus displayed in disarming the North and equipping the South for this emergency. There is no telling the quantity of arms and munitions which were sent South from other Northern arsenals. There is no doubt but that every man in the South who can carry a gun can now be supplied from private or public sources. The Springfield contribution alone would arm all the militiamen of Alabama and Mississippi." General Scott, in his letter of December 2d, 1862, on the early history of the Rebellion, states that "Rhode Island, Delaware and Texas had not drawn, at the end of 1860, their annual quotas of arms for that year, and Massachusetts, Tennessee, and |