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Doc. 25.

DOCUMENTS.

SKIRMISH ON GREEN RIVER, KY.,

FEBRUARY 1, 1862.

THE following is a private letter from Capt. Joe
Presdee, of the Second cavalry, Forty-first regi-
ment Indiana volunteers, fighting on Green River,
near Bowling Green, Ky.

CAMP WICKLIFFE, BANKS OF GREEN RIVER, KY.,
Tuesday, February 4, 1862.

MY DEAR J -: Hurrah for Company H, of
the Second cavalry, Forty-first regiment Indiana
volunteers, commanded by the gallant Colonel
Bridgland!

I, together with my boys, on last Saturday, opened the ball with secesh for the Second Indiana cavalry, and made the rebels pay for the music, as we killed three and wounded two! with none hurt on our side-and now for the story. On Friday morning I was ordered out, with my company, for picket duty, with three days' rations. I tell you the boys, when they heard the order, were tickled to death, and so was I, and off we started, and before night I had eight posts picked out, and my men placed at them, beside what I had at my headquarters. You may well believe that your uncle slept but little the first night, as I visited my pickets three times during the night, riding, as you may suppose, a good many miles-in fact, I spent the night in the saddle. Next day my forage came along to headquarters, and after taking off what I wanted there, I ordered the wagons to go on to the other posts, leaving enough for two feeds for each horse, and I mounted my horse to visit a post on a hill right I had scarcely got to the post on the river. when I heard a volley, and I knew in a minute that we were attacked in earnest. I rode down the road like lightning, firing off my revolver as I rode as an alarm, ordering the men at the posts, as I rode I got by, to mount, all but one, and follow me. to where the bridge once was (now burned down) in time, and, dismounting, sailed right in. (This is the life I think I was cut out for.) The rebels had fired on my men while unloading the corn, but they paid dear for it, as they left five on the field, and we drove the others from the position. I could scarcely keep my men from jumping into the river and going after them. I, of course, had sent to camp to say we were fighting, and Major Stewart came down to us, without bringing a man with him, saying, afterward: "Good gracious, Cap., I knew you and your fellows could I take care of yourselves." He arrived while we were fighting, and rode right in among us. shouted for him to dismount, that they were firing up the gully, and he might get hit. "Let them fire and be d-d," said he, dismounting and throwing down his coat and gloves. (I lost my gloves in the fight.) Said he, "Cap., give me I handed him my carbine, one of them things." (good for five hundred yards,) at the same time taking one myself from one of the men, and at it I found my men so keen that I could not keep them under cover, as when I ordered

we went.

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them under cover, they would lie down behind a
stone about as big as an ink-bottle, supposing
they were obeying orders, but I could not blame
them, as I was as bad myself, as the Major re-
minded me as he sat on a rock, in full view of
the rebels, with his carbine across his knee, wait-
ing for a good chance. I got mad at the men,
'Boys, the first man I see from cover, I shall
for exposing themselves so, and shouted to them:
certainly send back to headquarters." (Severe
"Hold on, Cap.," says the Major;
punishment.)
example would be good in this case-get into
"
cover yourself." "I will," said I, "when you set
boys, and a laugh from the Major and myself,
the example!" This raised a shout from the
The Major has just left,
and we took it for granted that the boys were un-
der cover from that out.
saying, that when there is any fighting to be
done, he wants Company H along-in fact, we
have earned the name of the fighting company,
and, if I am spared, we will retain it.

I expect to be ordered out to-morrow, or next
day, not to return to camp until the whole army
crosses the river! I wish you could have seen
me, when I got your letter, on Sunday. I was
lying in a mud-hole, with a rock in front of me,
waiting for a chance to crack at the secesh. We
kept up our fire all day Sunday, at anything in
I am, as ever, yours,
the shape of a man that came near enough to risk
the ammunition.

Doc. 26.

J. P. PRESDEE.

THE SUMTER AT SEA.

THE CAPTAINS SHE CAPTURED.

LIVERPOOL, ENG., February 4, 1862. ON Sunday night last, the Spanish steamer Duero arrived in Liverpool from Cadiz, having as passengers on board three gentlemen, late in comThe captains are mand of different American ships, all of which had been captured by the Confederate steamer Sumter, and burned at sea. Minott, late of the Vigilant, Smith, of the Arcade, and Hoxie, of the Eben Dodge. They were the prisoners of Capt. Semmes, who, when the Sumter visited Cadiz recently, put them on shore there, whence they have been forwarded to this port by the American Consul there, and hence they propose returning to America by the CanaShe is armed with four short dian steamer Bohemian. They describe the Sumter as a very indifferent screw propeller of about thirty-two-pounder guns and one sixty-eightfive hundred tons. pounder pivot-gun. She is amply provided with small arms, has abundance of ammunition, and abundance of provisions of kinds, as may be exHer crew, when she entered Capected from her helping herself so plentifully from various sources. diz harbor, was ninety-nine, all told, mostly Irish, but with a slight intermixture of English. The captains say, that the crew are very discontented, and that eleven deserted on entering a Spanish port. The marines on board are all Irish, and

they add, that of forty-three prisoners on board on arrival at Cadiz, all the negroes, who formed a large proportion of them, were retained as a part of the crew of the Confederate steamer.

As each of the captains relates circumstances somewhat different from the other, we shall take each in turn, and first of Capt. Hoxie. His vessel, the Eben Dodge, was one thousand two hundred and twenty-two tons, and belonged to NewBedford, United States, whence she sailed on the twenty-sixth of November last, on a whaling voyage to the South-Pacific. She was provisioned and provided, in all respects, for a three years' voyage, and had a large store of water. Her crew had three years' clothing, and the findings of the ship and crew were all of the best. On December eighth, in latitude sixty-one degrees north, longitude fifty degrees west, about ten o'clock A.M., weather thick, a steamer hove in sight, showing American colors, and immediately fired a shot across the bows of the Eben Dodge, and then running up the Confederate flag, soon ranged alongside, coming up under her stern. Captain Semmes ordered Capt. Hoxie to take his boat and come on board, bringing his papers, stating that the steamer was the Confederate vessel Sumter, a statement, however, which Capt. Hoxie had anticipated. Capt. Hoxie, on going on board, was received by the first lieutenant, who conducted him to the cabin, where he found Capt. Semmes. Having examined the papers, the Sumter's commander said: "Oh! yes, it's all right; she is the lawful prize of the Confederate States, and I shall burn the ship." He next observed, "I am short of water, and you have plenty, I must have some of that;" and he forthwith ordered Capt. Hoxie to go back, sending an armed boat's crew with him, and to fetch off all the water. They did take away about one thousand gallons, and also took off a quantity of soap, tobacco, and a great cask of packed clothing. The whole of the charts on board the prize were also taken, the captain's sextant and chronometer, and being again brought on board the Sumter, Capt. Hoxie was ordered by her commander to bring one bed on board, with one trunk of clothing, and no more. His mates and crew were restricted to one bag of clothing each, and he was advised to "look smart" about it, as he (Capt. Semmes) must fire the ship. The conditions were complied with as speedily as possible, and the whole of the carpenter's plant having been taken on board the Sumter, the Eben Dodge was set on fire, and the Sumter bore away about sundown, leaving the prize blazing from stem to stern. Soon after this, Capt. Semmes called Capt. Hoxie aft, and said, "Have you any money?"adding: "It will be as well to be candid, for if I have any reason to doubt what you say, I shall have you searched." Capt. Hoxie replied, that he had one hundred and fifty dollars, which he was ordered to hand to the purser of the Sumter, who, Capt. Semmes said, would take care of it. Next morning, Capt. Semmes said the men belonging to the Eben Dodge had brought too many clothes on board, and ordered nearly all, save what they stood in, to be taken from them.

Capt. Hoxie describes the condition of the Sumter as filthy, and complains that he was detailed to a berth among the petty officers of the ship; but apart from these inconveniences he had no other cause of complaint, save forcible detention, denudation of cash and property, and destruction of his ship. In this respect his companions give concurrent testimony. We should add that one of the boats of the Eben Dodge was also taken, by the Sumter.

Capt. Smith, of the schooner Arcade, one hundred and twenty-two tons, belonging to Portland, Me., sailed thence on the tenth of November, with a cargo of molasses, for Guadaloupe. On the twentieth of that month, at two o'clock in the afternoon, being in latitude twenty degrees thirtyfive minutes north, longitude fifty-seven degrees twelve minutes west, the steamer Sumter, bearing the American ensign, bore up, and sent an armed boat's crew on board the Arcade. The crew took Capt. Smith on board the Sumter, along with the ship's papers, charts, chronometer, etc., announced her a lawful prize in due form, and that she must be burned. All the valuables, however, were first taken off. Capt. Smith was informed that he must confine his equipment, on removal, to a bed and trunk of clothes, and his men to a bag each; and this having been arranged, and the men brought on board the Confederate steamer, the Arcade was fired. Capt. Smith having only five dollars on him when questioned, was allowed to retain it.

Capt. Minott, of the Vigilant, six hundred and fifty-two tons, belonged to Bath, Me., sailed from New-York, on the twenty-first November, for Falmouth, for orders. On December third, about nine A.M., in latitude twenty-nine degrees twelve minutes north, longitude fifty-seven degrees twenty minutes west, a steamer, having the French ensign hoisted, hove in sight, came rapidly up, and proved to be, as Capt. Minott conjectured, the Sumter. The Vigilant was ordered to heave to, and two armed boat's crews were sent on board. They took away the ship's papers, and Capt. Minott on board the steamer; and after examining the papers, Capt. Semmes declared the Vigilant lawful prize to the Confederate States, adding that he should burn her. He then gave permission to Capt. Minott to fetch the customary trunk of clothes and bed, and the usual equipments for the others of the crew. A boat's crew sent on board took away all books, charts and other things of value from the Vigilant, together with whatever valuables belonging to Capt. Minott were on board, including sextant and chronometer, and at about two P.M. the prize was set on fire and left burning. Most of the crew of the Vigilant were negroes, and these were immediately incorporated with the crew of the Sumter, and set to work. In a conversation with Capt. Minott, Capt. Semmes said it was all fair; adding, "You would have taken me, if you could;" to which the former replied: "Yes, and would do so now, if you gave me the chance.” Capt. Minott was also questioned as to whether he had any money; but having only fourteen

dollars, that was left with him. He was, of course, taken to Cadiz.

On the fourth of January, this year, the Sumter reached Cadiz, and the captains were released on the seventh. Before putting them on shore, Capt. Semmes assembled them and several of their officers and their respective crews, and telling them he was going to send them on shore, said: "The American Consul would take care of them." Capt. Hoxie then requested that the one hundred and fifty dollars he had intrusted to the purser of the Sumter might be given up to him; but Capt. Semmes said: "Oh! that is contraband of war, and is confiscated." They were then landed, and several of Capt. Hoxie's crew had to be supplied with clothes by the American Consul. The steward of the Eben Dodge, who was ill at the time of the capture, died on board the Sumter.

-Liverpool Post, February 4.

Doc. 27.

THE CASE OF JESSE D. BRIGHT. Ox the sixteenth of December, 1861, Mr. Wilkinson, of Minnesota, introduced into the Senate of the United States, the following resolution:

Whereas, Hon. Jesse D. Bright, heretofore, on the first day of March, 1861, wrote a letter, of which the following is a copy:

WASHINGTON, March 1, 1861.

acquainted with Mr. Lincoln for more than twenty years, he having been at that time a prominent merchant of your city, where I was then residing, and was just entering on my career of life. He did me the favor to employ me as his attorney, and I generally attended to his legal business. The letter to which you refer is no doubt genuine. I have no recollection of writing it, but if Mr. Lincoln says I did, then I am entirely satisfied of the fact, for I am quite sure I would have given, as a matter of course, just such a letter of introduction to any friend who had asked it. So much for the letter.

You say the impression is sought to be created, on account of this letter, that I am in complicity with the Southern rebellion. I have so little regard, indeed such an utter contempt, for abolitionism, which is seeking, by every means in its power, to "crush out" every man who dares to dissent from the policy it prescribes, that, if it were merely to satisfy the corrupt partisans of that doctrine, I would not take the trouble of denying or attempting to counteract this impression. But for your sake, and the sake of such old tried friends as you, I think it due to myself to say that I am, and always have been, for preserving the integrity of this Union. I was laborwho are now so clamorous for its maintenance, ing zealously for its preservation when these men, were willing to "let it slide," rather than abate

one iota of their unconstitutional doctrine of inequality; and no man regrets more than I the MY DEAR SIR: Allow me to introduce, to your present condition of public affairs, or is more anxacquaintance, my friend Thomas B. Lincoln, of ious to see peace, unity, and fraternity restored. Texas. He visits your capital mainly to dispose I do not think the policy of that party is calculat of what he regards a great improvement in fire-ed to produce such results; so far from it, the I recommend him to your favorable con- inevitable tendency of its measures, in my opinsideration, as a gentleman of the first respectability, and reliable in every respect.

arms.

Very truly, yours,

JESSE D. BRIGHT. To His Excellency JEFFERSON DAVIS,

President of the Confederation of States. And, whereas, we believe the said letter is evidence of disloyalty to the United States, and is calculated to give aid and comfort to the public enemies, therefore,

Be it resolved, That the said Jesse D. Bright is expelled from his seat in the Senate of the United States.

This resolution was referred to the Committee on the Judiciary. The members of this Committee are: Mr. Trumbull, of Illinois, Chairman; Mr. Foster, of Connecticut; Mr. Ten Eyck, of New-Jersey; Mr. Cowan, of Pennsylvania; Mr. Harris, of New-York; Mr. Bayard, of Delaware; and Mr. Powell, of Kentucky.

In addition to the letter embodied in the resolution of Mr. Wilkinson, two other letters of Mr. Bright's got before the Committee, though informally, and figured, more or less, in the final debate.

One of these letters is as follows:

AT MY FARM, September 7, 1861. In reply to your favor of the twentieth, just received, I have to say that I have been personally

ion, is to render the disruption permanent and
incurable. And hence I have opposed, and, so
long as my present convictions last, shall continue
to oppose, the entire coërcive policy of the Gov-
ernment. I hope this may be satisfactory to my
friends. For my enemies I care not.
Sincerely yours,

JESSE D. BRIGHT.

J. FITCH, Madison, Ind.
The other letter, addressed to a loyal gentle-
man who was, at one time, Superintendent of the
Capitol Extension, is as follows:

WASHINGTON, June 27, 1860.

DEAR SIR: I take pleasure in introducing to you an old and valued friend, Mr. Thomas B. Lincoln. He has a proposition to make you connected with a kind of machine he understands you are using in the public improvements under your control. I commend him to you as a reliable gentleman, in every sense of the word, and bespeak for him your kind consideration.

Truly yours, J. D. BRIGHT.

Capt. FRANKLIN, On the case, as thus presented, the Committee of the Judiciary made the following report:

The Judiciary Committee, to which was referred the resolution to expel Hon. Jesse D. Bright from his seat in the United States Senate, respectfully report:

That they are of opinion the facts charged against Mr. Bright are not sufficient to warrant his expulsion from the Senate, and they therefore recommend that the resolution do not pass. After a protracted and able debate, the vote was taken, with the result which the telegraph has announced. The resolution was passed by a vote of thirty-two to fourteen, the majority being one and one third more than two thirds of the members present.

The Senators who voted against the resolution are: Bayard, of Delaware; Cowan, of Pennsylvania; Carlisle, of Virginia; Harris, of New-York; Kennedy, of Maryland; Latham, of California; Nesmith, of Oregon; Pearce, of Maryland; Powell, of Kentucky; Rice, of Minnesota; Saulsbury, of Delaware; Ten Eyck, of New-Jersey; Thomson, of New-Jersey; and Willey, of Virginia. Among these are five of the seven members of the Committee of the Judiciary; and two, Ilarris, of New-York, and Cowan, of Pennsylvania, are Republicans.

The debate was distinguished by signal ability on both sides. Undoubtedly the most complete speech in favor of the resolution was that of Mr. Sumner, of Massachusetts, which, viewed as a clear, clean, and exhaustive argument on the case, as presented by the strict and simple record, has been seldom equalled before any tribunal. It was a masterpiece of forensic argumentation. Perhaps the finest speech against the resolution was that of Mr. Saulsbury, of Delaware, which was marked by singular dignity, cogency, and eloquence. Mr. Bright himself spoke as follows:

MR. BRIGHT'S SPEECH.

He said, perhaps what he should say had better have been said weeks ago. He thanked the Judiciary Committee for the favorable report which had been made, though one of their number (Mr. Foster) had given way under unprecedented pressure. The reasons might be satisfactory to that member, but he doubted whether they would be to even-handed justice. His main object in speaking now was to place himself right on the page of history; if he could succeed in that, he would be content. He was amazed at the party spirit exhibited against him, and the numerous accusations brought against him. He might, with propriety, have asked for counsel; but, conscience having said that he had done, written, and voted for nothing inconsistent with his prerogative as an American Senator, he had not claimed that right, and he did not regret not doing so. He should not try to shield himself from partisan blows, but challenged investigation into all the acts of his political life. He had been honored by the State of Indiana thrice by a seat in the Senate of the United States, and had been in the confidence of the Senate, and had received the highest honor they had given. He said this in answer to those who question his antecedents, and sought to prejudice him in the minds of his countrymen. He referred them to the letter he had written to Mr. Jefferson Davis, and to the

character given him by Mr. Lincoln, who had known him for many years, and who always considered him a worthy man. He contended that that letter was a simple letter of introduction, and its address had no intention to recognise the right of Mr. Davis to any title; it was only a mere courtesy, and only followed the example of others on the floor of the Senate. The Senator from Maine, in his assault on him, had said his address was like a courtier. If the Senator had

He

But

known him better, he would have known that If he had been sycowas not one of his faults. phantic, he might have got votes, but all he asked was for justice. When the letter was written, he did not believe there would be war. referred to the President's Inaugural, the acts of the Post-Office Department, and the Secretary of State's despatches, to show, that on the first of March, it was not believed generally that there would be war. He did not believe there would After this be war till the fall of Sumter. there was war, and he should not have given the letter to Davis. He had not the most distant recollection of having written a letter to Davis or other letter of introduction to Capt. Franklin. It had been argued against him that he had said that he would do the same again. He would repeat it, and he meant it, that if he believed there was to be no war, he would give such a letter to an old friend. If he had had the least gleam of suspicion that there would be war, he should not have given the letter; but no one who listened to the debate here will suppose that the letter really has anything to do with the attack on him. he was considered unfit to associate with such patriarchs in the country's service as the Senator from Massachusetts, (Sumner,) and the Senator from New-Hampshire, (Clark,) and even the Senator from Pennsylvania, (Wilmot,) and the Senator from Tennessee, (Johnson,) were afflicted by his presence here as not loyal enough for them. Oh! he must have degenerated in ten years. In 1850 he was appointed on a Committee with such men as Clay, Webster, Calhoun, Clayton, and used his humble efforts to maintain peace. He had ever voted for peace, and never given a seetional vote. Every impulse of my heart, and every tie that binds me to earth, is interwoven with the form of Government under which we live, and to which I acknowledge my allegiance, and I will yield to no man in my attachment to it. Few men of my years have enjoyed more of her glorious advantages, and none have felt more grateful for them; and, though I have been assailed with all the fury of party spirit, and my character unjustly aspersed, and my loyalty and devotion questioned, this shall not alienate me from the faith of my life, or lessen the deep obligation I feel. I have devoted the humble energies of my life to the support of the Government under which we live, and which I would not exchange for any other on earth.

This may be the only opportunity I shall have of expressing my gratitude to the members of the Committee, who have, from that innate sense of justice that always governs the best judge, stood

sent to take as travelling companions, the Senators from Massachusetts, New-Hampshire, and Pennsylvania, with all their heresies. The Senator from Tennessee has done one great injustice. Smarting under blows inflicted by the conduct of those he called a close corporation when here, he points to my association with them, forgetting, at the same time, his own. History, facts, and living witnesses, repel this absurd and unfounded accusation. The honorable Senator from Maryland, (Mr. Kennedy,) moved by a sense of justice to arrive at the truth, vindicates history

by the report, and, rising above the storm of pas sion that seems to control the hour, resolutely maintained that attitude. They have done me all justice, and if my antecedents as a private citizen and a public servant have not proved a shield against criticism, and are not a sufficient guaranty, I give to them the pledge of an honest heart that my future life, wherever fortune may place me, shall give them no occasion to regret this act of justice to me and those whose destinies are interwoven with mine. I am not informed as to the opinion of Senators, except as they have declared them in debate. I have ap-in his late speech on some of these points. He proached no Senator to learn his views. I have had no outside friends to solicit the aid of the public Press, with which to manufacture public opinion in my favor. Conscious of the purity of my intentions and purposes in all that relates to the support of the Government to which I owe allegiance, I had a right to suppose that my peers would rise above the behests of party, and look on this transaction in its true light. But this is a matter that I cannot and have not attempted to control. If the Senate has been polled, and, as I see it stated in some of the papers, it is a foregone conclusion that go I must, I say to my friends and my enemies that I will lose no time in putting myself on trial again before a tribunal whose judgment I have ever found just, and who, I am sure, will give me all the benefits resulting from an acquaintance of forty years and upward with a service which entitles them to judge whether I am a loyal or a disloyal subject-whether I have been a faithful or unfaithful representative of their rights in the many and varied duties which they have intrusted to me to perform. I will go forth with my record in one hand and the record of those who sent me here in the other, and will submit to the people of the State of Indiana the question of right or wrong in this case. I will go with the platform of principles laid down by that party I have acted with through life, and in the name of those principles, and in the name of the Constitution that I have ever tried to support, in letter and in spirit, I will ask a fair and impartial hearing. This, and this only, is the tribunal with which I intend to be content. Mr. Bright then referred to the question of the Senator from Virginia, (Mr. Willey,) asking him to define the letter of September to the Senator. I will say that I have had but one countersign since I have been on duty here, and that has been peace, peace, peace. War never, never, never, as a remedy for any supposed grievance. But how different was the tone of the speech of the honorable Senator from Tennessee, (Mr. Johnson.) Causes of complaint I know he has, and I sympathize with him in his afflictions. Would I had the power to lift the load of sorrow that has bowed him and tens of thousands of others to the earth. Point out the road that leads to peace, with the restoration of the Union, making ours one government, with one flag, not a star effaced, and I will travel it with him as long as there is one gleam of light to guide us. And, sir, forgetting and forgiving, I would even conVOL. IV.-Doc. 5

well recollects the appeals made by himself, myself, and other Senators, some of whom I still see here, to Southern Senators to remain in their seats and give the incoming Administration a trial. The Senator from Tennessee knows I had no part or lot in any movement having for its object the disruption of this land. In replying to the request of the Senator from Virginia I do not want to be considered as seeking votes or any change of opinions. I said on a former occasion, my opinions were fixed. In the execution of details connected with the administration of government affairs, I have always endeavored to conform my action to the policy of those in charge of the Government. So under this Administration; when differing from them I have said so in a becoming manner, I trust. I have been opposed to the principle of coercion. I believe, in the language of the present Secretary of State, that this Federal system is, of all forms of gov ernment, the most unfitted for this labor of coercion. Coercion is war, and war, in the language of the late Senator from Illinois, (Mr. Douglas,) is disunion. But when hostilities commenced against Fort Sumter an entirely new feature presented itself. This act, followed by the proclamation of the President, was war. While my principles in regard to coercion remain unchanged, and while I doubt whether the line of policy of the last Administration, as well as the present, was the best with regard to affairs at Charleston, yet I never hesitated in my duty to my own Government, which was to sustain it in all its efforts to fully enforce obedience to the laws of the United States, within all constitutional limits. Mr. President, I have said all I proposed saying on this occasion; yet I wish to add a few words more. I will inquire, who is it that is asking for my expulsion? My record as a public man is before the country, and particularly before my constituents. The party that have so often honored me with a seat on this floor have lately adjourned one of the largest Conventions ever held in the State. Did they desire my expulsion on the ground that I was disloyal, or on the ground that I was not a faithful representative of their interests? Has any part of that great army from that State expressed any such desire? Have you had any petitions for my removal? Barely one, I believe. I do not understand that my constituency are asking my expulsion, and I want that fact understood. before the country, that I am to be expelled be

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