"Jacob Thomlinson explained that he had been instructed by the authorities at Richmond to lay several matters before this or any meeting they might have of representative men from the North. It was desirable to have these matters fully understood, so that the friends of the South in their meetings could commit all who were willing to aid the South in carrying out the various propositions. First, he would lay the message of President Davis on only one important subject before this meeting. It was dated January 13, 1863, and was in reference to the Proclamation of Emancipation by Mr. Lincoln. Thomlinson said:
"'Mr. Davis claims that "by it the negroes are encouraged to general assassination of their masters by the insidious recommendation to abstain from violence unless in necessary self-defense. Although our own detestation of those who have attempted the most execrable measures recorded in the history of guilty man is tempered by profound contempt for the impotent rage which it discloses so far as regards the action of this Government on such criminals as may attempt its execution, I confine myself to informing you that I shall, unless in your wisdom you deem some other course more expedient, deliver to the several States'
authorities all commissioned officers of the United States who may hereafter be captured by our forces in any of the States embraced in the proclamation, that they may deal with them in accordance with the laws of those States providing for the punishment of those criminals engaged in inciting servile insurrection."'
"At the conclusion of the reading of this extract loud cheers went up for Jeff Davis. Jacob Thomlinson continued reading:
"'On the first day of May last the Confederate Congress passed a series of resolutions. The fourth resolution declares that every white person, being a commissioned officer, or acting as such, who during the present war shall command negroes or mulattoes in arms against the Confederate States, shall be deemed as inciting servile insurrection, and shall, if captured, be put to death. The seventh resolution declares that all negroes and mulattoes who shall engage in war, or shall be taken in arms against the Confederate States, or shall give aid or comfort to the United States, shall, when captured in the Confederate States, be delivered to the authorities of the State or States in which they shall be captured, to be dealt with according to the present or future laws of such States.'
"After reading the message and resolutions, he said that in order to understand the full scope of both, it would be proper for him to state that the laws of all the Southern States for the crime of inciting servile insurrection fixed the penalty of death, so that the meaning of the whole proposition is, that any white man commanding negroes or mulattoes, who shall be captured, shall suffer death, and it will be the same when negroes or mulattoes are captured in arms against the Confederacy. With this explanation he submitted these documents, which were all printed and distributed in confidence, and in this way Henry was enabled to give the whole proceedings. Mr. Valamburg decided that the proposition might be debated, and on this being so determined, Dan Bowen, of Indiana, arose and made a most inflammatory speech. He said he was born in Virginia, and would stand by her in her trials. He was in favor of Jeff Davis's message, and not only so, but would favor the hanging of any white man who would lead negroes against his Southern friends, and would sustain them in any measure of punishment that they might adopt in such cases.
"Mr. Eagle, of Illinois, made quite a speech on the same line. He was from Kentucky originally, and was for the South getting their rights at any cost. He said: 'Let blood flow like rivers, sir. Yes, sir; let fire rain upon Northern cities, and let the destruction of property become general, if necessary to produce the desired result. You must make the Northern people feel poverty, sir, if you wish to succeed. They care more for their property than for their lives. You must touch their pockets and then you touch their hearts. They are a fast-going people.
I would just as lief as not they would know after the war is over, if it ever is, that I was in this meeting. No matter how the war may terminate, they will forget it all in a month, especially if times are good and money shall be plenty.'
"This caused a great laugh, and the speaking ended. The question was taken and decided unanimously in favor of the proposition. None but delegates were allowed to vote.
"Mr. Carey then presented his views, which were that their Northern friends must encourage raids and guerrilla warfare in their own States, and that they must commence it themselves. Burning must be resorted to when it could be done. He said that it had been so managed at Camp Chase in Ohio, by their friend, the Grand Commander of the Sons of Liberty, that a great many very excellent Confederate officers had made their escape, and were ready at any time to take command of men whenever their friends were ready, and that those officers were brave and fearless men ready to undertake any kind of enterprise or daring exploit. He did not look for any more foolish expeditions like the one made by Gen.
Morganson. That it was not successful is easily understood. The Southern people were in too great haste in trying raids by large bodies of men where there were no lines of escape or retreat."
"Yes," said Col. Bush; "they counted their chickens before they were hatched."
"I think they were stale eggs," said Capt. Inglesby.
"Mr. Carey said," continued Uncle Daniel, 'We have now entered upon a system of small raids and destruction of property, so as to be very effective. And although we fear that we cannot repair our loss in the kind of material we had secured and had on board of the Will-o'-the-Wisp, yet we may, by good management, in some degree compensate for it, and, in order that you may understand how we propose to operate, I will read to you the order of the Secretary of War of the Confederate States to one J. C. S. Blackman, the brother of Dr.
Blackman, whose poisoned goods were lost on the Will-o'-the-Wisp. The order is dated Richmond, 1863, and signed J. A. Seddon, Secretary of War, C. S. A., authorizing Blackman to enlist a company of men, not to exceed fifty in number, for special service on the Mississippi River. In lieu of pay or other compensation they are to receive such percentage of the value of all property of the United States or loyal people destroyed by them as may be awarded by an officer selected by the Department in charge of such duty, but in no case to exceed fifty per centum of the value.'
"Carey said that under this order it was understood as soon as Blackman should enlist twenty-five men for this purpose he was to receive a commission in the provisional army without pay. This commission was for his protection in case he should be captured. Said he:
"'We are now issuing quite a number of these commissions, and much good has already resulted. Blackman has destroyed a great quantity of property on the Mississippi and Ohio Rivers. A man by the name of J.
G. Beall, who holds a like commission, has destroyed a great amount of supplies and other property on the Chesapeake. He is near here now, has a vessel, and is recruiting men for the Sons of Liberty in New York city, with a view of running over to St. Albans, in Vermont, and is not only to destroy property, but is to terrify those rich old Vermont Yanks out of their wits. It is by such means that we must alarm the Northern property-holders into peace measures and into voting the anti-war ticket. This is the only sure way to success, in my opinion.'
"They all laughed and agreed that a St. Alban's raid would be a splendid thing, as the old Yankees would do anything to save their money and property. Mr. Carey continued:
"'I think Mr. Beall is known to Mr. Wudd and Mr. McMasterson.'
"They both replied that they knew him well, and he could be relied upon to do whatever he should undertake.
"'Now,' said Mr. Carey, 'the prisoners at Camp Douglas, near Chicago, Ill., and at Camp Chase, in Ohio, must be released. Mr. Thomlinson has the money to pay all expenses. Cannot you men in the Northern States assist in this? Can you not get up organizations such as Blackman and Beall have done? The Richmond authorities will pay the same percentage for the destruction of all property necessary for the use of the army, as they do Blackman and Beall. Why, gentlemen, crops enough might be destroyed in one night by a simultaneous move to very badly embarrass the prosecution of the war.'
"A man by the name of Burnett H. Yonkers, who was present, said he would undertake to release the Camp Douglas prisoners if the gentlemen here from Chicago would render their assistance, to which the gentlemen replied that they would give any aid in their power; that already there had been arms sufficient for this purpose secured by Thomlinson and placed in the hands of a friend in Chicago by the name of Wall; that if Mr. Yonkers should go to Chicago on that business he should stop at the Richmond House and inquire for Mr. John Wall, Mr. Morris Buckner, or either of the gentlemen present; that any of the clerks of the Richmond House would know where to send for either of the persons mentioned.
"Mr. Walters, of Arkansas, being present, (the same that Gen. Anderson met in Colestown, Ill.,) and being one of the chief Organizers, was asked in reference to the condition of the Sons of Liberty. He said he had been traveling for more than a year in the Northern States. He had never been molested, nor had he been questioned as to his business. He had organized thousands of Lodges and found the friends--that is to say, the common people, who connected themselves with the order--ready and willing to act at any time, and willing to do anything that was required. The only trouble he found was in the cowardice of the leaders.
To illustrate what he meant, he said: 'I came from Indianapolis here.
Thos. A. Stridor promised me faithfully that he would be here, but you do not see him. He is the one man of all others in the West who is expected to advise and suggest.'
"Dan Bowen here interrupted, saying: 'Strider has been at work. He has been in Washington, and has sown seeds of dissension in the army; has created jealousies between the Eastern and Western commanders, and produced much trouble on account of the Emancipation Proclamation.'
"'Yes,' said Col. Walters, 'that I believe to be true; but why is he not here? I see he sends a substitute; is he afraid? Mr. Eagle was correct when he said the people of the North will forget all about the war in a month, if you will only give them a chance to make money. I can go into any city and proclaim myself in sympathy with the rebellion, and no one will molest me. If we should fail, and our cause go down, it would not be one year before Jeff Davis would be invited to attend agricultural shows North, so as to draw a crowd and increase the gate money.' This caused great laughter. 'I want now to ask my friend Bowen why his friend Thos. A. Strider is not here.'
"'Well,' said Bowen, 'I cannot say. I had hoped that he would be here, but I find he is not.'
"Mr. Eagle, who seemed to be rather sarcastic, said he understood Strider was compelled to stay at home on account of a cow case in which he was employed. They laughed at this, and then proceeded to business.
The propositions and suggestions were all indorsed, and many promises made on the part of each one present as to the part he would take in the matter when he returned home.
"Jacob Thomlinson said to Mr. Yonkers that he wished him to remain a day or so longer, as he desired to confer with him about the prisoners at Chicago. He then made quite an address to those present, saying the success of the Confederacy depended largely upon their friends in the North; that if the war continued two or three years longer the supply of men and money would fail. All their available men were in the army, and there was now nowhere whence they could draw recruits. Their friends in the North must wake up and help. They had friends enough in the North to make the Confederacy a success in six months, if they would only come up to the work manfully. "'Let our friends do as our friend Carey suggests, get up raids, organize companies for spoils; this is seductive and calculated to gather in young men. We will release our men who are now prisoners and turn them loose full of fiendish revenge, and alarm our enemies into peace measures. You who are our friends in the North must go home determined to carry the next election. This is important. If we can defeat Lincoln at the next Presidential election we are safe. The watchword must be that the war has been a failure; that the North cannot subdue the South; that foreign countries are ready to recognize the Confederacy, which will involve the United States in other wars; that the people are being taxed unmercifully; that the war should stop and the unbearable taxation cease. Your next Democratic platform should start out with the proposition that the war has been prosecuted only for the freedom of the negroes, and not for the Union, and that their freedom can only be maintained by the Union armies being entirely successful, and that during years of horrible, bloody war the Government has failed to conquer the rebellion and must continue to fail. Do this, and stand by it with a good candidate, and you must succeed. I would suggest that you take your "Little Napoleon," General Mac, for your candidate. He is exceedingly popular with the soldiers of the East, and with the people also, as I am told. The sympathy will be with him, having been relieved from the command of the Eastern armies because he could not whip us, which was no fault of his, as none of their commanders will succeed in doing that on our own ground. We were foolish to undertake an invasion of the North. But no matter, we will soon make up for this. If you will take up Little Mac there will be no trouble in your giving him the nomination, and then one united effort on the part of our party will send him into the White House. If he can be elected that will end the war, as he is a peace man and a Democrat. We would then have another advantage. Many of the officers of the Union army of the East do not believe in our subjugation, and are bitterly opposed to the Emancipation Proclamation. Some of them have large commands.
For instance, there is Gen. Farlan, who is a friend of mine of long standing; he is violently opposed to the Lincoln administration, and would at once favor a cessation of hostilities. So also is Gen. Smite and General Cross, both leading Generals. I may also mention Gen.
Fitzgibbon. He has been ready for some time to stop the war, because he is thoroughly satisfied that we have been wronged and oppressed. He is in favor of putting Little Mac in as President. He would be ready for peace on our terms, which would be to withdraw the Union forces and let us alone. We have been robbed of our property, but should we gain our independence we care nothing for this, as we would reclaim our slaves, such as have not been stolen by the Abolition army. This, gentlemen, is what we desire and expect you to aid us in securing. If these things all fail us we will, in our desperation, make the homes of many of your Northern men miserable and desolate.'
"When he was through with his suggestions they all cheered him, and each one, by short speeches, pledged a faithful adherence to the Confederacy.
When they adjourned it was to meet again at some place in Canada to be named by Jacob Thomlinson, and the representatives to be notified by Mr.
Valamburg. They separated with three cheers for the Confederacy."
Dr. Adams said: "I am desirous of knowing if Jacob Thomlinson and Mr.
Carey are the same persons whom your son Jackson met in London?"
"Yes; they are the same men who were engaged in procuring explosives and poisoned clothes, of which I have heretofore given you a full account."
Col. Bush asked if this man Blackman, who took out a commission in order to depredate and plunder, is still living?
"Yes, he is not only living, but is now holding one of the highest positions in the United States, as a Reformer."
"What?" said Dr. Adams.
"Yes, sir, as I once before have stated, his brother, who was to distribute poisoned clothing to our soldiers and in our hospitals, was made Governor of one of the adjacent States, and this marauder has been given one of the highest and most honorable positions. But why? You look surprised, Doctor. Has this not been so ever since the war? The most desperate and reckless men have been given the highest places by the opponents of the war, while our people, many of them, are only too glad to find something against one of our good soldiers as an excuse for laying him aside as useless furniture."
Said Maj. Clymer: "Valamburg is dead, I believe."
"Yes; he shot himself accidentally soon after the war, and died of his wound."
Uncle Daniel proceeded by saying: "I made my arrangements to leave for Washington at once, in order to have this information in the hands of the President as soon as possible. I requested Seraine to remain with the rest of the family until I should return, as I might wish to send some word to Henry. When I arrived at Washington and called upon the President I told him the reason I had not visited him recently, and why I had sent my son with the last report. Our afflictions had been severe and my wife was in such a condition, both in mind and body, that I really feared to leave her, except under very extraordinary circumstances. The President was very glad to see me and very grateful for what my sons were trying to do for our country He asked after the health of my family, Gen. Anderson, and all of whom he knew as in any way a part of us, and the poor man seemed almost as much grieved over our misfortunes as myself. He seemed to be full of hope, however, and spoke to me very freely about the war and our chances of final success.
"He strode across the room and, turning to me, said: 'We are now on the right road, I think. I have rid myself of some of those Generals that we spoke about when we last met, and I intend to be rid of them for the remainder of the war. If they want dictators, and will not obey the President, they will have to organize outside of the army. I have now a new commander for the Army of the East who seems to be doing well. I hope he may continue as he began. He won the battle of Gotlenburg and broke the rebel army to pieces. 'I think,' said he, 'that Gen. Meador should have followed up his victory; but perhaps not. If he should not exactly fill the bill my eye is on a Western man who seems to know what he is about, and I think of bringing him East and giving him control of all the armies; but I will determine this later.'
"I then gave him the statement made to me by Henry. He read it over carefully, and in an excited manner ordered a messenger to go for the Secretary of War. He soon arrived, and after greetings the President handed the statement to the Secretary. He also read it carefully. They then discussed the matter, and concluded to order an additional force to Camp Chase, relieve the commandant, and place a more careful and efficient officer in his place. This was done by telegraph, with a warning to the new commander to look out for an attempt to release the prisoners.
"The Secretary said to the President: 'The rebels are desperate, and since they lost their shipload of explosives and poisoned clothes, with their two friends who were to carry out their plans, they are determined to attempt something else equally desperate, and we must look for raids, fire and plunder. By the way,' said the Secretary to me, 'that was rather a nice thing your son Jackson did in finding out all their schemes in London. Had it not been for his discovery we never would have known the desperation and infamy to which those men were driven.'
"'Yes,' said the President. 'Mr. Lyon, is he your eldest son now in the army?'
"'I have but two left in the army--Jackson and Peter. The latter you promoted for gallantry at Middleton Ridge. Jackson is now my oldest son in the service.'
"'Mr. Secretary,' said the President, 'you will make out a commission for him as Brigadier-General, and give it to Mr. Lyon to take home with him as an evidence that we appreciate the services of his family, and especially Jackson's great service in this most important matter.'
"I was visibly affected. The President saw it as he stood by a window for a moment. I arose and thanked him. He said:
"'No, the obligation is the other way.'
"Just then a dispatch was handed the President, stating that quite a number of prisoners had escaped from Camp Chase. He gave it to the Secretary, saying: