Harper’s Weekly – January 12, 1861

Harper's Weekly archives ^ | January 12, 1861

[rustbucket]

Rubbish!
You didn't even read your own post, did you?
If you had, you'd see that Anderson clearly expects to continue his contract for meat with a certain Mr. McSweeney of Charleston.
He rightly doesn't want to be supplied by South Carolina authorities, and he also requests Northern ships be allowed to remove the women & children for return to New York.

After turning down the offer for daily supplies of food from the governor, Anderson was surprised to discover that no supplies were coming from Mr. McSweeney because McSweeney had not been paid by the almost bankrupt US government for seven months. Anderson had to request emergency funding from Washington. The officer he sent to Washington to get the money forgot to bring draft back with him. I gather it eventually got straightened out for at least some food, but apparently not enough to keep Anderson's forces from about running out of food by mid April. Apparently, Anderson either did not buy enough food from McSweeney or did not have enough money from the bankrupt government to feed his troops and keep them from running out of food. Anderson had cut off his nose to spite his face.

I have read somewhere that Anderson turned down the food because he did not want the South Carolinians do anything that might make them look compassionate. What a great guy!

The request for a ship to transfer the women to New York that you mentioned was quickly granted.

So 100% of the blame, every little piece of it, belongs on the South Carolina authorities who made illegal demands of both Maj. Anderson and the US Federal government.

And none, in your mind, belong on Anderson for moving to Fort Sumter in the face of orders from Buchanan not to do that? Anderson did not get an order to move to Sumter in spite of his request on December 21 for such an order. His decision to move and starve his troops out was one of the powder kegs that led to the war.

[rustbucket]

"David Aiken, a founding member of the pro-secessionist group The League of the South, lamented that Simms was purged from the canon of American literature because of the "unpardonable sin Simms committed when he published an account of Columbia, South Carolina's destruction in which he dared to deny the North a righteous victory."[21]

What? Purged because Simm's told the truth about what happened to Columbia. It was no "righteous victory". It was wanton destruction. Far, far worse than an Antifa attack. The truth about what their soldiers did might indeed not have gone down well with the Northern people. Read Simm's book.

In 1874, Sherman testified that in Columbia he decided he couldn't be so harsh on his men as to tell them not to destroy Columbia. His words.

[Homer_J_Simpson]

The Diary of George Templeton Strong, Edited by Allan Nevins and Milton Halsey Thomas

[Homer_J_Simpson]

Today’s posts on https://civilwarnotebook.blogspot.com/2015/04/documents-and-speeches-1861.html for January 14.

https://civilwarnotebook.blogspot.com/2013/03/the-new-york-legislatures-concurrent.html
The New York Legislature’s Concurrent Resolutions Tendering Aid to the President of the United States in Support of the Constitution and the Union

https://civilwarnotebook.blogspot.com/2018/08/statement-of-messrs-miles-and-keitt-of.html
Statement of Messrs. Miles And Keitt, of what Transpired Between the President and the South Carolina Delegation

[Homer_J_Simpson]

The Diary of George Templeton Strong, Edited by Allan Nevins and Milton Halsey Thomas

[Homer_J_Simpson]

Today’s posts on https://civilwarnotebook.blogspot.com/2015/04/documents-and-speeches-1861.html for January 15.

https://civilwarnotebook.blogspot.com/2014/09/james-garfield-to-burke-hinsdale.html
James A. Garfield to Burke A. Hinsdale

https://civilwarnotebook.blogspot.com/2015/07/louis-t-wigfall-et-al-to-isaac-w-hayne.html
Louis T. Wigfall et al to Isaac W. Hayne

[Homer_J_Simpson]

Continued from January 12 (reply #3). The final quote of the following excerpt is from today’s NY Times.

Doris Kearns Goodwin, Team of Rivals

[Homer_J_Simpson]

With Lincoln in the White House: Letters, Memoranda, and Other Writings of John G. Nicolay, 1860-1865, edited by Michael Burlingame

[Homer_J_Simpson]

Today’s posts on https://civilwarnotebook.blogspot.com/2015/04/documents-and-speeches-1861.html for January 16.

https://civilwarnotebook.blogspot.com/2015/07/joseph-holt-to-major-robert-anderson.html
Joseph Holt to Major Robert Anderson

https://civilwarnotebook.blogspot.com/2015/08/jeremiah-s-black-to-brevet-lieutenant.html
Jeremiah S. Black to Brevet Lieutenant-General Winfield Scott

https://civilwarnotebook.blogspot.com/2015/05/major-john-sedgwick-to-his-sister_16.html
Major John Sedgwick to his Sister

[Homer_J_Simpson]

The Diary of George Templeton Strong, Edited by Allan Nevins and Milton Halsey Thomas

[Homer_J_Simpson]

Today’s posts on https://civilwarnotebook.blogspot.com/2015/04/documents-and-speeches-1861.html for January 17.

https://civilwarnotebook.blogspot.com/2014/05/governor-samuel-j-kirkwood-to-captain.html
Governor Samuel J. Kirkwood to Captain Henry. R. Cowles

https://civilwarnotebook.blogspot.com/2015/07/isaac-w-hayne-to-louis-t-wigfall-et-al_3.html

[Homer_J_Simpson]

William T. Sherman to Governor Thomas O. Moore, January 18, 1861

JANUARY 18, 1861.

GOVERNOR THOMAS O. MOORE,
BATON ROUGE, LA.

SIR—As I occupy a quasi-military position under this State, I deem it proper to acquaint you that I accepted such position when Louisiana was a State in the Union, and when the motto of the seminary was inserted in marble over the main door, “By the liberality of the General Government of the United States. The Union, Esto Perpetua.” Recent events foreshadow a great change, and it becomes all men to choose. If Louisiana withdraws from the Federal Union, I prefer to maintain my allegiance to the old Constitution as long as a fragment of it survives, and my longer stay here would be wrong in every sense of the word. In that event, I beg you will send or appoint some authorized agent to take charge of the arms and munitions of war here belonging to the State, or direct me what disposition should be made of them. And furthermore, as President of the Board of Supervisors, I beg you to take immediate steps ~ to relieve me as Superintendent, the moment the State determines to secede; for on no earthly account will I do any act, or think any thought, hostile to or in defiance of the old Government of the United States.

With great respect, &c.,

W. T. SHERMAN.

SOURCE: Charles B. Richardson, Our Great Captains: Grant, Sherman, Thomas, Sheridan, and Farragut, p. 90-1

https://civilwarnotebook.blogspot.com/2019/10/william-t-sherman-to-governor-thomas-o.html William T. Sherman to Governor Thomas O. Moore

[M Kehoe]

Hi.

Same thing happened at VMI.

5.56mm