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About Medford mail tribune. (Medford, Or.) 1909-1989 | View Entire Issue (Jan. 2, 1961)
MEDFORD MAIL TRIBUNE, MEDFORD. ORE. MONDAY, JANUARY 2. 1961 B 7 ft - -I... .:V,r- THIS W fl v; T W HI CIVIL WAR WARLESTqfll 4eCASTLI PINCKNEY 0 'V FORT JOHNSONp Of FORT SUMTER: CUMMINGS POINT FOCAL POINT-This newsmap, drawn es pecially for this article on the history of the Civil War, spots Charleston Harbor, an area that was the focal point of attention in the United States in late 1860 and early 1861. Maj. Robert Anderson had moved his Union garrison from Ft. Moultr.'5,,a death trap in the harbor, to Ft. Sumter, where he tiiv t nun miw iMmu had room to fight. The move precipitated a cabinet crisis, and, in the last days of his administration, turned President Buchanan solidly northern. The cabinet crisis was to bring to light Secretary of War John B. Floyd's involvement in a scandal which was 'to cost the U. S. government $870,000. (UPI Telephoto) Buchanan Turns Northern By MERTON T, AKERS UPI Correspondent In the final week of 1860, President Buchanan finally turned solidly Northern. . Events had come a full cir cle in less than a month and the man who started it all was none other than Maj. Robert Anderson, a hardy artillery man who obeyed orders. His coup against the South Carolinians in moving his pint-sized garrison from Ft. Moultrie, a death-trap in the Charleston, S. C, Harbor, to Ft. Sumter, where he had gun nery room to fight, stirred of ficial Washington. Word of Anderson's moVe on Dec. 26 sparked a five-day cabinet crisis. Before it was over President Buchanan was forced into a decision by an gry cabinet members and or dered reinforcements for the spunky major. The fact thai the order later was watered down and the reinforcements never reached Ft. Sumter mat tered not at the moment. The decision served notice on the Southern conspirators in the capital that the administra tion was now headed by a Northern cabinet. The South erners were set ba'ck on their heels and had to replan their moves. Floyd Challenges Anderson Secretary of War John B. Floyd, a Virginia secessionist with a low boiling point, heard of Anderson's move from his friends in South Carolina early on Dec. 27. He refused to believe it and tele graphed Anderson: tlntelligerice reached here this morning that you have abandoned F.t. Moultrie, spiked your guns, burned the carriages and gone to' Ft. Sum ter. It is not believed because there is no order for any such movement. Explain 'he mean ing ot tnis report. The message dispatched Floyd called on his Southern friends in Washington for help. The nesponse came before noon. Sens. Jefferson Davis of Mississippi and R. M. T. Hunter of Virginia with Wil liam) Trescott, until lately as sistant secretary of state, has tened to the White House. Da vis acted as spokesman. He asked President Buchan an if the had 'heard that day from Charleston. The Presi-'l dent said he had not: "I 2ave a calamity to an nounce to you," Davis said in his gravest tones. Then he told of Anderson's move. "Now, Mr. President," Da vis went on as if announcing the crack of doom, "You acs surrounded with blood and dishonor on all sides." "My (od," the harried If 'Etectiic beat.U time clean, compact", and ejjjlcieiifc EARL OVE Builder Weed for full information on5 safe.,clfean. economical Electric keat. visit a calore electrical league dealer or electrical contractor: BAUMER'S SHEET METAL & HEATING 840 N. Riverside Medford SP 3-4348 BROOKS ELECTRIC 116 N. Riverside Medford SP 2-5209 COURT STREET ELECTRIC 1127 Court Street Medford SP 2-2463 ELECTRONIC SERVICE 0 . , 18 N. GiTipe Medford SP 3-1971 . 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Buchanan begged off as the cabinet, having heard the news, began to check in-the Northerners, Secretary of State Jeremiah Black, Attor ney General Edwin M. Stan ton and Postmaster General Joseph Holt, with blood in their eyes. By then, Floyd had an an swer from Anderson: "The telegram is corrcst. I abandoned Ft. Moultrie be cause I was certain if at tacked my men would be sac rificed, and the command of the harbor lost. I spiked the guns and destroyed the car riages to keep the guns from being used against us." The war secretary was fur ious. This was against orders, he protested. Send Anderson back to Moultrie at once be fore there is bloodshed, he stormed at the President. Black challenged this out burst. He called for the ong-( inal order and it was brought over from the War Depart ments Floyd was wrong al-' though his endorsement was on the order. F'oyd Changes Tactics Floyd tried another course. The orders said that Anderson might move his garrison if there was "tangible evidence" of an impending attack. No such evidence existed, Floyd contended. But Black count ered that if the major was not to be the judge of impending attack, then the order was meaningless. Floyd again changed tac tics. President Buchanan had pledged to Gov. Henry F."Gist earlier that the harbor garri son would remain Ct, status quo, Floyd S?id. Now the President had dishonored his pledge. This was news indeed to the Northerners. They wanted chapter and verse on the pledge. Secretary of Interior Jacob Thompson, a Mississippi se cessionist, joined Floyd in in sisting the President had made such a pledge. The President listened si lently. The angry Floyd immedi ately wrote what amounted to an ultimatum to the President and widened the demand. Either permit him to order Anderson out of Charleston defenscsj-not jnst back to Moultrie-or else. The "or else" presumably meant he would resign. Stanton, never one to pull his punches, said heatedly that if the President gave in to Floyd's demands the crime would be )''ve Benedict Ar nold's and any president or dering A n d e rs o n out of Charleston would be guilty of treason. At that President Buchanan spoke up: Oh, no, not so bad as that my friend. Not so bad as that." The President c n o s e lo await official word from An derson before making up his mind. Ambassadors' Call The President had a curious entry in his appointment book for the next day, Dec. 28. He was to see-unofflcially-a del egation from South Carolina, sent to Washington to treat with a "foreignpower" - the United States - about the Charleston forts. R. W. Barn well, Harvard graduate, form er senator, former representa tive, ex-college president, headed the delegation. With him were J. H. Adams, Yale graduate, ex-governor, and a secessionist who favored re opening the African slave- trade, and James L. Orr, form er speaker of the House. Buchanan saw Inem as pri vate citizens, not as "ambosa dors." He reminded them that that South Carolina had seized Ft. Moultrie, Castle Pinckney, the Charleston ar,senal, " the post office and the custom house. The delegation re minded the President he had broken the .pledge. They talked two hours. Finally Bu chanan said: "Mr. Barnwj:,, you are pressing me too importuncly. tYou don't6 give me time to say my prayers. I always say my prayers when required to act on any great state affair." That night the cabinet met again in another stormy ses sion to consider the delega tion's d'fnands. o Thompson "carried the'bali while Floyd lay on a sofa. Black, Stanton and Holt0drove Thompson from position to po sition until the Mississippian began lo talk "polmouth. " Af ter all, he said, South Caro ling was a small state, with a minority of white inhabi tants. The United States was big, powerful, rich. It could afford to concede a point. This was more than Stan ton could take. He attacked CJoyd and spread before the cabinet what it already knew but talked little about-a scan dal In Floyd's department. "Mr. President," Stanton said, "only the other day it was announced that a million dollars had been stolen from Mr. Thompson's department. "The bonds were found to have been taken from the vault where they should have been and tht notes of Mr. Floyd were substituted for them. Now it is proposed to give up Sumter. All I have to say is that no administra tion, much less this one, can afford to lose a million of money and a fort in the same week." Behincl. n Scandal - Stanton's figure of a million was a shade high. The amount was $870,000. The bonds made up an Indian trust fund and were in keeping of Goddard Bailey, a clerk in the Interior Department and a distant rel ative of Floyd's. A firm of contractors, Rus sell. Waddell and Majors, had supplied the Army and was in financial trouble because Con gress was slow to pay. Floyd issued notes to them certifying that the Army owed the mon ey. The Contractors used the certificates for credit, but' when the paper came due they could not pay. Batley was induced to hand over the bonds in his keeping to the contractors, putting in their place Floyd's certificates. Whether Floyd knew about this substitution was never es tablished. He was indicted, but the charges were dropped after he went over to the Con federacy. The cabinet met again the next night, Dec. 29, but with out Floyd. He had resigned that day. His story was that he quit because , Buchanan would not remove Anderson. The country thought it was because of the bond scandal, Cabimt Crisis Thrtalans Buchanan had written a re ply to the South Carolina delegation. The Northern cab inet members disapproved be cause it gave in to the South erners, the Southerners be cause it did not go far enough. They wrangled for an hour or so and broke up again. Black lay awake all night. Dawn of Sunday, Dec. 30, found him with his mind made up. He told his colleagues if Buchanan sent his answer to the delegation, he would re sign. Stanton said he would, too. Isaac Toucey, secretary of Navy, told Buchanan, and the President crumpled. His administration couldn't stand another upheaval. He gave his answer to Black and Stan ton for revision. They changed it from appeasement to defi ance. Before night Buchanan sent his reply. It was stiff. He had been asked to remove U.S. forces from Charleston under threat: "This I cannot do; this I wfcll not do." FOLDS UP FINALLY Atlanta - OIPIi-The last Civil war agency of the Georgia, siaic government weni out oi existence today. The state De partment of Confederate Pen sions and Records which han dles pension payments to 172 widows of Confederate sol diers, officially became a part of the state Department of Veterans service. Medford Youth Attends University of Kansas Lawrence, Kan.-One Med ford student is among a rec ord total of 10,036 attending the University of Kansas this year, according to the director of admissions. Theodore Earl Lowson, son of Dr. and Mrs. Earl L. Law son, 301 Windsor ave., Med fcftd, is.) a sophomore at the university. The student body includes representation from0all VOSi Kansas counties, the 50 states, the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, plus a record high of 309 foreign Cstudcnts from 62 countries. Organization for European Economic cooperation. TURKEY GETS AID Washington - H'PIl -oThe In ternational "Monetary Fund has authorised Turkey in 1961 to draw up to $37.5 million in currencies held by the fund. The fuiid also announced Fri day that TurkePy will receive a $50 million credit from the OEI THE GENUINE MR mflSTER Amtn'co'f latgtd Ulling TOILET TANK BALL Noisy running toilets con wast over 1000 gallons of water a day. 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