VOL. 47.
AMEIUOAK VOLUNTEER.
rususnuD Erzitr. .munsDAT mokniso bt
ioiixu. teBAXTos.
TERMS
BußservTroy.—Ono Dollar and Fifty Cents, paid
lei advance; Two Dollars' if paid within the year;
end Two Dollars and Fifty Conte, if hot paid within
ill* year. These terms will bo rigidly adhered to in
•very instance. No subscriptionldisoontinuod until
ill orreprages are paid unless at the option of tho
Editor.;
Advertisements —Accompanied by the cash, and
not exceeding ono square, will bo inserted three
time* for Oho Dollar,'and twonty-flve cents for each
additional insertion. Those of a greater length m
?r jOD-P™xTINO-Sucli as Hand-bills, Posting-bills,
Pamphlets. Blanks, Dabols, 40. 4c., executed with
accuracy and at the shortest notice.
|sorii tdl.
A MODEL WOBSHIPPEB.
"Toll mo about tho sormon dear,
Take off your shawl and hat,
And come and sit beside me here;
The, text first—whore was that?”
"Well, really, Aunty, I don’t know,
I have forgotten quite;
I wish you could soo Jane Monroe,
She drosses like a fright!"
“Miss Lyman wore a splendid shawl,
With that old horrid bonnet, ,
‘The very one she wore last fall,
And that old trimming on it." ,
"Bnt Mrs, Beacon Jones had on
Ono of tho richest collars
I ever saw, and her new dress
Must have cost fifty dollars."
"Strange what extravagance and waste
Some people always show !
Thon Hatlie-Bell, what want of taste
She drosses with, you know." .
"The audience you remember, dear,
If you do not the sermoh;
Which preacher do you like to hoar.
This one, or Mr. Herman?
"Ob, I Ute Mr.Heman, for
Ho’a handsome, aunt, you know;
Then he’s so.graceful, and his teeth
How splendidly they show!”
TOG SILENT RIVES.
There is a silent river,
The rolling river. Time;
In Summer's rosy blushes,
In hoary Winter’s prime,
It floweth, flowotb, flowotb.
In whatsoever clime.
Aud well-trimmed barks are sailing
Upon its silent tide;
With golden treasures laden,
The little vessels glide,' .
And Faith, and Loro, and Action,
And hopes are side by side.
And nh, a host of others 1 -
' Oornpoao the little floaty . ..
■ Now* soon the 'waves’uvo heaving,
Now wide the waters beat;
’ Gray mists steal o’er the Waters —
V' ’’pho mournful mists of Fate.
Xhe.poWstar grows dimmer;
! Tho scattered vessels driven
All wide in disappointment,
Unto tho waves are given ;
And Faith alone romainoth
To boar the soul to heaven.
Hlmllnmoiifl.
MY AGNES.
BV A MOTHER.
. How cross I wasl; I thought of it all the
time I was talking to that little fragile crea
ture, whose lips had, made those few simple
requests I might so easily have granted, had
J only so willed. A slight, little lilly-of-the
ralley sort of a,child she. was, heeding all the
protection and care nature had afforded her;
one who loved to nestle in the thick green
I,oaves of parental affection,' and bidden there,
ksking little else.
.‘‘lt is so cold in the nursery, mamma, and
John hasn’t the stove up yet; I will be so
still if you let me sit here by you.” ’
V Put a shawl about you,” I answered;
‘‘there is no stove here, either, and I am sure
it’s not cold anywhere this morning.”
The little girl left her seat and went to the
window. Her face was very wistful in its
expression, and her unsatisfied look wandered
up at the sky, filled With its dreary gray
clouds, to the trees on the lawn swayed by the
chilly north wind, then away to the right,
where she could catch glimpses of the lake,
With its white crested waves rushing wildly
in shore. It was cold; I acknowledged it to
myself as I watched her standing there, but I
did nut admit it to her.
“Could you let me have one of the baby’s
Slips, mamma, to put on my doll? I won’t
tear it.”
“How absurd you are, Agnesi Don’t make
such foolish .requests; your doll, I’m sure, has
ruough clothes of her own.”
“I love to have her look like your baby,
Biamma.”
“ Don’t'lease.mo any longer, ehild 1 1 can’t
IW l ”your doll and the baby from the same
that it quite settled."
“ r> ’ Puss tell a story to me?”
“ Puss has the baby to attend to, and can’t
wll you atones, Agnes. .Go get your sewing
and sit down in the nursery, or do what you
like to amuse yourself, but do not trouble'me
anymore."
i She lingered a moment longer, twisting the
ends of her blue sash in her little fingers;
then went out of the room, closing the door
so gently behind her,, I scarcely knew of her
exit.
. .•A. little after this, I rose, and went to the
Winnow. _ I can see the trees sway now, just
ps they did that morning; and the gray sky
•ad ft'e gray lake; I see them, too, and.feel
the biting Qutober air which made my little
daughter.declare it was so cold.
As 1 looked from the tall window, I saw,
crossing the lower part of the garden, old
Bartlemy Boyd. His gray hair blew about
over his haggard face, half concealing his
.bloodshot eyes and mumbling Ups. I thought
be seemed more wild in manner than was
usual, and wondered what' had occurred to
excite him. Generally regarded as perfectly
harmless, ho was permitted to go at large
about, the town; chopping wood, running of
errands, and picking up an honest penny in
Whatever useful way no could,. Little Chil
dren loved him. His entertaining stories, his
worry or vivid' pictures of sea-life,
rawn from his own aaiior-oxporienco of many
lh! r, 'k^ r T to * um tho little ones; and
~ u gbi when I saw them clustering around
|u> i more than half doubted tho propriety
olri P l rmit T n J? tllom tlme to trust a half crazed
nwr. T’,l d,Bllkod to *>e the first to draw my
„, v d rom tho innocent circle which
o y e the poor old man so much delight.
To mylittlo Agnes ho often brought the
blue lillies' from .the distent pond; wild roses
from the distant hills, and the rich hearted
daisies Trom the low meadows. -The dove of
flowers amounted to a passion; and her little
five voar old heart could not be made, to leap
with a greater joy than when permitted to go
by herself gathering these precious crumbs
from the table, of our Lord.
Her favorite walk, when suitably attended,
had always been to tho summit of Black Rock,
a lofty crag which rose precipitately from tho
lake and joined the level ground by a steep
and rough descent on tho shore side. - On the
summit of this crag grew many a sweet herb
and wild flower which Agnes knew and loved,
and being a child possessed of no fear of na
ture, she was wont to venture to the very edge
of the fearful precipice in search of.any favo
rite blossom, maintaining her fearless de
meanor, 1 and that calm forgetfulness of danger
which seems the sole prerogative of the som
nambulist.
As I said before. I was cross that morning.
I felt that I had been more childish than
my child herself. As the wind grew wilder
and the sky more dark, I began to long for
the little one’s prattle, and to regret having
banished her from my own cheerful morning
room, with its soft, southern aspect, and lux
urious appurtenances, to the chilly loneliness
of some other part of the house, with only her
doll for company. I went to my door, and
called her name softly. I had some oak burrs
and scarlet berries in my table drawer I
wished to offer her. “ Agnes,” I called again,
softly. There came no answer.
I thought then it was my own conscious
ness of having left undone those things which
I ought to have done for my little girl’s
amusement and pleasure, ‘ which sent. that
sharp pang through rny heart, as, leaving my
my own door unclosed, I rah rapidly up
stairs. I never dreamed of regarding it as a
foretaste of those fiercer pangs which "wore to
henceforth fill both heart and brain and bring
mo here— here!
“ Agnes 1” I called again. •
. I can hear my own voice to-day, as it came
unanswered back to me through the silent
rooms. The nurse opened a door and looked
out. ■ ■
. “ Have you seen Agnes, Puss?”
She had not.
I ran to the closet whore her shawl and
hood were kept. They, were gone.
A hot flush .shot up, like flame; into my
cheeks. My heart throbbed so wildly 1
thought for a, moment I must suffocate. Yet
I wondered at my own agitation. It wasnot
Such an unusual thing for the child to go out
of the house. Why should I feel so uneasy
now ? I could only feel it was so, without
explaining why it was. I made a hasty sur
vey of the whole house. None of the servants
had seen my little girl; she was nowhere to
be found upon the premises. The wind was
blowing a gale now, and the clouds were as
black as if choked with a deluge they were
about to pour upon us. I could see the waves
dashing wildly upon the lake, shaking their
foamy crests over the rocks which boundthe
shore. Looming high above them all, like
some gigantic priest of nature standing on .the
shore preaching to those rebellious waters,
rose the gloomily grand proportions of Black
Rock. As my eye. fell upon it, a fearful
dread fell upon my sou). Summoning the
servants, I sped away, bidding them follow
me; and, heedless of the rough path and the
wild winds, I rushed up the craggy steep,
struggling to gain the summit, while the
wind, blowing furiously in shore, thwarted
my every effort. I was about, to relinquish
the attempt, when something fluttering oh a
withered shrub above me caught my gaze. It
was a tangled bunch of blue frihgfe. . I know
where that came from. I know whoso little
scarf had caught there, and left those tangled
threads. With a wild energy, which out
stripped the most earnest efforts of those who
followed me,' I clambered up. up, and stood
at last upon the.'very; pinnacle, alone. Yes,
alone! Do not mind it that! utter that drea
ry shriek with the word ; it will rise when I
remember with what wild hope I struggled to
that fearful height and found no little Agnes
there. She had been there, though; for on
the branch of a low thorn bush, under which
some blue-eyed flowers still bloomed, was a
thin tress,of sunny hair— : a little golden curl
to which the cruel thorn had clung and held,
to meet a mother’s gaze.
What must,l believe? How much had I
to fear, how much to hope? Had she gone
safely down as she came up; had she wan
dered off over the lowlands, or, horror of hor
rors! had she fallen over the cliff into those
wild waves below?. The little shreds of blue
silk, the little tress of hair, plainly.proved
that she had been to the uttermost height of
the fearful crag. Was she alone ? Had she
disobeyed my injunctions never to come here
by. herself? As I stood breasting the wind
in this agony of doubt, ,my eyes were sweep
ing the'climbing waters below me ; and just
as.the servants joined me, I descried, upon
the comb of distent wave, a floating object,
something which might be a drifting log ora
little bout. I pointed it out to the rest.
1 It’s a boat," cried John, the gardener, as
it rose again ; “ that little nutshell of a thing
which the Mayor kept moored here for his
boys. I know her by the queer gunwale and
the scarlet flag she carries.”
, What did the little boat hold for us, that
kept us watching there, when we know not
yet of our lost one?
We were all transfixed by one wild fear.
Evidently, the frail boat was managed by
some one who understood his work. Who
would have gone forth in such a gale, but old
Bartlemy Boyd? Was our lost darling with
him ? I remember that as the little plank
rose and disappeared, and rose again on the
foamy'waves, bow all of earth seemed to melt
away, and all the world revolve in one little
fragile apeok upon an angry sea. One more
wave; and now, we could plainly see the boot
contained two persons—one on old man with
gray locks, the other a fragile, pallid, little
child, sitting in the stern, her apron full of
forgotten wild flowers, her bonnet gone, and
her shining hair wet with the dashing water.
“Ropes, John 1” I cried; “be quick; no
boat can live in yonder surf. Ply! Your for
tune is made if you return in time.”
. I stood, fascinated, gazing at the little one,
so calmly facing her fearful danger. I could
not go down to the beach—l could not lose
sight of her long enough for that. I could see
the old man’s efforts to keep his boat out to
eea. What avail was that feeble strength
against the wind and waves? I saw his look
of blank dismay as he found his boat rushing
into to the surf He turned and said some
thing to Agnes. She shook her head in an
ewer, and smiled. I know, as well as though
I heard her, she had told him she was not
afraid. He dropped his oars and caught the
child in his arms; the next moment, and'thh
boat was in pieces j -anff my child, my darling,
the white" waves,- in the arms of t
a madman I ’ ,
How I shrieked—how I raved I Far out
info the boiling water ran John with his ropes,,
casting them toward those frantic arms which
"OUR COUNTRY—MAY IT ALWAYS BIGHT—‘BUT, RIGHT OR WRONG, OUR COUNTRY."
|,made no effort to reach them. Like a green
monster, came rushing a huge, dark wave.
For a moment it staggered with its own terri
ble height; the next, it had fallen like a cur
tain before the stage, shutting from my sight
a little whitened face and a head of golden
hair.
I have a faint remembrance of seeing that
face once again; it was ashen pale, and ns
cold as a, snow-drift. Perhaps it was all a
dream; and I never really did see it again.
I remember, though, my bitter, burning re
gret and agony, when I recollected my refu
sal to gratify any of those little, childish
pleadings that morning, ono of which, cordi
ally granted, would have kept ray darling by
me that terrible day. I know ray remorse
was no dream. It was my intensest reality
yet. Do you wonder sometimes that I wake
up screaming in tho night, or that I occasion
ally shriek aloud in the daytime ? I thought,
when I first came here,, and heard such
shouts of horrid laughter, and shrieks so much
louder than any of my own, that they had
brought me to a mad house. I rebelled fran
tically; but I soon found out my mistake,
AVhy "should they put me in a mad-house ? ’ I
saw, after a moment’s reflection, how absurd
ray suspicions wore. This is a large, hand
some building—a great resort for invalids and
sorrowing people who need change of scene.
My -rooms command a lovely prospect —my
harp and piano arc here. A faithful attend
ant walks or drives-with me everyday. I
could hot he hotter cared for. On rainy days,
when the sky is gray and the wind is cold, I
sit and stroke this little sunny curl, gathered
from tho thorn-bash high up tho beetling cliff.
I twine it around my finger. I let it uncoil
itself in the rivaling sunshine when it pierces
the clouds, and hind it about-with this hit of
biuo fringe, which was torn from 7ier silken
sash. ,1 always find a sweet pleasure in thus
contemplating those frail treasures left me of
my Agnes; only when my heart suddenly
swells till it bursts with those relieving shrieks
do I remember that my little girl went away
from me with little clusters of just such curls;
and occasionally, when the sun is going down,
long golden bands come reaching through my
window; and I know my darling is straight
ening her bright curls, and laying them thus
from the sunset to me, that I may go out over
tho shining pathway to her in heaven.
Coercion, the Doctrine.
Senator. Seward, says the Pennsylvanian,
who uses words to conceal thoughts, and who
can talk hours without saying anything was,
much against his will, compelled to say some
thing in the Senate on Friday last, by the
persistent and adroitly put questions of Sen
ator Mason. What he said: was, coercion, '
civil war, as his last remedy. He had just
as well have said, it.is his first and orily rem
edy, for ho has voted for no other, proposed
no other, spoken favorably of no other! -
The issue is now distinctly . made by the
Premier of the incoming administration, and
the people of the North have got to meet it.
: Wo believe; that this . proclaimed , wa,S; s policj.
will encounter the determined oppositions of
three-fonrtlis of tho Northern people. To a
foreign war they would be opposed, but to a
civil war, which may not be confined to sec
tions, and that would be sufficiently shock
ing, but which may rage here at the North,
and array brother against brother, father
against son, and friend against friend—to so
atrocious and unnatural a war they will bo
forever opposed. Should the Black Republi
cans attempt to inaugurate such a war, their
own career will very soon he terminated in
disgrace and shame, -if - not in blood; Let
them beware. The destruction of the gov
ernment will be crime enough—let them .not
add to it the horrors of civil war.
With all of Seward’s recent professions in
favor of peace and the Union, "when the pinch
came, and, taken unawares, he was compell
ed to say something definite, or stand confess
ed as, a deceitful juggler—he • fell, short of
Hale .even, that compound of the -harlequin
and the fanatic. Hale said: —“Ho would be
willing to do.anything reasonable the
country; but if tho Southern States’insist up
on it, let them go, and when they come back
wo will kill the fatted calf and rejoice over
them as a son who was dead and is alive
again.”
Mr. Seward will find thaft) there is much
more likelihood of the Republican party be
ing split by ooer. ion than by concession.
How Lincoln is to be Inaugurated—Mexico
in Washington.
The editor of the Now York Express, who
is now in Washington, thus writes to that pa
per from the Capital City. Ho says:
“The city begins to look more and more
like an encampment. The President elect, it
is clear, is to have such an inauguration as
none of his prdecoesors overbad—in artillery,
light and heavy dragoons, and infantry. Re
publicanism thus begins its necessary advent.
The less Congress is disposed to accept ‘Crit
tenden,’ the more need of guns, rifles, drag
oons, artillery. So reasons, doubtless, Gen
eral Scott. ■ ■
“The army quarter-masters have just en
tered into n contract for barracks for one
hundred.men near the. Capital, and for sta
bles for one hundred and twenty-five horses.
These are to bo for the light artillery; and,
as Lincoln takes tiie oath in front of tho Cap
ital, the grinning artillery will bo ready to
rattle grape, if necessary, among the gaping
lookers-on. Pleasant inauguration day!
Nice time for women, fashion and crinoline .
“General Scott is making, this city his
head-quarters, and tho head-quaruers of
the United States Army.
Tho quartersof his Aid-de-camps are engag
ed, and all, in all respects, arc to be ready,
as Justice Taney administers the oath, to do
their duty with grape if necessary.”
Why can not Congress disperse those sol
diers, and restore peace by adopting the Crit
tenden Compromise ? ■
How They Soldier at Fort Morgan.— A
letter from Fort Morgan in the Montgomery
(Ala.) Advertiser, says: . .
“Wo are quartered in the casemates. They
are arches in the walls of the fort, about forty
feot deep, twenty feet wide, and fifteen feet
high. They are connected by side arches.
Wo have hay for bedding, and two blankets
—no pillows. Wo have planked up the ends
of the easements, so as to keep out the wind.
We have, plenty of coarse victuals badly
cooked, bad water, and nowash pans. Three
or four of our men aro sick from work and
exposure. I enjoy it, however, very much :
am well pleased and contented. I have not
shaved since I left home, and begin to look as
rough as tho roughest. This brings me into
fashion.
Gen. Scott says ho is too old to mount his
horse and ride in the procession at tho inau
guration of President Lincoln, but that he
shall ride near the carriage-of Mr. Lincoln, in
acarriaga with Commodore Stewart, both of
them ready to preserve the peace with tho ar
my and naval forces,
CARLISLE, PA., THURSDAY, FEBRUARY §l, 1861.
If you alre in trouble'or quandary, tel.
your ■wife—that is if you have one—all about
it at once. Ten to one’her invention will
solve your difficulty sooner than all your log
ic. The wit of woman has been praised, but
her instincts are quicker and • keener than
her reason. Counsel wi& your wife, or your
mother, or your sister, and be assured that
light will dash upon yout* darkness. Wgjn
on are too commonly adjddged ns verdant in
all but pure womanish affairs. No philo
sophical student of the pel thus judges them.
Their intuitions or insight are more subtle,
and if they cannot see a eat in the meal, there
is no cat there. In counselling one to tell
his troubles to his wife, we would go further
and advise him to keep nope of his affairs se
cret from her. Many a homo has been hap
pily saved, and many a fortune retrieved, by
man’s full confidence in his “better half."
Woman is far more a' seer and a prophet
than man, if she bo given a fair chance. As
a general rule, wives confide the minutest of
their plans and thoughts, to their husbands,
having no involvements to screen from them.
Why not reciprocate, if but for the pleasure of
meeting confidence ? Wbare certain that no
man succeeds so well in the world as he who,
taking a partner for’life, makes her the part
ner of all his purposes. What is wrong
of his impulses or judgmontshe will chock or
set right with her almost universally right in-1
stincts. “Help-meet’’ was no insignificant ti
tle, as applied to man’s’ cbm'mmion. She is
a meet help to him in every darkness, difficul
ty and sorrow of life. And what she most
craves and most deserves, is confidence —with-
out which love is never free from a shadow
She had do mother 1 What a volume of sor
rowful truth is contained ih that single sen
tence—no mother I We must go down the
hard, rough paths of lift, aiid come inured to
care and sorrow in their sternest forms, be
fore we can take home to oitr experience the
dread reality—no mother—without a strug
gle and.a tear. But whon'it is said of a frail
young girl, just passing frpm childhood to
ward the lift of a woman,, how sad is the sto
ry summed up in that one short sentence.
Who now shall check the wayward fancies —
who now shall, bear with the errors and fail
ings of a motherless girl ? peal gently with
the child. Let not the cupvpf sorrow bo over
filled by the harshness of j’our hearing, or
your unsympathizlng coldness. Is she heed
less of her; doings? Is'she Careless in her
movements? Remember, ohjremembor, “she
has no mother 1” When her, young compan
ions are gay anij joyous, does she pass with, a
downcast eye and languid - ttep, when you
would fain witness the gushing and overflow-,
ing gladness of youth? Chide her not, for she
is motherless, and the great .sorrow comes
down upbn her souk like - an/ inoubua. , Can
you gain her confidence, you win her
ftye L.Cpnjie. tbouy
boon of your tenderost sarii;> JSI by the mem
ory of your own ’ mother; ’ pothapa already
passed tiway—by the fullpcsa of-your own re
membered sorroww-byj the - possibility that
your own childmay be motherless—contrib
ute, as far as you may, to relieve the loss of
that fair, frail child/ who is written Mother
less. • .f ; ■ ’
The Human FiGURE;---Tlie portions of the
human figure are strictly mathematical.
The whole figure is six times the length of
'the foot. Whether the' form is slender or
plump, this rule holdsjjped. ‘ Any deviation
from it is a departure nJjm|Jho highest beau
ty of proportion. The Uriahs made all their
stntues'hccording to . this rule. The face
; from the highest point on the forehead, whore
the hair begins, to the chin, is one-tenth of
the who e statue. The hand, from the wrist
to the middjip finger, is the same. The chest
is one-fourth; and from the nipple to the
top of the is the same. From the top
of the” chest to the highest point of, the
forehead, is a seventh. If the length of the
face, from the roots of the hair, to the chin,
be divided info three equal parts, the first di
vision terminates where the eyebrows meet,
and the second the place of the nostrils. The
navel is the contral part of the human body;
and if a man-should lie oh hi« back with his
arms extended, the periphery of the circle
whioh-might bo described around him, with
the navel for its centre, would touch the ex
tremities of his hands and feet. The hight
from the top of the head is the same as the
distance from the extremity ,of the fingers
when the arms are extended.
Shadows. —The,shadows of all day lijhg
play at silent games of beauty. Everything
is double if it stands in light; The tree sees
an unrevealed and muffled.self lying darkly
along the ground. Tho slender stems of
flowers, golden rod, way aide asters, meadow
daisies, and rare lilies, (rare and yet abund
ant, in every nice, level meadow,) oast forth
a dim and tremulous line of shadow, that lies
long all the morning, shortening till noon,
and creeping out again from the root all af
ternoon until the sun shoots it westward in
tho morning. A million shadowy arrows
such as these spring from Apollo’s how of
light at every step. Flying in every direc
tion they cross, interlacing each other in a
soft net-work of dim linos. Meanwhile the
clouds drop shadow-liko anchors, that reach
the ground but will not hold; every brows
ing creature, every flittng bird, every moving
team,, every unconscious traveler, writes it
self along the ground in, dim shadow.
The Silent Conflicts of Life. —A tri
umph in the field is a theme for poetry, for
painting, for history, eulogistic and aggrandi
zing agencies, whose united tribute consti
tutes fame; but there are victories won by
men oyer iJiemaetves more truly honorable to
the conqueror than any that can be achieved
in war Oh, though these silent successes
we never hear, the battles in which they are
obtainod are fought in solitude and without
help save from above. The conflict is some
times waged in the still watches of the night,
and the struggle is often fearful. Honor to
every conqueror in such warfare! Honor to
the man or woman who fights temptation,
hatred, revenge, envy, selfishness back to its
last covert in the heart, and then expels it
forever. Although no outward show of hon
or accrues to the victors of those good fights,
they have reward; a higher one than fame
can bestow. They come but, of the combat
self-ennobled.
KIT” “ My dear Amelia,” said Mr. Pickens
to the young lady whoso smiles he was seek
ing, “ I have long wished for this sweet op
portunity, but I hardly dare trust myself now
to speak the deep emotions of my palpitating
heart: but I declare to you, my dear Amelia,
that 1 love you most tenderly; your
would Shed-would Shed-1 saw your smiles
Nevermind the wood shod," said Amelia,
11 go on with the pretty talk.
Tel! Your Wife.
JloJlollier,
The Great Government Swindle.
11 OVER $8,000,000 ABSTRACTED,
By Ex-Sccrelary Floyd, W. 11. Russell, God ;
ard Bailey, and Others.
EXPOSURE OF THE WHOLE PLAN OF
. ROBBERY.'
The select committee, to whom was referred
the resolution of the House, adopted on the
24th day of December last, directing them to
inquire into and report the facts in relation to
the fraudulent abstraction of certain bonds
held by the Government in trust for the Indi
an tribes, from, the Department of the Interi
or, and to whom were, also referred the com
munication of the. Hon. John B. Floyd, late
Secretary of War, and the letter of the Hon.
Robert M’Clelland, late Secretary of the Inte
rior, have submitted their report.
The repo;t opens by describing the bonds.
United States stocks and certificates, which
were abstracted. They were, held in trust for
certain Indian tribes.
Under previous Administrations, the bonds
were placed in the immediate charge of some
clerk, selected for liis integrity and capacity,
who kept them in a safe in the Indian Office..
No stamp or other mark ; of designation was
placed upon any of them, with the exception
of a small portion, and the only safeguard the
Government had was the faithfulness and hon
esty of the person entrusted with their keep
ing. So careless a mode of transacting the
public business, and administering a trust so
delicate and important, astounds us by the
magnitude of its folly. Neither the Commis
sioner (if Indian Affairs nor the Secretary of
the Interior ever counted the bonds in person,
and tho only information that cither of them
could have possessed, touching their safety
was the payment of the coupons every six
months, and such examinations as they occa
sionally chose to order to be made by others.
Fortunately for tho Government, however, no
loss was sustained during previous Adminis
trations..
The report then speaks of Godard Bailey,
the clerk in whose bauds the bonds were plac
ed, saying;—The evidence shows that Mr.
Bailey came to Washington a bankrupt in for
tune, and a political adventurer, seeking of
fice. Ho brought with him, however, the
highest testimonials of confidence and respect
from various distinguished men in Alabama,
where he lived, and in South Carolina, where
ho was born, and had previously resided. •
THE ABSTRACTED BONDS.'
All tlft stock?,, including those that were
abstracted, wore kept in the room in the Inte
rior Department, occupied by Mr. Bailey, in
a safe, the key of which was in his sole pos
session. The extract marked V B’’ will show
the character and respective amounts of the
abstracted bonds, us well ashe States by which,
they wore issued, except in this—that the
whole amount, as shown by said abstract,, is
372 of SlOOO each, when,.itvftcb. hlr,. Bailey
delivered to Mr. William 11; Russell, 870 on
ly-
* VBAII.Br RUSSELL’S NEGOTIATIONS.
; *»sJioj'epoft goes on to show that W. H. Rus
aoll and Godard Bailpy had negotiations dur
ing which Bailey delivered to'Russell these
bonds in instalments, both parties of couse
knowing that tho bonds was not their proper-
■ •
Mr.. Bailey’s motives for stealing the bonds
are not clearly ascertained, but the Committee
are, however, constrained to express the con
vict on that behind the events that have been
made conspicuous, and beneath the exterior of
'tho transactions that have been described, is
a purpose which, although successfully hid--
den, was none the less powerful and efficient
and lias given unity and vitality to the schemes
now partially exposed.
MR. BAILEY'S CONFESSION.
‘ A part of the evidence adduced is found in
a communication froni Mr. Bailey, dated ilo
cefnbor Ist, 1860, and addressed to the Hon.
Jacob Thompa’on, Secretary of the Interior,
containing a statement that a -portion of the
bonds constituting the Indian Trust Fund,
amounting to §870,000, were no longer in his
possession. This confession was,-on the 13th
of December, placed in the hands of Mr. Wag
ner, with the request that it should be deliv
ered to the Secretary of the. Interior five days
beforo-thn expiration of his term of office, or,
ns Mr. Wagner understood it, five days before
the 4th of March. On tho 20th of the same
month, Mr. Bailey addressed a note to Mr.
Wagner, requesting that the note previously
committed to him (Mr. Wagner,) should bo
given to the Secretary of the Interior imme
diately upon his return from North Carolina.
Mr. Thompson arrived on the afternoon of the
22d of December.
AUDITOR FULLER THE CAUSE OF THE EXPOSURE
OF THE FRAUD.
Mr. Bailey, in tho exorcise of forethought
prudent to avoid detection, made up his stock
account for the current .year, showing on its
face that all the bonds were safely in his cus
tody, and had caused its presentation to the
Second Auditor, Mr. Fuller. That officer re
fused to approve it, for the reason that the
coupon account, designed to be a check upon
it, did not accompany it. It is, perhaps, to
this refusal that may in part he attributed the
.early disclosure of the fraud.
The report next speaks of the disposition of
the stolen bonds. It appears they were all
sold by. Mr. Russell and his agents to certain
parties in New York, Baltimore, Chicago, &c.
bussell’s business man makes himself
SCAnCE.
An important witness, Jerome B. Simpson,
who would be found in Now York, it was ex
pressed, could not bo obtained. He had ac
ted in that city as the confidential business
agent of Russell, Majors & AVaddell, and
knew, it was believed, all the details of their
business transactions with the Government,
and of the abstraction of the bonds. The most
active and diligent search for him proved un
availing. As none of his acquaintances re
membered to have seen him since about the
day following Mr. Russell’s arrest, as no trace
of him has yet been discovered, it is evident
that he absconded or concealed himself to |
avoid the responsibility of his acts, and an ap-1
pearanoe before the committee or the courts.
HUSSELL don’t like to face the music.
When Mr. Russell was brought before the
Committee, ho wanted to write Ins
Various interrogatories were proposed,
which were promptly and freoly answered.
Butwhen asked, “Did you ever, directly or
indirectly, give to any person any considora
"on. or make to any person any present for
services rendered to you connected with your
business with the War Department? Mr.
Russell declined to respond before consulting
with his counsel.
Upon this suggestion the examination was
at once suspended.
On the 23d of December he again appeared,
and was reminded of what had boon said to
him on a previous occasion, and more fully ad
monished that ho was not required to answer
any questions that might criminate himself.
He then evaded the questions asked him.
TUI ACCEPTANCES ISSUED BY TUB SECRETARY
OP WAR.
When the iniquitous act perpetrated by one
of tke subordinate officers of tho Interior De
partment in the abstraction of bonds was made
known, it was discovered, at the same time,
that acceptances, unauthorized by law, and
deceptive and fraudulent in their character,
had been issued by tho Secretary of War, in
favor of Messrs. Russell, Majors & Waddell.
If your Committee could rest here, and could
feel justified in expressing the belief that there
are no other outstanding liabilities, and that
no further demands would be made upon this
or any future Congress, in connection with
these extraordinary proceedings, they would
deem this an occasion for congratulation to
tho House, But, unfortunately, there are
transactions of a similar character, but of a
still greater magnitude, that claim your at
tention.
In 1858, the Secretary of .War commenced
the issue of acceptances, and, at tho same
time, wrote to various banks and individuals
urging their purchase or discount. One of bis
letters, and one tvom Col. Drinkard, Chief,
Clerk of the War Department, to James T.
Soutter, Esq., President of the Bank of tho
Republic, will be found included in the testi
mony taken in New York. ;
These letters and representations are im
portant, as showing the ipenns adopted by the
Secretary of War, to get the paper ho issued
into circulation. .
MORE THAN §6, 000,000 OP ACCEPTANCES IS-
SUED,
In relation to the,acceptances issued uncon
ditionally by the late Secretary of War, your
Cominittee deem it their duty to state all the
facts they have been able to discover, as fully
as possible. They amount, in the aggregate,
to. the enormous sum of $0,179,395. Add
thereto the conditional acceptances which have
already, been thrown back upon the Govern
ment, tlirough the agency of Mr. Bailey, and
the sum total is $6,977,395. This estimate is
based upon .data furnished by the War De
partment. It appears therefrom that accep
tances to the amount of 5840,000 were return
ed to the Department for cancellation. Mr.
Russell, however, claims to have returned on
ly $200,000 or $250,000. lie' further states
that the acceptances which ho did return
wore those which had matured in his own
pocket, and could not, therefore, be negotia
ted. But.this assertion is positively contra
dicted by the endorsements, on the, returned
acceptances, and by the testimony of Mr. Ir
vin. a Olerk in the War Department.
From the careless and irresponsible man
ner in which business was transacted by that
gentleman and the late Secretary of War, and
from the fact,that it was the habit of Gover
nor Floyd to issue acceptances at the Depart
ment or at his house, or at whatever place he
happened to be, it is a matter of great uncer
tainty whether or hot the §840,000 should bo
Redacted frdta the silnv
The probability is, that when the acceptances
wore returned to Governor Floyd by Mr. Rus
sell, he accepted others at the same time for
the same amount, of which there was no reg
istry made. It is deemed safest to proceed
upon the supposition that the, acceptances
made in the place of those returned were reg
istered. Upon this hypothesis, the 5840,000
must be deducted from the 50.179,395 of un
conditional acceptances made and registered
in the War Department. This would leave
of them, so far as is shown hy the records of
that Department, 55,339,395 still in circula
tion ; and to this amount, the 5798,000 of con
ditional acceptances received by Mr. Bailey in
lie‘ii of the bonds, and the aggregate is 56,137,-
395. Hero, then, confining the statement to
the records of the War Department, is a defi
cit of $6,137,395 to fall upon the holders of ,
these acceptances, or to be assumed in some
way by the Government.
WHAT WAS DONE WITH THE ACCEPTANCES,
The evidenee shows that tho acceptances
have been sold in various parts of the United
States, wherever a bank or private individu
al could bo induced to purchase. Inasmuch,
however, as the amount of those that have been
traced directly in to the hands of present hold
ers constituted but a small fraction of the sura
still unaccounted, for, and as tho owners are
daily filing additional claims at tho War De
partment, it is deemed unnecessary to give a
detailed statement of the discovered acceptan
ces, orto make other mention of them than to
refer to the papers relating thereto presented
by the War Department, and to the general
evidence.
It is proper, however, to remark, in this
connection, that while your committee do not
deem it necessary to give said details, the da
ta in the War Department fixes the minimum
amount of outstanding acceptances known to
that Department at $1,445,000.
FURTHER LIGHT ON GOVERNOR FLOVD’s PRO-
CEBDINOS.
Mr. Richard B. Irvin, the faithful and in
telligent clerk, to.whom reference has been
made elsewhere in this report, says in his ev
idence:. “There may, of course, ho other out
standing acceptances, of the whereabouts of
which the Department has no knowledge.”—
There will also be found embraced in hia evi
dence, given upon being recalled before the
committee, on the 6th instant, a letter address
ed by It. A. Barnes, Rsq., President of the
Bank of the State of Missouri, under date of
January 24th, 1861, to the lion. Joseph Holt,
Secretary, of War, which is of interest, and
will throw light upon the conduct of Governor
Floyd’s proceedings and assurances in regard
to the acceptances. Mr. Irvin still further,
testified to the receipt of other letters by. the
War Department since the papers furnished to
the Committee by that Department were frans-1
inittod, of a character similar to Mr. Barnes’.)
This branch of the inquiry is evidently prob
fio, and could be pursued to a great length if
necessity required or time would permit.
Bussell’s testimony as to the millionsof do-1
Inrs’ worth of acceptances issued by Secretary |
Floyd, is next commented upon,
PECULIAR RECORDS OF THE WAR DEPARTMENT.
By reference to tho testimony of Mr. Irvin,
n clerk in the War Department, it will be seen
tlmt ho kept a registry of the acceptances on
loose pieces of paper, only as they wore repor
ted to him from time to time, and no other
was made. He states, too, that there was no
registration made of th 05798,000 of condition
al, acceptances which fell into Mr. Bailey’s
hands; and.that immediately after the discov
ery of the abstraction of the bonds. Governor
Floyd went to his office and directed him (Mr.
Irvin,) to enter an order of cancellation of
those acceptances, which ho did upon a slip
of paper ns ho had entered the dates and
amounts of others that had been issued. The
acceptances being in tho hands of the Hon.
Jacob Thompson, having been placed there by
Mr. Bailey, in lieu of the abstrasted bonds,
an order of cancellation, at such a time, was
simply, an order .against tho Government.—
Had the acceptances boon held by other par
ties, the order would have been equally futile
for, if legally issued, it could not invalidate
them. .
Payments to rossell, majors and waddsel.
It also appears from the records of the 'War,
Department that while these acceptances were
being issued to the amount of millions of dol
lars, Kussell, Majors and 'Waddell were regu
larly receiving their pay for the services pet'
formed under their contract, in money, from,
the Government. The aggregate amount.cf
the payments made to them, in cash, during
the years 1858, 1859, and 1860, i5§4,842,964-
41, and a largo portion of this sum was-paid
by the proper officer at Leavenworth .City,
Kansas. Governor Floyd admitted in his ev
idence that every acceptance .which he made
“ran against unearned money," and was,de
signed to give them (the contractors,) “tho
credit of thou - contract." Yet there has hot'
been discovered the slightest indication that J
ho made any inquiry about the payment, or
concerned .himself to see that they were, when
made, applied to the acceptances. ■
TESTIMONY OP SENATOR BENJAMIN.
Mr. Benjamin, who promptly appeared at ■
the request of the committee, and testified with
commendable and courteous frankness, states,
that during the first session of the present
Congress, some twelve or eighteem months';
ligo, he was written to by the attorney of Dun- ■
can, Sherman & Co., of New Work, and his
opinion requested as to the legality of accep
tances issued by Governor Floyd,’to Russell, •
Majors & Waddell. It was mentioned in that
letter that'theae “ crafts,!’ ns they were then
called, were offered for negotiation with the
assurance that they were issued with the ap
probation of the President and Attorney Gen
eral. Mr. Benjamin visited the President, and .
submitted the inquiry to him. The President
replied that he knew nothing about tho mat
ter, that they had been issued without any
knowledge of his, that-he did not know by
virtue of tvhat law they wore issued, but that
he (Mr. Benjamin,) might rely, if Governor
Floyd had issued them, be had issued them
properly, and that ho had better apply to him
(Governor Floyd,) to ascertain hy virtue of
what law ho was acting.
GOVERNOR FLOYD REFLECTS,
Mr. Benjamin visited Governor Floyd, and
expostulated with him about this swindle.—
Two doys afterwards, Mr. Benjamin received
a note from him informing him. that he was
obliged for the frank statement he. had made
to him, and that upon reflection he,had deter
mined ho would accept no more.
The report closes by showing that Governor
Floyd, even after Mr. Benjamin’s expostula
tion and his .own “ reflection," continued to
issue acceptances. Whether this manifest
contempt of counsels, disobedience’of law, and
violation of a solemn promise, can be reconcil
ed with purity of private motives and faithful
ness to public trusts, is for the House to.dotor
mine. It is the opinion of your committee
that they cannot,,
KECOMMENfiA.TIONS FOR NEW LEGISLATION.
.... Wens committee have now reported, ho far as
ascertained, all the material facts connected
with the Abstraction of Bonds from tho Interior
Department, and with a series of transactions
unprecedented in their character,.and remar
kable for oltornate exhibitions of fraud and
folly. .
As one of tho results of tho examination
they have made, they submit a bill to provide
for the more certain and effectual punishment
of crimes, such as those that have been brought
to their notice, and also amendatory of the
second section of the act of Congress,, approv
ed January 24th, 1857, entitled, An not
more effectually to enforce the attendance of
■witnesses on the summons of either House of
Congress, and to compel them to disclose tes
timony.” ;
They also beg leave to suggest that the floa
tations of the stock market, and the delay and
uncertainty in the collection of the interest on
the bonds, seem to demand some further' leg
islation in regard to the Indian Trust Fund,
as a measure of obvious justice, and humanity
to the Indians.
All of ■which is respectfully submitted, on
behalf of the Committee.
I. N. MORRIS, Chairman .
Tlie Poor of Philadelphia.
There is no denying,.says tho Phiadolphia
Argus, that there is air immense amount of
suffering among the poor of the city of Phila
delphia. In the winter season, in our Nor
thern cities, there is always more or leas hu
man suffering, but at this time in Philadel
phia, owing to the crisis brought upon tho
country by the fanaticism and ‘‘the triumphs
of Republicanism thus fur/’ the distress
among the poor and the laboring classes has
been increased in a degree terrible to content-
pinto. .
We observe that the same state of things
exists in Now York, and wo copy the follow
ing from the New York Herald, with'a view
of commending the suggestions therein, ns
worthy of the attention of the wealthy and
business men of our city, who, by their sup
port of the Republican party, hnve produped
in a great degree this s'ate of things.
The Poor of New Yutk in the Crisis, —The
official reports of the Commissioners ot Uuar
itios and Correction show that they have now
under their charge 8777 persons as inmates
of the city institutions, an increase of 465
over 1860, and of 850 over 1859—correspond
ing periods. Statistics as to the condition of
the outdoor poor are still more suggestive.
Our reporters have ascertained that the dis
tress among the laboring classes in this city
is unprecedented., As many as twenty-eight
thousand persons, able and willing to work,
are now idle. The Superintendent of out
door poor has received no less than ten thou
, sand applicants for coal during the last two
or three weeks. The same official receives;
daily applicants who wish to be committed to
the workhouse. Beyond this, there is, _ of
course, an immense amount of suffering which
is concealed through false pride and shame.
| Would it not .be well for our Republican
friends, bank-presidents, and so on, who voted
for Lincoln, to devise some plan for the alle
viation of the misery which the political ex-'
citement consequent upon his election has
caused in the Northern cities? In the South,
wo find- the negroes sleek, fat, comfortable,
and devoted to their masters. In the North,'
the white laboring classes are walking about
the streets with alternatives of pauperism,
starvation or crime. The contrast is not a
very pleasant one for us, but it is -absurd to
[ deny that 'such is the state of things.
. (t7* The fall of snow in Western New York
and in Canada West is unprecedented. The
Buffalo and Late Shore Railroad is blocked
no. Fourtren engines are at work to clear
the track near Stratford. On Friday night, a
passenger train stuck fast in a snow drift, and
the conductor and train hands walked four
miles to Stratford to get food for the passed
gore, who, with the help of good fires, passed
the night comparatively comfortably. , ,
Quarrel with dead men, and’you won’t
get hurl. 11 '
no. 37.