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THE COUNTRYMAN.
By J, TURNER* “INDEPENDENT in' EVERYTHING NEUTRAL IN NOTHING ” $5 lOI' TIlI'CC Ml) lit IlS*
YOL. XX. TURN WOLD (NEAR EATONTON) GA., TUESDAY, MARCH 7, 18G5. NO. 10.
TnE LIFE OF AX AMEKICAX CITIZEN :
BEING THE
BIOGRAPHY OF WILLIAM TURNER,
LATE OF PUTNAM COUNTY, GA.
BY HIS SON, J. A. TURNER.
CHAPTER XVI.
A. D. 1814—27th Year—Letter from Tilman
Turner—Deputy Collector for Georgia—Busi
ness Habits—Another Letter from Tilman
Turner—Andrew Jackson appointed Major
General—Letter from Rolling 1 Hall—Peace
Negotiations—No Relaxation of War Prepar
ations-^ Ifronaparte and England—The North
ern Alliance—England’s Universal Violation
of Maritime Rights—Mediation bv Russia—
England’s Downfall—Gen. Floyd’s success—
A “ Damned Lie”—Forsyth—Cuthbcrt.
The following letter from Tilman Turner, to
my father, will present my readers with a frag
ment of the history of 1814 :
“Fort Stoddart, 15th Jan., 1S14-.
Dear William :
So long a time has elapsed since I had the
pleasure of hearing from you, that I am really
afraid I am entirely forgotten by you, and all
my relations.
This will inform you that I am well, and that
I have just returned from the Creek nation.
The third regiment is now at Fort Claiborne,
on the Alabama, at which place we have built
a cantonment, and to which place l shall pro-,
ceed in a few days. My business here is to en
list the volunteers, whose terms of service have
expired, into tire regular army. My endeav
ors will, I am afraid, not be attended with anr
great success, but 1 shall get a few.
You will have heard, ere this reaches you, of
the result of our movements against the hostile
Creeks, which, although not attended with any
thing to brag of, was a very serious injury to
the allies of his ‘ Majesty, defender of the faith,’
Ac.
Do, in the name of God, write to me, at this
place (Fort Stoddart, M. T.) via Nashville,
Tennessee. I would write more, and mere
particularly, hut the fear of this not reaching
you, prevents my doing so. Our late move
ments agrqe well with me, keep me in good
spirits, and health, in which may I hope this
may find you, and all my relations, and friends,
©emember me, particularly, to my much re
spected and venerable mother.
Sincerely yours,
T. Turner, Lieut. 3d Inf’y.
Mr. Wm. Turner.”
There was never any office to be filled, nor
any public duty to be performed, but. that a
•call was made upon my lather, in his younger
days. His prompt business habits, the clerkly
hand which he wrote, and his thorough and in
timate acquaintance will all the forms of'busi
ness, always pointed to him as the faithful de
positary of any public trust. In the year 1814,
he was appointed by his uncle, Hines Holt, Sr.,
deputy collector of Internal Duties for the 6th
Collection District of Georgia. After filling
that office, for some time, my father resigned,
and turned over his papers to his uncle Holt,
and took the following receipt. This receipt is
given as a sample, of my father’s business
habits. It will be seen how particular be was
to mention everything in his receipt '•
f “Collector’s Office, 23rd April, 1814.
This will certify that Wm, Turner duly de
livered to me the official books and papers (rel
ative to the direct taxes, and internal duties)
received by him, for me, of the reverend Rich
ard Holmes, agent of Capt. Samuel Butts, on
the 15th day of January, 1814 ; that he has du
ly delivered, to me, all the abstracts, accounts,
and other documents relative to the collection
of internal duties, which appear, from an ex
amination of his books, to have been necessary
for the quarter composed of the months of Jan
uary, February, and March, 1814, and for those
months respectively; that he has paid the
amount duo from him, on account of internal
duties collected by him; and that, on his resig
nation of the office of deputy collector of the
revenue, for the sixth collection district of
Georgia, he delivered to me all the bonds taken
by him for duties on licenses for stills : together
with the entries, applications, certificates, li
censes, and bonds—being blanks—which were
not filled, and used by him, in tha discharge
of his official duties—the laws, forms, and in
structions furnished him, for the discharge of
these duties: and, also, the books of office kept
by him, and containing his official transactions.
Given from under my hand, at office, this
23rd day of April, 1814. ‘ .
Hines Holt,
C. R. 6th Col. Dis. Ga.”
In accordance with the plan of this biography,
I present my readers, here, with the two fol
lowing letters—the first from Tilman Turner,
and the second from Bolling Hall:
‘‘Fort Jackson, Hickory Ground,
6th July, 1814.
Dear William :
I arrived here, on the 3rd instant, from Fort
Claiborne, after a passage of exactly thirty
days. Wo had a flotilla of thirteen boats—
some of them seventy ieet long—all loaded
with provisions, arms, and ammunition. The
trip was tolerably pleasant, and healthy. We
lost but one person, and that wag an old woman,
who wbb sick before we started,
This i3 a pleasant, agreeable place, but 1 am
afraid, from its being in the fork of two rivers,
that it will be unhealthy, towards the fall.—
We have information, here, that Jackson is ap
pointed a major-general in the army of the U.
S., and that he is Sn his way to this place, in
tending to make it his headquarters. 1 wish it
may be true. He is authorized to treat with
the Indians, and run oil their boundary.
Do let m3 hear from you, every opportunity,
as we are entirely without news of any kind.—
My best wishes attend you, and all friends.
Yours, sincerely,
T. Turner,
Mr. Wm. TurmJh”
“ Washington, 25th Feb., 1814.
Dear William ;
Today I had the pleasure to receive your let
ter of the 1st inst., and observe that you differ
with me, in opinion, as to the prospect of peace,
and fear that the government will relax its
measures for prosecuting the war. Whatever
may be the result of the negotiations to be
opened at Goettenburg, or however sanguine
our hopes of an honorable termination of our
difference with England, no relaxation is in
tended, or will take place, until we have some
thing more permanent than mere prospect.
We are fully aware of the small reliance to be
placed in any seeming pacific disposition of
that faithless, ambitious.nation, with whom we
are at war: yet circumstance* may happen,
over which Bhe has no control, which may in
duce her, from necessity, to do us justice, and
respect those rights which she had so long, and
so often, violated, regardless of sound policy,
magnanimity, or justice. It was easy to per
ceive that such a state of things might occur,
from the course of events, which were approach
ing, or had taken place, on tbe Continent of I
Europe. A coalition had been formed of the
northern powers, to restrain the ambition of
Bonaparte, on the land. On whichever side
victory was obtained, it was favorable to us.
The just principles for which we contended,
were carried much further by Bonaparte, the
attainment of which were his avowed objects.
Had he been successful, the vast accumulation
of power which would have been thrown into
his hands*, must have crushed, or brought Eng
land to his, and our terms. If the allies suc
ceeded, as it appears they have, it was not to be
presumed, that after having succeeded ia pla
cing due bounds to the ambition and power of
•France, that they would surrender their com
mercial and maritime rights to the discretion
of England, although she was in alliance with
them, who had committed as many outrages on
the ocean, as Bonaparte had on the continent.
The first use which they have made of their
success, is to offer terms of peace, and to leave
France a great and powerful nation, with a
greater extern of territory, than she ever held
under the reign of her kings. Bonaparte has
accepted the preliminaries. If peace should bo
the result —the right of every maritime power
of Europe having been violated by Great
Britain—it will be the interest of all to resist
her, and make a common cause with us. The
emperor of Russia has declared to the world
that we have done all in our power to avoid the
war in which we are engaged. The prompt
acceptance of his offered mediation, on our
part, and the refusal by the ministry of Eng
land, will, no doubt, have its due weight.
From his view of the subject, it seems that the
day of retribution is at hand, when England
must submit to the stern demands of justice,
or raise her puny arm against the united pow
ers of Europe, and America, and must expiato
her crimes with her existence. Such are the
fatal delusions produced by crimes without
number, and of the deepest dye, that the folly
of her rulers may lead her to this last tragical
scene. The unprincipled oppositien of tho
federalists may prevent the restoration of peace.
Should there be left, in the councils of Eng
land, one remaining spark of justice, humani
ty, or policy, the necessity of getting clear of
the war witlj us, that she may the better be
prepared to meet the storm ready to burst on
ler from Europe, must be obvious.
I am much gratified at the success of our
brave citizens, under the command of General
Floyd : but sincerely lament the loss of those
who fell in their country’s service : among that
number I find the name of my esteemed friend,
Samuel Butts. But, thank God, they did their
duty.—I have nothing of importance to com
municate. The loan bill is still under discus
sion. Sheppard, a federal member, from New
York, in a speech against its passage, observed
that the sailors, for whose protection it was
pretended that this war was contended, asked
not our protection, and were opposed to tho
war. An honest tar, who was in the gallery,
exclaimed. “ It is a damned lie.”—Mr. Forsyth
has made a very able and spirited speech.
Cuthbert has also made a speech. Both of
these gentlemen took a firm and decided stand
in the cause of republicanism, and acquitted
themselves in a masterly manner.—Present
my best respects to your father, and mother,
and to your brothers, and sisters.
Youra, &c.,
Bolling Hall.”
The Independent Press has suspended
operations; we hope, however, only tem
porarily. We dislike to give up Mr. Tur
ner from the editorial ranks, and we hope
that he will resume the chair editorial be
fore long.—Sumter Republican, 1855.
‘ “Will is the root, knowledge the stem and
leaves, and feeling the flower