Newspaper Page Text
could, that hr did not want the hooks, and
thought he was insulting hint by forcing
them upon him. The agent said he in
tended to have got a little farther before
the storm: but if he could not conveniently
pay him the money then, he must except ol
his invitation and stay till the storm was o
ver. The clergyman, finding he must
tnke the boooks or keep the fellow three or
our days, paid him the money, as the ea
ieet way to get rid ol' him.
A HIG HLANI >AN E( ’DOTE.
' By Sir II filler Scoff, Barf.
The same course of reflection which led ■
me to transmit to you the account of' the l
death of an ancient borderer, induces me]
to mid the particulars of a singular inci-]
dent, affording a point which seems highly ■
ipialluied to be illustrated by the pencil.— 1
It was suggested by the spirited engraving'
which adorned the first number of the I
Keepsake, and perhaps hears too close a ;
resemblance to the character of tlrnt print j
to admit of your choosing it as a subject;
f«r another. Of'this you are the only com j
petent judge.
The story is an old but not an ancient one;
he actor and .sufferer was not i very aged '
m*it, when I heard the anecdote in my ear-I
ly youth. Dtnmn Torso [ shall call him, 1 ’
had iie<*ti engaged in the affair of 1746,1
with others of his el tss, and was supposed!
by many to have been an accomplice, if not ■
the pricipal actor in a certain tragic affair,
which made much twise a good manv xears
after the rebellion. I am content with in-1
dicuting this, in order to give some idea of]
the man’s character, which was, bold, fierce !
and enterprising. Traces of this natural j
disposition still remained on D.mean's vert
food features, and in his keen grey eye.,
But tilt* limbs, like those ol' the ancient bor- I
deter in my former tale had become mm- ’
•ble to serve the purpose and obey the die- ;
lata* of his inclination. On one side of uis !
body be retained the proportion and firm- i
ae«s of an active mountaineer; on the o-;
■thet he was a disabled cripple, scarcely r-|
hie to limp across the street. The cause 1
which reduced him to this state of iufirmitv
• re singular.
Twenty year? or more before I knew t
Dancnn, he assisted his brother in forming!
a large firming in the Highlands, eompr. -
handing an extensive range of monataiu >
■stud forest land morass lake, and precipice.
It chanced that a sh ep or go :t was missed j
■from the flocks, and Duncan not satisfied !
with sending bis shepherds in one direction, I
he went in quest of the fugitive in another.!
In the course of his researches, lie was;
induced to ascend a small ami narrow path,
leading to the (• p of a high precipice. ■
Dan geraus ns it was at first, the ro id be
«*nic doubly so as he advanced. It was
Hot much more than two feet broad, so rug-]
ged and difficult, and at the sanie time so
terrible, that it would have been impr.icti- !
cable to any but the light step and steady'
br«in as a Highlander, tiie precipice on the
right rose like a wall, and on the left sunk:
tn n depth which it was giddy to look down
upon ; but D mean passed cheerfully on,
now whistling th- gathering of h:« Ci in.
now taking heed tn his footsteps, when til•
difiiciihii's of the path required that camion.
In this manner he had more than halfas- i
■eended the precipice, when in mid way, ami
‘it might ulmost be said in middle air, lie)
encountered a large buck of the red deci
-species, (running down the clifi’hy the same I
place i« *n opposite direction. If Duncan j
had a gun the rencounter would have - been ,
more agreeable; but as be hid not this ad-]
vantage over the denizen of the wilder-j
ness, the meeting was in the highest degree •
unwelcome, IN either party had the pose,
iff retreating, for the »tng had not room to
turn himself in the narrow pith, and it Dun
ean had turned his b ick to go down, he
knew enough of th • creature’s habits to be
certain that it would immediately rush upon
hiia while engaged in the difficulty of the
•retreat. They stoo l therefore perfectly
Mill, and looked at each othr in muinl em
b-rrasir.ent for a considerable length of time.
At length the deer which was of thcl rg
rst sir.”, began to owerhis nntkrs, its they
do w hen they are brought to bay, and are
preparing to rush upon hound and hunts
man. Duncan saw the danger of a con
flict in which he must probably coin • off
the worst, and as a last resource stretched
himself on the little edge of a rock which he
occupied, and thus waited the resolution
whicli the deer .*h mid t die, not making the
least motion for fear of' al arming the wild
*ud ntspicions animal. They remained in
tiis posture for two or three hours, in the
midst of a rock which would have suited
the pencil of S dvntor, and which afforded
barely room enough tor the man and the
stag, opposed to each other in this exti aor
dhiary iiMinjrr.
At length the buck seemed to tak p the
resolution of passing over the ob-l'nles
•which lay in his path, and with this pur
pose approached towards Duncan very
slowly, and with excessive caution. When
became dose to the Highlander, he stoop
ed his head as if to examine him mo e
closely, when the d vil or the tintameable
love of sport, peculiar to his country, be
gan to overcome Duncan’s fears. Seeing
the animal proceed so getilly, he totally
forgot not only the dangers of his position
bnt the mutual compact which certainly
might have been inferred from the circum
stances of the situation. With one hand
Duncan seized the dei t’s horns, while with
the other he drew his dirk. H it in the
*n)“ instant the buck bounded over the pre
cipice, carrying the Highlander along with
■him. They went thus down upwards of a
hmi Ired feet, and were found the next morn
ing in the spot were they fell. Fortune
w ho does not always regard retributive jus
tice in her dispensations, ordered that the
deer should fall underneath b« killed upon
the spot, while Duncan escaped with his
life, but th? fracture of a leg, tin arm, and
three rilw. In this state lie was lying on
the carcass of the deer, and the injuries
which he had received rendered him for
the remainder of his life the cripple I have
described. I never < ouldapprove of Dun
can » conduct towards the deer in a moral i
point o! view, although as the man in thej
play said, he was my friend, but the tempta
tion of a heart of grease, offering as it were,
his throat to the knife, would have subdued
the virtue of almost any deer-talker. Whe
ther the anecdote is worth recording, or de
serving of illustration remains fbryour con
sideration. I have given you the story ev
aerlv im | it ' i
MESSACjiK
OF GOVERNOR SCHLEY,
To both branch, t of the Legislature, delivered on Tuesday, Sth
November, 1836, <l/ 12 o'clock A. AL
r.XJ’etiiite Department, G n ,\
MiLi.ummviLLE, Bth Nov. 1836. f
Fellow-Cilitens of fhc Senate, and House of Representatives :
Since the adjournment of the last session of the General Assembly,
events of an extramdinary character have addicssed themselves to the
sympathy and courage nt Georgia, and I H ,„ prolil | t 0 SilV) t | lat t| le
appeal has been answered with a promptness and zeal worthy of her
pride and patriot ism
Information having reached the Executive carlv in the month of Jan
tiarv, by a communication from Governor Eaton, that the Seminole
Indians ha<l raised the war-whoop in Florida, and were perpetrating its
concomitant th i ds of horror, and the emergency beingdecmed too impe
rious to await the distant action of the Goner-ai Government, a call was
ioithwith iniiile lor volunteers to aid our suffering countrymen to repel
the belj and bat b.uous inc aders—and, to providc against conlingencios,
a l iiii.gi.t o, tini ‘e thousand live hundred men was required. Hut, to the
honor^ ol tieorni k volunteers stood lorlh from thcsca board to the ntonn
i.uns in numbers lai bevond the exigency, and with an eagerness evin
cing, that though “ the days of chivalry ‘are past,” its spirit has not de
parted.
As all com 1 not be accepted, and no selection could be made for
met it v hero all were equal in zeal, the contemplated succour was
confided to those who bad the fortune to bo foremost in time.
b.u'oie the necessary preparations wore completed, Alajor General
Scott at tlm Army, charged with th,.' impending campaign, made a re- 1
qitiddon on Georgia lor two regiments, one of infantry and one of I
mounted men. Os thre first, live volunteer companies, viz : tho Morgan I
Hangers—the Putnam Fencibles—tho Iltmcock Blues—the Macon
Volunteers and the .Monroe Muskoteers assembled at Macon and were
orgar.h’.cd into a battalion under the command of Major Mark A.
l oopur. an ohicot ol tlurir own choice, it being deemed proper, in the
absence of positive law to the contrary, to suffer volunteers in the ser
vice ot their country, to elect their own commander.
On tho seventh day of February this battalion embarked on boats
prepared tor the occasion, with orders to proceed to Picelataund report
to Major Gen. Scott, or to such other officer of the United States’ Ar
my ot superior rank to Major Cooper, as shottld be m command at that
post. Besides this battalion, there were two volunteer companies from
Augusta—tiie Uichtnond Blues and Richmond Hussars—which embark
ed at that city on board a steamer for I’icolata. The second battalion
ot in! intry wav in progress ol organtzation from the counties of Coweta, ]
'Carroll, C.-tmpbeli, Fayette ?nd DeKalb, and was intended to bo con- i
veyed in steamers from Columbus to Tampa Bay ; but before the coin- j
panics took up tha lino of march, despatches were received by ex-j
moss from General Scott, requesting that they should not proceed to]
’ Fiori in.
Os the mounted regiment, ono battalion composed of the Wasliiti"-!
(ton Troop—the Hancock Troop—the Jefferson Hussars—the Bald-|
win ( aunty ( jialry, and tiie Houston Cavalry, was ordered to repair j
to Dublin an 1 elect a Major to command them ; but, owing to the non- ■
arr:v d o! s >m -i Ot the companies as soon as w as expected, the election :
- did n-iuakt' place, and each company found its way, in its own man- j
: nt, to I’icoeiti. Hare tbe Washington, Hancock and Jefferson com-j
pmtea cm.-re 1 the service ot' the United States and elected Capt.
D.mglass, of the Jetfcrson Ilussats, to command them. In addition to
t.ie-i' comp.i,;i,x, ( ipt. Charles 11. Nelson, ol Cherokee, raised a moun
ted corps, compose 1 of citizens of Cherokee and Wilkes, and repaired
to Honda., where they, also, entered the service of the United States.
Ihe p'.iva iims and perils of an arduous and harrassing campaign
we.c sustnineti oy tnese troops, with a fortitude and courage honorable
to i.ioinseives m l their conutry, and winch gave assurance (since rea
lized) tint i.i t.rj nour ot danger, Georgia may safely' rely on the pa
trio.ism and gallantry of her sons.
A second battalion ot mounted men, to complete this regiment, com
posed of the Putnam Mounted Riflemen—the Gainesville Dragoons
, the '.V.ilmt, Comity Cavalry—the Buckskin Hussars, of Dooiv County—
I tjp B it s Ca tmy Cavalry and the Twiggs Cavalry, assembled at Haw-
■ kisiuli’, tins p i".‘ appointed tor rendezvous, and was organized,
: by tio election ot ..I ijor David Ross to command them. This battalion
procceued to tilack ( reek, in Florida, with the intention of entering
the service, but they’ were not accepted, because the campaign was
about to bo dosed, and the officer in command at that station directed
tneni to return. .(.Imougn this battalion was not formallv mustered into
swvtce, the I lited States have paid them and defrayed tho expenses
■ of their march to and from Florida.
j Brigadi.tr General Burwell Pope was appointed to command the
j Georgia troops, in Florida, and proceeded to I’icolata for that purpose.
• But one battalion ot infantry having been detained by request of Gen.
I •"'cott, and tho second battalion of mounted mon having been ordered
: n.lc.-t to Geordi i,the tro ips were reduced below a Brigadier’s command,
j and G •.neral Pope accordingly returned without an opportunity us tak
ing part in the campaign.
Having no authoril >■ to draw on the Treasury of Georgia to defray
I tn? expenses ol bringing these troops to the field and marching them to
I Florida, I req jested, for this purpose, funds from the Secretary of War,
I who promptly remitted to me twenty-five thousand dollars. The greater
; part of this sum was expended in that service, and the balance has been
j applied to the. Creek War, to which I shall hereafter advert. But be
j Into the receipt of this money, circumstances connected with the public
safety compelled me to draw on the contingent fund for six hundred and
sixty-eight dollars and six cents, which I have since returned to the
Treasury; and, besides this amount, the Treasurer, Col. Haynes, at
I my request, promptly assumed the responsibility of furnishing me with
■nch sums of money as were necessary to meet the daily demands of
i the service, until I could receive remittances from the War Depart
; m m*. In ad lition to th ■ twenty-live thousand dollars, above mentioned,
j 1 have since received the sum often thousand dollais, which has ena
; bled me to return to Col. 11 ivnes the whole amount borrowed, and to
; pay oil the accounts contracted for transportation, subsistence, &c.
j cvC. of tho Volunteers.
In compliance with a resolution of the General Assemble, passed at
the l ist Session, I caused tho counties of Baker, Dooly, Early, Lee,
Randolph, Stewart and Sumter to be furnished with arms and ammuni
tion ; aud a conpany of Spies, consisting of twenty mounted men, to
be raised in.,each, to protect tho people against hostile incursions cl
tho Crock In hans. These companies were kept in service for soma
: tin: 1 , ail until it was deemed proper to supersede them by a force be
i iieved to be more efficient. This was a small battalion of mounted
| men who volunteered, at ths invitation of the Commander-in-Chief,
i to serve three months under the command of Major John 11. Howard,
. to whom a speci il cmn nission of Major was given for that pmpose.
I I’ltis bi talion was mustered into the service of the United Stales, and
'supported mid pail by that government. The expenses of the Spies,
| raised under the authority of the resolution, have not been p-iid, be-
I cause at the time tint the accounts were being made out and arratme
; ments were in progress to pay them, the Creek War commenced, winch
i so disturbed the people of those counties, and occupied the time and at
i motion of tho Execu.ive, tliut it was not possible to do so—and since
that time, theiC causes have not ceased to exist and exert their intlu
ence.
A short time before the expiration of the term for which Major How
ard’s battalion had volunteered, tho Creek Indians became hostile and
■ rendered it necessary to call on the people of Georgia to take tip arms
]in defence, of their State. On the 13ih May, a Genera! Order was
I issued inviting \ olunteers. Tire invitation was accepted with groat
j promptness, and in a much shorlertimcthan it is generally supposed that
I v.no'-^ci ll i Zr , < l militia can be brought to tho field, a force of between
lour ami five thousand, composed of volunteers and draughted militia
was assemble lat different points on the Chattahoochie. Some of these
troops had to mar ch a distance of two hundred miles, and yet they were
nearly all assembled at the different places appointed, by the fifth day
ot June, making the whole time, from the date of the invitation to the
time of arrival, only twenty-two days.
I’ll" Florida campaign had exhausted the Arsenal at Milledgeville
of nearly all the arms. Those which still remained were immediately
forwarded to Colmnbns and West Point, and an order was issued to
the Military Store-keeper, at Savannah, to ship one thousand stand
with the accoutrements, m Augusta, whence they were immediately
sent in wagons to Columbus. No time was lost In the transportation
of these arms, and they arrived at different times between the 4th and
I the 15th days ol June. I also requested the officer in command of the
Ul'itrf. S. tates’ Arsenal, near Augusta, to forward to Columbus one thou
nnd rtuskets, which request was promptly granted, and the arms were
Mumodiattdy put on board of wagons ; but by misconduct, or negligence
tn those h iving charge of the wagon train, they did not arrive until the
asi ol June or first ol July. Major Gen. Scott had ordered a quantity
if H all’s rillesfrom I’icolata to Darien and thence to Hawkinsville, to
lie conveyed from that place to Columbus, together with a supply of
provisions for the army ; but these, also, were delayed by untoward cir
cumstances, long after the time of their eepected arrival.
Knowing that the President of the United States bad charged Ma
jor Gen. Scott, with the defence ol the, nation against any hostile move
ments of the Creek, as well as the Seminole Indians, I addressed him
a letter on the 18th day of May last, requesting him to repair to tin
Georgia frontier, on the Chattahoochie, and takecharge of the military
I operations in that quarter. This letter met him at Savannah, and l:t
i immediately proceeded to Milledgeville, where lie arrived ontheeven
| ing of the 28th May, in company with Major General Jesup, n horn In
joined at \ugusta. On the next morning, these gentlemen and mysel
left Mill" !' . ville for Columbus, where we arrived on the evening of tin ■
30th of May.
Before the arrival of Generals Scott and Jesup, and whilst the res
ponsibility ol the < -.,iipaign rested on me, 1 had determined to place ot
the ixtsteni margin of the Chattahoochie, a force capable of preventing
the evape of the enemy, believing, that whenever lie should be presse
in Alabama, he would ».< < x refuge in Hight, and that the conflict wouiu
he ; sit i■- ti.j y w u : n the territory of Georgia.
THE STANIMHi) OF UNION.
1 his purpose, to which the troops were directed as speedily as they
could be organized and armed, was recommended, not only by the con
sideration stated, bnt by the melancholy fact, that the Indians had mur
dered, or driven from their homes, all the white inhabitants of Alabama
that were within their power, and destroyed their property, before tl.i
army In I reached the frontiers of Georgia. There was nothing let.
to tempt their cruelty or rapacity; and, therefore, no feeling of huma
nity torliid the caution intended to force them into conflict or capitula
tion. Ihe events ol the campaign havp confirmed my confidence in
those views, for our troops, on the river, were engaged in almost daily
contests w'uh the (lying loe, and all the battles of the Creek l\ ar,have
been fought by Georgians, on the «oil oj Georgia.
i Immediately on the arrival ol Gen. Scott at Columbus, he assumed
the comm mil ot the Army and the direction of the War, and gave the
high sanction ol his approbation, to the course which had been pursued.
Want ot arms, ammunition .’>nd provisions, which had to be convey- j
ed from Savannah, Augusta, I’icolata ami New Orleans, delayed, lor a j
time, the contemplated movement on the enemy, and was a source ot
embarrassment, not less vexatious to thosa who had taken timely mea
sures to provide them, than to the armv, impatient as they were, to
avenge th- wrongs of their suffering coiiitrvmen. But this delay has
been greatly exaggerated by mistake, or misrepresentation, and a just
allowance has not been made for misadventures, over which, those in ]
xummand had no control.
As the troops ai rived, they were equipped and sent forward as spec- !
dily as possible. I lie first companies were mustered into service on '
the 2d or 3d day ot June, and the greai body of the army took up >
the line ol march under Generals Scott and Sanford, eighteen days j
therealter. Il due allowance be made for the time necessary to pro
cure munitions ot war from distant points, to muster into service, offi- '
cer, arm, and fui nish with ammunition, camp equipage and provisions,
I between four and five thousand men, whose peaceful pursuits have given
■ them but little aptitude to military organization, it will be found that
| the actual detention was unavoidable and very inconsiderable; and
under less momentous and exciting circumstances, it would have re
ceived a more general and just explanation.
By virtue of the authority vested in the Executive by the 45th sec- !
lion of the Militia law of 1818, I appointed Major General John W r . A. |
Sanford and Brigadier Generals Henry 11. Lowe, Zachayiah White and
James Wood, to command the troops.’ These officers discharged their
duty with promptness and ability, tnd to the entire satisfaction of the
army and the people.
A few days before General Scitt moved from Columbus, General
Jastip, with the Alabama troops aid friendly Indians, marched from
1 iiskegeu through the Creek country in the direction of Fort Mitchell,
io this detachment ol the army, a cumber of hostile Indians, including
three or tour hunched warriors, camoi.n and surrendered ; whilst another i
party, said to consist of three hundred, alarmed at the approach of this
force, crossed the Cliattalioocliie serac miles below Roanoke, and pro
ceeded towards Florida. Their tral was not discovered until a day or !
-two after they had crossed, and justat the time when Generals Scott I
'and Sanford, with the troops under their command, reached Roanoke.
I The fact being made known to them, a force under Col. Beall was des
j patched in pursuit, and a portion o.’the enemy was overtaken in the. !
i Clikkasawhatchifi swamp, in Bake - county, where a skirmish ensued j
I in wuich it is said that nine or ten Indians were killed, and a quantity
jof goads, horses, money and other property captured. A battalion of
; Volunteer Infantry from Muscogee county, tinder command of Major i
Iloxey, also marched to Baker coar.fy and search-ad the swamps for the
enemy ; and subsequently, a battalion of mounted men, under Major!
Alford', scoured that part of the Suite.
The Georgia troops engaged in the Creek War have dons honor to
themselves and to the Stale, and presented conspicuous instances of
gallantly that have called forth the praises, and will long receive the !
gratitude of their country ; and this just commendation of the army is i
equally due to those brave citizens of Stewart, Randolph, Lee, Irwin, i
Baker, Teliaii, Thomas, Lowndes, Early, and Ware, who flow with I
alacrity lo the point of danger, and with a high personal daring sought j
the sanguinary savage in his own fortress swamps, and checked his I
cruel course of death and devastation.
' Tho hostile Indians who surrendered to the troops under command
j of G neral Jesup, wore conducted to Fori Mitchell, where the warriors !
; were placed within the pickets of the Fort. Bi lieving, from good evi-
I dence, that among these were many who had been engaged in the
I murder of our citizens, and tiie burning of Roanoke, and other places!
; on the Chattahoochie, and that it was tny duty, as the Governot of the ;
I State, to use all legal and proper means of having them identified and
turned over to the civil authority for trial, I addressed two letters to
| General Jesup, at Fort Mitchell, under date of the 29th and 30th of
! June, requesting him to detain these warriors at the Fort for a feason
] able time, that I might collect the evidence to identify them, and to
authorise me to demand them for trial. To these letters no answers
j were received, and, on the 21 day of July all the Indians were re
moved from Fort Mitchell on their way to Arkansas, except eleven
warriors who had been charged, on sufficient evidence, with the com
mission of capital crimes in Georgia. Th.-.sa were afterwards, on mv
request, delivered by Mijor Mclntosh, who was in command of the
Fort, to tho civil autiioriiies and secured in the jail at Columbus.
Believing mat an indignity was offered to the State, through her
Chief Magistrate, by this course of proceeding on the part of (reneral
J.esup, I addressed a letter to the President of the United States, on
the/th of July, stating the facts, and protesting against such conduct on
tho part of an officer of the army, towards the authorities of the State,
a copy of which I sent to General Jesup. I have received an answer
from the President, in w.iich he states that he has caused a copy of my
letter to be forwarded to Gen. Jesup, with a call for explanation.
Subsequent to these occurrences, the Creek warrior, Jim Henry,
sm rendered himself to the Alabam i forces under Generals Jesup and
Patterson. Immediately on learning the fact, I demanded him as ame
nable to the laws of Georgia for crimes he had committed within tier
i jurisdiction, but Gen. Jesup refused to deliver him to the agent appoint
led to receive and conduct him to Georgia, on the ground that he had
! been previously demanded by the Governor of Alabama, to be tried
| for capital crimes committed by him within that jurisdiction—and lie
’ was afterwards delivered to the Sheriff’ of Russell county, in that State,
i and conducted by Capt. Germany and a part of his company to Girard,
I and lodged in jail.
As soon as I could obtain the evidence necessary to make a demand
j on the Governor of Alabama for this man, I did so, and requested that,
I in the event ot his acquittal in that State, he should be delivered to
i the agent appointed by me on the pu t of Georgia, to be conducted to
: Stewart cost ty and tried for the crimes with which he there stands
| charged. This demand was promptly complied with by His E.tcellen
| cy Governor Clay, who immediately transmitted to me the necessary
j papers, which were placed in the hands of Captains Evans and Schley,
10l the city of Columbus, whom I appointed agents to receive the pri
| soner and conduct him to this State. These gentlemen attended the
. Court in Russell county, Alabama, to receive liim, in the event of his
acquittal, but at the request of his counsel, the venue was changed from
I Russel to Montgomery county, where the Court will not sit until the
I month of March next.
I Some short time after claiming Jim Henry, I made a general demand
i ot Gun. Jesup of all Indians, in his custody, charged with the commission
ot crimes within this State, and who should be identified as such by the
per.-.ons wno accompanied Col. Rockwell, the bearer of my communica
tion. Before the arrival ofthese gentlemen at Tuskegee, the Indians
had been removed to Montgomery, and they were obliged to proceed
to that city, where, by authority received from Gen. Jesup, they took
into custody twelve warriors, recognized as amenable to our laws, and
committed them to jail in Columbus to await their trials.
Since writing to the President, anil my return to Milledgeville, acon
respondence has taken place between Gen. Jesup and myself, in which
he accounts for not having answered my letters. Tothatofthe 29ih of
June, he has enclosed me a reply, which, he says, was written,-but bv
mistake placed on tile instead of being sent to mo; and to that of the
| 30th ot the same month, lie acknowledges that no answer was written,
i and supposes that the omission was occasioned by his great anxiety to
j depart for 1 uskegee, and the multiplicity of business which then occu
; pied his time and attention. His motive for removing the hostile warriors
from I ort Mitchell against the wishes of Georgia, conveyed to him
j t nough her Chief Magistrate, is explained in his letter to the War
)"partmont, in answer to the call made by the President, after receiv
ing my communication.
Copies <»• all the correspondence relating to this subject, as also to
i le > eminole and Creek Wars, will be found among the accompanying
documents. ‘
1 h.ueare still many hostile Indians in the swamps of Irwin, Tho
mas, Low tides and Ware., who give just cause of alarm to the inha
bitants. 1 have been applied to for the means of protection, which were
iininom.itely afforded by sending armsand ammunition to those coun
its, ,md instructing the commanding officers of regiments to call out a
mounted company in each, for temporal v security, until more pel manent i
arrangements could be made ; and to this end, 1 requested from Major j
en. Jesup a detachment of regular troops for that service. The request |
•vas promptly granted, and Major G. Dearborn, with two companies, I
was sent with instructions to establish a military station at such place in |
jownt ts. oi W.ue, as might bo considered most eligible, and to call on
he commanding ofli'.ers of the militia in those., and the. adjoining coun
.tes, fol such number of troops as lie should deem necessary to give sc
• ui ity hhq repost? to tho country.
Many of the members of Capt. Garmanv’s company, who were eij
r Wl | IC {■'rt s °k Indians in the battle of Shepherd’s field, on the
)ih June last, lost most of their wearing apparel and were so destitute
if these articles tint they could not perform duty without a new supply,
i he army regulations make no provisions for furnishing clothes under j
meh circumstances, and some of these men had not the means of proem- |
ng them, for they had also lost their money ; and,therefore, I purchas- (
d cheap articles for them to the amount of one hundred and sixtv-six
lolltirs and twenty-fire cents, which I paid out of the contingent fund.
I he Georgia troops engaged in the Creek war, had expended their
•wn money in providing themselves with such camp equipage as they
relieved to be necessary on their march to the frontier, and in camp,
application was inade to the Quarter-master of the United States’ Ar
my to refund the amounts thus expended, but he did not feel himself
j aulhorised to do so, because the quantity and quality ofmany of the ar
ticles purchased, did not correspond win the army reg dations. After
•everal contcreuces which I had with tiat officer on tiie subject, he
agreed to furnish the m moy if 1 would assume the responsibility of
paying the accounts and settling with tie War Department. This I
contented to do, rattier than our people s'tioiild lose large sums of mo
nl y expended by them for the public seivicc, and accordingly 1 re
-1 < i'< d iiom Mr. \/aite, the Quirler-m istet, five thousand one hundred
md sixty-eight dollars an I forty-five cents, vhich 1 applied to the pay
ment of these demands.
\ i y soon alter tne ratification, by the Senate ofthe United States,
of tho treaty made between Gen. Cairoll and Mr. Scbci mc-rliorn, the
commissioners on the part of the United States, and the. Cherokee tribe
of Indians, (a copy of which accompanies this message,) the people of
m n section ol the State became apjirehensive that tiie Ross party,
against w,lose wishes the contract for their removal to the West was
■ m ide, w mid, m the then situation of the State in remird to the Creeks
ant bemmoles, become hostile. Under the influence of this excite
ment, li lightened, as it was, by some murders and burnings committed
''?■ 'd'ann aboutthat time in Walker county, petitions from several parts
ot tiie >.imokee Circuit for troops, arms and ammunition, were pre
sented and granted. Orders were, issued to Briimslier General James
j llemphill to raise a battalion of militia and pbfe them at Lashley’s
Perry, on the Coosa river, for tiie double pmpose of preventing the
, ? lro ! n CU! »"'g <:>to Georgia, and to keep the Cberokeesin check.
lab older was executed, and a battalion was organised under the
conni in l of Major Charles H. Nelson. For further security, a part of
toe (y.ierokees were disarmed, and five hundred muskets and accoutre
ments were ordered from Savannah, and sent to Cherokee county, with
a sufficiency of ammunition for the use of the people, in the event ofany
hostile movements on the part ofthese Indians. Whether the Ross party
really intended any hostile action, has not berm ascertained. But, it
was proper to bo prepared for it; and the arrangements on the part of
Geotgia, together with the appearance of the Tennessee troojis, about
t i it tini", under Brigadier General Wool of the United States’Army,bad
tiie good effect of quieting the fears of the citizens.
An unpleasant circumstance, however, occurred between a company
of Georgia Volunteers, under command of Capt. Absalom Bishop,
forming a part of -Major Nelson’s battalion, and a portion of the
lennessee troops. Capt. Bishop, in obedience to orders, had arrested
a number of Creek Indians fertile purpose of conveying them to Ala
bama, to be delivered to the proper officer having charge of the Creek
emigration; but before his object was effected, Capt. Vernon, with a
company of Tennessee Volunteers, demanded these Indians, and
threatened to take them from his possession, and to take him and his
company it he resisted. Before, however, any collision took place,
Gen. Dunlap, commanding the Tennessee brigade, arrived, and a com
promise was made, by which Capt. Bishop kept possession of a part of
the Indians, and surrendered a part on the claim of their being Cher
okees.
I have received from Gen. Dunlap and Col. William N. Bishop com
munications in which different views are taken of the matter, and the
circumstances are difierently stated ; each party criminating the other.
I o the letter of Gen. Dunlap, I returned an answer objecting to the
conduct of tae I ennessee company ; and 1 also wrote to Gen. Wool,!
giving to him the facts as* they had been presented to me by both sides,
and requesting him to calm the troubled waters. His reply, attaching
blame to each party, will be found among the correspondence on this
subject herewith communicated.
By the treaty to which I have adverted, between the United States
and tiie Cherokees, the latter are allowed until the 23d day of May,
1838, to leave the soil of Georgia. This convention will, I have no '
doubt, be satisfactory to the State, and it will be proper for the General
Assembly so to modify the laws in relation to these people and their
rights of occupancy, as to do justice and advance the interest of the
; State.
i In the month of December last, immediately after the adjournment :
, of the LegM iture, I received a Utter from Governor Cannon, of Ten
nessne, on the subject of the arrest, by the Georgia Guard, of Mr. John I
j Howard I’ayne within the jurisdiction of that State. The act could I
I not be justifiad on any principle of right or comity between State--, and
luid been expressly condemned by a resolution of the General Assem
bly of Georgia, before complaint was made on the part of Tennessee.
I replied to the letter ot Governor Cannon and enclosed to him a copy
jof the Resolution, which lias been satisfactory. A copy of the cor
respondence is herewith transmitted.
The defects of our militia system, thtMigh, to a certain extent, long
! ki iwn and lelt by all who lake anj' inqirest in having a well organized
! body of citizen soldiers, were never so glaringly exposed as during the
I Seminole and Creek Wars. The existing law offers so little induce
: ment for persons of suitable capacity to a»ept offices in the militia, that
: even the high stations oi Colonel and Major were found vacant in many
of the cou n ties, during thcexcilementoi' die past year. Bytlieact of!8I8,
' no provision is made tor the election or appointment of field officers to
j volunteer troops, and it is very doubtful whether the Legislature intended,
j by the 45tb section of that act, to vest in the Governor ihe appointment
ot those officers in the caso of draughted militia. In the absence,
j therefore, ol any law on this subject in regard to Volunteers, and with
the great doubt oi power in respect tn draughted men, I permitted loth
; species of ttoopsin the Creek campaign to elect their own field officers,
! to whom I gave commissions to continue during the time they should re
! main in that Service.
, I here is another omission in this act which it would be well tosupply ;
! there is no penalty fixed against those who, after appearing at the
I place of rendezvous, shall'refuse to enter the service of the United
j States.
i Iho office of Adjutant-General has been vacant for twelve months.
The legislature, al the last session, failed to fill it, and 1 deemed it un
i necessary lo do so during the recess of that body, because I could nc.t
! expect to obtain the services of any individual without compensation,
and there is none noio attached to the office, except the inadequate
! amount of thirty day’s pay, in each year, of an officer of like grade in
the Army ot the United States. I would respectfully recommend that,
in revising the system, provision be made for an Adjutant and Assistant
i Adjutant-General, with a competent salary to each, to induce him to
i give his whole time and talents to the subject.
| The nature of this communication will not allow me to enter into a
i detail of all the defects and imperfections of the present militia laws ;
< nor do I consider it necessary, as recent experience has so fully devel
oped them, that they will not escape the intelligent observation of the
j Legislature.
I he Cavalry arms, for the purchase of which an appropriation was
I made by the General Assembly at the last session, have been contract
ed for through the agency of the War Department, the Secretary hav
ing politely offered to have them fabricated after the model of those
used in the Army, and at the price paid by the United States for similar
articles. Tiie swords, pistol-holsters and accoutrements have been fi
ished, received and paid for, and are of a superior quality for the price;
but the pistols have not yet arrived. The sum appropriated was ten
thousand dollars, with which three hundred and forty sets have been
purchased. The cost ofthe swords, holsters and accoutrements, includ
ing commissions, freight and insurance is four thousand four hundred
and thirteen dollars and ninety-six cents.
The act authorizing the purchase ofthese arms, requires the Gover
nor to distribute them to cavalry corps. The number obtained will
furnish only five or six companies, and it will be an unpleasant task for
hin 10 detelmine which shall be thus favoted, to the exclusion of all
others. As all the companies will have an equal claim, and very few
ot them can be accommodated, it will be well for the General Assem
bly to determine, whether, under the circumstances, thesb arms shall
be distributed, or kept in the arsenal to be used by such volunteers as
may be called into service, in the event of an emergency making such
call necessary.
No military fund was created by the appropriation act of the last
session, and, conseqently, I have not been enabled to pay the Brigade
Inspectors and others having military accounts against the State.
The cartridge boxes, bayonet scabbards and belts which had been
contracted for, under authority of a resolution of the General Assem
bly, passed at the session of 1834, have been received and paid for.
The reports ofthe Keepers ofthe public Arsenals at Savannah and
J Milledgeville, will be found among the documents, and will show the
number ano condition of the armsand accoutrements, and the quan
tity and quality ofthe ammunition.
I have received a communication from Col. Boraford, of the Ord
j nance Department, stating that Georgia is entitled, under the act of
Congress of 1808, to a quota of arms up to the first January last, equal
| in value to 548 7-13 muskets, and requesting that I would designate the
jkind of arms the State would prefer. In answer to this comm'nication,
i 1 have directed the amount to be paid in yagers or rilles, with the
I necessary accoutrements.
The Georgia arms which were used during the Creek War, were,
on the discharge of the troops, delivered to the United States Ordnance
| officer at Columbus; and, by direction ot' tho Commanding General,
j have been sent to the Arsenal at Mount Vernon, in Alabama, to be put
|in good order. These, or others equally good, will in due time, be re-
I turned to tho State.
The State having no gunpowder suitable for small arms, and there ]
being frequent calls tor that article during the recent Indian excite- j
ments, I caused seventy-five kegs to be purchased, most of which is I
now in the magazine at this place.
I ho addition to the South end of the Capitol, which was authorised |
by an act ot the General Assembly, passed on the 20th day of Decern- !
her, one thousand light hundred and thirty-four, and for the erection!
of which a contract was entered into between the State and Messrs.
Smith, Tucker & Marler, has been completed. So far as I can
judge, the work has been well executed, and the contractors
have received the sum of twelve thousand five hundred dollars, the
whole amount of the appropriation. But there still remains a balance
of fifteen hundred and twenty-eight dollars eighty-three cents due to
them, for the payment ot which, an additional appropriation should bo
made. Besides this work, some repairs and extra improvements wen
deemed necessary to preserve the bouse against injury from the wea
ther, as also to improve its general appearance. The several account'
to be rendered for these, will probably amount to one. thousand dollars,
and for this sum, also, an appropriation is requested.
) But the building is still unfinished. The platforms and steps at the
Eastern and Western doors are in a very dilapidated state, and not
suited in appearanc' 1 , or utility, to the beautiful structure of which they
now form the vestibules. These outrb.t to be removed and their places
supplied with porches and colonnades, corresponding with the rest of
the edifice. And, as a finishing touch to the whole, the interior should
be neatly painted.
In conformity to a resolution of the last session ofthe legislature, the
public square around the Uapitol has been improved, by levelling the
surface as tar as was deem M necessary at this time. That part
of the resolution req tiring trees and shrubbery to be planted, lias
not been executed, because before that is done, there should be a good
enclosure to protect them. The area of the present campus is too
large. It ought to be contracted to about 210 yards square, and en
close! with a good, neat and durable fence.
The committee appointed to contract for, and superintend the builds
ing of a house for the residence of the Governor, have not been able
to succeed in pi (muring an undertaker. Two causes have conspired to
; prevent them ; the inadequacy of the appropriation, by reason of tho
enhanced value oi nrfttcrials and labor, and the great demand, everv
where, for architects and mechanics. The only propostions that were
submitted, to erect a building of proper dimensions and in good style,
were at the prices of twenty-four and eighteen thousand dollars. The
sum appropriated to build and furnish, was only fifteen thousand, and
consequently, neither ofthese propositions could be accepted. It will be
for the legislature, now to determine, whether an additional sum shall be
appropriated to carry into effect the object contemplated in the resolu
tion ofthe last session.
The Arsenal, in Milledgeville, is unfortunately so located as to ob
struct the view ofthe Capitol from the principal part ofthe town, and
diminish, to a very great extent, the beauty of that edifice and the
grounds around it; and the building is not properly adapted to the uses
for which it was intended. 1, therefore, respectfully submit soy the
consideration ofthe General Assemby, the propriety of removing it to
some more suitable place and rebuilding it on a better plan.
Copies of the semi-annual reports made to the Executive Depart
ment by the several incorporated Banks of this State, in terms of the
law, as also the annual report of the Central Bank of Georgia, are here
with submitted to the General Assembly.
Agreeable to the requisition of the fifth rule and ninth section of
the charter of the Bank of Darien, I have appointed Messrs. Joseph
(' naming of the city of Savannah, James Hamilton Couper of Mclntosh
county and William W. Holt of the city of Augusta, to represent the
State’s interest in a meeting ofthe stockholders of that institution, which
was called in conformity to the charter, and to be held at the principal
Bank in Darien, on the third day of this inst. It will be proper to make
provision to compensate those gentlemen for their labors.
A list of Executive warrants drawn on the Treasury during the past
political year, as also of Executive appointments made during the same
period, will be found among the documents accompanying this communi
cation.
The act of the General Assembly, passed on the tenth day of De
cember, 1810, declares that the standard of weights and measures es
tablished by the corporations of Savannah and Augusta, shall be the
standard weights an 1 measures in this State, until the Congress of the
United States shall have made provision on the subject. This provi
sion was made by a resolution passed at the last session of Congress,
which directs the Secretary of the Treasury “ to cause a complete set
of all the weights and measures adopted as standards, and now either
made, or in the progress of manufacture, for the use of the several Custom
Houses and for other purposes, to be delivered to the Governor of each
State in the Union, or such person as he may appoint, for the use of
the States respectively, to the end that an uniform standard of weights
and measures may be established throughout the United States.”
Congress having thus acted on the subject, the General Assembly
should so alter the act of 1810 as to conform to this resolution, and as
ford facilities for extending to every part ofthe State, the benefits to be
derived from a uniform standard of weights and measures.
1 have received from several of our sister States’, resolutions of their
Legislatures on the subjects of abolition, railroads, the Treaty with
France, the mode of electing the President and Vice-President of the
United States, and the surplus revenue, with a request that I should lay
them before the General Assembly. They are herewith transmitted to
the House of Representatives.
By the 14th section ofthe act of 1793, and the resolution of 1834,
i the Govenw is required to defiay, from the contingent fund, the ex
! penses of preventing the spread of the small-pox. Under the authority
jof these acts, the sum of two thousand two hundred and ninety-six dol
: lars and one cent, has been expended during the past year, and several
'accounts remain unsettled, some of the charges being of a character
i which I did not feel myself authorized to pay ; such, for example, as
[ ihe value of clothes committed to the flames and Physicians’ bills. It
I would be well lor the Legislature to establish some rule on the subject
! for the government ofthe Executive and the people.
Almost every year this disease visits our State, and produces a panic
wheiever it takes up its abode, it has become a subject of deep interest
to the peoiale, and calls for the intelligent action of the Legislature in
devising the most effectual and, at the same time, humane means of
preventing the spread of the disease. Among these, th ire can be no
doubt that vaccination is tiie most efficacious, and should, therefore, be
encouraged by offering to the people every facility in the obtainmentof
the vaccine matter. To do this, an agent ought to be appointed, whose
duty it should be to keep on .hand, at all times, a sufficient quantity es
fresh virus, to be by him, on application, furnished to persons desiring
it in al! parts ofthe State, the expense of which should be paid from the
public Treasury.
In pursuance of the authority vested in tiie Governor, by a resolution
of the last session, on the subject of the education ofthe indigent De C
and Dumb in this State, 1 have appointed the Rev. Elijah Sinclair the
commissioner to carry into effect the humane and charitable views of
the General Assembly. This gentleman had been appointed to the
same office by my immediate predecessor under a previous re oluiion
and had discharged his duty with such high credit to himself, and great
benefit to the unfortunate objects ofthe State’s bounty, that it gave mo
pleasure to re-appoint him.
This provision, so honorable to the State, in behalf of an unfortunate
portion of our fellow-beings, suggests the propriety of extending the
public charity io another class having equal claims to our sympathy.
Humanity requires that a comfortable place of refuge should be pro--
vided for the lunatic and the madman, to alleviate their sufferings, and
to protect the community against their involuntary acts: and that such
as are indigent should be maintained at the public expense. I invite
the attention of the General Assembly to the subject, and recommend
an appropriation of such sum of money as may be deemed necessary
for the erection of a Lunatic Asylum for the reception and accomoda--
tion of persons thus afflicted. •
1 herewith transmit to tiie General Assembly a copy of the proceed
ings ofthe Convention which assembled at Knoxville, in the State of
Tennessee, on the fourth day of July last, to take into consideration the
proposed Louisville, Cincinnati and Charleston Rail-Road. Georgia,
was ably represented in that Convention by delegates from different
sections of the State, who clearly demonstrated that the cheapest and
most practicable route to the Southern Atlantic coast is through the ter--
ritory of Georgia. Charters have been granted by the States of Ken
tucky, Tennessee, North Carolina and South Carolina for the purpose
of constructing a continuous Rail Road from Cincinnati to Charleston,
passing through these States, and the question will be presented to
Georgia, whether she will grant a charter authorizing a Rail Road to
join the main trunk of this great workatsome convenient point in. Te
nnessee.
The great advantages of Rail Road communications in producing
( individual profit and public convenience, by the speedy transportation
of persons and property, have been so fully developed, that it cannot
be necessary, at this time, to elucidate tl.em to an enlightened people..
They are stimulating individual enterprize in every quarter, and should
notescape the intelligent forecast of the statesman, devising for his.
country, prosperity in peace and security in war.
Hitherto, no attempt has been made thus to connect the West with
the South; because, until recently, the intervening mountains have
been considered an insuperable barrier. But now, that all physical
difficulties recede before the light ot science, the people of Georgia owo
it to themselves to second, with energy and liberality, the great enter
prize which is projected of connecting Cincinnati with the Southern
Atlantic coast. 1 hey can avail themselves of its advantages with less
trouble and expense than any other portion ofthe South, as it has been,
ascertained, by actual survey, that the entire line fioin an eligible point
on the Northern, or North-western part ofthe State, to Knoxville, in
lennessee, byway of the Rabun Gap mid other routes, may be passed'
on a Rail Road, without a single, inclined plane, and without the least
difficulty in the employment of locomotive engines. Personal interest,
public utility, state pride, every feeling which should impel men to ex
ertion in a good cause, appeal to us most signally in behalf of this stupen
dous object; and, surely, every Georgian will respond with a spirit
becoming the people and the occasion.
Every exertion in the power of tiie Executive was made to procure a
competent Engineer, to examine the passes in the mountains on the Nor
thern line ot Georgia, in time to lav the result before the Knoxville Con
vention,hut without success. I had determined to employ Mr. James Ste
phens, of Rhode Island, who had produced high testimonials of his quali
fications for the task, but, unfortunately, directed my letter containing
the appointment, to Providence instead of Newport, so that it did not
reach him, and the error was not discovered until a few weeks aco, after
I had given the office to another. I regret, on Mr. Stephens’ account
that the mistake occurred, although no injury has been sustained bv
Georgia in consequence of the delay. Early in tho month of August
last, i appointed Col. A. 11. Brisbane, of South Carolina, a gentleman
oi character, ability and high attainments in his profession, Civil F»,
.•racer for the State of Georgia. He called to his aid, Mr. Edward B
Into, gentleman highly qualified for the task, and immediately com
menced the examination of the passes in the mountains, as directed bv
the resolution ofthe last session. They have finished the survey of
ue route by the Rabun Gap and submitted a report of their proceed
ings, aceranpankul by maps and estimates; all es which are herewith
transmitted to the House ot Rqucscntalives. They are now
