of the entrance of the harbor, but neither its construction nor position was adapted to resist a strong land attack. It stood upon the same shore with Fort McRae, a mile and a quarter farther up the bay. When the Confederate troops took possession of this fort, Capt. O'Hara was put in command. He, by the most untiring efforts. placed it in a proper state of defence. It had a garrison of 300 regularly enlisted men of the army of the Confederate States. The guns were all mounted, and the troops well drilled as cannoneers.1

The navy-yard is situated upon the same shore of the bay with Forts McRae and Barrancas, about a mile and a half above the latter. At the outbreak of the war, it was under the command of Commodore James Armstrong; the next officer in rank at the yard being Commander Ebenezer Farrand, who afterwards resigned and entered the C. S. navy. The disposable force at the yard consisted of about seventy sailors or "ordinary men," as they are termed, and fortyeight marines, under the command of Capt. Joseph Watson. There were also at the yard, subject to the commands of Commodore Armstrong, the U. S. storeship Supply, with. two 30pounders and thirty-eight men, and the steamer Wyandotte, with six 32's and eighty men.

On January 12th, 1861, the navy-yard was surrounded by Florida and Alabama troops, under the command of Major Wm. H. Chase, formerly of the U. S. corps of Engineers, who had been appointed major general by Governor Perry, of Florida, who demanded the surrender of the yard. Opposition was worse than useless, as the navy-yard itself is so situated that no military man would think of defending it against a large attacking force with the means at the commodore's command. The Florida and Alabama troops, numbering seven companies, with nearly five hundred men, rank and file, arrived at the east entrance of the navy-yard about eleven o'clock A. M., and there halted. Col. Lomax, accompanied by Major Marks and Adjutant Burrows of an Alabama regiment, and Col. R. L. Campbell, aide-de-camp to Gen. Ben. Chase, and Capt. Randolph, late of the U. S. army, as also Capt. Farrand of the yard, proceeded immediately to the office of Commodore Armstrong, commanding, for an interview, which was promptly accorded by the venerable chief officer of the yard. After the introduction of the distinguished parties, Col. Lomax read the order from the Governor of Florida, by authority of which he demanded immediate possession of the yard and its stores of every description. Commodore Armstrong responded, his voice trembling with emotion as he announced that he relinquished his authority to the representative of the

1 The Savannah Republican of the 10th of January, 1861, said: "A private letter received yesterday from Bainbridge informs us of the occupation of the Chattahoochee arsenal, situated in Gadsden county, Florida, at the junction of the Flint and Chattahoochee Rivers, by

the Quincy Guard. The arsenal contains 500,000 rounds of musket cartridges, 300,000 rifle cartridges and 50,000 pounds of gunpowder. There are no arms except such as is necessary to defend the property against ordinary contingencies."

sovereignty of Florida. The order was immediately given by Lieut. Renshaw to haul down the flag of the Union, which was done; and instead thereof there was run up a flag of thirteen alternate stripes of red and white, and blue field with a large white star, announcing the changed political condition of the State. Everything was conducted in the most orderly and respectful manner, attended with a degree of solemn interest which was manifested upon the countenances of the hundreds of citizens and soldiers present. Capt. Randolph was placed in command of the yard. The magazine, containing a large amount of ammunition, was taken by a detachment of troops as soon as they arrived at the yard. The marines in the barracks, to the number of thirty-six, were made prisoners, together with the laborers and employés in the yard. The wives and children of the command at Fort Pickens had been previously conveyed on board the Supply. On the following day the store-ship, under a flag of truce, proceeded to the wharf of the navy-yard, where the laborers and marines were taken on board, Commander Walke having given his parole that they should be landed north of Mason's and Dixon's line. Overtures had been made to the marines to join the State forces, with the alternative of expulsion in case of a refusal. The personal property of the force at Fort Pickens, belonging to the officers' wives, was under flag of truce conveyed on board the Supply and taken North, arriving at New York, February 4th, 1861.

In a letter to the New York Herald, dated at Pensacola navy-yard, January 29th, 1861, Lieut. B. Renshaw, until a short time before an officer in the U. S. navy, but who resigned and entered the C. S. navy, gave the following account of the circumstances attending the surrender of the navyyard:

"I have seen in your paper of the 23d inst. a statement, which jus tice to myself as well as to the naval service of the United States, in which I had the honor of serving for thirty-three years, requires me promptly to request you to correct. The statement referred to recited that the Navy Department had received the resignation of Commander Farrand, who was attached to the Pensacola navy-yard, and who was among those who, in the name of Florida,' demanded its surrender, and also that of Lieut. Renshaw who gave the orders to haul down the flag of the Union.

"I submit the following true record of the proceedings which attended and resulted in the surrender of this navy-yard to the authorities of the State of Florida, and I rely upon your sense of right to do me justice by its publication in your columns: On the 12th instant, Flag-officer Armstrong, then commandant at the station, was informed that a commission appointed by the governor of Florida, with a regiment of armed men, were at the navy yard gate, demanding the surrender of the place. Flagofficer Armstrong directed Commander Farrand, the executive officer at the yard, to conduct the commissioners to his office. The commissioners came accordingly, escorted by Commander Farrand. Colonel Lomax, the commanding officer of the forces on the expedition, with his staff, were then sent for, and conducted to the flag-officer's office by Commander Farrand, to meet the commissioners, who then presented their credentials to

Flag-officer Armstrong, informing him that they had already taken possesion of the magazine, situated about a third of a mile distant from the yard, and demanded the immediate surrender of the navy-yard and the public property within. The veteran commodore declared, with deep emotion, that although he had served under the flag of the United States, in sunshine and in storm, for fifty years, loving and cherishing it as he did his heart's blood, he would strike it now together with the blue pennant, the insignia of his present command, rather than fire a gun or raise his sword against his countrymen, especially in circumstances like the present, when he was without means of defending his position, and when an attempt to do so would result in a useless loss of life and destruction of property. He accordingly ordered the executive officer, Commander Farrand, to cause the flag of the United States, and the blue pennant, to be hauled down; the order was passed, in accordance with usage in the naval service, to the senior lieutenant (myself), under whose directions the time-honored flags were hauled down. The descent was witnessed by none in whose heart the regret and grief at the fate of our longly-beloved Union were more deeply felt than in mine. I now became a prisoner on parole, and remained so for several days, when I resigned my commission in the U. S. navy, which I have held as a lieutenant for twenty years, and tendered my services to the sovereign State of Florida, with whose destiny, whether bright or adverse, I am fully identified."

After the seizure of the navy-yard, Braxton Bragg, formerly an officer of the U. S. army, was ordered to proceed to Pensacola and take command of all the Confederate troops there, and conduct the operations against Fort Pickens. The situation in Florida, January 24th, 1861, was such that there was scarcely a doubt that all the strongholds in the State in the neighborhood of Pensacola would within a week be in the possession of the State troops. There was no one so familiar with the fortifications at Pensacola as Gen. Chase, the commander of the State forces, most of them having been planned and built by him while in the United States service. While investing Fort Pickens he determined to guard against the contingency of a blockade of Pensacola, by providing a six months' supply of provisions for the State troops, and making scaling ladders and other preparations to attempt the capture of Fort Pickens. Lieut. Slemmer, its commander, in reply to the commissioner who waited on him to know if he would surrender the fort, said "that he had orders from his government to defend the fort and that he would do so to the last extremity." Lieut. Berryman, commander of the Wyandotte, kept his war steamer at this time, (January 24th, 1861) continually moving opposite the yard and signalizing to the commander at Fort Pickens the movements of the troops.

After the surrender of the navy-yard the Buchanan administration had, as early as January, sent out an artillery force under Capt. Vogdes, on board the steam sloop-of-war Brooklyn, to reinforce the garrison in Fort Pickens. The vessel left Hampton Roads January 25th, and stopped at Key West on the 31st. Great excitement existed in Florida, and particularly in Pensacola, relative to the expected reinforcements of the fort. Before the Brooklyn reached Fort Pickens the Federal government entered into a truce with certain

Confederate leaders, to the effect that the U. S. government would pursue a policy of inaction, provided the Confederates would make no assault on the fort. Although this agreement was unwritten, it was faithfully kept for a time by the U. S. government, and as faithfully by the Confederates. Capt. Vogdes' command was not permitted to land, but was detained on board until after the expiration of Mr. Buchanan's term. When the Brooklyn arrived at Fort Pickens, the provisions were allowed to be delivered at the fort, but she was not allowed to enter the harbor of Pensacola, or to land troops at the fort. Her commander was ordered to act strictly on the defensive, and to give no pretext for hostilities.

When the change of administration took place on the 4th of March, and Mr. Lincoln became President, he found the government without extra means or authority to subdue the Southern States. Commander Jenkins and Capt. Wm. F. Smith, U.S. N., were in the winter of 1861 attached to the Lighthouse Board, the former as naval secretary, the latter as engineer secretary. Both of these officers were impressed with the danger which threatened Forts Jefferson and Taylor in Florida, and which would, if no steps were taken to prevent it, be likely to pass into the hands of the Confederates. They communicated their apprehensions to Gen. Dix, at that time Secretary of the Treasury, and their purpose to ascertain the condition of things in that quarter. Their suggestions were approved and Capt. Smith visited Tortugas and Key West under the pretext of inspecting the lights. He went to Dry Tortugas and Fort Taylor, saw their danger and satisfied himself as to what was best to be done for their safety. From his communications the U. S. government saw that prompt action was necessary to save the stations off the coast, but more important still was the need that Fort Pickens should be relieved and reinforced. Gen. Scott was much exercised and most anxious that Vogdes' command should be disembarked, and he applied to Secretary Welles for a naval vessel to convey a bearer of dispatches and reinforcements from the war department to Fort Pickens. The Crusader, Capt. Craven, and the Mohawk, were selected to send to the gulf. After several days of uncertainty caused by receiving no news from Pensacola, an officer, worn-out and exhausted, arrived in Washington, April 5th, with dispatches from Capt. Adams, in command of the squadron off Pensacola. The officer announced himself as Lieut. Gwathmey and unstrapping a belt from beneath his garments delivered a package to the Secretary of the Navy, containing the following letters:

"U. S. FRIGATE 'SABINE,' OFF PENSACOLA, April 1st, 1861. "SIR: I have the honor to enclose a copy of a letter addressed to me by Capt. Vogdes, U. S. A, who is here in command of some troops sent out in January last to reinforce the garrison of Fort Pickens. I have declined to land the men as Capt. Vogdes requests, as it would be in direct violation of the orders of the Navy Department under which I am

acting. The instructions from Gen. Scott to Capt. Vogdes are of old date (March 12th) and may have been given without a full knowledge of the condition of affairs here; they would be no justification. Such a step is too important to be taken without the clearest orders from proper authority. It would certainly be viewed as a hostile act, and would be resisted to the utmost. No one acquainted with the military assembled under Gen. Bragg can doubt that it would be considered not only a declaration, but an act, of war. It would be a serious thing to bring on, by any precipitation, a collision which may be entirely against the wishes of the administration. At present, both sides are faithfully observing the agreement entered into by the U. S. government, and with Mr. Mallory and Colonel Chase. This agreement binds us not to reinforce Fort Pickens, unless it should be attacked or threatened. It binds them not to attack it unless we should attempt to reinforce it. I saw Gen. Bragg on the 30th ult., who reassured me the conditions on their part should not be violated. While I cannot take upon myself, under such insufficient authority as Gen. Scott's order, the fearful responsibility of an act which seems to render civil war inevitable, I am ready at all times to carry out whatever orders I may receive from the Honorable the Secretary of the Navy.

"In conclusion, I beg you will please to send me instructions as soon as possible that I may be relieved from a painful embarrassment. Very respectfully, your obedient servant,

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"H. A. ADAMS, Captain, Senior Officer present.

To the Hon. GIDEON WELLES,

Secretary of the Navy, Washington, D. C."

"U. S. FRIGATE 'SABINE,' OFF PENSACOLA, April 1st, 1861. To Capt. H. A. ADAMS, Commanding Naval Forces off Pensacola. "SIR: Herewith I send you a copy of an order received by me last night. You will see by it that I am directed to land my command at the earliest opportunity. I have therefore to request that you will place at my disposal such boats and other means as will enable me to carry into effect the enclosed order. Yours, etc.,

"J. VOGDES, Captain First Artillery, Commanding."

"HEADQUARTERS OF THE ARMY, WASHINGTON, March 12th, 1861. "SIR: At the first favorable moment you will land with your company, reinforce Fort Pickens, and hold the same until further notice. Report frequently, if opportunities present themselves, on the condition of the fort and the circumstances around you.

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"I write by command of Gen. Scott.

I am, Sir, very respectfully. your obedient servant,

"E. D. TOWNSEND, Assist. Adjutant Gen. Capt. J. VOGDES, U. S. A., on board the U. S. Sloop-of-war ‘Brooklyn,” Off Fort Pickens, Pensacola, Florida."

The course of Capt. Adams caused great disappointment in Washington. It was not understood. Mr. Lincoln, and his Secretary of the Navy, knew of no written truce or orders of the character mentioned in Capt. Adams' letter, and suspicions were entertained of his fidelity to the government. In justice to him, however, it may be stated that he faithfully performed his duty and strictly obeyed the orders sent him. Lieut. Washington Gwathmey, the bearer of Capt. Adams' dispatches, was a Virginian, deeply imbued with the theories. prevalent at the South, but, like all the naval officers from the South, his opinions did not prevent him from faithfully discharging the trust confided to him. A few days after his