It is probable the
landlord of the Gayoso House was a strong Secessionist, and resolved,
therefore, to make the most out of a neutral customer like myself — certainly
Herodotus would have been astonished if he were called upon to pay the little
bill which was presented to me in the modern Memphis; and had the old Egyptian
hostelries been conducted on the same principles as those of the Tennessean
Memphis, the “Father of History” would have had to sell off a good many
editions in order to pay his way. I had to rise at three o'clock A. M., to
reach the train, which started before five. The omnibus which took us to the
station was literally nave deep in the dust; and of all the bad roads and dusty
streets I have yet seen in the New World, where both prevail, North and South,
those of Memphis are the worst. Indeed, as the citizen, of Hibernian birth, who
presided over the luggage of the passengers on the roof, declared, “The streets
are paved with waves of mud, only the mud is all dust when it's fine weather.”
By the time I had
arrived at the station my clothes were covered with a fine alluvial deposit in
a state of powder; the platform was crowded with volunteers moving off for the
wars, and I was obliged to take my place in a carriage full of Confederate
officers and soldiers who had a large supply of whiskey, which at that early
hour they were consuming as a prophylactic against the influence of the morning
dews, which hereabouts are of such a deadly character that, to be quite safe
from their influence, it appears to be necessary, judging from the examples of
my companions, to get as nearly drunk as possible. Whiskey, by-the-by, is also
a sovereign specific against the bites of rattle-snakes. All the dews of the
Mississippi and the rattle-snakes of the prairie might have spent their force
or venom in vain on my companions before we had got as far as Union City.
I was evidently
regarded with considerable suspicion by my fellow passengers, when they heard I
was going to Cairo, until the conductor obligingly informed them who I was, whereupon
I was much entreated to fortify myself against the dews and rattle-snakes, and
received many offers of service and kindness.
Whatever may be the
normal comforts of American railway cars, they are certainly most unpleasant
conveyances when the war spirit is abroad, and the heat of the day, which was
excessive, did not contribute to diminish the annoyance of foul air — the odor
of whiskey, tobacco, and the like, combined with innumerable flies. At Humbolt,
which is eightytwo miles away, there was a change of cars, and an opportunity
of obtaining some refreshment, — the station was crowded by great numbers of
men and women dressed in their best, who were making holiday in order to visit
Union City, forty-six miles distant, where a force of Tennessean and
Mississippi regiments are encamped. The ladies boldly advanced into carriages
which were quite full, and as they looked quite prepared to sit down on the
occupants of the seats if they did not move, and to destroy them with
all-absorbing articles of feminine warfare, either defensive or aggressive, and
crush them with iron-bound crinolines, they soon drove us out into the broiling
sun.
Whilst I was on the
platform I underwent the usual process of American introduction, not, I fear,
very good humoredly. A gentleman whom you never saw before in your life, walks
up to you and says, “I am happy to see you among us, sir,” and if he finds a
hand wandering about, he shakes it cordially. “My name is Jones, sir, Judge
Jones of Pumpkin County. Any information about this place or State that I can
give is quite at your service.” This is all very civil and well meant of Jones,
but before you have made up your mind what to say, or on what matter to test
the worth of his proffered information, he darts off and seizes one of the
group who have been watching Jones's advance, and comes forward with a tall
man, like himself, busily engaged with a piece of tobacco. “Colonel, let me
introduce you to my friend, Mr. Russell. This, sir, is one of our leading
citizens, Colonel Knags.” Whereupon the Colonel shakes hands, uses near the
same formula as Judge Jones, immediately returns to his friends, and cuts in
before Jones is back with other friends, whom he is hurrying up the platform,
introduces General Cassius Mudd and Dr. Ordlando Bellows, who go through the
same ceremony, and as each man has a circle of his own, my acquaintance becomes
prodigiously extended, and my hand considerably tortured in the space of a few
minutes; finally I am introduced to the driver of the engine and the stoker,
but they proved to be acquaintances not at all to be despised, for they gave me
a seat on the engine, which was really a boon, considering that the train was crowded
beyond endurance, and in a state of internal nastiness scarcely conceivable.
When I had got up on
the engine a gentleman clambered after me in order to have a little
conversation and he turned out to be an intelligent and clever man well
acquainted with the people and the country. I had been much impressed by the
account in the Memphis papers of the lawlessness and crime which seemed to
prevail in the State of Mississippi, and of the brutal shootings and stabbings
which disgraced it and other Southern States. He admitted it was true, but
could not see any remedy. “Why not?” “Well, sir, the rowdies have rushed in on
us, and we can't master them; they are too strong for the respectable people.” “Then
you admit the law is nearly powerless?” “Well, you see, sir, these men have got
hold of the people who ought to administer the law, and when they fail to do so
they are so powerful by reason of their numbers, and so reckless, they have
things their own way.”
“In effect, then,
you are living under a reign of terror, and the rule of a ruffian mob?” “It's
not quite so bad as that, perhaps, for the respectable people are not much
affected by it, and most of the crimes of which you speak are committed by
these bad classes in their own section; but it is disgraceful to have such a
state of things, and when this war is over, and we have started the confederacy
all fair, we'll put the whole thing down. We are quite determined to take the
law into our own hands, and the first remedy for the condition of affairs which,
we all lament, will be to confine the suffrage to native-born Americans, and to
get rid of the infamous, scoundrelly foreigners, who now overrule us in our
country.” “But are not-many regiments of Irish and Germans now fighting for
you? And will these foreigners who have taken up arms in your cause be content
to receive as the result of their success an inferior position, politically, to
that which they now hold?” “Well, sir, they must; we are bound to go through
with this thing if we would save society.” I had so often heard a similar
determination expressed by men belonging to the thinking classes in the South,
that I am bound to believe the project is entertained by many of those engaged
in this great revolt — one principle of which indeed, may be considered
hostility to universal suffrage, combining with it, of course, the limitation
of the immigrant vote.
The portion of
Tennessee through which the rail runs is exceedingly uninteresting, and looks
unhealthy, the clearings occur at long intervals in the forest, and the
unwholesome population, who came out of their low shanties, situated amidst
blackened stumps of trees or fields of Indian corn, did not seem prosperous or
comfortable. The twists and curves of the rail, through cane brakes and swamps
exceeded in that respect any line I have ever travelled on; but the vertical
irregularities of the rail were still greater, and the engine bounded as if it
were at sea.
The names of the
stations show that a savant has been rambling about the district. Here is
Corinth, which consists of a wooden grog-shop and three log shanties;
the acropolis is represented by a grocery store, of which the proprietors, no
doubt, have gone to the wars, as their names were suspiciously Milesian, and
the doors and windows were fastened; but occasionally the names of the stations
on the railway boards represented towns and villages, hidden in the wood some
distance away, and Mummius might have something to ruin if he marched off the
track, but not otherwise.
The city of Troy was
still simpler in architecture than the Grecian capitol. The Dardanian towers
were represented by a timber-house, in the veranda of which the American Helen
was seated, in the shape of an old woman smoking a pipe, and she certainly
could have set the Palace of Priam on fire much more readily than her
prototype. Four sheds, three log huts, a saw-mill, about twenty negroes sitting
on a wood-pile, and looking at the train, constituted the rest of the place,
which was certainly too new for one to say, Troja fuity whilst the
general " fixins " would scarcely authorize us to say with any
confidence, Troja fuerit.
The train from Troy
passed through a cypress swamp, over which the engine rattled, and hopped at a
perilous rate along high trestle work, till forty-six miles from Humbolt we
came to Union City, which was apparently formed by aggregate meetings of
discontented shavings that had travelled out of the forest hard by. But a
little beyond it was the Confederate camp, which so many citizens and
citizenesses had come out into the wilderness to see; and a general descent was
made upon the place whilst the volunteers came swarming out of their tents to
meet their friends. It was interesting to observe the affectionate greetings
between the young soldiers, mothers, wives, and sweethearts, and as a display
of the force and earnestness of the Southern people — the camp itself
containing thousands of men, many of whom were members of the first families in
the State — was specially significant.
There is no
appearance of military order or discipline about the camps, though they were
guarded by sentries and cannon, and implements of war and soldiers'
accoutrements were abundant. Some of the sentinels carried their firelocks
under their arms like umbrellas, others carried the but over the shoulder and
the muzzle downwards, and one for his greater ease had stuck the bayonet of his
firelock into the ground, and was leaning his elbow on the stock with his chin
on his hand, whilst sybarites less ingenious, had simply deposited their
muskets against the trees,, and were lying down reading newspapers. Their arms
and uniforms were of different descriptions — sporting rifles, fowling pieces,
flint muskets, smooth bores, long and short barrels, new Enfields, and the like;
but the men, nevertheless, were undoubtedly material for excellent soldiers.
There were some few boys, too young to carry arms, although the zeal and ardor
of such lads cannot but have a good effect, if they behave well in action.
The great attraction
of this train lay in a vast supply of stores, with which several large vans
were closely packed, and for fully two hours the train was delayed, whilst
hampers of wine, spirits, vegetables, fruit, meat, groceries, and all the
various articles acceptable to soldiers living under canvas were disgorged on
the platform, and carried away by the expectant military.
I was pleased to
observe the perfect confidence that was felt in the honesty of the men. The
railway servants simply deposited each article as it came out on the platform —
the men came up, read the address, and carried it away, or left it, as the case
might be; and only in one instance did I see a scramble, which was certainly
quite justifiable, for, in handing out a large basket the bottom gave way, and
out tumbled onions, apples, and potatoes among the soldiery, who stuffed their
pockets and haversacks with the unexpected bounty. One young fellow, who was
handed a large wicker-covered jar from the van, having shaken it, and gratified
his ear by the pleasant jingle inside, retired to the roadside, drew the cork,
and, raising it slowly to his mouth, proceeded to take a good pull at the
contents, to the envy of his comrades; but the pleasant expression upon his
face rapidly vanished, and spurting out the fluid with a hideous grimace, he
exclaimed, “D——; why, if the old woman has not gone and sent me a gallon of syrup.”
The matter was evidently considered too serious to joke about, for not a soul
in the crowd even smiled; but they walked away from the man, who, putting down
the jar, seemed in doubt as to whether he would take it away or not.
Numerous were the
invitations to stop, which I received from the officers. “Why not stay with us,
sir; what can a gentleman want to go among black Republicans and Yankees for?”
It is quite obvious that my return to the Northern States is regarded with some
suspicion; but I am bound to say that my explanation of the necessity of the
step was always well received, and satisfied my Southern friends that I had no
alternative. A special correspondent, whose letters cannot get out of the
country in which he is engaged, can scarcely fulfil the purpose of his mission;
and I used to point out, good-humoredly, to these gentlemen that until they had
either opened the communication with the North, or had broken the blockade, and
established steam communication with Europe, I must seek my base of operations
elsewhere.
At last we started
from Union City; and there came into the car, among other soldiers who were
going out to Columbus, a fine specimen of the wild filibustering population of
the South, which furnish many recruits to the ranks of the Confederate army — a
tall, brawny-shouldered, brown-faced, black-bearded, hairy-handed man, with a
hunter's eye, and rather a Jewish face, full of life, energy, and daring. I
easily got into conversation with him, as my companion happened to be a
freemason, and he told us he had been a planter in Mississippi, and once owned
110 negroes, worth at least some 20,000l.;
but, as he said himself, “I was always patrioting it about;” and so he went
off, first with Lopez to Cuba, was wounded and taken prisoner by the Spaniards,
but had the good fortune to be saved from the execution which was inflicted on
the ringleaders of the expedition. When he came back he found his plantation
all the worse, and a decrease amongst his negroes; but his love of adventure
and filibustering was stronger than his prudence or desire of gain. He took up
with Walker, the “gray-eyed man of destiny,” and accompanied him in his strange
career till his leader received the coup de grace in the final raid upon
Nicaragua.
Again he was taken
prisoner, and would have been put to death by the Nicaraguans, but for the intervention
of Captain Aldham. “I don't bear any love to the Britishers,” said he, “but I'm
bound to say, as so many charges have been made against Captain Aldham, that he
behaved like a gentleman, and if I had been at New Orleans when them cussed
cowardly blackguards ill-used him, I'd have left my mark so deep on a few of
them, that their clothes would not cover them long.” He told us that at present
he had only five negroes left, “but I'm not going to let the black Republicans
lay hold of them, and I'm just going to stand up for States' rights as long as
I can draw a trigger — so snakes and abolitionists look out.” He was so reduced
by starvation, ill-treatment, and sickness in Nicaragua, when Captain Aldham
procured his release, that he weighed only 110 pounds, but at present he was
over 200 pounds, a splendid betefauve, and without wishing so fine a
looking fellow any harm, I could not but help thinking that it must be a
benefit to American society to get rid of a considerable number of these class
of which he is a representative man. And there is every probability that they
will have a full opportunity of doing so.
On the arrival of
the train at Columbus, twenty-five miles from Union City, my friend got out,
and a good number of men in uniform joined him, which led me to conclude that
they had some more serious object than a mere pleasure trip to the very
uninteresting looking city on the banks of the Mississippi, which is asserted
to be neutral territory, as it belongs to the sovereign State of Kentucky. I
heard, accidentally, as I came in the train, that a party of Federal soldiers
from the camp at Cairo, up the river, had recently descended to Columbus and
torn down a, secession flag which had been hoisted on the river's bank, to the
great indignation of many of its inhabitants.
In those border
States the coming war promises to produce the greatest misery; they will be the
scenes of hostile operations; the population is divided in sentiment; the
greatest efforts will be made by each side to gain the ascendency in the State,
and to crush the opposite faction, and it is not possible to believe that
Kentucky can maintain a neutral position, or that either Federal or
Confederates will pay the smallest regard to the proclamation of Governor
Magoffin, and to his empty menaces.
At Columbus the
steamer was waiting to convey us up to Cairo, and I congratulated myself on the
good fortune of arriving in time for the last opportunity that will be afforded
of proceeding northward by this route. General Pillow on the one hand, and
General Prentiss on the other, have resolved to blockade the Mississippi, and
as the facilities for Confederates going up to Columbus and obtaining
information of what is happening in the Federal camps cannot readily be
checked, the general in command of the port to which I am bound has intimated
that the steamers must cease running. It was late in the day when we entered
once more on the father of waters, which is here just as broad, as muddy, as
deep, and as wooded as it is at Baton Rouge, or Vicksburg.
Columbus is situated
on an elevated spur or elbow of land projecting into the river, and has, in
commercial faith, one of those futures which have so many rallying points down
the centre of the great river. The steamer which lay at the wharf, or rather
the wooden piles in the bank which afforded a resting place for the gangway,
carried no flag, and on board presented traces of better days, a list of
refreshments no longer attainable, and of bill of fare utterly fanciful. About
twenty passengers came on board, most of whom had a distracted air, as if they
were doubtful of their journey. The captain was surly, the office keeper
petulant, the crew morose, and, perhaps, only one man on board, a stout
Englishman, who was purser or chief of the victualling department, seemed at
all inclined to be communicative. At dinner he asked me whether I thought there
would be a fight, but as I was oscillating between one extreme and the other, I
considered it right to conceal my opinion even from the steward of the
Mississippi boat; and, as it happened, the expression of it would not have been
of much consequence one way or the other, for it turned out that our friend w«s
of very stern stuff. “This war,” he said, “is all about niggers; I've been
sixteen years in the country, and I never met one of them yet was fit to be any
thing but a slave; I know the two sections well, and I tell you, sir, the North
can't whip the South, let them do their best; they may ruin the country, but
they'll do no good.
There were men on
board who had expressed the strongest Secession sentiments in the train, but
who now sat and listened and acquiesced in the opinions of Northern men, and by
the time Cairo was in sight, they, no doubt, would have taken the oath of
allegiance which every doubtful person is required to utter before he is
allowed to go beyond the military post.
In about two hours
or so the captain pointed out to me a tall building and some sheds, which
seemed to arise out of a wide reach in the river, “that's Cairey,” said he, “where
the Unionists have their camp,” and very soon stars and stripes were visible,
waving from a lofty staff, at the angle of low land formed by the junction of
the Mississippi and Ohio.
For two months I had
seen only the rival stars and bars, with the exception of the rival banner
floating from, the ships and the fort at Pickens. One of the passengers told me
that the place was supposed to be described by Mr. Dickens, in “Martin
Chuzzlewit,” and as the steamer approached the desolate embankment, which
seemed the only barrier between the low land on which the so-called city was
built, and the waters of the great river rising above it, it certainly became
impossible to believe that sane men, even as speculators, could have fixed upon
such a spot as the possible site of a great city, — an emporium of trade and
commerce. A more desolate woe-begone looking place, now that all trade and
commerce had ceased, cannot be conceived; but as the southern terminus of the
Central Illinois Railway, it displayed a very different scene before the war
broke out.
With the exception
of the large hotel, which rises far above the levee of the river, the public
edifices are represented by a church and spire, and the rest of the town by a
line of shanties and small houses, the rooms and upper stories of which are
just visible above the embankment. The general impression effected by the place
was decidedly like that which the Isle of Dogs produces on a despondent
foreigner as he approaches London by the river on a drizzly day in November.
The stream, formed by the united efforts of the Mississippi and the Ohio, did
not appear to gain much breadth, and each of the confluents looked as large as
its product with the other. Three steamers lay alongside the wooden wharves
projecting from the embankment, which was also lined by some flat-boats.
Sentries paraded the gangways as the steamer made fast along the shore, but no
inquiry was directed to any of the passengers, and I walked up the levee and
proceeded straight to the hotel, which put me very much in mind of an effort
made by speculating proprietors to create a watering-place on some lifeless
beach. In the hall there were a number of officers in United States uniforms,
and the lower part of the hotel was, apparently, occupied as a military bureau;
finally, I was shoved into a small dungeon, with a window opening out on the
angle formed by the two rivers, which was lined with sheds and huts and
terminated by a battery.
These camps are such
novelties in the country, and there is such romance in the mere fact of a man
living in a tent, that people come far and wide to see their friends under such
extraordinary circumstances, and the hotel at Cairo was crowded by men and
women who had come from all parts of Illinois to visit their acquaintances and
relations belonging to the State troops encamped at this important point. The salle
a manger, a long and lofty room on the ground floor, which I visited at
supper time, was almost untenable by reason of heat and flies; nor did I find
that the free negroes, who acted as attendants, possessed any advantages over
their enslaved brethren a few miles lower down the river; though their freedom
was obvious enough in their demeanor and manners.
I was introduced to
General Prentiss, an agreeable person, without any thing about him to indicate
the soldier. He gave me a number of newspapers, the articles in which were
principally occupied with a discussion of Lord John Russell's speech on
American affairs: Much as the South found fault with the British minister for
the views he had expressed, the North appears much more indignant, and
denounces in the press what the journalists are pleased to call "the
hostility of the Foreign Minister to the United States." It is admitted,
however, that the extreme irritation caused by admitting the Southern States to
exercise limited belligerent rights was not quite justifiable. Soon after nightfall
I retired to my room and battled with mosquitoes till I sank into sleep and
exhaustion, and abandoned myself to their mercies; perhaps, after all, there
were not more than a hundred or so, and their united efforts could not absorb
as much blood as would be taken out by one leech, but then their horrible
acrimony, which leaves a wreck behind in the place where they have banqueted,
inspires the utmost indignation and appears to be an indefensible prolongation
of the outrage of the original bite.
SOURCE: William Howard Russell, My Diary North and
South, p. 322-32
